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April 10th, 2016
Do you shoot with a SEB joystick-equipped bipod, or are you considering acquiring a “Joy-Pod” for your F-TR rifle? Then you should read this article. Here Sebastian (“Seb”) Lambang, the inventor and builder of the SEB joystick bipod, offers tips on shooting with this impressive piece of engineering. Seb explains some techniques that can help with tracking and getting back on target. You can ask SEB questions about his Joy-Pod in this Shooter’s Forum Thread.
Joy-Pod Shooting Tips by Seb Lambang
1. Be sure that the rear bag is settled before starting to shoot. Tap your stock into the bag. Then move your rifle back and forth, while checking your reticle. If it tracks straight, vertically perfect, and comes back to the original point of aim, it’s fine. If not, re-adjust.
2. If you use the Pod-Pad, be sure it is fully settled before starting to shoot. Tap the top where the feet rides on using your palm — you wan to create a flat top. To be sure the Pod-Pad does not move or slide, remove any gravel or pebbles under the pad — these can act as roller bearings.
Photo Courtesy Busselton Rifle Club, Australia.
3. Be sure your shooting mat is NOT springy or spongy. This is very important. Use a proper mat, or cut it if possible so your rear bag rests directly on the ground. Use a heavy rear bag. You can use a sand-filled doughnut (not a rigid spacer) to stabilize the bag on uneven ground. These doughnuts are relatively inexpensive and really work.
4. Be sure your whole body position is correct, so your shoulder is square. “Follow” the recoil with your shoulder, don’t push “against” it. Don’t move too much. Don’t make unimportant movements during your shooting string. Always be as consistent as you can in all things — how you hold the rifle, even how you breathe before taking the shot.
This young lady shooter is using a first generation Joy-Pod. The newer versions have flat, ski-like feet.
5. Be sure your rifle and rear bag are aligned. You want the slot between the ears of the bag perfectly aligned with your barrel. (You can use a yardstick or a piece of string to help with the alignment).
6. Use a heavy rear bag. The heavier and the more stable, the better.
7. It does not matter (from my own experience) whether you light-hold the joystick or leave the joystick in the air when you shoot (see Darrell Buell video — he shoots “hands off”). I believe the bullet already exits the muzzle before the joystick moves in your fingers. I lightly hold the joystick myself, just as I would hold a billiard stick.
Watch Darrell Buell shooting his .375 CheyTac equipped with a counter-balanced Joy-Pod. Note how the gun comes straight back, and how Darrell can release the joystick before breaking the shot.
SUMMARY — When It All Comes Together
If everything is set up right, and done correctly, your rifle will track beautifully straight and your reticle will come back or very close to the original point of aim, every time. If you have to change the Joy-Pod, rear bag, or your body position after a shot, there could still be something wrong with your set-up, alignment, or body position. When everything is right, you can also see your own score in the scope after every shot you make (after initial recoil). You also should not have to change the bipod’s setting, the height, the cant etc., at all. You only need to adjust for the current condition with the joystick, the joystick will do it all. That’s why we call our bipod the JOY-Pod.
SEB JOY-POD Joystick Bipod, and POD-PAD
Weighing in at just 18 ounces (510 grams), the Gen 2 Joy-Pod is unlike any other bipod on the market. Designed specifically for weight-restricted shooting classes, the Joy-Pod offers smooth and precise joystick-controlled aiming. The Gen 2 model offers up to 14 degrees of cant and an improved design that functions with up to 50 pounds of rifle weight. Each Joy-Pod comes with a Weaver rail adapter. The optional Pod-Pad accessory is designed expressly for the Joy-Pod. It works filled or unfilled with the Joy-Pod’s sleds to bring you back to your shooting position easily. CLICK HERE for more information, or visit SebRests.com.
.308 Win Tactical Rifle fitted with Joy-Pod on Pod-Pad. CLICK HERE for Video.
February 26th, 2015
Sebastian (“Seb”) Lambang has been working overtime at his SEB COAX production facility in Indonesia. That’s good news for benchrest and F-Class shooters. Seb is finishing up a large shipment of coaxial front rests for customers around the globe. Dozens of new NEOs (is that an oxymoron?) have been completed and are ready to be sent to customers. Seb tells us: “We are progressing. Here are some NEOs ready to be packed and shipped”.
