Why would you not sight in at 100 yards?

[clownbuster]

Something that has always perplexed me is why guys will sight in their rifles at 150, 200, 300, etc yards. Why would you not just sight in for 100 yards and learn your drops/elevation adjustments for anything beyond that? In my head, if I sight in for 300 yards I need to remember hold-overs for anything past 300 and hold-unders for anything inside 300 which is seems overly complicated. I'm a sight in at 100 yard guy but I want to understand why you would sight in at a different distance as I feel like I am missing something here.

Me too, my initial sight in platform is 100 yards. But once I sight in at 100, I never go back to it unless I suspect a problem. After that, my MINIMUM shoot-to distance for groups is 200, but 9 out of 10 times, my practice starts from 650 yards.

 

[ragsflh]

i sight in for where i hunt.100 works,300 yds or more sight for that.depends what your hunting

 

[J Doss]

Something that has always perplexed me is why guys will sight in their rifles at 150, 200, 300, etc yards. Why would you not just sight in for 100 yards and learn your drops/elevation adjustments for anything beyond that? In my head, if I sight in for 300 yards I need to remember hold-overs for anything past 300 and hold-unders for anything inside 300 which is seems overly complicated. I'm a sight in at 100 yard guy but I want to understand why you would sight in at a different distance as I feel like I am missing something here.

I sight in at 100 with a 3 1/4" to 4" high zero.
Doing this will put me in the kill zone from 0 to 350 yards with nearly any medium to heavy rifles without having to think much about doping on quick shots.
Nearly all of my scopes are VX-3's with various magnifications. I'm pretty much "old school".
My light rifles are zeroed dead on at 100 and I hold over or dope for longer ranges since I generally have more time to do so hunting varmits.
Years ago, when I was shooting Big Bore sporting rifle competition, I zeroed at 100 and doped out the longer targets.
It depends on your rifle, scope and the nature of the shooting one is going to be doing, how you set up your zero.
To each his/her own though!!!

 

[Snowbird]

I sight in at 100 and zero at 200 for the same reasons everyone else said. I dial for everything beyond about 275 but holdover works easily to 400. I can always dial down if I need to shoot small targets precisely.

 

[FIGJAM]

Something that has always perplexed me is why guys will sight in their rifles at 150, 200, 300, etc yards. Why would you not just sight in for 100 yards and learn your drops/elevation adjustments for anything beyond that? In my head, if I sight in for 300 yards I need to remember hold-overs for anything past 300 and hold-unders for anything inside 300 which is seems overly complicated. I'm a sight in at 100 yard guy but I want to understand why you would sight in at a different distance as I feel like I am missing something here.

MPBR - can be awesome for hunting in open country. Anything further than your MPBR you usually have time to dial for elevation.

 

[73driver]

I used to use MPBR zeros before I got into the LR world. Now I zero all my rifles at 100. I may carry the rifle set for MPBR in the field depending on the most likely encounter, but my turret zero is always 100 yards. If I fall or drop the rifle and need to field test zero I think it would be easier to come up with a 100 target situation and therefore minimize wind issues than recheck a 200 or whatever other zero spec. To me this is just carrying out the famous KISS principle.

THIS

 

[razor41]

Something that has always perplexed me is why guys will sight in their rifles at 150, 200, 300, etc yards. Why would you not just sight in for 100 yards and learn your drops/elevation adjustments for anything beyond that? In my head, if I sight in for 300 yards I need to remember hold-overs for anything past 300 and hold-unders for anything inside 300 which is seems overly complicated. I'm a sight in at 100 yard guy but I want to understand why you would sight in at a different distance as I feel like I am missing something here.

I'm just answering for myself, so I have several rifles for several applications and I zero my rifles according to purpose. For example my predator rifle is primarily for hunting coyotes out on the farm so I zero at 150 because I'm shooting 75gr vmax bullets at about 3450fps out of my 6mm creedmoor. So if I hold dead center I can connect anywhere from 75-300 yds without wasting time with a rangefinder. My deer rifle is zeroed at 200 yds because here in AZ that's the average distance I am when I spot it. My target rifle is zeroed at 200 yds because I never shoot any targets closer than that, I even work up my loads at 200 yds. Now my tactical rifles are zeroed at 100yds. My 50bmg is zeroed at 300 because I never shoot closer than that, especially at steel targets. One thing I learned in sniper school is to make what you're doing simple and calculated, if what you do is simple and easy to remember then that's what you do, I do what's simple for me, and I have a lot of dope in my head for 5-6 guns and it's also in a dope book for each rifle, cause I'm starting to forget stuff....what was I just talking about??? Oh yeah, hope this comment helps.

