Gardner / Seco Rod Rest

My rod is 6.69' and top heavy, I don't think that would work for me.

> Anyone used one of these?
Yes I have. They work best on smooth surfaces. You do have to pay a little attention to get it to work. They are not completely stable. As in - you can take your hand off it but I wouldn't walk away and leave it if there is the slightest breeze. And it's not weightless. But all in all, a better option, for the purpose, than a bipod. It is probably worth the money.

I have one and use it occasionally. It works good for solo stakeout, which is the only stakeout I do. I use it with the robot or the GPS, but it gets really top heavy when you try to use it while doing "Integrated Surveying", using the robot and the rover at the same time.

Tried one like this once... just a modified golf stand-bag kickstand.
It will hang up on EVERYTHING as you go through brush.
You'll be taking it off A LOT to get next to, or in between fences.
I found it more of a PIA than useful. I just set the rod down.

i have one and use it when the ground is flat and when there is no wind. it's handy for solo operation but i only use it with my robotic, not gps. worth the money

Been using one since they first came out. Best solo help I have. Set the rod down and pick it up with one hand. Worn out 4-5, they get kind of floppy. But on the one I have now I put one of those rubber hair bands around the top of the legs and that really tightened it up. Also put some tape above and below the rubber bumpers on the legs to keep them from slipping. You have to clamp it pretty tight on the bottom of the rod to keep it from slipping, so I found a piece of aluminum pipe that would fit tight into the bottom of the rod and cut it to length so when the top section is all the way down the HT of my prism is 5.50 and the rod scale is correct. That lets you clamp it on tight without crushing the rod and the top portion doesn't have to slide past the clamp point. Also just fits crossways in the back of my truck. When I put my R8 Rover on it, I set the scale at 2M, which is actually 6.12 ft. That makes it not too top heavy. I have that ht set in my controller, and since I'm the only one that uses it it's never caused a problem.

If I had to use a bipod all the time I'd have to have some help. The rodrest doesn't hang up on stuff as bad, or weigh nearly as much, as a bipod. Just be careful when you set it down in a soft spot, or on the side of a hill. But you can still do it with one hand.

I've never used the Rod Rest, but I love the 12-inch bipod. It's small and light, and when collapsed functions as sort of a hand grip. It does require two hands to deploy and collapse, but that's not been a problem for me. Best of all, when you deploy it and lay the rod down, you have a very stable unit, and the legs are long enough to keep the data collector off the ground.

I've used one for a couple of years. It works great with my Leica 360 prism set around 1.7 meters. If you go much higher or use it with an RTK rover it gets a little top heavy and unstable.

John

Jim,

I appreciate your comments about the 12" bi-pod. Every bi-pod I have ever used, though, had legs that were adjustable. This unit does not appear to have adjustable legs. Are there detents in the motion of the legs to keep the legs from moving? Or is there only one open position?

Is the bi-pod better suited for hard surfaces or will it do in the dirt? I have used the rod rest in the dirt with no problems.

JA, PLS SoCal

Thanks for all the replies. Does a heavy data collector (TSC3) make much difference to the stability of these?

I just started using a tsc3 and haven't seen any problems with the rod rest. However, I'm finding it hard to keep the bracket tight enough to keep it from creeping around the rod.

> Does a heavy data collector (TSC3) make much difference to the stability of these?
Yes, absolutely. As shown in the video, it is quite stable with just a prism on it. But when would you ever really need it with just a prism on it? The more weight you add to the rod, whether with a data collector, GPS receiver, or both, the more top heavy and unstable it becomes.

Come to think of it, why does a TSC3 have to weigh as much as 2 dozen iphones?

> I appreciate your comments about the 12" bi-pod. Every bi-pod I have ever used, though, had legs that were adjustable. This unit does not appear to have adjustable legs. Are there detents in the motion of the legs to keep the legs from moving? Or is there only one open position?

The 12" bipod isn't intended to aid in plumbing the rod, only to allow the rod to be laid down on the ground or against something (e.g., wall, truck, large tree, fence), so the leg length isn't adjustable. The leg angles are individually and continuously adjustable, and are held in position by the friction of the pivot points. (The friction is adjustable by tightening or loosening the attachment screws, but I haven't had to adjust mine in the two years I've been using it.)

> Is the bi-pod better suited for hard surfaces or will it do in the dirt? I have used the rod rest in the dirt with no problems.

I haven't had any trouble laying the rod down with both prism and data collector clear of the ground, and I've used it in disced fields and rocky terrain as well as on pavement. It wouldn't work well in deep mud or water, but then I don't, either. 🙂

The one complaint I have about it is the bulk it adds to the diameter of the rod. Sometimes this makes it hard to get offset shots against building corners and the like, but then it's not that much different from the data collector bracket in that respect.

I have had one since I opened my business in 2007. I love it. I use it on both my robot rod and my GPS rover rod.

Sometime I have to collapse my GPS rod a little depending on the terrain I am working in (asphalt vs dirt), because the GPS is a little top heavy.

Being solo, I would hate to work without it. I second the comments about having to keep it tight, and it will damage the carbon fiber rods. I need to put a sleeve on my rod to prevent further damage.

P.S. A side benefit of the 12" bipod: when I'm carrying the rod on my shoulder, the rubber leg tips grip my shoulder enough to allow most of the weight to rest there. It takes a lot of the load off my arm muscles.

The bracket for the TSC3 or the bracket for the rod rest?

Thanks Jim,

I kept seeing the unit used like the Rod Rest, mounted at the bottom with the rod leaning 20-30 degrees from vertical.

You mount it higher up and end up with the rod 20-30 degrees from horizontal, correct? I suppose you are going to lose lock occasionally, which is something I try to avoid, with my system.

I just might give it a try.

Thanks for your input.

JA, PLS SoCal

> I kept seeing the unit used like the Rod Rest, mounted at the bottom with the rod leaning 20-30 degrees from vertical.

Funny, I never would have thought about using it that way -- way too unstable!

> You mount it higher up and end up with the rod 20-30 degrees from horizontal, correct? I suppose you are going to lose lock occasionally, which is something I try to avoid, with my system.

Yes, I mount it right below my data collector bracket. I generally use a tilting mini-prism, so if I'm concerned about lock I just rotate the prism while laying the rod down, keeping the glass pointed at the gun.

TSC3 bracket. When you set the rod down its leaning, controller wants to twist around the rod. Would do the same with a bipod, unless you set it up close to plumb. I keep the rod rest clamped as low on the rod as I can so the points are maybe an inch above the rod point. Keeps it from leaning over as much.