Tripod question

[BrentM]

For a shooting tripod setup, its important that the shooter not
lose the target due to the recoil of the gun, even with the heavy recoil types.
And thats especially true in wooded terrain, and when hunting alone with no one spotting shots for you.
Allowing the gun to slide rearward during recoil is necessary in order to eliminate excessive muzzel movement during recoil.

A ball head can be a drawback at times due to the possibility of the gun tilting to the side when loosening the tension on the ball.
Up/down and traverse are the only movements of the muzzel required when shooting and followingan animal.
Leveling can be accomplished with the tripod legs.
Pinning of the ball eliminates the flopping to the side, but many of the pot metal ball heads wont permit that.

You are not wrong but generally this is an issue for people who are new or don't actually practice. I've run a ball head arca for a pile of years and once a the learning curve is attained, having the ball head is valuable

 

[BenelliHunter]

My kids and i hunt almost exclusively with RRS and arca mounts. We have the clamps for guns without arca but I much rather the arca.

 

[Buck3]

After starting with the hog saddle and trying a rifle with a integral arca I sold my Hog Saddle and converting everything to arca.

It's much better and easier swapping from binos, to spotter, to rifle.

 

[Euler]

Skip the PIG/HOG saddle. It's legacy tech that is slower, less stable, heavier, and bulkier.

I'd much rather shoot from a bag thrown on top of a head or tripod apex then go back to a saddle.

 

[Coyote Shadow Tracker]

Is it worth stepping up to an ARCA style tripod and mount over something like a hog saddle? I've got the clamp style tripod for my son, but I'm wondering if I would be better served in my own long range shooting with the other style. What experience can you guys share?

Bog Death Grip with a Vortex Carbon Radian with a rifle, but also like the ARCA with our optics. All depends on what you are using for. The ARCA can be used with both firearm & Optic.
We have a Vortex Carbon Radian NIB for sale.

Vortex Radian Carbon Ball Head Tripod

We have a NEW IN THE BOX -never opened! **Reduced** VORTEX RADIAN™ CARBON FIBER TRIPOD + BALL HEAD As some of you know me I at one time would purchase (3) of everything. One for Jill, one for her father and one for me. We bought this for Bill a few months back for his birthday and he is no...

www.longrangehunting.com

 

[CaneBrake]

The ARCA setup with a leveling head or a ball head will be miles ahead of a HOG saddle in terms of stability, provided the tripod is quality. I still use a HOG saddle and a PIG saddle because that's what I'm used to, but they leave a bit to be desired. The rubber inserts in them actually allow the rifle to move up and down quite a bit. You really need a bag under your elbow to be rock stable with them. The sides of PIG saddle deflect quite a bit when clamped down and won't hold on to a rifle by very much. The HOG saddle is very versatile for different firing positions if not using a ball head, but with a ball head or leveling head the HOG is a step backwards.

 

[waveslayer]

OP, there's a big big difference in stability using a HOG saddle over a Arca mount. Get a good Arca and make sure it's placed well to provide the upmost stability on your rifle. There's no comparison using a solid tripod and Arca might. Use a Pig or Hog with a aluminum tripod and have fun stabilizing that