Zeroing a scope for dummies

[Wilderbeast]

Hi all,

Does anyone know of, or would like to a write a beginners tutorial for zeroing a scope.

I wonder because I was trying to zero my scope on my new bsa superstar(yay), but it was an utter disaster. I don't have any of this fancy stand,vice or gun bench jiggery pokery and this makes it really difficult to duplicate shots exactly every single time!

So does anyone have any tips, for a complete beginner with little equipment, on how to zero a scope.

Cheers,
Will

 

[Front Room Woodlander]

Stop.
Do not adjust anything.
First practice just shooting it. Do not worry about zero.
Practice holding the rifle, note position of hand, arm, head and eye. Then gently squeeze shots off.
Take your time and just practice getting good groups without adjusting the scope.
Once you do get good technique then and only then should you even begin to consider adjusting your scope. And then only one click at a time.

 

[Wilderbeast]

Stop.
Do not adjust anything.
First practice just shooting it. Do not worry about zero.
Practice holding the rifle, note position of hand, arm, head and eye. Then gently squeeze shots off.
Take your time and just practice getting good groups without adjusting the scope.
Once you do get good technique then and only then should you even begin to consider adjusting your scope. And then only one click at a time.

that's what I started doing, but I only have a small target area and the scope was so off i wasn't hitting my target area so I couldn't work out where to adjust!

 

[dr jones]

Try using a black and decker workmate type thing as a gun bench , but remember to weigh it down by putting a sack of coal or something on the footrest .

 

[Mesquite]

FGYT posted this link on another forum. Have a look and you'll probably find what you're after

 

[SimonM]

If your pellets are missing the smaller target, I would suggest a big cardboard box with a small aiming mark in the centre.

Once you can see where your pellets are landing, don't adjust anything until you can group effectively - say 3 pellets into a 10p sized group at 30yds.

Once you can group effectively, shoot 3 pellets and adjust from the centre of your group (mean point of impact). Then repeat as needed until you can hit the centre of your target every time at the set distance.

Once you can group on the centre of your target, experiment with different ranges for hold over and under until you are really comfortable with your rifle.

HTH,

Simon

EDIT:

Zero the rifle in the position that you intend to shoot most from - Not a bench rest, especially with a springer.

Marksmanship Principles
1. The position and hold must be firm enough to support the weapon:
The weapon should be firmly supported with elbows locked in place. The weapon should be relaxedly held, using the natural support of the body. For weaker cadets a sandbag may be used to provide added support, and some may choose to rest the weapon on top of the sandbag itself.

2. The weapon must be held upright and pointed naturally at the target without undue physical effort:
The weapon should point naturally towards the target being held into place by natural bone support, not by tension of the arm muscles. This will result in a poor and unsteady aim.

3. Sight alignment (aiming) must be correct
The foresight must be in the centre of rear sight aperture, with the target in the middle of the rear sight aperture, forming a straight line from the eye, through the sights, and onto the target.

4. The shot must be released and followed through without disturbing the position.
Breathing should be controlled, and can be held if necessary to prevent vertical movement of the body that results from inhalation and exhalation. When pulling the trigger, gentle pressure should slowly be increased until the final pressure is exerted to fire the weapon. Although the recoil caused by the firing will cause the weapon to move, it will return to point naturally at the target. Pause momentarily after firing before releasing pressure and reloading the weapon.

 

[Shewie]

I found using bones and joints rather than muscles helps to keep it consistent. Try sitting on the deck at 45 degrees to the target, bring your legs up and rest your rifle on one of your knees, by tucking the rifle into your shoulder and resting on one knee helps to keep it steady.
If that doesn't work for you, try crossing your legs and resting your elbows on the inside of your knees.

