It's POI vs POA.
Pond said:
What I would normally do is put my gun in the support, adjust it so that the reticle is on the X and then use the turrets to move the reticle toward the bullet hole. However, this usually means I am having to turn the turrets in the opposite direct to that which is written on the turret heads.
You need to reverse your thinking. Consider it to be moving the bullet hole to the crosshairs instead. The turrets are marked to move the POI but you're using them to move the POA.
Pond said:
Let's say I aim at the X of a target, for example, and then say the shots land upper right, 3" away, meaning that at 100yds, I'd need to move the cross-hair by 6 clicks (1.5 MOA) horizontally and 6 vertically.
What I would normally do is put my gun in the support, adjust it so that the reticle is on the X and then use the turrets to move the reticle toward the bullet hole. However, this usually means I am having to turn the turrets in the opposite direct to that which is written on the turret heads.
Per your own description above, "shots land upper right", your example shot was 3" high and 3" right. While looking through the scope, if you move the turrets 6 clicks in the marked DOWN and LEFT directions (directions you desire the bullet to move), the crosshairs will magically RISE 3" and move 3" RIGHT and be directly on top of your bullet hole. This is what you're seeing and why the turrets appear reversed to you. You're thinking the crosshairs have to move UP and RIGHT to the bullet hole, while the scope makers are thinking that the bullet hole has to move DOWN and LEFT to the crosshairs. It has to work that way, because of what you say below:
Pond said:
I want to use the turrets for distance adjustments rather than hold-over and the turrets are designed to be adjusted regular: big, with lots of graduations and dust-caps so meant to be used, rather than set and left.
Let's say you zeroed your scope at 100 yards. POI = POA at 100 yards.
Now you want to hit the bullseye at 1,000 yards. Let's say that your bullet needs to strike 3" high at 100 yards to be zeroed at 1,000 yards. If you turn your turret 6 clicks in the "UP" direction, as marked, it will raise your POI the required 3" at 100 yards. If you were looking through your scope as you did this, you would see the crosshairs move 3" DOWN (opposite the turret markings) on the 100 yard target. When you move the rifle itself to put the crosshairs 3" back up onto the bullseye, the POI will be the required 3" high.
Just remember to turn the knobs in the direction you desire the bullet strike to move, NOT the direction you desire the crosshairs to move. Bullet needs to move UP, for example to shoot at a longer range, then turn turret in UP direction.
Just like adjusting a marked front sight. If you're shooting low and want the POI to move UP, then turn the sight in the direction of the arrow. Physically the sight will move DOWN (opposite what the arrow says, just like scope crosshairs). However, the lower front sight will cause the POI to move UP.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6a/M16_front_sight_post_P1010030.JPG