Ammo to zero in new rifle

R

Radiator

New member
I recently purchased a new Rem 700 and the scope is now mounted and ready to get zeroed. My question is what would be a good round to use to sight the rifle in. Because of the amount of rounds required I don't want to use a good (aka $$$) hunting/competition round, but also don't want to frustrate myself with the cheapest plinking rounds.

Any assistance would be helpful.

Thanks,

Mike
 
Zero will change between types of ammo, so if you want to zero you should use what you plan on hunting with.

And if you are using more than 5 or 6 rounds to get your zero, then you are doing it wrong.
 
+1

That's right on. Personally, I always zero with my hunting rounds. I know for a fact that it isn't going to take me more than a box to accomplish that...if even HALF of that box. And that way, when you're in the field, you pretty much know exactly what that rifle/ammo combination is going to do. When you have the wires on whatever you're hunting, that is NOT the time for surprises. Dropping the extra 10-20 bucks on the good stuff to sight in is pretty cheap insurance for when you're in the woods or wherever. Currently, the Hornady .308 150 gr SST is shooting like a laser out of the Ruger M77 I'm hunting with...confidence is high.

J
 
If you have a good solid mount you can theoretically zero it with one round. In any case it should not take more than 4-5. As previously stated, use the stuff you intend to hunt with.
 
Use the cheap stuff to get it close. Fine tune it with your hunting ammo.

And start handloading. Then it won't matter.
 
I do the same start with the cheap, then a couple of hunting rounds. Probly should let the barrel get cold on the hunting ammo.
 
First, congrats on your new rifle!

A good way to save ammo when zeroing a new rifle is to bore sight it off of a bench with sold sandbags or one of the purpose made rifle rests.

You can't do it with all rifles, but with your new Remington 700 it will be easy to do.

Place the rifle in a steady rest and line up the rifle to the target with the scope.

Remove the bolt and then look through the bore as if it was a peep sight. Once you have the bullseye in the center of the bore and the rifle remains steady there, look through the scope. At this point it will probably be off by seveal inches or perhaps even more than a foot.

It will be easy to use your elevation and deflection turrets to bring the crosshairs to the center of the target. Remember though, your adjustments with the scope will be opposite of what you see. In other words, if the crosshairs are to the right, adjust your scope in the direction of "right" on the windage dial. We are adjusting the scope to the rifle and not the rifle to scope in this process, so opposite is the word here as it is opposite of your normal procedure. Right is left and left is right.

Once you have the rifle bore sighted, then return the bolt to the action and fire your first round. Fine tune your zero from this point and now your turret direction arrows will be correct. Right is right, left is left. Bore sighting isn't perfect, but it will get you close. I've used this with bolt rifles as well as our M4A1s and M16A4s when zeroing the ACOG optical sights. In the field, select the corner of a building, small but distinct rock on a hill, etc. The further away your target object is, the more precise the bore sight will be.

The old M67 90mm RR and the M40A1 106mm RR used to come with a sight plate (peep sight if you will) for the breach and index marks on the muzzle to place wire or string on to form a sight in order to bore sight the weapons to their optics. We are now using this concept to sight your rifle, but without the muzzle index aid.

If you have a semi-auto or other rifle that can't be bore sighted, then start your zero process at 25 yards. Any misalignment between the bore and the scope will generally be within the confines of your target paper and thus easy to see. Now adjust into the center at 25 meters/yards and then final zero at your prefered zero range. Remember though, that at 25 yards, it will take 4 MOA for every inch that you are off and not the 1 MOA that you get for 1 inch at 100 yards. In other words, if you are 5 inches off at 25 yards, you will need to move the scope 20 MOA on your scope's turret to move the strike of the next round into the center.

A third option would be to use one of the purpose made bore sighting units by Bushnell or other manufacturers.

Good luck with your new rifle!
 
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After bore sighting and firing the first round re-set the crosshairs on the bullseye, without moving the rifle, adjust the crosshairs to the point of impact on the target. If you haven't moved the rifle the next shot should be in the bull.
 
I know this has nothing to do with zeroing but you might want to read up on breaking in the rifle. It's going to take more than a few rounds if you want to get the very best out of a new rifle.
 
Thanks for the replies.

