First impressions were WOW, what a great piece of stalking equipment! Loved the carbon fibre, how easy they were to extend and compress, carry bag is exceptional, handle/rifle rest exceptional.Field testing unearthed a few idiosyncrasies!
First , and for me most annoying, when I first went to deploy the sticks to shoot I rested my Sauer404 XTC rifle on the 'V' next to me and released the front handle which fell forward approximately 1000 mm's. As a result I had to reach forward to retrieve the front handle so I could set my forend into the front 'V'. This I felt was a dangerous thing to have to do and also extended the time required to get onto my target. I spoke to Bushwear about this 'problem' and their advice was to tie a piece of fishing line between both tips which would restrain the separation of the sticks! For £250 I felt that this should not be something I should have to Heath Robinson together!
Next issue, after a couple of weeks 'in the field' I discovered the rubber strap that holds the quad sticks together at the bottom had disappeared.On my return journey through Scotland on a hunting trip I called into the Stirling shop and talked to the employee about the lose of rubber. He lifted a new pair from the shop rack and amazingly they too were missing! As we talked about this rubber strap we agreed that it, in itself, was way too easily removed from its mounting points.After our joint amusement he kindly offered me a replacement and again offered advice as to how I should 'secure' the new band.Solution- Epoxy Resin.
ON my return home I had given the whole issue considerable thought and decided to ring Bushwear and talk these things through. My hope was that I could return them as I felt these were legitimate reasons for "not fit for purpose". Bottom line was that Bushwear policy is such that as they were 'used' they did not qualify for return and refund.
The only way, prior to my findings in the field to know how these expensive sticks perform was to actually use them. 'Playing around ' with them in my study was not the same as using them for real and certainly would not put the demanding strains on them that stalking involves.
The employee offered me a 60% credit note, I assume to ensure Bushwear came out on the 'right side of things'.
More recently I wrote a lengthy email to Bushwear regarding my experiences and, to date, have not had a response!
I hope this has given an insight to my personal experiences but I also see a couple of similar points in the reviews below.I am amazed how a company, such as Blaser, could miss simple but crucial issues as those described in their R & D prior to releasing these sticks.
