multiple loads for 1 gun

[Kevin Stenberg]

If you have multiple loads for one gun how often do you change your sights?
Say you have a 3006 and you have made loads from cat sneeze with 110 gr. bullets all the way up to your HV 210 gr. bullets
Do you just use 1 sight setting on a scope. An keep a record on how much you have to compensate for X, Y or Z loads. or how do you do it?

 

[Brad]

Depends?
If I have a hunting load and a plinking load I will adjust the sights for the plinking load. I can easily resist before hunting season.
Most of my guns get fired with multiple loads and I just learn to hold off when needed.
If I shoot a group I don't care where the group forms as long as it is on paper.

 

[Ian]

Masking tape and sharpie.

 

[yodogsandman]

Masking tape and sharpie.

I do this , too. I put the tape on the outside of the rifles hard case. I record the "clicks" needed to return to the hunting load.

 

[freebullet]

I have scopes on just about everything now. Because I cast/reload most of them have bdc/ballistic reticle. I use two methods to keep them all straight.

1. Make a dope sheet. Draw or print a picture of the reticle. Mark it where your loads hit at a given power for reference.

2. Make a dope sheet for power/range/impact. When you change the power setting it will change the impact point with most scopes. First or second focal plane scopes are different & each require their trials.

A couple examples-
With the 336 I sighted it in on 9x at the x hair at 100yd with an h335 load running around 1800fps. At 3x the same load hits at the bottom of the first bdc circle.
In the same gun our main plinking load of 6gr titegroup - the check on the same boolit runs 1100fps. At 3x it's on at the x hair at 25yds. At 50yd the top of the first circle is zero.
The hash mark reticle works equally well. It is very fast for dual purpose guns. I never moved from my 100yd zero.

On an older rifle with a standard reticle I have it sighted in at 300 yds w/Jax load at 14x. At 50yd a mild cast load is zero at 4x.

The third method is count the clicks as was mentioned. It takes time though. A quick reference of your dope sheet will get you there or close. That info can/does change with wild temperature swings. So it's important to note all the details you can & expand on them as possible.

I'm certainly not an expert but, the bdc/ballistic reticle has proven the easiest & fastest way to keep things on with multiple loads from the same gun for me.

Sometimes you can even tune your cast loads for the same impact point at a different yardage. For example I sighted in a t/c omega with 250gr Shockwave over 150 pyro pellets x hair 100yd at 9x. I worked up a real black load of 60gr under a 300gr cast hp. It's on at x hair at 50yd at 9x. Same gun 2 loads & don't change a thing.

That's how I've been doing it. It can make for a really fast no hassle transition between loads even while hunting in the field.

 

[Winelover]

On the few rifles that I shoot low velocity cast loads in, I have a spare scope set in Leupold or Maxima QD rings. Otherwise, I save targets in three ring binders, sorted by caliber and date, and record the "clicks".

 

[KHornet]

I adjust as necessary for what ever I am shooting.