Depart123
Your issue at hand may very well be your lack of a reliable rangefinder.
Ballistic Calc vs. Actual, question in here somewhere...
- Thread starter AccelR8
- Start date
At this point I guess it's purely academic. I'm just trying to learn and understand. In the real world I guess the application for the calculator would be if a shot presents itself at an intermediate range I haven't yet fired at, say 700 yards. Or 450 yards. I only have access to established ranges with established berms and targets at known distances for this type of work-up. Unlike some, I can't go out to open territory and set targets at whatever distance.
In the past, for varmint shooting what I've done is get some dope at 50, 100, 200 and 300 (at my club) and then use a calculator to generate a chart with 50 yard increments. I've found that many things I shoot at won't sit there and wait while I walk shots on to it
It's all suspect at this point. Personally I suspect the nut behind the butt stock...I really think there's something I'm missing, something I'm doing wrong with data recording or inputting. It's possible though that I'm missing a real problem with the equipment.
I do not have access to a scope checker. This scope I know tracks accurately up to 30 minutes and back to zero, repeatedly, but I haven't experimented at up to the 40 minutes I had to dial to hit at 1000. I only expected to need about 30 minutes.
If you want accurate outputs then you need accurate inputs.
You should get in to the habit of finding true ranges with a reliable range finder (1000 yard capable range finders are pretty cheap compared to 25 years ago) and you need to find the most complete BC data based on multiple velocities (Litz's book). Then you have to true your ballistics curve by actually testing the results against the computer's estimates. Any half measure is going to drive you nuts trying to figure out where the errors are and the thing is that since we are working with a parabolic curve we have to fit that curve to the real world, if it's shifted one way or another than either short or long range estimates will be off - you will only be on at one point.
All ballistics engines have to be true to the real world each time that you shoot long range, environmental conditions will change the trajectory to some degree and you wont know how much until you verify the drops at different ranges. So even when you get everything right you need to get in the habit of checking it every time you go out to do serious shooting which means that you need to have good equipment that will provide good input data. I see a lot of people get hung up on the idea that it takes time to do all this ranging and such, but the reality is that with good habits and good equipment you can set things up so that it only takes a couple of seconds to range, adjust, and shoot.
You should get in to the habit of finding true ranges with a reliable range finder (1000 yard capable range finders are pretty cheap compared to 25 years ago) and you need to find the most complete BC data based on multiple velocities (Litz's book). Then you have to true your ballistics curve by actually testing the results against the computer's estimates. Any half measure is going to drive you nuts trying to figure out where the errors are and the thing is that since we are working with a parabolic curve we have to fit that curve to the real world, if it's shifted one way or another than either short or long range estimates will be off - you will only be on at one point.
All ballistics engines have to be true to the real world each time that you shoot long range, environmental conditions will change the trajectory to some degree and you wont know how much until you verify the drops at different ranges. So even when you get everything right you need to get in the habit of checking it every time you go out to do serious shooting which means that you need to have good equipment that will provide good input data. I see a lot of people get hung up on the idea that it takes time to do all this ranging and such, but the reality is that with good habits and good equipment you can set things up so that it only takes a couple of seconds to range, adjust, and shoot.
I had nearly the same thing happen to me. 7saum, 168 Vld, Leupold Mark IV, G7 rf and used Applied Ballistics and Strelok. Came in high 300-600 then fell off out at 1000. Checked and rechecked everything. Never did figure it out. Re-barreled it to save my sanity......
This makes me feel, well not good, but better maybe. Knowing I'm not the only one.
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