Leveling base vs ballhead for shorter ranges

[FlashAustin]

I'm investing in a tripod system for my 22-250 foxing rifle, and I'm not quite sure what head to put on it.

After browsing other threads on the subject, it seems that there is a general consensus that a leveling head offers more stability than a ballhead.
Shot opportunities on fox where I live is rarely beyond 250 yards, I'd say the majority of foxes I shoot are within 100-200 yards. My question is if this difference in stability is noticeable at these shorter ranges?

I've gotten a good deal on a quality carbon fiber tripod (no center column) with a beefy (88-pound weight rating) ballhead included. Is it worth ditching the ballhead and spend a bit more to get the leveling base?

If it makes any difference, I plan to use direct mount.

Cheers shooters!

 

[Tim_WNC]

Seems to me that if you have the ball head in-hand you'd give that a go for a couple hunts. If it works, keep it. If it sucks, change it.

 

[Sogan]

Seems to me that if you have the ball head in-hand you'd give that a go for a couple hunts. If it works, keep it. If it sucks, change it.

This. Give it a try. If you don’t like it, then sell the ball head. If you are sitting or kneeling Im sure it’ll be stable enough for you.

 

[jeffl838]

I personally prefer leveling heads by a lot, but some people much prefer ball heads. I like my leveling head because I use the head for gross adjustments and I make fine adjustments at the legs, so the big ass knob on the leveling head is much easier to twist with gloves on, instead of small ball head knobs. That being said I haven't tried every ball head out there.

 

[sako17]

I like the monfroto

 

[supercorndogs]

For those close ranges, I would be inclined to use shooting sticks.

 

[FlashAustin]

For those close ranges, I would be inclined to use shooting sticks.

That's what I'm doing today, and it works very well for those distances. My main reason for opting to get a tripod is to get of the ground and be able to more effectively spot animals, while loosing out on as little shooting capability as possible.