 

[memtb]

I "kind of" agree with your KISS system.....only my turret zeros @300 yards, giving me longer range capabilities using the turret! Using your 100 yard zero check scenario.....I can still verify my zero @100 yards. I know that I'm 3 3/4" high @ 100 yards, and can use that data! As I limit my shots on big game to 600 yards maximum, even if off a "smidgen".....it should provide adequate accuracy within my personal limits! For non-game shooting at extended ranges.....a miss is no big deal! memtb

 

[SirEdwinsdad]

Something that has always perplexed me is why guys will sight in their rifles at 150, 200, 300, etc yards. Why would you not just sight in for 100 yards and learn your drops/elevation adjustments for anything beyond that? In my head, if I sight in for 300 yards I need to remember hold-overs for anything past 300 and hold-unders for anything inside 300 which is seems overly complicated. I'm a sight in at 100 yard guy but I want to understand why you would sight in at a different distance as I feel like I am missing something here.

Great question! I'm new here and just offering my 2 cents worth. Happy Hunting.

This is one that we are asked fairly often, sight in at 100 or 200? Its a personal choice and probably depends a great deal on what game you are shooting (vital size) and your average shot distance.
Using a 6.5 Creedmoor with a 140gr bullet and a 100 yard zero your drop at 200 yards is less than 4" so assuming your hunting something with at least an 8" vital zone (most big game is larger) you still have a decent amount of room for margin of error. So you are good from close range out to 200 yards.

If you use a 200 yard zero with the same set up you have an up of 2" at 100 yards and a drop of just over 3" at 250 yards allowing you to hold true and not change your elevation dial or adjust hold over, assuming you make a steady shot. You go on out to 300 yards and now your drop is over 8" putting you out of the vital zone.

So basically the 200 yard zero gives you an extra 50 yards of distance without making any corrections and has a smaller drop margin than the 100 yard zero at shorter distances.
There are arguments for both but for me, most of my hunting rifles are with a 200 yards zero.
Just My Preference.
G Ray

 

[clownbuster]

How small of animals are you shooting with your bow. No I read right you said rifle even Antelope would not require a hold under with the average cartridge sighted for 200yds. One might ask why would sight in for 100 and have to dial all the time after 100yds. I could see a target shooter shooting for scoe but not on a hunting rifle of moderate to high speed.

I definitely hear you on this. This makes for a good debate for dial turrets vs. fixed.
For dialing, I can understand this level of thinking; not wanting to have to constantly dial everything over 100, but then I would impart the necessity of KNOWING your rifle, its load and understanding the chosen optic's relationship to it. After many years of practicing doing drop calcs in my head and testing my understanding in the field, Ive come to the place where I can either use the hash marks to the bottom my reticle (that's what they're there for) or dial my solution I know in my head. If you can't do that, start working towards it. Don't want to? Then definitely buy a fixed with an MOA tree, zero at your furthest yardage with the least drop, and learn your drops to the bottom of the reticle.

 

[Doug Herold]

100 yds. is where I zero. My reasons are twofold:
1). No matter where or what elevation I hunt, if I set my zero at 100 yds., it will be "on" at any elevation. If I set the zero at 200 or beyond, it won't. Real easy to check after long plane rides and idiot baggage handlers.
2). If I set the zero at 100 yds., it is REALLY easy to adjust and true elevation: 400yds = 1" of elevation hold, 800 yds = 2" of elevation hold.
Doesn't mean I can't preset the turret for a 350 yd. quick shot when hunting the Alberta prairie.

 

[Counselor II]

I sighte in by the rule of threes and I want my rifles to shoot down a 6" pipe out to at least 300 yds. The further sightin in at longer distances the more any error is exaggerated so I can correct it and be sure that I'm exactly on at whatever range I'm shooting at.

 

[DSheetz]

It maybe that we got started setting a 200 yard zero because that was considered battle range during WW I and WWII as well as Korea . I use a 100 yard zero as my hunting passion was and is coyote a smaller target and when called most of my shots are 25 - 100 yards . We all have our own reason for why we set our zero where we do as well as the caliber we shoot . A 223 is most times all I need to do what I want but for you a 300 WM may be more what fits your needs with a 200 - 300 yard zero . In the end it's all about each of us enjoying our shooting and the guns we use for it .

 

[Shadowwalker]

We zero at 300 yards. Our rifles shoot flat enough, that we only need to consider that we're a little high at around 170'ish yards, and only about 10" low at 400 yards. For big game, from muzzle to 400 yards....."hold on hair"! A very fast system! At 400 yards, it's a lot easier to judge 10" holdover than say 30+ inches! If the shot is close, hold a bit low....if the shot is long, hold a bit high. For us...it's worked very well for over 25 years. This may be impractical for small targets, prairie dogs, "jacks", Rock Chucks, ect.....but works well with big game!

However, we started before range finders and range adjustable scopes were the norm! We now have both, and are staying with the old system. If the shot is over 400, and time permits.....range the target and dial the scope. Kind of....the best of both worlds! If it ain't broke....don't fix it! memtb

Thank you, I can't believe it .....a person with brains.