Flybuster
Well-Known Member
I was just interested in what most other varmint hunters preferred. The use of target knobs, dialing in on the varmint. Or holding over, the use of reticles such as mil-dot or varmint hunters. I do both.
Varmint Survey-click dial or hold over
- Thread starter Flybuster
- Start date
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CatShooter
Well-Known Member
I hold over for short ranges - to 300yds - but I dial for long range, and hold off for wind.
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guns_and_labs
Well-Known Member
Mil-dots, myself.
royinidaho
Well-Known Member
Started with the mil dots and still do on one rifle w/1/8 min clicks. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif
I use hold off (which isn't much) for up to 500 then click both ways w/the AM.
I use hold off (which isn't much) for up to 500 then click both ways w/the AM.
CatShooter
Well-Known Member
I have looked at the ballistic reticles, and the problem is that they do not match any of the varmint loads. In fact they don'e match ANY loads known to mankind. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif
The Nikon BDC reticle is soooo thick that a family of woodchucks can hide behind it... and the circles match nothing on this earth.
The Leupold doesn't match any rounds (not even close) and the windage marks don't match any bullets for drift.
All the "ballistic reticles" are that way.
So if you are going to use one of those, you will have to test it in the field and see what range the bullets and cross marks really intersect, and then keep a "cheat sheet"... and if you loose the cheat sheet, you are out of business, and start all over again.
Not worth the work, and if you are shooting a hot-rod, you can throw away a lot of barrel life with such nonsense.
The ideal varmint reticle (IMNSHO), would be a horizontal wire with tick marks every 2 moa or 1 mil for windage hold offs.
And on the vertical wire, either nothing, or tic marks every 2 moa or 1 mil on the bottom half of the wire.
I think NightForce has something like this, but they are too steep for my shallow pockets, plus they are way too heavy, and mount to high on the receiver because of the large objective bells.
The Horus reticle is a rat's maze of confusion, and Leupold completely missed the boat on their "Varmint hunter's" reticle.
I have found two solutions that I work with.
The first is the MK4-M3 scope, with ballistic cams. You can have a custom cam made for the scope to match your rifles ballistics... they work for me and I have 3 of them - two are on "Practical Field Match" rifles (sniper matches) which are shot out to 1,100yds on steel targets. One is on a .308 and the other is on a 300WM.
And the third in on my new .264 Varmint rifle, and it will get a custom cam when the ballistics are worked out.
However, the mere mention of "Ballistic cams" drive some shooters into a raw state of apoplexy, and they immediately start to foam at the mouth, and rant about atmospheric pressures, humidity, phase of the moon, Coriolis effects, and other such nonsense... so I won't go further on that, other than to say they workie for me, just great!!
I see it, I range it, I dial it, I shoot it, it faw down go boom!!
-
The second solution is this - I mount my target scopes in Burris Signature ZEE mounts. They have the little plastic rings in them to hold the scope.
You can get different rings with different thicknesses. I pick the proper rings so my target scope is zeroed at 100 yds, with the elevation all the way at the bottom. So the scope says "0", and is just a few clicks from the bottom stop - this way, I can crank the elevation down til it stops, and then go up to the first "0", and I know I'm at my base zero.
OK...
Then on the target turrets, I put a sticky paper cut from 1x3 label stock. I cut it so it covers the top half of the turret, but I can still see the bottom tick marks and moa numbers.
I set the turret so it reads "0" at the 100yd zero, and mark the paper for 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9... etc. for all the range intersect points.
It becomes a self made ballistic cam... and you don't have to keep track of a cheat sheet. It's always there.
So I can range the critter, and dial the range in a few seconds.
Works every time, and is cheap (.39 cents at Staples /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif )
P.S...
I strongly recommend bubble levels on any long range riffle. What many shooters call a bad wind call, 90% of the time is a cant error.
.
The Nikon BDC reticle is soooo thick that a family of woodchucks can hide behind it... and the circles match nothing on this earth.
The Leupold doesn't match any rounds (not even close) and the windage marks don't match any bullets for drift.
All the "ballistic reticles" are that way.
So if you are going to use one of those, you will have to test it in the field and see what range the bullets and cross marks really intersect, and then keep a "cheat sheet"... and if you loose the cheat sheet, you are out of business, and start all over again.
