FX Not convinced an FX Crown bottle clamp is a good idea

[SilentSquirrel]

Although this concern could apply to any rifle that has the bottle directly into the receiver, for me it's about the FX Crown MkII
I am thoroughly not convinced that is ok (safe) to mount a bipod on a bottle clamp and have the bottle support the rifle.
Thoughts please.
Especially from folks with direct experience

Thanks
Edward

 

[Jlowe]

I have 2 Crowm MKII's and I use them ll the time. I have one with the MOA rail attached to the stock and I really don't like it. Opinions vary.

 

[Long_Gun_Dallas]

Rail broke out of my original stock. Don't feel like mutilating the walnut stock. Overall construction of the crown is extremely strong. I'd wager under 3500lbs of pressure it can take 30 or so more.

 

[Smok3y]

Never had a problem with any rifle I’ve used one on. I see people with them all the time and have never heard of any issues.

 

[qball]

Should be fine most of the time. My gripe with them is I use bipod and when using bottle clamp for bipod I often twist the bottle loose just a little when adjusting cant.

 

[gxs]

I was scared to use it at first but I was going by the logic that it wouldn't be sold if a lot of people had issues with them. So far no problems here.

 

[cavedweller]

Although this concern could apply to any rifle that has the bottle directly into the receiver, for me it's about the FX Crown MkII
I am thoroughly not convinced that is ok (safe) to mount a bipod on a bottle clamp and have the bottle support the rifle.
Thoughts please.
Especially from folks with direct experience

Thanks
Edward

I am speaking from a high pressure air "safety only" standpoint.
IMHO, It is a bad idea to attach anything to an airsource and expect it to suddenly become a weight bearing or structural member .... and yet you see people routinely doing this.
The neck of an airtube or an airbottle, to me, are the weakest part of the system and unless specifically engineered to support the forces at the point where they are being applied, you just shouldn't do it. just because you can doesn't mean you should!
IMO.

 

[SilentSquirrel]

Thanks everyone

 

[engfred]

Hi Edward,
My experience is that a Bipod on the bottle causes a lot of Poi shifts if you like shoot a benchrest target. The POI becomes unpredictable unless you carefully lifts the legs on the bipod and put them down again. If you shoot a mag, on the same target without moving the rifle and the eye, I can shoot a magazine down the same hole.

I successfully use bottle clamp placed on the middle of the bottle, for attaching the bipod on my Redwolf - this is no problem the Redwolf is sturdy like a tank.

My Crown is very lightweight compared and will be much more sensible to shoot.

I find it better when I shoot with the bipod mounted on a picatinny rail fixed to the end of the Crowns wood stock.

But also remember to tighten the two screws holding the stock semi tight.
It is totally unpredictable if the screws are not properly tightened.

With that said I have really been fighting the POI shift on my Crown.
I have tried many different ways to avoid not only sideways, but also up and down depending on the load distribution on the bipod vs. hold vs. reas support.
Best is to have a bipod that can rotate when you rotate sideways. And secure to hold the same way every time so you get the same weight on the bipod every time you press the trigger.
If the bipod legs is 45° degrees forward - be sure to have feets with very little friction from bipod feets to the table.
This should allow the bipod to easily slide into the same position between every shot.

I know this is probably basic information for most shooters - but I just learned by comparing different ways.

But one thing is for sure Bipod holder on the bottle did not work for me at all with my FX Crown.

The Crown will never be like my Redwolf. I can take the redwolf out of box and shoot at a target from 50 m and it will hit the same spot as last time - from the first shot.
Lets just say it as it is - They Crown needs some massage to wake up and perform - just like men in my age ;-)

Best regards Claus from Denmark

Old photo from when I just received my Crown Today I use mainly 700 mm barrels - It is so long.

 

[18.13]

Been doing it for years never a problem no poi shift

 

[steve-l]

The POI shift on my Crown was truly terrible. Just the lightest jar of the barrel would knock the POI all over the place. Just session to session everything would change. Just putting the rifle in the case would cause POI shift. I started using bottle to barrel clamps and my POI shift just went away. They work very well and add little to no stress to the bottle. One point of caution........not all clamps are good. Most all I have seen are printed plastic and the material stretches and the grip relaxes. be careful choosing which the one you use.

 

[MongooseV8]

Same old story. Plenty of people will post "never had a problem" but I wont be using one myself. Having worked in an industry with high pressure fittings everywhere, I can tell you for certain they do fail.

 

[steve-l]

Same old story. Plenty of people will post "never had a problem" but I wont be using one myself. Having worked in an industry with high pressure fittings everywhere, I can tell you for certain they do fail.

What will fail?

 

[MongooseV8]

What will fail?

The concern some people have is the bottle adapter.

 

[Solo1]

The big thing is possibly over tightening the clamp or possibly just leaning too hard on it. I looked inside my bottle that had a clamp and you could see right where the clamp was. I’ll never use 1 again!

 

[Scotty1]

The big thing is possibly over tightening the clamp or possibly just leaning too hard on it. I looked inside my bottle that had a clamp and you could see right where the clamp was. I’ll never use 1 again!

What clamp was that? The Saber Tactical clamp would be hard to over tighten, but that band type clamp I can see leaving a footprint.

 

[Solo1]

What clamp was that? The Saber Tactical clamp would be hard to over tighten, but that band type clamp I can see leaving a footprint.

Saber. Looking in the bottle you could clearly see the bend in the al where the clamp was. Could notice nothing in the cf so i assume there was at least some separation.

 

[Chukar60]

I run one on my Panthera that I converted to front bottle only. Also had one on two Crown MKII’s I owned.
The only issue was that on a couple and I mean just a couple occasions, the bottle loosened off the thread Less than an 1/8 of a turn. Trust me if it moves you notice it right away. No air leaked out and the bipod was not usable in that position.
As for the threads of the bottle being damaged? I get the theoretical issue but in reality I would need to hear from a few people who have actually experienced this. I do not recall any postings here about someone actually having the problem.

 

[gendoc]

i'm not a bipod fan, but i do use the Bog grip tripod and the caldwell turrent.
lightly clamping the bottle on the sides while resting the bottle on the bottom of the clamp.
the caldwell has the pistol grip rest that works well, the bog holds the gun by the bottle only.
i made a device to hold my U1 in the Bog without clamping the bottle and soon to
adapt this device to my V3.

 

[Dairyboy]

I'm personally not a fan of them either. I'll attach something to the stock if need be. I think put enough stress on the bottle eventually somethings got to give.