Sighting in Question

M

musicmatty

New member
Hello,

I sighted in the scope on my model 94 30-30 bench rested at 50 yards. The last two shots after making final adjustments to the scope we’re both overlapping dead on in the bull’s-eye.

My question is this… at a 100 yards, will I be approximately a quarter to 1 inch off from Bullseye high or low? I’m using 150 grain hollow jacketed point Winchester cartridges. I fully understand that the best way to do this is to actually shoot the target at 100 yards but I was hoping someone with some experience already doing this could offer some insight.

Thanks!

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The exact load and rifle will vary slightly, but that is close enough. And I like a 50 yard zero for a 30-30.
 
I think that may be a myth. I’ve always had my best results resting both the barrel and the butt of the gun on sandbags at the bench. This rifle was last zeroed at 100 yards 27 years ago. I could always shoot four leaf clover’s inside the bull’s-eye bench rested at 100 yards. This has always served me well for deer hunting right up thru last year with a 100 yard harvest head shot.

After deer season last year, I took this rifle completely apart for a deep cleaning and even though I didn’t remove the scope from the barrel, after reassembling, the scope was no longer dialed in for proper elevation when tested at 50 yards...it was shooting 6 inches high.

Thank you to everyone for the feedback.
 
Not a myth but may need to be qualified a bit. For a bolt action, you should never place the barrel on a rest. It puts pressure on the barrel and changes the harmonics. If you change the point where the barrel is place on the rest the upward pressure changes and that changes barrel harmonics. Now on a rifle with a ammo tube attached below the barrel I wouldn’t think it matters too much.
As always I could be completely wrong.
 
Not a myth but may need to be qualified a bit. For a bolt action, you should never place the barrel on a rest. It puts pressure on the barrel and changes the harmonics. If you change the point where the barrel is place on the rest the upward pressure changes and that changes barrel harmonics. Now on a rifle with a ammo tube attached below the barrel I wouldn’t think it matters too much.
As always I could be completely wrong.
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I fully agree as that makes perfect sense. Thanks for sharing.
 
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Begs the question, if you are only an inch low at 100, why not add one minute of elevation? You will be 1/2" high at 50, and dead on at 100, and around 3" low at 150. Energy for a .30-30 is getting fairly low by 200 yards, so really any range you want to shoot a deer with it, you can pretty much hold dead on.
 
It's my experience that a zero obtained at any range with any rifle resting on something atop a bench will not shoot to call (point of aim when fired) from any field position with or without a sling. Bench zeros were one MOA or more left from field position zeros, I'm right handed.

Barrel's bore moves different during barrel time depending upon how it's supported when fired. Lever guns with under barrel tube magazines do best resting on soft foam than anything harder testing for accuracy. Can cause vertical stringing.

Bore doesn't point to proper place above distant point of aim to put a bullet there until it leaves the barrel.
 
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bench

Been my experience that most high velocity, conventionally mounted, SCOPE SIGHTED rifles, if zeroed "on" at 50, will shoot shoot SLIGHTLY high at 100, say less than an inch. If the scope is set extremely high above the bore, like with the silly "Iron-sighter" see thru mounts, the effect is increased. With low to the bore iron sights, the effect is decreased. In any event, at 100, I wouldn't worry about it on deer sized targets.

This line of thought and conversation is pretty common. Folks wanna zero their rifles at close range, 25 or 50 yds, and then wonder what the rifle will do farther out. I suppose folks can't get to a a place where they can shoot 100 yds. I dunno, but you hear it all the time.

But the best practice is, if you want a 100 yd zero, shoot the rifle at 100!!
 
I have an older computer program called "Load from a Disk." That program can give me trajectories with various zero's. Also there is a point blank zero where you put in how high you want the bullet to rise about the line of sight. You need to know the velocity of the bullet plus the ballistic coefficient. Beats a SWG. I'm hunting for a more update program.
 
Thanks everyone for the great information coming forth! After sighting in a few days ago and dialing in the scope to Bullseye at 50 yards, I’m fully satisfied with my results.

As I stated in an earlier post, after totally stripping the rifle down after last year’s hunting season, apparently reassembling it changed the elevation of the scope and it was way off target by several inches. Let me clarify that when I did strip the rifle down, I did not remove the scope from the barrel or any of the screws for the mounting rings.

It’s been my personal preference not to take any shots outside of 100 yards even with the scope. So any deer that appears to be beyond 100 yards gets a free pass from me.

This past Friday I sighted in my commemorative golden spike model 94 (50yrs old now) at 35 yds with open sights that I will also be using this season. I was very pleased with my results but I will not be taking any shots outside of 50 yards with open sights.

****35 yards with open sights***
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You are doing fine with that 94. You aren't going varmint hunting. You have a nice tight chamber and good eyes. The old strategies were pie plate at 100 Yds.. You are better than that. one more improvement would give you little more killing power. 170gr. bullet. The 94 in 30-30 is the classic deer hunting rifle in Michigan... Most of our senior Michiganders shot there first deer... with it. Or at least I did.

Good luck
 
I zero at 100 yards, even for my revolvers with scopes.
Then, I actually confirm my drops by shooting at those distances.
Technology may be close, but actual shooting proves what your drops actually are.
 
musicmatty said:
Hello,

I sighted in the scope on my model 94 30-30 bench rested at 50 yards. The last two shots after making final adjustments to the scope we’re both overlapping dead on in the bull’s-eye.

My question is this… at a 100 yards, will I be approximately a quarter to 1 inch off from Bullseye high or low? I’m using 150 grain hollow jacketed point Winchester cartridges. I fully understand that the best way to do this is to actually shoot the target at 100 yards but I was hoping someone with some experience already doing this could offer some insight.

Thanks!
Click to expand...
Experience says, just shoot it at 100 yards
 
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