Not worth the work, and if you are shooting a hot-rod, you can throw away a lot of barrel life with such nonsense.
The ideal varmint reticle (IMNSHO), would be a horizontal wire with tick marks every 2 moa or 1 mil for windage hold offs.
And on the vertical wire, either nothing, or tic marks every 2 moa or 1 mil on the bottom half of the wire.
I think NightForce has something like this, but they are too steep for my shallow pockets, plus they are way too heavy, and mount to high on the receiver because of the large objective bells.
The Horus reticle is a rat's maze of confusion, and Leupold completely missed the boat on their "Varmint hunter's" reticle.
I have found two solutions that I work with.
The first is the MK4-M3 scope, with ballistic cams. You can have a custom cam made for the scope to match your rifles ballistics... they work for me and I have 3 of them - two are on "Practical Field Match" rifles (sniper matches) which are shot out to 1,100yds on steel targets. One is on a .308 and the other is on a 300WM.
And the third in on my new .264 Varmint rifle, and it will get a custom cam when the ballistics are worked out.
However, the mere mention of "Ballistic cams" drive some shooters into a raw state of apoplexy, and they immediately start to foam at the mouth, and rant about atmospheric pressures, humidity, phase of the moon, Coriolis effects, and other such nonsense... so I won't go further on that, other than to say they workie for me, just great!!
I see it, I range it, I dial it, I shoot it, it faw down go boom!!
-
The second solution is this - I mount my target scopes in Burris Signature ZEE mounts. They have the little plastic rings in them to hold the scope.
You can get different rings with different thicknesses. I pick the proper rings so my target scope is zeroed at 100 yds, with the elevation all the way at the bottom. So the scope says "0", and is just a few clicks from the bottom stop - this way, I can crank the elevation down til it stops, and then go up to the first "0", and I know I'm at my base zero.
OK...
Then on the target turrets, I put a sticky paper cut from 1x3 label stock. I cut it so it covers the top half of the turret, but I can still see the bottom tick marks and moa numbers.
I set the turret so it reads "0" at the 100yd zero, and mark the paper for 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9... etc. for all the range intersect points.
It becomes a self made ballistic cam... and you don't have to keep track of a cheat sheet. It's always there.
So I can range the critter, and dial the range in a few seconds.
Works every time, and is cheap (.39 cents at Staples /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif )
P.S...
I strongly recommend bubble levels on any long range riffle. What many shooters call a bad wind call, 90% of the time is a cant error.
.
Hired Gun
Well-Known Member
Max point blank for a 3" target then we used to dope but since I joined this page we click for the longer ones with much greater success. By doing that I always had to emphasize on the fastest flattest shooting load for each gun, which usually meant using lighter bullets that don't do so well in the wind. Now I can use the better coefficient bullets and load easy on the brass loads and just click to adjust.
bailey1474
<strong>SPONSOR</strong>
Dial, dial and dial some more!!
Fiftydriver
Official LRH Sponsor
Out to 1K I will use a ballistic reticle. Generally use Leupold TMR, or Nightforce MLR or NP-R2 or NP-R1, or IOR M8 reticles for this.
Anything over 1000 yards I dial up for simply because there gets to be a bit to much range in between the reference points at these longer ranges.
Kirby Allen(50)
Anything over 1000 yards I dial up for simply because there gets to be a bit to much range in between the reference points at these longer ranges.
Kirby Allen(50)
remingtonman_25_06
Well-Known Member
I'm usually zeroe'd at 200 yards, so can hold dead on out to 250 or so, after that I like to dial up.
I'm zeroed at 200, then click after that.
Flybuster
Well-Known Member
25--06ackley has a 300 yard zero. Hold under if real close, hold over out to 400 and click if its past that. To get me close and my spotter helps me walk the bullet into vermin, hehe. My 22ppc & 22-250 just zero them at 200 and hold over.
Desert Fox
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jan 31, 2002
- Messages
- 439
I sighted 1.5" at 100 yards for all my varmint rifle(6MM Remington, 243 Winchester, 223 Remington, 222 Remington magnum). I can pretty much judge my hold all the way to 400 yards.
