Aiming points

[msuspartan]

I have heard many talk about their 'aiming points' and am curious as to how each finds their aim point and their adjustments. And at different shooting ranges (25, 50, 100)

Thanks guys and Gals.

Cheers, DonK

 

[MikeChapin]

My aiming point is dead on. Many people like a 6 o'clock hold where you hold at the bottom of the black and put the bullets into the middle of the target. It is more precise than using dead on. You simple adjust your sights to where you are hitting where you want using the sight picture you want.

I like a dead on hold. Though not quite as precise as a 6 O'clock hold it has the advantage of not having to adjust where I hold the sights at different ranges and shooting primitive events.

95% of my shooting is offhand. I use the same sight picture for 25 and 50 yards. Any small difference there gets lost in my wobble. For 100 yards I up the load to where I am hitting with the same POA/POI. For over 100 yards I hold more front sight.

 

[BrownBear]

I use the base of the bull (6 oclock) for ease of view when sighting in, but then I sight in so the balls hit there (right on) rather than up in the middle of the bull. That way I'm sighted in right on, but I sure have an easier time finding an aiming point on the target if I use the base of the bull rather than the middle of the bull for sight-in.

 

[rafterob]

I generally use the 6 o'clock hold because I am mainly shooting targets and like the above poster don't see much difference between 25 and 50 yards. This can be a problem when shooting novelty targets or silhouettes. It is a good idea to keep a small notebook and sketch out your sight pictures for different distances because these mental images seem to disappear from memory between shooting sessions. I have adjustable sights on 2 of my rifles but discovered it is easier (and more accurate) for me to use kentucky windage to adjust for different conditions. Since the sight adjusters are far from precision machining they can be frustrating to mess with.

 

[David W.]

My aiming point is dead on. Many people like a 6 o'clock hold where you hold at the bottom of the black and put the bullets into the middle of the target. It is more precise than using dead on. You simple adjust your sights to where you are hitting where you want using the sight picture you want.

I like a dead on hold. Though not quite as precise as a 6 O'clock hold it has the advantage of not having to adjust where I hold the sights at different ranges and shooting primitive events.

95% of my shooting is offhand. I use the same sight picture for 25 and 50 yards. Any small difference there gets lost in my wobble. For 100 yards I up the load to where I am hitting with the same POA/POI. For over 100 yards I hold more front sight.

My shooting method is much the same as yours.

 

[Rat Trapper]

I sight my hunting rifles using the 6 o'clock hold. I set he sights to shoot dead on where I am holding as this gives me a dead on hold for use in the field. ie, when holding at the bottom of the black, I want my bullet to hit at the bottom of the black. Sometimes I'll set the sights just tad high at 50 yards maybe an inch or so. I use the 6 o'clock hold as I can shoot smaller groups doing it this way.

 

[Semisane]

+1 Rat Trapper. That's what I do also.

 

[ohio ramrod]

I prefer trail targets, so my target rifle has a high line of sight. (3/4 inch from top of sight to center of 45 caliber bore ). This gives me good results with a six oclock hold at both 25 and fifty yards. As the ball is still rising at 25 yards. For seventy five yards I aim at the middle of the trail targets, for 100 yards I aim at the top.If I have held the rifle steady the ball hits the target! :idunno: :idunno:

 

[necchi]

I guess the closest is BrownBear, a 6 0'clock hold with the ball landing as if it where sitting on top of the front blade.
At 25-50 and out too 75 I hold where I want it, (that smidge of a drop at 75 is usually less than most people can hold at that range.) at 100 I just hold a bit higher on the target.
Practice is what helps ya learn where your rifle will group at various ranges.

 

[Bill Hall]

I use the dead-on hold. Just seems more inuitive to me, and translates better in hunting situations. I hold the top of the front sight centered in the target, so that theoretically, the ball should split that line formed by the sight (like I can see that well :surrender: ).

I used the 6 O:clock hold in the Marines, and shot better than any other time in my life. Gives the shooter a much better target picture. I think for strictly target shooting, 6 O:clock is the way to go.

