.223 zeoing

[Ferretboy111]

Hello guys, ive zeroed my .223 so its 2 inches high at 100yrds, so if i aim at the nose of the fox it will hit it between the eyes, as the light was fading i couldnt get out with it too 200yrds, what do you reckon the drop or rise will be with 55grn bullets.

 

I was thinking that it would be at it at 200yrds with a 2 inch rise at 100yds,

 

Many thanks

 

Alex

 

P.S will just save me some more ammo for zeroing

[MC]

Haven't you got that the wrong way round?

 

If you are low and you aim at it's nose you will hit it in the neck. Sorry if I sound picky. Personally I would zero it at 100yds then shoot it at 200 and see what the drop is. You can then work out your hold over.

[hawkeye]

I was told zero 1" high at 100yds then just aim spot on out to 200yds :look:

[Graham M]

Take your rifle out and zero it in a 190yds. This will allow you to take shots at a 3inch aiming mark right out to 250yds :look:

G.M.

[Ferretboy111]

Yeah sorry meant high, we zeroed it yesterday at 100yrds and tried 200yrd shots, but we left with it shooting 2 to 3 inch groups at 100yrds which was 2 to 3 inches high at 100yrds, so if i aimed at its nose(on the piece of paper) it would hit it between the eyes, but because the light faded in quickly, we didnt get to go for the 200yrd shot after the intial tweeking.

 

I would of thought that it would be near enough spot on at 200yrds with that, ill do 2 or 3 more shots with it tomoz at 200yrds just to make sure before we go out tomorrow night.

 

Alex

 

:look:

[magman]

Dont shoot rifle,s but if i was shooting 2 to 3 inch groups at 100yrds then i would keep punching paper until it got to an inch at one hundred yards :look:

most people should be able to group 1/2 inch at hundred yard,s i did first time out with 223 ?

but brought up on airgun,s helped alot .

[Frank]

Dont shoot rifle,s but if i was shooting 2 to 3 inch groups at 100yrds then i would keep punching paper until it got to an inch at one hundred yards :look:

most people should be able to group 1/2 inch at hundred yard,s i did first time out with 223 ?

but brought up on airgun,s helped alot .

 

I shoot rifles and can say, what magman has said, is spot on.

 

Frank.

[pin]

Possibly the barrel is not shot in yet?

[Heppy1148]

Hi mate,

 

Dont mean to teach you to suck eggs, but a number of things to be aware of:

 

a. Are you home loading? If not try a different make of bullets. What make are you using? Federal are like hard boiled eggs (bad to beat!!)

 

b. Wind will blow a .223 off very easily.

 

c. Group it at 200yds bang on. Then just check at 100yds your aim off adjustment.

 

d. If you are spending this much time on the range, which is good. Just be aware of your barrel getting hot cos this can start to spit them a bit, and the heat can effect sight through the scope.

 

Sorry if i have insulted your intelligence, PM me to let me know how you get on.

 

Good luck

[markbivvy]

Alex, whatever you do mate take your time, theres no rush.

[Paul223]

I was told zero 1" high at 100yds then just aim spot on out to 200yds :look:

 

 

I do the same to check my 200 yd zero, so will work other way too!

[Ferretboy111]

Cheers guys for info, most of which ive read on previous posts and websites but thanks anyway,

 

Its a brand new rifle, ive never shot centerfires before, and the groups were more out because im still tweeking the scope to get the shots tighter, it didnt help that the scope moved off half way through as i tweeked it the wrong way,

 

I was getting 2 inch groups at 200 until the scope got adjusted then it was too dark to change it.

 

Ill have another session with it tomorrow, but im pretty certain it will be bang on at it at 200yrds, wont be much out.

 

I would take more time over it but my pheasants are dieing from the foxes so they must be dealt with asap, its zeroed accuractly at the moment so shouldnt miss them.

 

Im using 55grn soft nose remingtons, seem ok so far.

