At what range should I zero my new 22 rifle

R

rhawk0451

Inactive
Hi, I’m a new member to this forum and this is my first post. I've noticed a great deal of knowledge and appreciate how it's shared. Well, I have a burning question and could really use some help. If it turns out this question has been kicked around before, I apologize in advance.

I’ve recently purchased a new Savage Mk2 TR rifle and a Mueller 8-32x44 target type scope. I want to use this set up as a trainer in hopes of becoming a better marksman down the road. I also wanted a scope with exposed turrets to better my understanding of MOA and making the proper sight adjustments on the fly and when needed. I've read in the spec sheet where this scope has a total of 40 inches of vertical adjustment. I'm assuming this means 20 inches above center and 20" below at best. Thus the reason for my title / question. So with that said, at what range should this scope be zeroed to get the most out of my limited amount of elevation so I can shoot at the longest possible ranges without a hold over. I hope you can make sense of my question.

Your help in this matter would be greatly appreciated.
 
Shoot at 25 yards. Zero the scope, write down the adjustment settings.
Repeat at all ranges of interest.

When you set up on a target at one of those ranges of interest, look at your chart and make the appropriate sight setting.

If your scope has mil dots or other range estimating and compensating reticle features, log what they are good for.

A .22 has a pretty high trajectory. Your window of ranges at which you can shoot without adjustment or holdover is narrow, and gets narrower as the range gets longer.
 
I always zero for 50 yards with 22s. I always use iron sights though. I did have occasion to shoot at 315 yards at a steel man target though. A couple shots to determine holdover is all it took and then I was hitting it everytime. It didn't seem to take a whole heck of a lot of holdover, but I was shooting downhill and I'm sure that helped it.
 
Yards or feet? Scope?

This has a ballistics table that sounds right for yards(1050fps and 40gr). Pretty big drop on a 22LR at 200 yards. 200 FEET.....not so much.
http://www.6mmbr.com/rimfiretactical.html

I have a marlin, with the iron sights 200 feet would be possible. At 200 yards I'll never see the target. At 200 yards I'd want a longer barrel and a scope, and still expect the wind to blow that 40gr slug off even if I got the elevation correct.

No?
 
Sorry.....re-read the original.

Still - 200 yards might be outside the range of your scope. Be fun to take out and play with to find out.
 
How about just choosing one distance for the scope adjustment and use the dots or marks in the viewfinder and hold over / under for all other distances.
It takes a little trial and error to find these, but once done, it keeps messing with the scope to a minimum.
It doesn't matter all that much what distance is chosen for the scope setting, as long as the crosshair, 'etc, is pretty much centered and easy to find.
You won't have to be as concerned with running out of scope adjustment with this method, either.
 
50 yard zero will put your shots close enough at 25 yards you won't have to worry about readjusting. Depending on ammo you are only talking 4" difference at 100 yards. You won't have nay problems getting on target at 200 yards. Don't over think it, just get some good ammo and start shooting.
 
It really depends what range you want to shoot IMO. As others said .22lr will drop considerable at distance. Most guys dont consider a .22lr a bullseye shooter beyond 100yds. Yes you can hit the target at 400yds but your not going to be hitting a 1/2" group. JMO but you may want to set at 50 yds and play with cartridges until you can consistently shoot under 1/2" 5shot groups. You may also want to check out rimfirecentral.com and look at the competitions that those guys are shooting. They always have forum comps going on. Many of those guys are shooting sub 1/4" groups at 50yds. Looks like a clover. I have a old Marlin that I did a little work on. With wolf ammo I can shoot 5/8" groups at 50yds fairly consistent. The skills you learn there can be moved out to any range with the right caliber.
I hope this helps. The guys at rimfire central are almost as helpful and friendly as the guys on firingline.
 
I zeroed my Savage MKii at 100 yards. With a mil-dot 4-12x scope I hold under 3 mils for 25 yards, about 2 mils high for 150 yards and 5 mils high for 200 yards. The 40 grain subsonic ammo (I shoot it suppressed) in a 1-16 twist barrel is good for 1.5 inches at 100 yards but goes to a crappy 6-8 inches at 200 yards.

Can't go wrong with a scope that has multiple aiming points. This way I set the scope once and just hold under or over to hit the targets I want.

lark
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top