I sight in at 50 yards, and as far as range adjustment goes, it's kind of a winchum squinchum Kentucky windage thing. You get a "feel" for raising and lowering the front blade with lots and lots of practice. Bill

 

[rabjr]

Yep, when I used to sight in and shoot at 100 yards ages ago, I used the 6 o'clock hold. But now I sight in at 50 yards and shoot dead on at all ranges out to 75 yards which is my limit now with open sights. I'ts been very effective for me doing it that way the last few years.

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

Much like several other posters, I aim dead-on out to 50 yards. I use dove-tailed primitive sights, out-of-the-box, and adjusted the rear sight horizontal with a block of soft pine & a hammer. That was years ago! Great for Novelty & Rondy targets! Rifle cuts a playing card in half if I do my part! When I shoot paper, it's either at 50 or 100 yards. At 50 my rifle shoots pretty flat and at 100 I compensate by covering the entire bull with a 12:00 hold :shocked2: and the balls fall into the deep part of the black.

From there I've learned where to hold to shoot 370 grain T/C Maxi-Balls out of my 48-twist rifle as well: at 50 yards I use the 12:00 hold and the conicals fall into the ten-X ring offhand. At longer distances it's a hold over the bull since I have NO vertical adjustment. I'm fortunate since the horizontal remains the same for the Maxi's as well, with card-cutting and 2x4 chopping accuracy up close :grin: .

Shooting the Winchester/NRA Qualification Matches with my Club has taught me and the rest of the folks that do the Match COF a lot, since it's a 52-shot COF :shocked2:. You really get to know where to hold and when to spit-patch if the fouling builds-up a little too much :wink: .

I started the sight adjustment for the rifle at 25 yards, then backed-up to 50, working off a bench.

Since I do more competition than hunting, I always pump the first round into the berm to foul the rifle, unless it's a Novelty Shoot where I shoot one of the larger targets first to foul the gun with a hit instead of just pumping it into the ground.

Hope this helps explain why I'm a little A-R :haha: .

Good luck with what ever technique/sights you use :thumbsup: .

Dave

 

[napolean]

Like most of the posters, I adjust my sights for dead on at 25 yards. About have to if your gonna shoot in some of those "novelty" matches.
String cuts, cards on edge, double string X, ball splits, match heads, ect.
Jon D

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

:thumbsup: You got it right!

 

[CrackStock]

I use different rifles for different purposes. I sighted a couple of my smallbores for 6 o'clock hold, because I like this method a lot. It gives better performance on most targets at monthly shoots and is very effective for rabbits. Point at the shoulder which gives greater visibility to know what the critter is doing and cleanly takes off the head.

My .50 and .54 are sighted for center hold.

CS

 

[deseeb2001]

I don't do much paper target shooting, so I use a dead-on sight for everything. It just seems more natural for me and keeps me from having to think about adjusting my point of aim in the field (The less thinking I have to do, the better :haha: )

 

[macca]

Hi,
I shoot a 54 Leman style rifle with fixed sights. I used to shoot 6 oclock hold on the round target, found it difficult on animal targets. Have now moved to POA. Change loads for different distances.
Cheers :wink:

 

[pecos clay]

On my hunting rifles the sights are dead on centered at 100 yards. I always aim at "hair" no what matter the range. Sometimes the shot may be quick or moving.

On target rifles, the sights are 6 o'clock at 100 yards. I have a 3 band Enfield.

I dead center my pistols and revolvers at 25 yards too. I don't have a target pistol though. I'd love to have a nice dueler.

 

[macca]

Not much deer hunting with muzzleloaders out here, dont see any inlines at all, mainly target shooting. Premium event is 50m offhand for both cap and flinters. In our club you have to shoot 95 or better on the round target to place. We shoot pistol both revolver and single shot. I like the 25m international match and use this http://www.shootingwiki.org/index.php?title=Feinwerkbau_History_No._1
Cheers :wink:

 

[Josh Smith]

When you guys talk 6 o'clock, how far up is the center of the bullseye?

For combat guns, I use a center-of-mass hold in which front sight covers the center of the bull.

When I target shoot, hunt, or use older rifles (any kind with a post or blade front sight), I try to get the center of the target as close to the top of the front sight as possible. The height of the thickness of a piece of paper is preferable.

On the other hand, when some folks use the 6 o'clock hold, they prefer to aim at the bottom of the black of a given target to hit the center of the bullseye.

Which is the method you're discussing?

Thanks,

Josh