 

[Buckshot]

Take your time
Do not rush
Do this over several sessions if needed
It can be frustrating but keep your cool and be methodical
If your missing the target get closer until you can see where they're going then adjust and move back a little at a time until you're on the original position
Then practice - a lot!
You should be getting a circular shaped group. Horizontal or vertical strings indicate poor trigger control or sight picture

Best of luck

Mark

 

[nodd]

Hi as has been said take your time and make sure you can shoot tight groups. It is important any zeroing is carried out on a calm day it can be done in a light breeze but makes the whole job a lot harder.
When starting from scratch, I start with a sheet of A4 paper fix to a box with a dot in the middle set at about 13yards (first cross over point on the trajectory of a .177 zeroed at 40 yards) fire five shots then make an adjustment then another and so on until the group is on the spot.
I then move the target out to the main zero distance (40 yards in this case) to make final adjustments using the same process.
I hope this helps
Neil

 

[MartiniDave]

Before you do anything, just take a good hard look at your rifle & scope from as many angles as possible - being certain it's not loaded of course. What you checking for is that the rifle barrel and the scope tube are pointing in the same direction, as it is possible for the scope itself to be pointing off at an angle. I just had this problem myself on a second hand outfit where the 2 scope mounts turned out to be different brands!
As others have said, shoot at large & close targets to begin with, once you're close to hitting point of aim stop, get as many different types of pellet as you have available and start shooting groups to see which brand you gun prefers. As its a springer don't be tempted to try clamping it down or anything, simply rest it on a cusioned surface and work on holding it consistently but not too tight, some rifles are very grip sensitive, especially the lighter ones. Be prepared to put plenty of time in and don't decide which pellets you want to use, let the rifle make the choice.
Finally don't put too much store in the various airgun mags, I've never known them test a bad rifle, but I've sure owned a few!

Enjoy yourself, its a great sport.

Dave

 

[Nonsuch]

I had the same problem initially with my BSA Lightning XL - initially with an SMK scope. The pellets were way off and even winding the calibration out to its maximum the zero was still nowhere near. After wondering about fitting shims under the scope etc, in the end I ditched the SMK and went and got a Hawke scope instead. Immediately the zeroing was pretty close and was quickly fixed with a few clicks. The worry is that if your zero is so far off to start with you may not find you have enough adjustment on the scope to zero it correctly. It could be a scope mount problem or it could be the scope.

I think the answer as suggested elsewhere is to shoot at a big cardboard box from pretty close (maybe 10 yds - with a backstop of course...) probably intially without the scope on, just using the iron sights, just to make sure your trigger pull and general aiming technique can produce reasonable groupings. I have another gun with such a stiff trigger than I can't hit a barn door with it. Then put the scope back on and repeat.

I'm no expert by the way - your experience just resonated with mine

NS

 

[Ogri the trog]

I think the important fact to realise -
is that you are adjusting the scope to "look" at where the pellets are landing and not moving the point where the pellets hit - its a simple way of looking at things but it helped me when I started out in shooting.

ATB

Ogri the trog

 

[FGYT]

Hi all,

Does anyone know of, or would like to a write a beginners tutorial for zeroing a scope.

I wonder because I was trying to zero my scope on my new bsa superstar(yay), but it was an utter disaster. I don't have any of this fancy stand,vice or gun bench jiggery pokery and this makes it really difficult to duplicate shots exactly every single time!

So does anyone have any tips, for a complete beginner with little equipment, on how to zero a scope.

Cheers,
Will

Oks its a Spring gun so you cant Clamp it ot rest it o na hard surface etc and how you hold it has to be consistant r it will not group
Remember there is a Large powerfull spring and a lump of metal you release that jumps fwds moving the gun about a lot before teh pellet even starts to move and is still rebounding backwards while the pellet is moving up the barrel this cannot be helped so you need to get the gun to bounce jump and reciol the same every time so you can get the pellets close into a group. THis is why heavy guns are better for Springers they help damp the bounces.

Zero at a distance of 10-12 yrds on a full sheet of paper ie A4 at least (with a good back stop ) this range you should be able to get touching groups of 3 to 5 pellets use a 1/2" black filled Dot as a aim point forthis you can use a fairly stable position like a sitting resting the gun on your fore arm and knees or seated with a bench to rest on But use a pillow to support your fore arm and hold the rifle with your hands dont just rest it on a pillow etc


once you can group you can adjust the sights to bring the pellets with in the 1/2" dot (Check the Scope instructions on which way to turn teh dials etc)
once your zeroed liek that you can use more aim points per page ie up to 12 is good for A4

you have now set the first cross over of the pellet trajectory and the line of sight in the scope . The barrel is below teh scope by 2" (ish ) the pellet rizes from this to the zero point we have just set it then keeps rising to approx 25yrds ( 3/4" to 1" above the cross hair) then drops back to the cross hair at its second zero point at 35-40 yrds before falling away after that