Click image to see full-screen photo:
CNC Machines Speed Production
After acquiring new CNC machines, Seb has been able to increase production in response to high demand: “Though they are only 3-Axis, my new CNC equipment sure helps to make the components.” However, even with the new CNC units, Seb says: “I think I will need more space, employees, and more equipment in the near future.” Whatever it takes Seb, keep those NEOs coming.
October 19th, 2012
 Sebastian (Seb) Lambang of SEB Coaxial, a brilliant designer and fabricator, has created an ingenious joystick bipod. The first coaxial bipod we’ve ever seen, Seb’s new bipod is a superb example of creative design and smart engineering. This unit gives F-TR and other bipod shooters precise, one-handed control of both windage and elevation. Seb’s innovative joystick bipod is yet one more example of the innovative, advanced engineering we’ve come to expect from his company. We think this guy could be building Formula 1 cars if he set his mind to it. We are fortunate that Seb loves shooting, so he applies his talent to designing and building great new products for the shooting sports.
Seb tells us: “I just finished a prototype joystick bipod, i.e. a bipod with joystick (coaxial) elevation and windage control. This patent-pending bipod is my newest project/invention. As far as I know, there is no one that makes this type of bipod… so it’s probably the only one in the world.” We already know some shooters who want to order Seb’s joystick bipod, but Seb cautions: “It’s not for sale yet. It’s still in prototype step. There is always a rough draft before the masterpiece.”
Seb will test and refine the design in the next couple of months before production starts. But Seb is quite satisfied with the design so far: “The rigidity, ease and comfort of use, and compactness, are already OK in my opinion.” Folks in Europe will be able to see the design very soon. The first real-world test of Seb’s new joystick bipod will be at the European F-Class Championship, slated for November 2-3 in the UK. Seb notes: “I won’t be shooting F-TR in the match, but I will ask some fellow F-TR shooters at the Bisley range to test it, and provide feedback.” Seb invites Daily Bulletin readers to look at the photos and provide comments or suggestions on design enhancements.
Technical Description
 At the lowest setting with the adjustable legs, the SEB bipod is approximately 6″ tall. At the highest setting, the unit is about 9″ tall. To smooth upward movement of the rifle, Seb designed the coaxial head with “built-in uplift”. The joystick itself is about 10″ long, with a collet-type head. When folded, the new SEB Bipod is relatively compact, about 9″ long x 5″ wide x 2″ thick. Most parts are made from aircraft grade 7000 series aluminum. The current weight of the prototype is 26 ounces (740 grams). Seb is working on reducing weight for the production models.
Joystick Function and Adjustment Range
As with SEB Coaxial front rests, the joystick function is user-selectable. The joystick handle can operate either ‘up for up’ or ‘up for down’, simply by reversing the unit and the joystick. The bipod’s effective windage and elevation range* is approximately 38 MOA horizontal (windage) and 16 MOA vertical (elevation). Seb explains: “That’s not as much as my other rests, but for F-Class use it should be adequate. The finer the adjustment, the better on the target and the smoother the joystick operation. It’s like using a scope with 1/8 MOA adjustment rather than 1/4 MOA.”
*True vertical travel is about 32 MOA but in the field the rifle stock will limit how far you can lift the joysticK. Note also that the adjustment range varies with your set-up geometry. The shorter the distance between the rear bag and the bipod, the greater the travel in MOA. This means that if you extend the distance between rear bag and bipod, you will lose some MOA travel.
July 5th, 2011
A SEB MAX front rest, with the ability to handle wider rifles, was unveiled today by Forum member Ernie Bishop (aka xphunter). This is a prototype, and production versions will hopefully be offered in 2012. Weighing roughly 35 lbs. (16 kg), The new SEB MAX rest fits forearms up to 8″ wide. Without side plate assembly and special front bag, the SEB MAX can accept a 9″-wide stock. The Center-to-Center distance between the posts is 300mm (just a bit less than 12″). This makes the SEB MAX 100 mm wider than the SEB NEO, allowing for 275mm clearance between posts. The bottom plate of the top is 265 mm long (almost 10 1/2″). The side plates assembly with side bag is about 1.25″ thick. Net space is approx 8″ . Posts and height are the same as the SEB NEO, which already has a huge amount of elevation travel. For more info, visit www.SEBCoax.com, email Ernie Bishop at ernieemily[at]yahoo.com or call Ernie at (307) 257-7431. Ernie is the U.S.A. distributor for SEB products.
