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Shooting sticks on the cheap.

49K views 34 replies 25 participants last post by  HarrySS 
#1 ·
How about a nice pair of shooting sticks that cost near nothing to build?

Stuff you need:

Two 36 inch half inch dowels

1 10 to 12 inch piece of 1/2 inch inside diameter tubing.
Radiator hose, automotive water or fuel line or clear tubing at the hardware store works.

Two 2 inch deck screws.

Two 3/4 inch nails

Two 1/2 inch nails

Two cans of inexpensive spray paint, colors to your choice.

Here's the dowels and tubing. I found this re-inforced clear tubing at the local Tru-Value hardware store along with everything else on the list above. You can see where I marked the tubing to be cut. The reason for four dowels and two pieces of tubing is I made a pair for the Grand daughters.



Cut a notch out of the tubing in the middle about 2-2 1//2 inches long. Leave about half the thickness of the tubing in the middle.



Drill a small hole an inch deep in one end of each dowel for the deck screws.



Put the deck screws in so they have around an inch or so protruding. I left the heads on the deck screws, but you can cut them off and grind them to a point if you want. Leaving the heads on holds as well as a point and if you've got youngsters it won't stick them.



Slip the dowels into the tubing like this.



A couple of brads in the tubing keeps it from slipping. I put a 3/4 inch piece on the bottom with a couple of short brads just cause it looked neat.



Spray paint with a light base color then daubs of a darker on top and your done. There's no need for a pivot point on these and just adjusting the leg width on the ground you can adjust the hight. Great sitdown shooting sticks for just a few bucks.

 
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#4 ·
Hey, I wish I had thought of it, too! ;-) I'll tell you a mod that makes it even nicer -- one I saw on some cable TV outdoors show. Same basic plan, but instead of cutting the hose, make it a bit longer. Then, you drape the hose over the rifle barrel, pull the sticks down to cross, and you have an instant bipod that actually clamps the gun in position for a bit more secure rest. Mighty nice to have when you're making a long stand, or stopping for a rest period -- rest the butt on the ground and the rifle is held there securely. You don't have to look for a handy place to lean the rifle.
 
#6 ·
Thx for the great idea Bob. Only thing I can come up with to cheapen it up is for those that have creek-bottom willows growing that are nice and straight, cut a couple of those to replace the dowels and do the same . May have to replace them every few years as they get too brittle in low humidity air. I've been pondering that for a few years to get the bipods above the sagebrush here, but looks like you got the patent first!
 
#7 ·
The willow thing sure ought to work, and you can make them short or long for individual shooters heights. At what these cost to put togather it wouldn't matter if they did only last a few years. This would even work well for a pair of stand up shooting sticks such as I've seen in African hunts.
 
#10 ·
Hey, Bob -

This would be a good candidate for the "Tips and Comments" forum and a permanent sticky. Want to put it there?
 
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#11 ·
That would be a good idea, I just didn't know how to do that. This was an idea I picked up on one of the varmint hunting forums and it's sure an inexpensive way to make up a couple of shooting sticks. It's also easy enough that folks with no woodworking experience can build them. The lack of a hinge pin makes them really simply to make and use.
 
#13 ·
If you shoot a traditional rifle and shoot at period events this works well. Buy a couple of axe handles, a bolt, a hex nut, an acorn nut and some brass head tacks. Scrounge a bit of buckskin or suede. You can probably carve better than I did. In case you can't tell, they're bear heads. The eyes are bits of coral.

This isn't my idea. They are copied from a friend's pair, but he carved eagle heads.

I should try wolves next time.

Carving Wood Flute Musical instrument


Finger Wood Plant




Antique tool Wood Plant
 
#14 ·
I forgot to mention the antler tips on the axe handles on the cross sticks I just submitted....ooooops! They are obviously to prevent skidding of the sticks.


I also forgot about the cross stick "saddles" I make and carry to rendezvous for my trade blanket. I make them out of leather, but heavy cloth could be used.

The top piece is about 1 1/2" x 5 1/2". The 2 bottom pieces are about 1 1/2" x 1 3/4".

If you want to go hunting with minimum gear, stick a saddle in your pocket. Cut a pair of straight limbs in the woods about 30" long (according to your seated height) and lash them together about 8" from the top end. Stick the ends into the pockets of the saddle and have a bipod.


Banana Yellow Smile Banana family Line
 
#15 ·
Cheap is my language!

