Vortex Viper

Does the OP have dope? because its something you need to figure out. going from a zero'd rifle, to dialing your drop is not any particular number or any particular count of "clicks" since its all relative you, your rifle and environment.

dfanonymous said:

Does the OP have dope? because its something you need to figure out. going from a zero'd rifle, to dialing your drop is not any particular number or any particular count of "clicks" since its all relative you, your rifle and environment.

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I hate to reveale ignorance, what is OP

jasent said:

No zero stop mine are gen 1. Viper pst 6.5x20x50. Vortex claims 60 min total elevation but both of mine have 68 total travel.

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You don't have a PST, you have a regular Viper. No zero stop but the turret can be set to zero and then you just have to keep track of how many revolutions you have gone. It's pretty easy to get a revolution off without a zero stop. But yes, you should be able to dial up 7moa to shoot farther and then dial back down 7 to be back at 100 yards. Use the numbers instead of counting clicks.

OP is original post. The person who started the thread.

My Vortex came with Zero Stoop Shims, I placed them according to the directions included. I Love It. Shoot new Dope, then RTZ (Return To Zero), that way you always know what your scope scope is dialed in for.

Good Luck
dg

In most prairie dog towns the land is so flat and featureless that we have trouble finding a rangefinder that will reliably range a dog past about 400, less if the mirage is boiling. Most of us over estimate the range from just looking at the dog. If it is dry you can see the dust and correct, if it rains it is real hard to tell what you are doing. If you go prairie dogging you will be hooked.

Theoretically yes but you really need to shoot your rifle at 400 to confirm. Weather conditions will also change your dope.
We have had really good luck with the Nikon 4000 range finder. Multiple ranges on deer in different weather conditions at over 900 yards. 956 is the furthest we have ranged deer and it was consistently ranging at that distance not a 1 time deal.
The vortex works well for dialing and is repeatable. The spacer system may not get u exactly on zero but it will be close enough you will know where your zero is.

I have 5 Vortex Viper PST Gen 1's. All mine have Zero stops. They use a shim system. So maybe yours does have ZS and you just haven't set it up. Or maybe yours is not a PST. IMHO, the Gen 1 PST's are one of the best values in scopes out there, and I own some much more expensive scopes. For $5-700 on the used market, you get 6-24x, FFP, good tactile turrets, Zero Stop, excellent reticles (including Christmas tree), illuminated reticles, lightweight (23 oz), and of course an unbeatable warranty with a 100% American company. I think the used prices are artificially low due to internet bashing of Vortex by naysayers, similar to what I hear about the 6.5CM. Meanwhile, myself and others that try stuff for ourselves quietly reap the benefits.

palerider3 said:

OP is original post. The person who started the thread.

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HAHA sorry, didn't realize I was an OP. I have velocity, BC, and a pretty good ballistics calculater. What I see is 7.11 high at 100 if zero is 400. It is just a matter of shooting at 100 and dialing up 7 clicks and see what happens at 400. I just wondered if people trusted turning thier scopes up and down and if my thinking was correct. You folks are very helpful and it's good just to read all the replies and see what others think. Thank you

pre64win said:

In most prairie dog towns the land is so flat and featureless that we have trouble finding a rangefinder that will reliably range a dog past about 400, less if the mirage is boiling. Most of us over estimate the range from just looking at the dog. If it is dry you can see the dust and correct, if it rains it is real hard to tell what you are doing. If you go prairie dogging you will be hooked.

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I came from Ca where there was plenty of dry dirt shooting. You shoot, Miss, adjust and shoot. Pretty nice. I am now in Kentucky with grass everywhere. Here you shoot, cuss, shoot again,cuss, go buy a camera. Cannot see where your misses are and it's very frustrating.

pre64win said:

In most prairie dog towns the land is so flat and featureless that we have trouble finding a rangefinder that will reliably range a dog past about 400, less if the mirage is boiling. Most of us over estimate the range from just looking at the dog. If it is dry you can see the dust and correct, if it rains it is real hard to tell what you are doing. If you go prairie dogging you will be hooked.

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I have been praire dog hunting three years now. We go to Wyoming and have a blast. We start talking about next year on our drive home LOL

Kentucky said:

HAHA sorry, didn't realize I was an OP. I have velocity, BC, and a pretty good ballistics calculater. What I see is 7.11 high at 100 if zero is 400. It is just a matter of shooting at 100 and dialing up 7 clicks and see what happens at 400. I just wondered if people trusted turning thier scopes up and down and if my thinking was correct. You folks are very helpful and it's good just to read all the replies and see what others think. Thank you

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Not sure if you just misstated but it would be 7 MOA which would be 28 clicks with 1/4 moa adjustments.

Toolhand said:

Not sure if you just misstated but it would be 7 MOA which would be 28 clicks with 1/4 moa adjustments.

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OOPS ! No wonder I can't hit anything

The right way to do this is go to your dog town, put out a target level with shooting position ranged at 100 yards. Verify that scope point of aim = point of impact. Move the target to 200 yards. Leave scope as is. Shoot again. Measure actual bullet drop vs point of aim. Move target to 400 yards. Repeat the exercise. Might have to add some extra paper below target to account for bullet drop. Measure actual drop at 400 yards.

Now enter your data into a ballistic calculator. If you use the G7 coefficient from applied ballistics, then at least that should be fairly accurate. Make sure temperature and elevation match the shooting location and that 100 is specified as zero. Now calculate the bullet drop and wind drift for a 10mph left to right wind. Specify distance increments of 50 yards since you dont need a table a foot long. Now compare the 400 yard drop data. If your actual drop is more than the calculator, 99% of the time its because your muzzle velocity is not what is printed on the box.

Go back into the ballistic calculator and start dropping the MV by 50fps. Re- run the drop table, re-check the 400 yard drop. Keep doing this till the numbers match at 400. You should find the numbers to be pretty good at 200 at this point. The 200 drop is a sanity check.

Format the drop table like you want it and print it off. Write your parameters on it with a sharpie (BC and MV zero distance and temp).

In my opinion, since you are not shooting a 22lr, the drop between 100 and 400 yards is not going to be that much. Probably less than 1/2 a turn on the turret. It would be even less if you zeroed at 150 yards. I dont like to zero at 200 or 250 because if you need to take a shot at 100 you have to hold low and I find that a bit counter intuitive.

When dialing, remember that when changing direction, go past the intended point and then dial back up to the desired number. Everything has a bit of backlash in it, so if you approach your target value always going up, it will never be an issue.