Dial or BDC ???
- Thread starter Buzzsaw
- Start date
Dial...honestly I start getting lost in the overly complex reticles.
Unless you plan to run one load exclusively I would dial. Some of today's reticles get way to complicated and cluttered in the field of view. Way to distracting for me personally. Change the load and all the reference hash marks go out the window. 
Just my .002
Paul
www.proprecisionrifles.com
Just my .002Paul
www.proprecisionrifles.com
^^^ This is good advice.Unless you plan to run one load exclusively I would dial. Some of today's reticles get way to complicated and cluttered in the field of view. Way to distracting for me personally. Change the load and all the reference hash marks go out the window.
Paul
www.proprecisionrifles.com
Depart123
Either one will work fine for hunting. Even with just a duplex reticle, it is no great trick to zero a scope for 200 or 300 yards and get consistent hits on a target the size of deer vitals size out to 400 or so.
What BDC's lack in real precision, they make up for in speed, and the truth is that you need to get out past 500 for the differences in trajectory between cartridges in the same class to become critical. I am of course speaking of the simple christmas tree type BDC's, not the Horus "looking through the screen door" type.
The real question is how much precision will you need?
What BDC's lack in real precision, they make up for in speed, and the truth is that you need to get out past 500 for the differences in trajectory between cartridges in the same class to become critical. I am of course speaking of the simple christmas tree type BDC's, not the Horus "looking through the screen door" type.
The real question is how much precision will you need?
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Dial if you have time and hold if you need to. Get a reticle with either MOA or Mil reticle depending on your knobs and then it's only one data to work with. BDCs work with one load in one environmental condition. Change anything and they are off. Not practical or accurate. Get ballistic data and dial or hold.
Holding can be very accurate as well if you practice. My last match we had to do holds only to 1000 yards and another stage you had to shoot one on a KYL rack at about 190 yards and then a shot at a 10" plate at 1000. I held for that and had no issues making a hit at 1000.
Holding can be very accurate as well if you practice. My last match we had to do holds only to 1000 yards and another stage you had to shoot one on a KYL rack at about 190 yards and then a shot at a 10" plate at 1000. I held for that and had no issues making a hit at 1000.
Depart123
Is there a difference in holding off using a BDC vs holding off using a MIL reticle? If you can dial a MIL reticle, why can't you adjust your zero so your rounds land on the stadia at the longer ranges, leaving the any error at the shorter ranges where it likely doesn't matter?
There is a big difference in that with the BDC reticle the lines are at different moa or mils and with an moa or mil reticle they are set and from your zero mark you can easily hold any hold you need to without having to figure what each line means. It's as easy as dialing with practice and you can use it with different loads or cartridges with just different data.
I could not say it any better
Depart123
Don't you still have to learn what each line means with a mil reticle? The trajectories I run in JBM say that at 500 yds, I have to have some drastic changes in either speed or BC to equal even a 1moa difference in trajectory out to 500 yds. I would have to do just as much adjustment going from sea level to the mountains or winter to summer.
It seems to me, that out to 500yds cartridges in the same performance window are so close that the difference is negligible and easily accounted for by adjusting the zero. If I needed to be 1 inch higher or lower at 100 or 200 yds to make the rest fall on the stadia lines, I guess I wouldn't see that as much of a problem. Like I said, depends on the level of speed and precision you are looking for.
You know what each line means with a mil reticle. It's either 1 mil or a half mil. So any data run is easy to make holds for as you just take what the data says and then hold it. Data says 3.4 mils then you just hold 3.4 mils. Simple and fast. You just have to know how to break down the reticle to .1 mil which comes with practice.
You are correct that some BDC reticles out to a shorter range like 500 can work with similar cartridges. I use one for my 3 gun optic and with 55grn it's right on but with 75grn I basically have to subtract 25 yards from what each line is meant to be for range. It's not meant for precision but for speed and if I was shooting a precision rifle match or hunting it would not be my choice at all as it's not as accurate as using data and making an exact hold.
You are correct that some BDC reticles out to a shorter range like 500 can work with similar cartridges. I use one for my 3 gun optic and with 55grn it's right on but with 75grn I basically have to subtract 25 yards from what each line is meant to be for range. It's not meant for precision but for speed and if I was shooting a precision rifle match or hunting it would not be my choice at all as it's not as accurate as using data and making an exact hold.
Depart123
223 is one of the problem calibers because it is basically two different cartridges in the same case. 55g at 3200fps or 75g at 2800fps. The latter load puts it in the same class as the 308 as far as trajectory.
But even with that difference, if you just added .5 mils to your zero (using the example above) going from 55g to 75g you would be within 0.2 mils at all ranges. Are you using different ammo at the same time during a match? I have never shot 3 gun so don't know what is common practice in that game.
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I use the same 50/200 yard zero with the 3 gun optic and do shoot 55 and 75 in the same match with the 55 for closer in targets to 100 and farther stuff with 75s. The zero is close enough as not to cause issue with the target sizes in 3 gun. I zero for the 75 as that is the longer range round.
My 55s are not doing 3200 but 2930 and the 75s are 2575 so they aren't far off. Close enough to work as I have laid out.
My 55s are not doing 3200 but 2930 and the 75s are 2575 so they aren't far off. Close enough to work as I have laid out.
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