Preferred Reticle

E

Elisowski

Guest
I am very new to this sport as of January. I've been messing around with a CZ tacticool 22 lr and have a Bushnell Rimfire 6-18x scope with a fine crosshair reticle on it and having fun. It's ok at 50 yards but at 100 yards it is not strong enough for me.

I will also be messing around with 2 center fire rifles left to me. One is a 240 Gibbs and one is a 243.

I want to buy a good scope in the $1000-$1200 range that will Work for all 3 rifles. I've got the power of scope nailed down thanks to the "scope power" thread.

But, there are so many reticles to choose from.

Which reticle do you use and why?
 
You asked this on a BR forum, you have two principle choices. Guys shoot fine X hairs, guys shoot fine (1/8") dots. Takes your pick.
 
tim said:
You asked this on a BR forum, you have two principle choices. Guys shoot fine X hairs, guys shoot fine (1/8") dots. Takes your pick.
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I figured it was fine crosshairs. But I wasn't sure if the tick marks on the horizontal crosshair were used to help holding left or right when holding for the wind.

Lots of people on all kinds of forums say what scopes they are using, but never mention the reticle. Now I know why.

Thanks for your time.
 
Tim is right that the 2 he mentioned are used 99.9% of the time in BR shooting. I find that
the floating dot in my 36x Valdada scope with the hash marks helps me concentrate better
on the area of the target I'm shooting, (group shooting). I also use it in my Sightron 10x50
scope but that is for long range. I have been using a Weaver with my 22 rimfire BR gun but
may switch and see how that works out. Both Valdada and Sightron scopes are heavy so be-
ware if you need to make a certain weight.
Regards,

Joe McNeill
SW Arkansas
 
Elisowski, I shoot a variable power scope with fine crosshairs and 1/8” mill dots. My scope has the reticle at the second plain. The mill dots help me to adjust for wind drift. The reason for the second plain reticle is the reticle doesn’t get bigger as you zoom in to the target. When I got my scope I chose a reticle with as little clutter as possible. I hope this helps.

Bob
 
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I perfer

a fine X hair. I find the view cleaner and its easier for me to pick an aim point.
 
The newer Valdada 36X benchrest scopes are lighter than the older ones. The newer ones are 22oz the older ones like I have weight 25.5 oz. That's only one ounce more than my NF 42,s at 21oz or my March 40X at 20.9 oz.
 
Elisowski,

One consideration may be your age. I found my eyes started crapping out on me when I was around 60. Before that I loved both Fine and Dot Reticles.

I still use both, but the older I get, the more challenging it becomes to find the Fine hairs, especially on some days. I figure it will still work for awhile longer, but where I'm now 67, not sure for how much longer.

Another thing to consider is whether you're planning on shooting For-Score or Group. With For-Score all of us pretty much aim at the center other than for when holding off for the wind. But, for group shooting I have always used a POA away from the center by lining up both horizontal and vertical hairs against the outer edge of one of the ring away from the center so my POA remains constant even after the center gets blown out. So, for Group-Shooting it doesn't matter in the least whether you're looking at a Dot or Fine reticle, meaning it would make more sense to buy a Dot if only to keep your options open.

Too much information! But, I hope it has helped?

Dave Shattuck
 
Fine Crosshair and Tiny Dot

I prefer a Fine Crosshair and Tiny Dot.

I am never lined up in the Center and using either the Fine Crosshair and/or Dot gives me just about all the information I need.

This is true for both Sporter and Heavy gun.
 
Dave Shattuck said:
Elisowski,

One consideration may be your age. I found my eyes started crapping out on me when I was around 60. Before that I loved both Fine and Dot Reticles.

I still use both, but the older I get, the more challenging it becomes to find the Fine hairs, especially on some days. I figure it will still work for awhile longer, but where I'm now 67, not sure for how much longer.



Dave Shattuck
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That's what that adjustable eyepiece is for Dave. Whether you're 67 or 87 if you an see your hand clearly you should be able to see a crosshair. Unfortunately it requires constant adjustment at some point.
If you cannot see the reticle clearly your eypiece is not properly focused.
 
tim said:
That's what that adjustable eyepiece is for Dave. Whether you're 67 or 87 if you an see your hand clearly you should be able to see a crosshair. Unfortunately it requires constant adjustment at some point.
If you cannot see the reticle clearly your eypiece is not properly focused.
Click to expand...

Tim,
Not necessarily so!
I know in your mind it's all that simple, but for some of us older folk it aint that way.
I can crank the heck out of either the eyepiece or parallax adjustments, sometimes both, to no avail (well, maybe not quite to no avail, but it only carries things so far).
Before you call me a rookie or something, I've been at this game for 21 years, so have a touch of experience. I know you've got way more years behind a gun than I do, but in this case that really doesn't matter.
I just hope your eyes remain in good condition as it will frustrate the living daylights out of you if/when they start to fail.
Dave
 
Dave Shattuck said:
Tim,
Not necessarily so!
I know in your mind it's all that simple, but for some of us older folk it aint that way.
I can crank the heck out of either the eyepiece or parallax adjustments, sometimes both, to no avail (well, maybe not quite to no avail, but it only carries things so far).
Before you call me a rookie or something, I've been at this game for 21 years, so have a touch of experience. I know you've got way more years behind a gun than I do, but in this case that really doesn't matter.
I just hope your eyes remain in good condition as it will frustrate the living daylights out of you if/when they start to fail.
Dave
Click to expand...