Ernie Bishop reports: “The new SB MAX is very smooth! I have used it out to 1000 yards so far and am very pleased. I do not know the price yet.” For more information, read this FORUM thread. As set up in the photos below, the SEB MAX is set for the 6″ forearm on Ernie’s 7mm WSM specialty benchrest pistol.
If you’re curious about Ernie’s 7mm WSM handgun, here are the details. Eric Wallace smithed this specialty handgun, as well as the stock. It is a 7mm WSM built on a BAT action fitted with 1:8″ test Bartlein barrel, with Wallace muzzle brake. The rig uses a Sightron S-III, 8-32 scope, and Jewel trigger. The gun was set up to shoot in the Heavy Pistol Class at the annual Long-range Handgun shoot run by the MOA Corporation. Ernie Bishop tells us: “When I have the time, it will also be used for light gun rifle matches at 600 and 1000 yards. I also have a McRee handgun chassis stock so I can use it for more huntng or field shooting.” Ernie does not have the load “fully tweaked yet”, but he’s currently running H1000 behind 180gr JLKs in prepped Winchester 7mm WSM brass, with Federal 210M primers.
September 7th, 2010
 Vince Bottomley, an ace shooter from the United Kingdom, also operates the excellent Precision Rifle website. On Vince’s handsome, informative site, you’ll find gear reviews, gunsmithing tips, competition reports, and in-depth features on interesting rifles.
Vince, who competes successfully in a variety of shooting disciplines from 100 yards to 1000 yards, has also authored articles explaining how to set up your equipment for optimal accuracy and best performance. One such feature is Choosing and Using the Machine Front Rest. Whether you’re a novice shooter, or a seasoned competitor, this article is worth reading. Vince reviews a number of the premium front rests, including the Farley Coax, and the SEB Co-axial rest.
In this feature, Vince explains how to adapt a heavy BR front rest for F-Class use in the field. He also explains how to optimize a front rest on the bench and how to use the windage and elevation controls.
Vince’s article on front rests is definitely worth reading. Plus, on the same page, you’ll find other informative features including a discussion of Case Prep, and an interesting article on barrel cleaning.
CLICK HERE to read Vince Bottomley’s Articles on Accuracy.
Photos copyright Vince Bottomley, All Rights Reserved. Used by permission.
February 9th, 2010
Mark Trope, Webmaster of the Gun Owner Network website, has written a very thorough review of the SEB Coaxial front rest. Mark’s SEB Rest Review covers all the bases, showing how the rest works with a variety of rifle types, including both wide-forearm match rifles and narrow-forearm sporter rifles.
Mark provides dozens of good photos of the rest, including many close-ups showing the fine points of SEB’s impressive design. The review shows how to set-up and level the rest, and how to tune the “feel” of the joystick to suit your preferences. Some rest users prefer the joystick to move quite freely, while others prefer to dial in some resistance so there is no chance of movement when you remove your hand from the joystick.
After covering the features and performance of the SEB Rest, Trope turns his attention to the SEB “BigFoot” rear bag. He explains why it’s a super-stable choice in rear bags, one of the best products available. You’ll note we acquired a SEB BigFoot rear bag for our latest AccurateShooter.com Project Rifle (see story above). After providing tips on how to fill the bag with heavy sand, Trope shows how to adapt a RubberMaid “ActionPacker” plastic storage bin to carry both the SEB Front Rest and the BigFoot Bag.
If you are considering the purchase of a joystick-style front rest, or joystick-style rest top, you should definitely read Trope’s Rest Review. It will definitely help you identify the features you need, so you can make an informed decision, whatever brand you ultimately choose. To learn more about the SEB coaxial rest, or to place an order, contact Sebastian Lambang’s American dealer, Ernie Bishop:
Ernie Bishop
306 West Flying Circle Drive
Gillette, WY 82716
(307) 257-7431
ernieemily [at] yahoo.com
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