Range Finding with a Reticle

[MontanaRifleman]

Does anyone know a source of information for game dimensions that I could use as an aid to range finding with my reticle? ie., what is the depth of the body of antelope or mule deer from back to belly?

And I would be glad to hear some techniques if anyone wanted to share.

I have an NP-R2 with 2 MOA hash marks.

Thanks,

Mark

 

[edward hogan]

NightForce might/probably has the info you need, or maybe snipershide.com/snipercountry.com has some thread or reference article. If you have a bore sighting collimator with a grid you can extrapolate from that, or put up a ruled grid at 100 yds and note the measurements in your log book. Leupold might also have an online file about their TMR reticle. Seems like they have one for their duplex reticle.

 

[MontanaRifleman]

Thanks for the ideas. I used my shoulder mounted antelope and bull elk for top of shoulder to brisket measurements, 16" for the antelope and 30" for the bull.

I zeroed my rifle @ 200 yds. Went out for antelope and shot my buck at about 180 yds, a no brainer there. Then went looking for some alphalpha fed does and found a herd in an open alphalpha field. They let me amble in to about 200 yds before they started acting a little skitish. I lined up my scope on one from prone shooting off my day pack. the body filled just less than cross hatches wich I figure made it about 300 yds (6 in per hatch @ 2 MOA @ 300 yds) My bullet drop from 200 to 300 yds was calculated at about 6 inches. So I put the cross hair on the back and the bullet struck about 6 inches below the back. Bang flop.

I've made a chart for elk. Hoping to pick up a laser this week, but knowing how to range witha reticle is a good back up skill to have.

 

[MontanaRifleman]

Elk 30" body, back to brisket

300 350 400 450 500 550 600 650 700 750 800 850 900 950
22x 10 8.57 7.5 6.66 6 5.45 5 4.62 4.29 4 3.75 3.53 3.33 3.16
11x 5 4.28 3.75 3.33 3 2.23 2.5 2.31 4.15 2

3 6.6x 7.7x 8.8x 9.9x 11x 12.1x 13.2x 14.3x 15.4x 16.5x 17.6x 18.7x 19.8x 20.9x

Elk Eye Spread 8"

22x 1.33 1.14 1 .89 .8

 

[MontanaRifleman]

That looks like a jumbled up mess of numbers because the post wont take spacing, But that's my elk chart for my 5 /12 x 22 2 MOA NP-R2

 

[jwp475]

Unless something magical has happened in the world then animals are varing sizes, just like people and to estimate their dimension inorder to estimate the distance use a reticle is not going to give a very accurate result at Long range IMHO

 

[Eaglet]

Unless something magical has happened in the world then animals are varing sizes, just like people and to estimate their dimension inorder to estimate the distance use a reticle is not going to give a very accurate result at Long range IMHO

Exactly the truth. This is experience talking...

 

[sscoyote]

I have also used reticle-rangefinding for antelope some and have found it useful to about 400-500 yds. I also use a point blank range rangefinding system with the reticle and believe that to be more useful than the system for ranging at longer ranges. I recently used that system on an "avg." antelope doe and it worked. I also used it once on a coyote and it also worked. It's definitely better than guessing.

It is a real kick when using it on hard targets that don't change dimension.

 

[MontanaRifleman]

Unless something magical has happened in the world then animals are varing sizes, just like people and to estimate their dimension inorder to estimate the distance use a reticle is not going to give a very accurate result at Long range IMHO

Actually, I think you will find that animals of the same species in the same regions tend to be fairly consistant in size. This prompted me to call a taxidermist and he was working on "good size bull" and confirmed it was 30". I asked if they vary much and he said, "not really, unless you get a really big one". I'm guessing a typical mature bull elk wont vay more than + or - an inch from top of shoulder to bottom of brisket. Would I recommend this technique on a 900 yd shot? Probably not, but for a 600 yd shot on a bull elk size target I think it could work.

Also found out from the taxidermist that mullie bucks go about 19".

 

[jwp475]

Actually, I think you will find that animals of the same species in the same regions tend to be fairly consistant in size. This prompted me to call a taxidermist and he was working on "good size bull" and confirmed it was 30". I asked if they vary much and he said, "not really, unless you get a really big one". I'm guessing a typical mature bull elk wont vay more than + or - an inch from top of shoulder to bottom of brisket. Would I recommend this technique on a 900 yd shot? Probably not, but for a 600 yd shot on a bull elk size target I think it could work.

Also found out from the taxidermist that mullie bucks go about 19".

Well I've been around animals all of my life and I can assure you they are not uniform in size and I say that with all due respect to your Taxidermist. I also agree with sscoyote that to 500 or 600 yards one can get away with this type of range estimation, but 5 to 600 yards "is not long range" it is medium range. A difference of an inch or 2 can skew your estimate enough to cause disastrous results.

There is absolutely no better way to range other than a top quality "Laser Range Finder"

One hard steel target 'of a known size" and no movement at all the reticule will range fairly well, but there is no way that I will or recommend a long shot by estimating the distance with a reticule and an "estimated animal size" that is a recipe with disaster written all over it.

 

[MontanaRifleman]

A difference of an inch or 2 can skew your estimate enough to cause disastrous results.

Not trying to argue here, but with an elk you have about a 2' wide window from just behind the shoulder to back of rib cage. Just about anywhere in that zone from the spine to near the brisket would be fatal. A high shot would either miss or or hit the spine. A low shot might catch the bottom of the brisket resulting in a wound. Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying just go out start slinging lead. But a shot for the boiler will likely either result in a complete miss or a kill as long as your windage is good.

There is absolutely no better way to range other than a top quality "Laser Range Finder"

I agree 100%, just bringing this up for a back up in case you can't get a reading for some reason, or in my case, didn't have a laser yet.

I also had an opportunity for a second doe that I *ranged* at 400 yds but passed because my rifle is presently not shooting well.

 

[jwp475]

I totaly dissagree with your reasoning that you fire hoping that your error in distance still lands a bullet in the kill.
I prefer to know exactly where my bullet will land and do not trip the trigger if I don't know.

If you try to shoot long range and I do mean long range with a reticule estimated distance then it's not "if you are going to wound and lose an animal, it's when"

A laser range finder is the absolute best way to fly and anything less is just taking a SWAG

 

[4xforfun]

I totaly dissagree with your reasoning that you fire hoping that your error in distance still lands a bullet in the kill.
I prefer to know exactly where my bullet will land and do not trip the trigger if I don't know.

If you try to shoot long range and I do mean long range with a reticule estimated distance then it's not "if you are going to wound and lose an animal, it's when"

A laser range finder is the absolute best way to fly and anything less is just taking a SWAG

I agree. You get out to four digit ranges, say 1100 yards, being off by 15 yards (about 1 %) = a shot 12" high or low....that is with a 30/210 vld at 2950at ele 1300/30 degrees. 12" is HUGE on an antalope and deer.

You need to know EXACTLY how far the target is!!! a GOOD rangefinder is the only way to go!!

 

[sscoyote]

U could run the math and see how it would work ideally--

Assuming a "subtension unit" of 2.09 inch per hundred yds. (2 MOA line to line stadia), then here's the equation for a 30" bull elk--

30 x 100 / 2.09 / X = 600

X=2.4 subtension units

Now here's the range variation if the elk is actually +/- 1" (29 or 31" instead)--

29x100/2.09/2.4=578 yds.
31x100/2.09/2.4=618 yds.

That's assuming just 1" variation in size would give 40 yds. of error, also assuming u get the correct "2.4 MOA reading," so...?