 

Alex :look:

[deadeye ive]

Good luck Alex

 

Just a tip though ..............You might be doing more harm than good if you keep altering the scope because what area the rifle groups after several shots might not be the same for the very first shot when the rifle is cold

 

Like i said it's one giant leap you've taken and whereby the smaller rimfire calibres teach you about safety and backstops etc! a centre fire teaches you how to shoot properly ........it's very unforgiving and can quite easily put you in a funny farm with all the issues that are and will be thrown up

 

Loads of factors in this equation where zeroing is concerned like weather conditions for one :look:

 

Keep practicing and i would try and stick to closer ranges .........200yds is'nt an easy shot

[Dead-Eyed Duck]

Good luck Alex

 

Just a tip though ..............You might be doing more harm than good if you keep altering the scope because what area the rifle groups after several shots might not be the same for the very first shot when the rifle is cold

 

Like i said it's one giant leap you've taken and whereby the smaller rimfire calibres teach you about safety and backstops etc! a centre fire teaches you how to shoot properly ........it's very unforgiving and can quite easily put you in a funny farm with all the issues that are and will be thrown up

 

Loads of factors in this equation where zeroing is concerned like weather conditions for one :look:

 

Keep practicing and i would try and stick to closer ranges .........200yds is'nt an easy shot

 

I would suggest that you zero your rifle at the expected range of what you would normally shoot at.

 

If you have lots of prairie fields, then zeroing at 200 yards is a possibility, but zeroing at 200 yards can often be difficult as you need a dead calm day to do it.

 

I zero at 100 yards as this is the normal range that I shoot most of my foxes at, and it is difficult enough to find a safe range of 100 yards, never mind 200 yards!

 

So, as I shoot normally at 100 yards I aim dead on, and that's it. I know that a 0.223 can be fairly forgiving regarding the kill zone, but I prefer that my bullet hits where the cross hairs cross, so to speak! Then I don't have to worry about holdover, unless the target range stretches out to 200 yards.

 

I am a bit puzzled about the reference to head shots, as with a 0.223 this should not be attempted unless the head is all that you can see, at an acceptable range.

 

Just go for a straight chest shot, or just behind where the front legs join the body, and the fox is dead.

 

Just get used to your rifle, takes lots of time about it. It then becomes part of you, and all you have to worry about is your shooting position, and to calmly let off the shot.

 

Experience with air rifles and rimmies helps enormously - magman was a natural when he tried a 0.223 under controlled conditions.

 

Get all the odds in your favour if you can, as success breeds success. If you have a difficult shot when you first start out, then it may be better to leave alone unless you can get to a better position. If you miss then you will wake up at night screaming "Why did I miss?". There is always a reason, and getting in a poor position or shooting at long range in windy conditions can set your progress back for months.

 

Don

[kip270]

Alex have a look at this :look:

Here is a performance chart of a 55grain .223 showing bullet drop if zeroed @100yards

 

.223

 

BC: 0.222 G1 CAL: 0.223 in WGT: 55 gr

 

MV: 3240 ft/s CH: 0 ft

 

WS: 10 mph TS: 10 mph

 

T: 59 °F PC: 29.92 in Hg H: 0% A: 0 ft

 

SH: 1.5 in SO: 0 in ZH: 0 in LOS: 0°

 

Range Drop Wind Lead

 

(yds) (in) (moa) (in) (moa) (in) (moa)

100 -0.0 -0.0 1.3 1.2 17.6 16.8

125 -0.3 -0.2 2.0 1.5 22.4 17.1

150 -0.8 -0.5 2.9 1.9 27.4 17.4

175 -1.7 -1.0 4.1 2.2 32.6 17.8

200 -3.0 -1.4 5.4 2.6 38.0 18.1

225 -4.6 -2.0 7.0 3.0 43.7 18.5

250 -6.7 -2.5 8.8 3.4 49.5 18.9

275 -9.2 -3.2 10.9 3.8 55.7 19.3

300 -12.2 -3.9 13.2 4.2 62.1 19.8

 

So if you zero at 100yards it will be 3" low at 200.

Head on shot's at that range is a bit iffy, boiler room is the better way to go, head shots at close range only

Keep it at 100yard zero and get out on those targets before you get to shooting those foxes

[dunganick]

there is no answer to this, however gemini uses the same theory as me.

 

3" kill zone, so long as hte bullet lands in this area it is ok for foxing. So set your gun up so it covers the widest spectrum possible. You dont need to be mm perfect with a fox.

