Wiser BT-20 Ridge Warden

Got mine today and popped it on my Aziak Backcountry. Man, the thing is tiny. Tested it out some around the house and I think it’s a winner. On its own it doesn’t feel as smooth as some others I’ve had, but put some weight it on it, either binos, spotter, or rifle and it turns to butter.
 
sndmn11 said:
I got the go-ahead to review one for Rokslide. I'm trying to think up how to test durability/longevity in a functional use sense. Right now, I've got ice, dust, and mud in my head.
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Would also be curious how it handles repeated recoil at the range. It's obviously not meant for that, but occasional shooting practice was the main thing I had in mind when I opted for the heavier Aziak Frontcountry head.
 
sndmn11 said:
I got the go-ahead to review one for Rokslide. I'm trying to think up how to test durability/longevity in a functional use sense. Right now, I've got ice, dust, and mud in my head.
Click to expand...

I would like to see it tested dry (think graphite lube) vs wet (oil or grease) in those conditions. I run almost all my ball heads with graphite and generally prefer them that way. I also got the little head last week so I’ll be stripping the grease and trying some graphite.


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ChrisAU said:
Got mine today and popped it on my Aziak Backcountry. Man, the thing is tiny. Tested it out some around the house and I think it’s a winner. On its own it doesn’t feel as smooth as some others I’ve had, but put some weight it on it, either binos, spotter, or rifle and it turns to butter.
Click to expand...

Good to hear. I took it out of the box and gave her a tilt in my hand and got nervous! Makes sense the weight and actually being installed would make a difference. I’ll throw some optics on it tonight.


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Couple of more photos for people to see the adjustment. I think I will get rid of the Thumb Screw and just use the supplied grub screw as a set it and forget it "tension supplement" for panning. So far the Aziak Backcountry Lite and the Wiser head have been a good combo. I will update as I have more time in the field with it, at 1lb 8oz it is a lot lighter than any of my previous setups.
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mighteywhitehunter said:
Couple of more photos for people to see the adjustment. I think I will get rid of the Thumb Screw and just use the supplied grub screw as a set it and forget it "tension supplement" for panning. So far the Aziak Backcountry Lite and the Wiser head have been a good combo. I will update as I have more time in the field with it, at 1lb 8oz it is a lot lighter than any of my previous setups.
View attachment 901337
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Where did you get that adjustment knob? I haven’t even touched that screw yet. I do find it a bit annoying that the adjustment of the main tension screw interferes with the ARCA adapter. So far it would seem that I can’t achieve full tightness unless I lean the adapter back, which obviously isn’t what you’d want to do. But, so far I’ve gotten it tight enough to hold stuff except an unbalanced rifle.
 
ChrisAU said:
Where did you get that adjustment knob? I haven’t even touched that screw yet. I do find it a bit annoying that the adjustment of the main tension screw interferes with the ARCA adapter. So far it would seem that I can’t achieve full tightness unless I lean the adapter back, which obviously isn’t what you’d want to do. But, so far I’ve gotten it tight enough to hold stuff except an unbalanced rifle.
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Ya this! What is that knob. Mine wasn’t supplied with anything.


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ChrisAU said:
Where did you get that adjustment knob? I haven’t even touched that screw yet. I do find it a bit annoying that the adjustment of the main tension screw interferes with the ARCA adapter. So far it would seem that I can’t achieve full tightness unless I lean the adapter back, which obviously isn’t what you’d want to do. But, so far I’ve gotten it tight enough to hold stuff except an unbalanced rifle.
Click to expand...
You can play with the location of the lever lockout by unscrewing it completely and rotating the SS bolt a little bit, it isnt a lot of adjustment but it may be enough to clear the ARCA adapter a little more.
 
6.5x284 said:
Ya this! What is that knob. Mine wasn’t supplied with anything.


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The little knob was with the head when I got it at the Show. They may have stopped including it because it doesn't do a lot. 🤷‍♂️ I am going to switch it out for the ss grub screw to try for a bit.
 
It looks good to go for binos and a big spotter . I'd like to know what you guys think it can manage as far as rifle weight ? My current setup is running 10.5 lbs ish .
 
Got out this past weekend to spend a little time messing with this tripod/head combo just to get a feel for it. I think for what it is this has the potential to be awesome as long as it doesn’t get real gunky or loose feeling after it gets used and dirty.

First pic is as far forward I can mount this rifle without it tipping back. That’s with the tension knob locked down pretty tight, rifle weighs 9lbs 12oz as pictured.
IMG_2222.jpeg
I tried shooting from it, it seemed to be pretty stable for what it and the tripod combo is so don’t let my crappy “group” say anything for the stability of the combo. I’ve said it before, my clipped in tripod shooting is an area that could use some significant improvement and this day was no exception. Will need to get out and spend more time practicing with this setup and see if my groupings can improve and to see how the head holds up. The suppressed rifle weighs 9lbs 6oz. Bottom group is prone out of the bed of my truck, the upper string is kneeling tripod front, pack rear support. All shots were 550 yards.

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Juan_ID said:
Got out this past weekend to spend a little time messing with this tripod/head combo just to get a feel for it. I think for what it is this has the potential to be awesome as long as it doesn’t get real gunky or loose feeling after it gets used and dirty.

First pic is as far forward I can mount this rifle without it tipping back. That’s with the tension knob locked down pretty tight, rifle weighs 9lbs 12oz as pictured.
View attachment 903396
I tried shooting from it, it seemed to be pretty stable for what it and the tripod combo is so don’t let my crappy “group” say anything for the stability of the combo. I’ve said it before, my clipped in tripod shooting is an area that could use some significant improvement and this day was no exception. Will need to get out and spend more time practicing with this setup and see if my groupings can improve and to see how the head holds up. The suppressed rifle weighs 9lbs 6oz. Bottom group is prone out of the bed of my truck, the upper string is kneeling tripod front, pack rear support. All shots were 550 yards.

View attachment 903395
View attachment 903397
Click to expand...

I got a little confused with your wording.

The middle group is both tripod only and tripod front / pack rear? How are your groups with the tripod only groups vs tripod front pack rear?
 
180ls1 said:
I got a little confused with your wording.

The middle group is both tripod only and tripod front / pack rear? How are your groups with the tripod only groups vs tripod front pack rear?
Click to expand...
That was tripod front backpack rear support only. Thinking back I should have shot just tripod to see how that faired as more of a “test” of the stability.
 
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