So, admitting that I'm straight up amateur hour here, I'm going to sight in my 30-06 rifle on which I just put a new optic. I want to have it be POA=POI at 200 yds. since my eyes aren't good enough for me to be shooting at anything really beyond 300yds anyway. HERE IS THE RUB, I only have access to a 100yd range. Where, then, should I be trying to get my POI? 2 inches high of POA is my random instinctual guess. Anyone have thoughts? The rifle has a 23.25" barrel if that helps at all.
Zeroing my 30-06
- Thread starter RoyalWe
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Ridgerunner665
New member
2" high @ 100 will be real darn close to a 200 yard zero...1.75" is probably closer.
The only way to get it exact is by knowing the velocity and BC of the bullet...which is over thinking it to be honest...1.75 - 2" high at 100 will work just fine.
The only way to get it exact is by knowing the velocity and BC of the bullet...which is over thinking it to be honest...1.75 - 2" high at 100 will work just fine.
The answer varies with the ammunition you use. Many loads will have trajectories printed on the box that can provide drop figures to answer your question. An alternative is to use one of the many ballistics programs on line. You will need the bullet weight, ballistic coefficient, and muzzle velocity. I like the Norma program for its fast change sliders but there're a lot of others.
Or you can post your load and I can run it through my program.
Edit to add: With a 200 yard zero 150 grain loads are about 1.7 inches high, 165 grainers about 1.8, and 180s about 2 inches at 100 yards. Given the realities of rifle and ammo performance and those of taking game, those are effectively equal, though there is some entertainment value in pursuing the details.
Or you can post your load and I can run it through my program.
Edit to add: With a 200 yard zero 150 grain loads are about 1.7 inches high, 165 grainers about 1.8, and 180s about 2 inches at 100 yards. Given the realities of rifle and ammo performance and those of taking game, those are effectively equal, though there is some entertainment value in pursuing the details.
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If you cannot practice at ranges longer than 100 yards, zero at 100 yards and don't shoot at anything farther away than 100 yards until you are able to practice at those ranges.
I'd strongly advise against this. You'll be shooting 5" high between 150-200 yards and stand a very good chance of shooting OVER a deer or having the bullet strike unseen brush between you and the deer. It is a lot more natural to hold over at longer ranges than to try to remember to hold low at close range. You also generally have a lot more time to set up longer range shots. Close shots are more likely to be taken quickly when you don't have time to think.
Unless you anticipate a 300 yard shot as being the closest shot you will take I still advise a 100 yard zero. Even in wide open spaces 90% of all shots are under 150 yards and 300 is a long shot. With a 100 yard zero most modern rifles will have the bullet within 1/2" of the line of sight out to about 130 yards, and only 2-3" low at 200. The drop at 300 is going to be around 10" or less. You can still easily make hits at 300 yards with no hold over with a 100 yard zero by holding on the top of the back on anything over 200 yards. Hold center of the chest on anything closer than 200.
Lots of folks recommend a +2" zero at 100 yards. You'll still be 6-7" low at 300. If you can figure out how to hit at that range with a 6-7" bullet drop another 3-4" won't matter. Remember, most shooters/rifles are going to be shooting 3-6" groups at 300 yards. Fire 5 shots from a rifle zeroed at 100 yards, and 5 more from another zeroed +2" @ 100 yards and the 10 shots will overlap on the target.
I don't see the point in making things more complicated at exactly the ranges where we take virtually all of our shots just to gain such a slight advantage at ranges where most of us will NEVER take a shot
I'd strongly advise against this. You'll be shooting 5" high between 150-200 yards and stand a very good chance of shooting OVER a deer or having the bullet strike unseen brush between you and the deer. It is a lot more natural to hold over at longer ranges than to try to remember to hold low at close range. You also generally have a lot more time to set up longer range shots. Close shots are more likely to be taken quickly when you don't have time to think.
Unless you anticipate a 300 yard shot as being the closest shot you will take I still advise a 100 yard zero. Even in wide open spaces 90% of all shots are under 150 yards and 300 is a long shot. With a 100 yard zero most modern rifles will have the bullet within 1/2" of the line of sight out to about 130 yards, and only 2-3" low at 200. The drop at 300 is going to be around 10" or less. You can still easily make hits at 300 yards with no hold over with a 100 yard zero by holding on the top of the back on anything over 200 yards. Hold center of the chest on anything closer than 200.
Lots of folks recommend a +2" zero at 100 yards. You'll still be 6-7" low at 300. If you can figure out how to hit at that range with a 6-7" bullet drop another 3-4" won't matter. Remember, most shooters/rifles are going to be shooting 3-6" groups at 300 yards. Fire 5 shots from a rifle zeroed at 100 yards, and 5 more from another zeroed +2" @ 100 yards and the 10 shots will overlap on the target.
I don't see the point in making things more complicated at exactly the ranges where we take virtually all of our shots just to gain such a slight advantage at ranges where most of us will NEVER take a shot
jmr40 is on the mark, but I prefer the idea of Maximum Point Blank Range for my hunting rifles (no reason from actual real world experience, just an intellectual preference so far.) The idea is that you choose a vital zone diameter (d) based on the critter you are after and sight in so that the trajectory is ±½d to the MPBR. My .30-06 bolt action really likes the Hornady Light Magnum 180 grain and the old Federal High Energy 180 Partition (catalog P3006R, no longer made.) They are ±3" to 287 yards, both by software calculation and a limited range test that agreed with the calculations to 300 yards. As I am very unlikely to take a shot beyond 200 yards, I am happy with that.