you can now set a target at 30-35 yrds ish and be fairly confident its pretty close to zeroed so should at least hit a A4 sheet if not with in a couple of inches
practice here needs to get groupings back to the 1/2" range

once Fine tuned on Zero at the longer range you can shoot groups of 3-5 pellets at 5yrd intervals always aiming at the 1/2" dot and you can see where the pellets hit (high or low ) depending on range and importantly relative to the cross hair you can see in the scope

also now try shooting groups at targets i nthe differnt positions you intend to use in actual shooting ( ie you dont have a beanbagged bench and chair if hunting)
as a springer you will see a differnt impact from kneeling and standing or prone etc as they make the bounce different

PCP has no bounce so isnt hold sensitive in the same way


once you get happy then 1" exploding chalk discs at 30yrds standin unsupported is a fun way to practice


ther are of course lots of variables in sett up and things that can go wrong to prevent you getting a group or even being able to adjust the scope enough to get a zero etc

ATB

Duncan

 

[FGYT]

or heres a fairly comprehensive how to aimed at FT shooters but its all relavent or at least interesting

http://www.csfta.co.uk/downloads/bfta_setup_manual.pdf

 

[markha]

Quickest and easiest way is the following:


You will need a few large sheets of white paper.

Set up so you are 10yards away, get a good stable shooting position.

Shoot at the centre of the paper.
Next shoot at the pellet hole and see where your second shot lands, dont worry about the up or down position, juts where it falls from left to right ( this is called windage).
Make an adjustment on your scope and then shoot at the 2nd pellet hole.

Keep doing this untill each shot drops perfectly below the the shot above, you should end up with a line of pellet holes going down vertically in a straight line.

Put up a fresh piece of paper with a black line drawn on it from left to right ( basically a horizontal line).

get the gross hairs lined up with the black line on the paper and start from the left, take a shot and see where the pellet hits, it will either be above or below the line, adjust your scope either up and down untill all shots are hitting that horizontal line.

You will now have your scope zerod in at 10yrds.

Now move out to 30yds and shoot at the centre of a fresh piece of white paper, just repeat the steps above and your pretty much done.

One thing to note is that once you get out to 35 to 40yds, depending on the magnification of your scope, you will have to make sure that you keep your eye centred on the image in your scope otherwise the point of impact (POI) will change as you move your head about trying to get the scope lined up with your eye and the target. This happens a lot with high magnification of 11x or more.

Never put a spring powered rifle in any kind of vice, never zero in a spring rifle with a bipod as the zero will change when you shoot without the bipod, this is because the recoil , and how its absorbed will change the POI.

The above doesn't really apply to PCP rifles as the recoil is negligable, just use a stable shooting position.

 

[poolcue]

Quickest and easiest way is the following:


You will need a few large sheets of white paper.

Set up so you are 10yards away, get a good stable shooting position.

Shoot at the centre of the paper.
Next shoot at the pellet hole and see where your second shot lands, dont worry about the up or down position, juts where it falls from left to right ( this is called windage).
Make an adjustment on your scope and then shoot at the 2nd pellet hole.

Keep doing this untill each shot drops perfectly below the the shot above, you should end up with a line of pellet holes going down vertically in a straight line.

Put up a fresh piece of paper with a black line drawn on it from left to right ( basically a horizontal line).

get the gross hairs lined up with the black line on the paper and start from the left, take a shot and see where the pellet hits, it will either be above or below the line, adjust your scope either up and down untill all shots are hitting that horizontal line.

You will now have your scope zerod in at 10yrds.

Now move out to 30yds and shoot at the centre of a fresh piece of white paper, just repeat the steps above and your pretty much done.

One thing to note is that once you get out to 35 to 40yds, depending on the magnification of your scope, you will have to make sure that you keep your eye centred on the image in your scope otherwise the point of impact (POI) will change as you move your head about trying to get the scope lined up with your eye and the target. This happens a lot with high magnification of 11x or more.

Never put a spring powered rifle in any kind of vice, never zero in a spring rifle with a bipod as the zero will change when you shoot without the bipod, this is because the recoil , and how its absorbed will change the POI.

The above doesn't really apply to PCP rifles as the recoil is negligable, just use a stable shooting position.

This is a great explanation. Thank you.