Zero Distance

[mturner85 9]

What's most peoples zero distance of choice. At the moment my hw97 k and 95 are both zeroed at 30yards? Although at the moment im only doing close range ratting, 10-15yards. Does anyone say have theres zeroed at a constant 50yards even if only shooting close range? Im not doing any long range shooting at the moment mostly to being a newbie and not confident at clean kills over 30 yards and not being confident at hold over etc at this time. But whats the best zero distance.

[danco1987 27]

Download chairgun, input your pellet, scope height, fps youre rifles shooting, scope mag and then experiment with different zero distances. See which one would be best for you.

[Skot Ruthless Teale 1,701]

if your shooting at such close range, then why not zero at that range and just aim smack on!!

[andy97 209]

why dont you zero one for close range and the other for long mate that way youll have one for both occasions but tbh get out with a 30yrd zero and work out your hold over out to 50 then your good for all ranges

[DenBell 149]

i agree with danco, download chairgun and theres an option after you input data to give you the best zero, so it requires the least amount of adjustments. wish i had done it earlier

[mturner85 9]

Ive not heard of chairgun thanks guys so will definitely give that a go now. The reason I keep it zeroed at 30yards is due to mostly practicing at that range down the club. I do find it difficult though when I practice at 10-15 yards as I need to use about half a mil hold over and scopes only got mil dots. Maybe just need more practice ?

[David.evans 5,323]

Sound advice from the other lads

Atb Dave

[mturner85 9]

I dont get this chairgun app at all lads lol

[DenBell 149]

Whats the problem pal? took me a while to get to grips with but well worth the effort.

[Coypu Hunter 486]

If Chairgun's a bit of a challenge, try the link below to find out your ideal zero ranges and min/max Point Blank Ranges for your rifle.

 

http://www.shooterscalculator.com/point-blank-range.php

 

Put in your pellet speed, the sight height (measured between the centreline of your barrel and the centreline of your scope tube) and your target size. If you put in a one-inch target size, then the calculator will show you the point blank ranges with no more than a half-inch holdover or holdunder.

 

As an example, my HW97K spits out Weihrauch F&T Special pellets at 810 fps. So I enter 810fps, one-inch target, 1.5 inch sight height, and I get a Near Zero of 13 yards and a Far Zero of 40 yards. Minimum PBR is 8 yards, max PBR is 46 yards.

 

What does this mean? It means that if I'm shooting at a one-inch target at any range between 8 and 46 yards, I will hit it. At 8 and 46 yards, the pellet will fall a half-inch low, and at 26-28 yards it will be about a half-inch high. At 13 and 40 yards it will fall exactly in the centre of a one-inch bullseye. It also means that if I zero my rifle at 13 yards, it will also be zeroed at 40 yards. So, if I zero my rifle at 13 (and 40) yards, I can pick up my rifle, take a quick shot and hit a one-inch target without holdover or holdunder if I want, at any range between 8 and 46 yards.

 

If you want to be more precise, go to the "Ballistic Trajectory" calculator page on the site. Put in the pellet weight, initial velocity and zero range from the Point Blank Range calculation (far zero number of yards). Set Shooting Angle, Wind Speed and Wind angle to zero. Set the Chart Range to 100 yards and the Chart Step Size to 1 yard. Click on Calculate, and the site will produce a chart that gives you the amount of holdover or holdunder you need to apply for every yard of range up to 100 yards.

 

In case you're wondering, Point Blank Range doesn't mean "close up" as many people believe. Point Blanc in French means bullseye, so your Point Blank Range is the different distances at which your pellet/bullet will pass through a bullseye without holdover or holdunder -- in the example above, 8-46 yards for a one-inch bullseye.