At what yardage do you dial?

[brsnow]

Will shortly have my first “dial” scope. In a hunting situation at what point do you dial? At 300 yards when it is a short hold over? This is based on elk. Appreciate any insights and experience.

 

[Jbehredt]

With a short barreled 308 zeroed at 200 I have to dial at 300. .9 mil

 

[wind gypsy]

I would dial the exact elevation correction whenever you have time. Why have any known error or WAGing if you don't have to? Part of that is using a rangefinder with trued ballistic solutions that gives me dope immediately after range so there is no time lost looking at a dope card.

Zero at 100 because it takes atmospherics out of the equation. From being zeroed at 100, dial scope up to roughly what a 200 yard zero would be and leave it there for rushed shots in closer quarters. Dial up to exact solution from there if you come into a longer shot.

 

[RosinBag]

I would dial the exact elevation correction whenever you have time. Why have any known error or WAGing if you don't have to? Part of that is using a rangefinder with trued ballistic solutions that gives me dope immediately after range so there is no time lost looking at a dope card.

Zero at 100 because it takes atmospherics out of the equation. From being zeroed at 100, dial scope up to roughly what a 200 yard zero would be and leave it there for rushed shots in closer quarters. Dial up to exact solution from there if you come into a longer shot.

Pretty good advice all around.

Why have all the tools if you are not going to use them.

 

[HiMtnHntr]

I still zero at 200. I find I get in some quick situations 0-250 or so and I don't want to mess with dialing. If I have time to dial 250-300 I definitely will. Past that, all dialing. Works for me.

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

When I get to a glassing spot, one of the first things that I do is range objects around me. I may mental notes of where I can take a shot without needing to dial; I may have to aim a bit higher in the chest. Anything beyond that I will need to dial. The drop variable will be dependent on the game that I am hunting. A Coues deer will get a much smaller drop variable than an elk due to the sizes.

For example, my 300 Win Mag drops about 12" at 350 yards. No issue with having to dial to shoot an elk at that distance. But I'm limited to about 300 yards for Coues due to the about 6.5" drop; after that distance I will definitely need to dial.

The reason I do this since you never know where an animal will pop up and you only have a couple of seconds to get a shot. If the target animal is further out, then things become a little more relaxed as you tend to have more time.

 

[Wrench]

I play a 3 part game, I add elevation based on the game and terrain when I move. If I'm hunting mice a mil at 100 is a solid miss...but elephants, not so much. I use the added elevation (for me typically 0-.5mil) in my ballistic solver to generate a solution for my reticle. I have some rifles that need no attention until 400 yards, some that won't make 250....knowing that distance I can dial from there.

If there's time, I will always dial. If not, I use my system.

 

[cattleman99]

What scope are you getting? If you know it tracks, dial if you have time, but know your reticle. If its SFF, make sure you know the correct magnification it needs to be on for the reticle to be true. FFP you don't need to worry about that.

 

[brsnow]

What scope are you getting? If you know it tracks, dial if you have time, but know your reticle. If its SFF, make sure you know the correct magnification it needs to be on for the reticle to be true. FFP you don't need to worry about that.

It is the swfa SS hd 3-9x42, so FFP

 

[cattleman99]

That'll be nice for ya. You'll be fine dialing or holding over, just know your reticle and know your dope.

 

[tntrker]

Zero at 200yrds and dial above that.

 

[Formidilosus]

Will shortly have my first “dial” scope. In a hunting situation at what point do you dial? At 300 yards when it is a short hold over? This is based on elk. Appreciate any insights and experience.

Zero at 100 yards. Do not listen to anyone saying zero at another distance. If you want to walk around with a “200 yard zero” or whatever, you simply dial up to set that.

As for when to dial- it depends. That’s not a clear cut answer. I do not like holding more than 1 mil of elevation in general, especially if there is any wind.

 

[Kotaman]

Zero at 100 yards. Do not listen to anyone saying zero at another distance. If you want to walk around with a “200 yard zero” or whatever, you simply dial up to set that.

As for when to dial- it depends. That’s not a clear cut answer. I do not like holding more than 1 mil of elevation in general, especially if there is any wind.

Form...What are the reasons for always zeroing at 100 instead of say 200? I've always zero'd at 200 because out on the plains, rarely is a shot under that, but I'm sure there are other good reasons to zero at 100? With that said, I have shot stuff from point blank to 250 without dialing with a 200 yard zero, so I'm sure there are "other" reasons to do this that I'm unaware of. ie - atmospheric conditions?

 

[Yellowknife]

My one dial scope, I zero at 100. Then just input in 0.5 Mil (about 200 yd) for walking around.

A 100 you don’t have to worry about wind, elevation, etc. Every range has a 100 yd berm, and you can field check it almost anywhere. Unlike a standard scope, A “zero” on a dial scope is just a number on a turret. Might as well make it an easy one.

No drawbacks. All positives as far as can tell. I walk out the door and get the same field benefits as a standard scope zeroed at 200 by just turning the knob a few clicks.

 

[amassi]

300 yard zero
Dial past 330-370 depending on cartridge

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

 

[desertcj]

If the shot is over 300yds I dial. Out to 300, I dont need to. I shoot at 100yds, but I set "zero" on my elevation turret usually about 2" high at 100yds. That gives me all the benefits and I'm not sure what I'd be missing by actually setting my elevation turret to be zeroed at 100yds???

