How do YOU sight in your rifle?

[Triggernosis]

I was having a heck of a time sighting in a particular hunting rifle a few days ago when I finally noticed that the forend was jumping up off my Caldwell rest when I fired. The rear stock was sitting in a typical rear bag.
I was running low on ammo so I didn't have a chance to play around with any other setup at the time.

So I'm curious to hear what y'all's preferred setups for sighting in rifles are.

 

[jelenko]

I sit down cross legged at the 25 yard line, rest the rifle on my left hand with my left elbow on my left knee. Take shots and adjust sights until the impact is on call and ~ 2" below the aim point [My sights are ~ 3" above the bore center]
Then move to 100 yards and fine tune the zero in prone with a sling.

 

[MisterHelix]

I do not zero from a rest and bag unless that rifle is to be shot from a rest and bag.

I zero from, and for, various positions, which might include a zero from a tree stand in certain cases.

I suppose I might start with prone at 25 to get on paper, then out to 100+ to refine and confirm a starting zero for that position.

 

[nettle]

Front rest and rear bag at 25 yards. Then rest and bag to 100 yards and re-zero again if needed. After that check POA at 200 yards. Shooting off a front rest and rear bag takes almost all the human error out out the rifle to scope alignment. It doesn't matter if it's jumping up out of your rest or if you hold the gun upside down. What matters is that you hold the gun the same way when it's fired. If jumping out of the rest isn't working then try getting a firm hold and cheek weld when shooting.

 

[Kevin1990]

I usually bore sight in my house. Put the gun on the table in a rest with a little red dot at the end of the hall. Look down the bore, and line the bore up with the dot, along with my sights on the scope.

Then take it to the field on a bipod and rear bag. Make sure I’m on paper at 25. Usually 1 or 2 shots.

Then I move to 100 yards, and make my adujustments. After I’m sighted in, I put it on my tripod, and take a couple shots off that, and I really don’t have much of a POI shift to speak of. Not enough for a hunting rifle anyway.

Last year I did the same procedure, except moved my target to 200 yards and zeroed, after verifying I was good at 100.

I’m a little paranoid with my hunting rifles. I like to bring another one with me when sighting one in. After I sight in, I shoot my other rifle a while, and then take a cold bore shot with my hunting rifle to verify one last time that my zero is good.

 

[Coyotefurharvester]

Hunting rifles, x or bull bag up front, rear rabbit ear bag. Than I test/check with a firmer front bag and same rear bag. Lastly Harris bipod and rear squeeze bag. If poi moves, there is a stock issue. Varmint rifles I mostly shoot off bipods during the day in the winter, so that's the final zero. Night rifles are fairly new for me and I have added a Death grip tripod, added a ball head/arca plate. So I have been zeroing/load work off of it last couple range trips. Will be using the tripod for muzzleloader season starting this weekend.

 

[Bill Clifton]

A hunting rifle usually rested on a hay bale. It's most likely going to get shot from resting on something like that, a fence, or shooting sticks, etc.

 

[Murray Brook]

What I do is bore sight my rifle then test it at 25 yards on a good solid rest( sand bags etc) to get it on paper. Then I move to 100 yds and adjust for the zero range I want. Then I will try the rifle at that range, always using a good rest . Once I achieve this then I will practice using what may be available in the field. JMW

 

[M-61]

Bore sight carefully
On rest at range
100 yard large cardboard 36”x36 target
2” circle for bullseye
Fire at bull
Put crosshair on BULLET HOLE
Very steady in rest slowly carefully turn turrets to move cross hair to bulls eye.
If you kept rifle STEADY your 2nd shot should be in that 2” bullseye.
Make adjustments to center in 2” circle
Or maybe you were steady enough that you are already there.
You need the huge 36x36 target because bore sighting often is tricky. I use a fluorescent 2” post it note at 25 yards. Problem is centering that in a shiny bore. And a 36x36 paper is way cheaper than firing and not hitting the paper at all. Wasted shot.
No clue what others do but this works for me.