Yes,
I have had bi-pods on my rifles before, found them heavy and too short for the vegetation that I hunt in, but I bought a skate pole, like a ski pole but longer because I am tall, but it has a lanyard for my wrist, weighs nothing, doubles as a walking stick, is painted camo; and the best part , I can wrap my fist around it at any height and have a rock steady gun rest that is entirely uncumbersome. What you do is tip the stick away from your fist on the top, to make whatever angle you want, then lay the gun on your fist, hold it with your finger if you want, the possibilities are endless, from 1 foot high to 5 foot plus.

This long stick is very strong and has a metal foot that is very sure, on the downward side when on a steep sidehill it is a welcome stead.

I would pay a good sum for this now, if I did not have mine, but this one put me back a buck and a half.
 
#16 ·
"I have had bi-pods on my rifles before, found them heavy and too short for the vegetation that I hunt in, but I bought a skate pole, like a ski pole but longer because I am tall, but it has a lanyard for my wrist, weighs nothing, doubles as a walking stick, is painted camo; and the best part , I can wrap my fist around it at any height and have a rock steady gun rest that is entirely uncumbersome. What you do is tip the stick away from your fist on the top, to make whatever angle you want, then lay the gun on your fist, hold it with your finger if you want, the possibilities are endless, from 1 foot high to 5 foot plus."

I like that idea. I like both ideas truth to tell, especially the tubing on the cross sticks.
I made a walking stick/monopod from a piece of 3/4" bamboo that was lying around with two rubber crutch tips that I salvaged from a pair of discarded crutches. Easy to carry, helpful on a walk and used just as described.
Pete
 
#17 ·
I just made a pair this weekend - that is 2 sets. I had some camo paint and camoed them up too. Not sure how well the paint will work on the flexi part of the tubing, but we'll see.

Thanks for the great idea. I made one a bit longer (4 foot sticks) to use from a stool in the pop-up blind this fall. The other I intend to use for coyote hunting.
 
#19 ·
I found a set just like you described way back in the woods, a couple of miles from the nearest forest service road, laying on the ground. They were half buryed in pine needles so I figure they were there for at least a couple of years. They sure work well for me. The only thing I would add is to wrap the dowels with camo tape.
 
#24 ·
cross sticks


I made a set about 6 years ago, very similar to Bob's. I used leather for the "saddle", cut wide enough that it will wrap around the stick. Stitch the sides together for a couple inches, making a pocket. Repeat for the other side. No need for a pivot bolt. I will make my saddle just a couple of inches longer next time I get around to making another set.
 
#22 ·
I use trekking poles. having been a hiker for many years I've been through a couple pairs of trekking poles mine are titanium and are made by Komperdel. They don't last forever and they are not as inexpensive as your idea but they also serve the purpose of being able to be used while walking to save the knees and help balance a heavily loaded pack. since they come with a wrist strap and a padded foam handle it is pretty easy to throw each wrist strap over the other stick to make the saddle and cross them much like your sticks. they also have the advantage of being of adjustable length from about 20 inches up to about 5' they are not cammo but a little paint could fix that up. I've also used an oversized rubber band to hold them in an X shape for more stability.
 
#31 · (Edited)
I like that idea. I suspect it would also work with standard hiking poles. The only problem I would have is in carrying two sticks. How do you get around two sticks and also carry a rifle without keeping the rifle on a sling? Or, am I interpreting your idea incorrectly? I like this because I have no choice but to carry a walking/hiking stick when hunting. I have attempted to use only one stick as a shooting platform, but one stick is not working out real well for me. Maybe i just need more practice, but two sticks would be much better.
 
#23 ·
I made a set of shooting sticks for my daughter last year. They are very simple, requiring two saplings (I like ironwood or elm) about 1" in diameter and 6-10 black zip-ties. No camo paint required. :)

You drill a hole all the way through each sapling about 4" down from the top and run 2 zipties (joined into one) through the holes, connecting them together and being careful not to tighten them too much. Next, you open the sticks up until they are at the correct height for a person who is seated in a chair to use the rest effectively. Then, you drill a hole through each sapling 1/3 to 1/2 of the way down, using the remaining zip-ties to set this as the maximum distance the legs can spread apart.

If you're so inclined, you can whittle down the ends to a blunt point, so they'll bite into the ground better. The sticks can then be used from a standing or seated position. If I'm lower to the ground than that, I will put my elbows over my knees or shoot from the prone position, since both are already pretty stable.

This entire project costs less than 50 cents and takes longer to read about than it does to do. I cannot see them being any less effective than the commercial products costing $50, or more.
 
#25 ·
Go to Goodwill and buy yourself a couple of graphite-shaft golf clubs for $1 each. Cut off the heads. Cut about a 4" length of bicycle inner tube, slide it on to the cut ends and up to the rubber handles. Voila -- cheap, feather-lite, rubber grips to protect stock finish, strong enough to use as walking sticks.
 
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