 

[amassi]

If the shot is over 300yds I dial. Out to 300, I dont need to. I shoot at 100yds, but I set "zero" on my elevation turret usually about 2" high at 100yds. That gives me all the benefits and I'm not sure what I'd be missing by actually setting my elevation turret to be zeroed at 100yds???

Absolutely nothing, your good to go.

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[justin davis]

I zero at 100. I find it’s much easier to find a place to shoot 100 to check zero than at 200. Also less conditions affect it.

From there can dial to whatever I want for walking around etc for a fast shot.

I put electrical tape on the turret and label each 100 yards so can spin the turret quick for a fast shot

 

[Wrench]

A 200 yard zero on some of the more arcing bullets can get frustrating when you move inside the 200 line. Add in a incline / decline shot and that little bit can add up. If you're shooting a 3300fps rig it's much more forgiving than a 2400.....but it's important to understand the bullet flight and why you need to have a simple baseline, after all you're gonna twist it anyway....so zero at 100 and add you're desired elevation for your situation and rock on. If you shoulder your rifle or hunt thick stuff, get in the habit of verifying your turret position often. The swfa is tough to move on accident, but I've done it.

 

[Formidilosus]

I'm not sure what I'd be missing by actually setting my elevation turret to be zeroed at 100yds???

Absolutely nothing, your good to go.

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Not true, see below.

Form...What are the reasons for always zeroing at 100 instead of say 200? I've always zero'd at 200 because out on the plains, rarely is a shot under that, but I'm sure there are other good reasons to zero at 100? With that said, I have shot stuff from point blank to 250 without dialing with a 200 yard zero, so I'm sure there are "other" reasons to do this that I'm unaware of. ie - atmospheric conditions?

Do you actually zero at 200? I.E.- put up a two inch target for example, and at a 200 yard range make all of your rounds impact inside of that 2” target while aiming directly at it? Or, do you do what desertcj and almost everyone does, and zero a couple inches high at 100?





So let’s go through a thought process.

If you are fire a gun at an animal (or target) the goal is to hit it, correct? Well every shot has a hit rate, and it is never 100%. 100% certainty does not exist. With that, then we have to try and get as close to 100% as we can. To do that, you eliminate as many variables as possible The start of minimizing variables and in effect maximizing our hit rates on any target, at any range, is a solid zero.

Philosophically a zero is when your entire cone of fire (group) is landing point of impact directly on point of aim. You can not have a 200 yard zero, unless you are shooting 200 yards, and your mean point of impact (center of all rounds fired) is directly over your point of aim. If you zero “1.5” high at 100” you do not have a 200 yard zero. You at best have a 1.5” high at 100 yards zero.
To demonstrate this point- I see a hundred or so shooters a year that use something other than a 100 yard zero. I have never seen a single one that was actually zeroed at what they say they are. If they say they are zeroed at 250, they do not have their group centered over the target at 250 when we shoot. If they say “2 inches high at 100 yards”, we place a 1” circle centered two inches high over their aiming spot. Not one has ever put their rounds all in the dot- they are always off.


Let’s say you actually do get a perfect 200 yard zero at 200 yards. Do you account for wind drift? In my present location, with wind that is light for normal, there is a .3-.4 mil drift at 200 yards. If we had 20 guys from Rokslide on a range zeroing at 200, I would be utterly shocked if more than one or two accounted for the windage error. I would expect that everyone of them if they even thought about it would say “wind is light, no big deal”.

Do you account for errors in range? I’s the berm truly 200 yards? Or it 220 yards? What do you do if it is not exactly 200 yards?




So reason #1 for a 100 yards POA/POI baseline zero is: if we start with an error built in to our “zero” everything else will be built off of that error, and hit rates at all ranges will go down. Zero at 200 yards in a 5-6 MPH wind, or worse “zero” at 100 yards “x” high, have the target actually be at 215-220 yards instead of 200... and you can go from a 90% hit rate on a animal at 400 yards, to 50% hit rate REALLY quick and it takes a lot less small stuff than most think for it to happen.


Now what happens when you need to check zero? Could be just a pre hunt check, or because you dropped the gun and need to make sure it’s good? Following the principle of POA/POI from above, how often will you be able to find a 200+ yard range in no wind conditions to do so? If you can’t, do you just fudge it and hope?



The benefits of a 100 yard baseline zero (that means point of impact of all rounds fired is exactly centered over point of aim, and turrets slipped to “0”).


A 100 yard zero is within .1 of an inch, from 55’ish to 120’ish yards. What that means is following POA/POI principle is that I can make the bullets fall directly behind the crosshair at any range between 55 and 120 yards and have a 100 yard zero.

100 yards minimizes environmental effects such as wind, temp, barometric pressure, etc.

A 100 yard zero is the only “zero” that you are always dialing/holding “up” for. The bullet doesn’t cross your line of sight.

With scopes that work correctly (in this case a SS 3-9x), if I want to walk around hunting with the gun set to 250 yards, I simply dial “up .7 mils”. Now the crosshairs are hitting at 250 yards... or any other range I want.


Done logically and to maximize hit rates, there are no reasons for rifles with scope that dial to be baseline zeroed at anything other than 100 yards.