Thanks for the information and advice. And thanks for the long write up Sharf. I plan on hitting the range tomorrow (wed) in hopes of getting it all zeroed. Also it is good to hear that I shouldn't use more than half a dozen rounds.

btw the new rifle and setup is Rem 700 SPS .308 with Vortex Diamondback 3-9x40 and Leupold DD Rings/bases.

Mike
 
Let us know how it goes radiator. Remember the goal is to zero the rifle. If it takes a few more rounds than 6, no worries.

By the way, before you go out, as the rifle is new, be sure to check your action screws' tightness as well as your scope base and ring screws. That can save a lot of grief and frustration in the zero process.

If you can, post a picture of your rig at the range.
 
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I zero with whatever I'm planning to use in the rifle. If you've correctly bore-sighted the scope/rifle, you should be on paper at 50 yds. If you shoot from a good rest (I use my Caldwell LeadSled), I use 2 rounds to see where it prints at 50, 2 more to zero at 50, and either 2 or 4 to zero at 100 yds. As an example, I sight in 2.4" high at 100 with my 6.5x55 with 140gr bullets to be spot on at 200.

You should not need more than 8-10 rounds if you can control your trigger from a solid rest.

FH
 
"...start your zero process at 25 yards. Any misalignment between the bore and the scope will generally be within the confines of your target paper and thus easy to see. Now adjust into the center at 25 meters/yards..."
Click to expand...
+Many.

- I recommend you start at 25 yds no matter what.

- Using two rounds, adjust to dead center at 25.

- Move to 100 and fire 1 round. If you were truly dead center at 25, you will be 2½" high at 100.

- If you are running a standard scoped rifle/150gr/2,800fps hunting ammo and deer-sized animals, that +2½" at 100 gives you point-blank ( ± 3") zero out to 260 yards.

- If you want, you can adjust down 4 clicks to +1½ at 100 and be point blank that smaller amount out to 225 or so.
 
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When I buy a new gun I usually buy at least a few boxes of different brand and weight ammo get the gun zeroed then go about shooting some groups and find what factory ammo works best with it. After I work out what it likes I go and buy say half a dozen to a dozen boxes shoot that then use that brass to start reloading.

Hunting and Target ammo are alot different so if you want it for both hunting and target use, you should probably get a few different boxes of hunting ammo and a few different boxes of target (Match Grade) ammo and go about shooting some groups to see what hunting and target ammo works best. I usually shoot a few 5 shot groups with each brand/weight ammo to see what works best. Once you have your favourate hunting and target ammo you will probably have to adjust your zero when changing between them.
 
Buy a box of cheap hunting ammo like Remington core lokts and start close say 25-50 yards. Zero it to that range and then move to 100 yards and fine tune the load to your point of impact. The POI of various ammos will vary but not more than several inches at 100 yards. Even the cheapest hunting loads should group at less than 2 inches with a 700.

Don't waste your time on laser boresighters or other devices. I have a a few cheap laser boresighters lying around my house and they have Never worked for me. You can't see the red laser in bright daylight anyway.
 
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I use to use one of those Boresight things, now I use the tried and true eyeball method. If you do it right, you'll cut paper the first shot at 25 yards. Then depending on the adjustment range of the scope you can extrapolate the number of clicks/turns you need to be on or near the bull. Fire one more shot for confirmation then run it out to 100 and adjust from there. Four shots is usually all it takes for me to get it on the bullseye. Then I'll work on load development.

The 700 Varmint 7mm08 I've been working with has been the easiest rifle I've done of late. My two Savage 10's weren't much harder. Luckily I reload and have had great results from my initial loads in all of the above. I did try some 120 and 140 grn bullets with different powders in the 7mm08 last weekend but they didn't come close to the original load I had set up initially for my Sako. Putting a lot of rounds in the same hole is a lot of fun.
 
Shoot More

When I aquire a new rifle I look for reasons to shoot it more, not less . It's a new rifle that you are going to hunt with , shoot it a lot , not a little ! Become familiar and proficient with it , before you shoot at any Game with it . If you aren't a handloader , try several factory loads , and your rifle will tell you what it likes . Clean the barrel before you fire it , and you won't drive whatever guano is in there into the steel of your brand new barrel . now as far as Rem. Core-Lokts being cheap ammo , it is reasonably priced ammo that is as good as anybody elses cup and core ammo . In fact it's probably better than most . It certainly has a longer track record of success , it's still the deadliest mushroom in the woods ! Enjoy !
 
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