OK try something.
First off, my eyes a probably a lot closer to yours, everbody of a certain age is going through most of the same type eye issues....including me, cataract issues and all.
Unless you have a unique eye issue other than age and loss of eye focus, this can work.
I cannot tell you how frequently this comes up, and at it's core, is improper reticle focus.
You said you crank eyepiece and/or parallax. Unfortunately if you do not properly do the first, the second is nothing but an excercise in futility. Eyepiece is critical....more so when you're older.
You first must, repeat must, look through the scope at a neutral surface like the sky. You must also not look through the scope more than 10 seconds or so, otherwise your eye will adjust and give you an improper reading, so you must constantly look into the eyepiece, then away at something far off or the eye will fool you.
Breifly look at you reticle, if not clear, probably back off the eyepiece until you get resolution. Remember, look into and then away to let your eye relax, using small adjustments.
When you can look into the eyepiece and IMMEDIATELY see a sharp reticle , you are done with the eyepiece and can now go to your parallax adustment when you're on target. Eyepiece first.
Remember as we all age you may verywell need to re do this every few months.
We ave a couple guys in their 80's that always bitched about their focus until they settled down and did it properly.
Remember your eyepiece is like an adjustable pair of glasses, if you can read a paper, ypu can get a sharp reticle.
 
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Yup Tim, that's pretty much exactly what Kay C. Young had told me all those years ago. It's not so much getting the Fine crosshairs into focus, it's finding them again once on-target with everything else that's going on. Plus, most of my shooting is now done Indoors, so it's not near as bright as when Outside when shooting in the sunshine.

My biggest battle lately has been: I was diagnosed a few years ago with Age Related Macular Degeneration, which recently has started causing there to be a second image of a shadowed crosshair and bull like a reflection within my right eye. Hope it holds off for another few more years so I can keep on keeping on. Either that, or I'll just need to flip everything and learn how to shoot like a Leftier.

I do want to thank you though for explaining how to do it properly for the rest of the shooters reading this as many of them may not know, and then may not know that they don't know. But, now they do.

Have a great season.

Dave
 
Dave Shattuck said:
Yup Tim, that's pretty much exactly what Kay C. Young had told me all those years ago. It's not so much getting the Fine crosshairs into focus, it's finding them again once on-target with everything else that's going on. Plus, most of my shooting is now done Indoors, so it's not near as bright as when Outside when shooting in the sunshine.

My biggest battle lately has been: I was diagnosed a few years ago with Age Related Macular Degeneration, which recently has started causing there to be a second image of a shadowed crosshair and bull like a reflection within my right eye. Hope it holds off for another few more years so I can keep on keeping on. Either that, or I'll just need to flip everything and learn how to shoot like a Leftier.

I do want to thank you though for explaining how to do it properly for the rest of the shooters reading this as many of them may not know, and then may not know that they don't know. But, now they do.

Have a great season.

Dave
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I understand, thank you.
 
“My biggest battle lately has been: I was diagnosed a few years ago with Age Related Macular Degeneration, which recently has started causing there to be a second image of a shadowed crosshair and bull like a reflection within my right eye. Hope it holds off for another few more years so I can keep on keeping on. Either that, or I'll just need to flip everything and learn how to shoot like a Leftier.”


Dave,

I noticed a few years ago that as I acquired my target a cloud would drift across my right eye. I would blink a few times, the cloud would be gone, and I would shoot. I ended up putting risers on my scopes so when I shoot I can flop my cheek over the stock and aim with my left eye. This has worked for me ever since.

Bob
 
I have had

A couple of scopes in the past that had very fine crosshairs, one with a 1/16 dot and the other with a dot that could barely be seen at the x. I prefer the small dots vs a 1/8 or larger. The Sightron scopes I have and have had come with nice size dots. Even though I have had cataract surgery on both eyes, I can still use fine crosshairs and small dots. I realize I am fortunate.

Pete
 
Bob1949 said:
“My biggest battle lately has been: I was diagnosed a few years ago with Age Related Macular Degeneration, which recently has started causing there to be a second image of a shadowed crosshair and bull like a reflection within my right eye. Hope it holds off for another few more years so I can keep on keeping on. Either that, or I'll just need to flip everything and learn how to shoot like a Leftier.”


Dave,

I noticed a few years ago that as I acquired my target a cloud would drift across my right eye. I would blink a few times, the cloud would be gone, and I would shoot. I ended up putting risers on my scopes so when I shoot I can flop my cheek over the stock and aim with my left eye. This has worked for me ever since.

Bob
Click to expand...

Bob,

Years ago I use to shoot with a fellow, Ron Sundberg, who had to do just that becausee of Macular Degeneration, and he was the IR 50/50 National Champion more than once setting many records along the way. In fact, Lilja Barrels used to offer one of their rimfire barrels in the Sundberg Contour.

When the time comes I have a set of custom Hall Off-Set High Risers that I can use to pull the scope over. I know they always worked great in the past, but I was using them more because of the Arthritis in my neck than anything else. I never tried using my left eye for aiming.

Thanks for the heads-up.

Dave
 
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No Fun

I feel for anyone that has AMD. Monthly Injection of Avastatin is the only thing that has helped me. Finding a crosshair or Dot, that I can use day or night, is difficult. But hell, I just shoot for fun anymore.
 
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