 

i did run up some charts for this topic a little while ago : http://forums.pigeonwatch.co.uk/forums/ind...p;hl=\.223

 

i would firstly shoot your gun zero'd at 100 yards and then shoot at a target 200 yards away. Work out the drop and then plot a trajectory best suited to your situation.

 

Personally.... zero 1 and a little bit high @ 100 yrds, SHOULD put me smack on @ 190, then little low @ 200.... few inches low @ 250 and 1ft low @ 300

 

However, different guns have different length barrels, so the velocities out of reloading manuals are not accurate. To run up an accurate trajectory on a program such as point blank (shown in the pics) you need to actually chronograph your rifle using your chosen load.

[varget]

nick i'll second that, i have a point blank range of 230 yds (3") 55g vmax 18.5" barrell. i just aim smack on out to this range. the furthest ive taken a fox aiming smack on is 226yds.

point blank ballistics is a good program to use (see click on me)

[Ferretboy111]

Cheers guys again,

 

Went out lamping tonight with it, saw 1 fox which ran out infront of the pickup and then ran into the cover crop, Rather annoyed me. Think we started alittle too early, ill start at 8.30/9 on sunday and see if any more are further out into the fields.

 

My gun is zeroed for 200yrds as most of the foxes we see out on the arable fields are 200yrds away, many are rarely 100yrds. Shot 2 rounds through it tonight at a box with a printout fox head on it at 200yrds, had 2 shots and got the 2 shots within around a 3inch group, (Both were on the center of the head) From this i thought that well if i can shoot a head target on 5x mag at 200yrds then surely i can do it for real life.(foxing)

 

At 100yrds its 2/3 inches high or half a mildot on the scope below. Mind you the weather was good tonight with little wind, i suppose as soon as it blows abit the shot will be right off.

 

I got told that the .223 in chest areas can produce alot of runners, what are peoples views?

[miffy]

I got told that the .223 in chest areas can produce alot of runners, what are peoples views?

 

Nonsense.

 

200 yard headshots aint easy shots. Can be done but doing it consistaantly is something different, Got for the boiler room everytime.

 

Good luck on Sunday

[deadeye ive]

I got told that the .223 in chest areas can produce alot of runners, what are peoples views?

Who fed you that load of rubbish ........you are using expanding ammuntion and the IDEAL place is the chest and not the head unless that is the only option available .

 

I will drag out a photo of a 125 yrd head shot using a 55 grn V-shok bullet which will show you the devastation

[markbivvy]

200 yard headshots with a .223 at a fox, at night is for fools.

 

I got told that the .223 in chest areas can produce alot of runners, what are

 

who ever told you this is a fool.

[dunganick]

you will get more runners trying to head shoot a fox @ 200

 

it can be done, but there is no need, even hte hornet will take a fox with a boiler room shot IF you can place the bullet where it needs to be.

 

This is no .22lr we are talking about.

 

No need to be a smart **** and go for head shots imho.

 

I have head shot them but simply as i was not aware of the range and i placed the cross hairs on its chest (front on) and the shot has gone high.

 

Or i have pulled the shot (it does happen)

[sussex lad]

I got told that the .223 in chest areas can produce alot of runners, what are peoples views?

I use a .223 and almost always head shoot them under 100 yards but once it gets over that i will only head shoot them under exceptional circumstances ,still air, good rest and well lit by the lamp and my rifle with home loads shoots under an inch at 200 yards .A 3 inch group on a fox head could take it jaw off not good

You wont get any runners if you plop the round halfway up the back of the front leg broadside on

Don't look at the fox when your aiming, imagine the vital organs and where they are then place your shot.

[Ferretboy111]

He was an arrogant d*ck who uses a .222-50 and thinks that .223's are **** and foxes shouldnt be taken beoyng 150yrds with one.

 

No1 likes him, a picture would be good!

 

Ill go for chest shots then, i just thought that head shots would be best.

[miffy]

He was an arrogant d*ck who uses a .222-50 and thinks that .223's are **** and foxes shouldnt be taken beoyng 150yrds with one.

 

No1 likes him, a picture would be good!

 

Ill go for chest shots then, i just thought that head shots would be best.

 

 

.223's are ****