 

[dryhumor]

I use cardboard backers from appliance boxes usually. Then white paper. Stick one 3” target in the middle. Stick whatever targets I need towards the edges.
On the bench, 160 yds away, I sit the rifle on bags.
Remove the bolt.
Look from breech to muzzle while centering on the middle of the white paper.
You can visually see the round of the bore at both ends, just get them centered to each other visually.
Without moving the rifle, lift up your head to look through the scope.
Adjust the crosshairs or dot to the stick on target in the middle.
Check a few times, adjust if needed.
Load and fire.
Then adjust to the impact point.
Generally on the target sheet in one shot, generally adjusted in 3 shots.
It takes a bit longer if I’m using a lower or higher velocity load and/or a 20 moa rail, depending on what the scope was last on.
I fine tune as I go through the charge weights of whatever loads I’m shooting.
Been doing it like that for a long time. Recently swapped scopes on one and wanted to set a 50 yard zero. Used the same procedure at 50 yards, and my first shot was about 1 1/2” to the right of center. Fine tuned from there.

Gotta be aware of how much in inches your scope clicks move. A short range zero may not be on paper at distance if your target size at distance is small.

This is an idea of how much surface area I use. 6x scope view at 160 yds.

 

[Fairchaser]

I will sight in at 100 the traditional way off a hunting bipod and rear bag checking speeds. Then I will move out to 200 and 300 yds starting with the bipod but also shooting off sticks and a tripod used in the field. At this time, I’m also using an app to check elevation and truing up my speed on the app. Then, I will move out to 600 and check my elevation and grouping. My effective range is 1 MOA or less.

 

[Kracken McGraw]

I use cardboard backers from appliance boxes usually. Then white paper. Stick one 3” target in the middle. Stick whatever targets I need towards the edges.
On the bench, 160 yds away, I sit the rifle on bags.
Remove the bolt.
Look from breech to muzzle while centering on the middle of the white paper.
You can visually see the round of the bore at both ends, just get them centered to each other visually.
Without moving the rifle, lift up your head to look through the scope.
Adjust the crosshairs or dot to the stick on target in the middle.
Check a few times, adjust if needed.
Load and fire.
Then adjust to the impact point.
Generally on the target sheet in one shot, generally adjusted in 3 shots.
It takes a bit longer if I’m using a lower or higher velocity load and/or a 20 moa rail, depending on what the scope was last on.
I fine tune as I go through the charge weights of whatever loads I’m shooting.
Been doing it like that for a long time. Recently swapped scopes on one and wanted to set a 50 yard zero. Used the same procedure at 50 yards, and my first shot was about 1 1/2” to the right of center. Fine tuned from there.

Gotta be aware of how much in inches your scope clicks move. A short range zero may not be on paper at distance if your target size at distance is small.

This is an idea of how much surface area I use. 6x scope view at 160 yds.

View attachment 1495719

I do the same, mines at 170 yards. It’s amazing how accurate the the eye can true things.

 

[JMayo]

I shoot at a ten ring, then hold rifle on same 10 ring and click scope to bullet hole.

 

[jimmymac]

No magic to it. An inch and a half high at 100 yards gives me everything I need for the situations I hunt. It’s point and shoot simplicity.

 

[butchlambert]

If your fore end is jumping in the bags, your front bag is too hard. I like a soft bag. I'm a 2" above the mothball at 100 yds, but I have a personal max of 300yds when hunting unless it is a skunk!

 

[6Creed73]

Bore sight at my house at about 100 yards with a Site-Lite laser, which always gets me on paper. At the range I use a front rest and rear rabbit ear bag. I barely touch the rifle other than pulling the trigger and cheek on the stock, that way I know I don't influence the zero.

 

[jepp2]

Put crosshair on BULLET HOLE
Very steady in rest slowly carefully turn turrets to move cross hair to bulls eye.

?? I put the crosshair where I aimed and adjust to where I hit.

 

[M-61]

No
Aim at the bull
Then put the crosshairs where the bullet HIT
Then adjust the cross hairs to the bullseye

 

[M-61]

This goes extremely well BUT easily confusing
A steady rest is mandatory
Placing the crosshairs on the bull
Fire
Wherever the bullet hit put your crosshairs on THAT hole
Steady as you can torn the turrets until THEY are on the bullseye
Fire
Steadiness is mandatory as when you are turning your turrets ( depending on the scope) are sometimes harder to turn than you think causing the rifle to move
The steadier you hold the rifle during this operation is how close you be in the bull on the 2nd shot. Maybe dead on if you did your part but no matter what that second shot is closer to the bull which is your point of aim
I hope this made sense.

 

[M-61]

?? I put the crosshair where I aimed and adjust to where I hit.

No because in doing that you will move the second shot even further from where you aimed