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Rifle accuracy and scope adjustments

3.3K views 9 replies 5 participants last post by  GMinor  
#1 ·
If you have a .5 MOA rifle, do you get any benefit from having a scope with less than .5 MOA clicks? I've seen scopes with .5 MOA clicks and was wondering if it's necessary to have a scope that can make adjustments more minute than what the rifle itself is capable of.

Thanks.
 
#2 ·
That's two different things. The rifle may be as precise as .5 MOA but the scope adjustments are totaly different. This is for dialing a firing solution on a distant target. 1/4 moa clicks are finer adjustments than .5 moa clicks... 1/8 is even finer... It has nothing to do with how tight your rifle can shoot.

Does that make sense?
 
#3 ·
Re-reading my post... I'm not sure it makes sense ....

1 MOA at 100 yards is roughly 1" at 1000 yards it is 10"... so let us say your rifle shoots perfect every time.... your zeroed at 100 yards...you have a target at 800. You have to dial the drop in for your bullet at that distance. .5 MOA allows you to have less clicks to get on target... .25 would be twice the number of clicks so in effect you could dial in a little more precise than the .5 and .125 clicks would be 4x the clicks. If your target shooting from a bench all the time having 1/8 (.125) adjustment may allow you to finely dial in to a specific spot on a distant target.. 1/4 is pretty normal.... 1/2 being easier if your trying to do it quickly and keeps you from loosing you spot while dialing.......now your rifle adds the possibility of .5 MOA error on top of that bullet drop compensation that you dialed in on the scope.

Clear as mud right
 
#4 ·
Even if a rifle is only capable of .5 moa, I would still want to be able to adjust the center of impact to closer than the .5 moa.
 
#6 ·
With scope adjustments, don't think so much in terms of the size of the average group size the rifle is capable of shooting, just think how much you want to move the group.

When zeroing, most shooters consider the rifle set when their group CENTERS on the target at the desired zero range. That's what you want to move when adjusting the scope. Consider that a .5MOA adjustment per "click" will be moving your Average Group Center .523" @100 yards, 1.047" at 200 yards. Add distance and that .5MOA adjustment will move the center of your group a massive 4" at 800 yards. May not sound like much but that's only with ONE click. Compare that to just over 1/2" when using a 1/8MOA per click adjustment.

If getting "ON TARGET" faster is your goal, then use the MOA reticle in your scope, (Or Mil-Dot if that's what you have)

I prefer the 1/8 MOA Turrets for my scopes. When zeroing I just hate trying to move the point of impact to the center of a target and find that one click puts me in the same place only on the other side of the target dot or "X".
 
#7 ·
I think this all makes sense...basically it's going to be a trade-off on moving your groups and rapid adjustments. I would imagine with the proper reticle you could just adjust point of aim.
 
#8 ·
That's right cbrand, that is exactly how I shoot. I zero my rifle at 200 yards and then use the reticle for all hold overs and wind adjustments.

The reticle I use is the G2DMR reticle in my bushnell scope.