Regardless of how you sight in, a key ingredient to hitting is to know what to expect from the loads you shoot with the zero you selected. Many hunters will carry a card, some will even put adhesive tape on the rifle to consult. The other key is accurate range estimation, especially at longer ranges. My miserable eyeball range finding is one of the reasons I like MPBR.
FWIW, my software says the Winchester Silvertip 165 grain sighted 3.58 inches high at 100 yards zeros at 270 yards, peaks 4.24 inches high at 153 yards, and is 2.48 inches low at 300 yards. Those are calculations and may differ quite a bit from what a specific ammo lot number does in your rifle.
Regardless of how you sight in, a key ingredient to hitting is to know what to expect from the loads you shoot with the zero you selected. Many hunters will carry a card, some will even put adhesive tape on the rifle to consult. The other key is accurate range estimation, especially at longer ranges. My miserable eyeball range finding is one of the reasons I like MPBR.
FWIW, my software says the Winchester Silvertip 165 grain sighted 3.58 inches high at 100 yards zeros at 270 yards, peaks 4.24 inches high at 153 yards, and is 2.48 inches low at 300 yards. Those are calculations and may differ quite a bit from what a specific ammo lot number does in your rifle.
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Colorado Redneck
New member
Point Blank Range
http://www.chuckhawks.com/mpbr_hunting.htm
Understanding the concept of Maximum Point Blank Range makes hunting a lot easier, if you prepare by sighting your rifle accordingly.
If your 30-06 ammo is, for example, Hornady 150 gr. Interlock Bullets, then a calculator like JBM Ballistics shows that for most conditions about 2.5" high at 100 yards will put you in the kill zone out to 300 yards with no adjustment for distance. That makes a hunting shot a lot less complicated. Your high point will be about 3 inches above line-of sight and at 300 yards your low point will be about 3inches below line of sight. Supposing you aim for the center of the kill zone on a deer sized animal, you should be good to go.
http://www.chuckhawks.com/mpbr_hunting.htm
Understanding the concept of Maximum Point Blank Range makes hunting a lot easier, if you prepare by sighting your rifle accordingly.
If your 30-06 ammo is, for example, Hornady 150 gr. Interlock Bullets, then a calculator like JBM Ballistics shows that for most conditions about 2.5" high at 100 yards will put you in the kill zone out to 300 yards with no adjustment for distance. That makes a hunting shot a lot less complicated. Your high point will be about 3 inches above line-of sight and at 300 yards your low point will be about 3inches below line of sight. Supposing you aim for the center of the kill zone on a deer sized animal, you should be good to go.
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Kreyzhorse
New member
Don't sweat it too much. 2" high at 100 yards will cover all of your bases regardless of ammo.
Onward Allusion
New member
Good answer with the 2" to 1.75" high at 100 yards...should give you 200 yds. However, I would personally stick to 100 yards if that was the only range I had to practice at.
This goes for any rifle, not just the 30-06.
Unless you want to adjust for different ranges, you are looking at PBZ (point blank zero) where the path of the bullet is never over X" high or X" inches low to a given range.
Find out what you will be hunting. I don't know where you are, so I will assume deer.
The vital area (heart/lung) of the average deer is 10-11 inches.
So I'd recommend a sight in distance that would never be 5 inches high or 5 inches low. If sighted in at 250 yards you'd be about 4.3 inches low at 300 yards, 3.6 inches at 150 yards.
Since you only have a 100 yard range to sight in, if you sight in at 3.1 inches high at 100 you'd be good to go.
There are plenty of free on line ballistic programs on the net to play with to find what works for you're desired PBZ for your given target size.
I like a Mil Dot scope (used for ranging). BUT: In using a Mil Dot, and knowing the average size of the target (lets use deer again, the average deer being 18 inches from the top of his back to the bottom of his stomach).
We know that at 300 yards 18 inches would be about 1.75 Mils. So we can instantly look into the scope and see if the deer is 1.79 or more Mils. If so then the animal is within your PBZ.
Unless you want to adjust for different ranges, you are looking at PBZ (point blank zero) where the path of the bullet is never over X" high or X" inches low to a given range.
Find out what you will be hunting. I don't know where you are, so I will assume deer.
The vital area (heart/lung) of the average deer is 10-11 inches.
So I'd recommend a sight in distance that would never be 5 inches high or 5 inches low. If sighted in at 250 yards you'd be about 4.3 inches low at 300 yards, 3.6 inches at 150 yards.
Since you only have a 100 yard range to sight in, if you sight in at 3.1 inches high at 100 you'd be good to go.
There are plenty of free on line ballistic programs on the net to play with to find what works for you're desired PBZ for your given target size.
I like a Mil Dot scope (used for ranging). BUT: In using a Mil Dot, and knowing the average size of the target (lets use deer again, the average deer being 18 inches from the top of his back to the bottom of his stomach).
We know that at 300 yards 18 inches would be about 1.75 Mils. So we can instantly look into the scope and see if the deer is 1.79 or more Mils. If so then the animal is within your PBZ.
