Can holdover be more accurate than dialing in a hunting scope?

[Aussie Dan]

Try a 300 zero. With most fast cartridges like a 243, 270, 7 mag, PRC, etc at 100 & 200 a hold 1/4 the way up a deer chest gets you within a few inches of center. 300 is dead on, 350 hold 3/4 the way up the chest, and 400 yard hold is simply just on top of he back. 450 would 1/4 deer over the back and 500 is a little more than 1/2 a deer over the back. Actual range and angle of the body become limiting factors past 400, but overall it’s such a reliable game getter it’s always surprised me the idea has never caught on and gained widespread use. I’ve used this on every big game rifle since the earth was flat.

Here’s a 6.5 PRC and 140gr Accubond as an example:

View attachment 687567

Your 300yd zero has almost a .3 mil correction per 50yds from 150 to 600.
That would be super easy to remember in the field. I like it.

 

[BluMtn]

All my hunting rifles are sighted in with a 300 yard zero with my (according to this forum) poopy SFP scopes. I am very comfortable shooting 400 yards. And (oh my, dare I say it), I can even shoot in the wind that way also. I still have not found a reason to start turning dials, unless I am sighting in a new scope.

 

[Choupique]

Since this has already been exumed, here's an example of somebody using holdovers very effectively

Mk12 Speed Run

So in this exact scenario it shines and the guy goes over why it works here. The goal is speed, ranges from 100 to 700 yards, and hes progressing out linearly to known ranges so the hold offs are progressive down the reticle. I cant imagine where those conditions carry over to big game hunting very well. Prairie dogging or something similar I could see it being advantageous.

 

[mtwarden]

There are physical holdovers where you use the center of the reticle. At closer ranges I think it makes the most sense, but lots of scopes offer reticle holdovers w/o dialing.

I’m guessing I’m not the only one that uses a reticle like that. I’m pretty comfortable out to 4-500 yds with such a reticle.

 

[JGRaider]

Your 300yd zero has almost a .3 mil correction per 50yds from 150 to 600.
That would be super easy to remember in the field. I like it.

It's not like this is anything new. I used MPBR with my 7mag for 25 years with a duplex reticle.

 

[Stinky Coyote]

Mostly ~500 yard hunter ~600 on range stuff. Have played with and will use all methods talked about. Always Mpbr 200 yard type zero as most tags are filled without grabbing a rangefinder at all. Also have missed high several times if the high point getting above 2.5”, prefer the high point closer to 2" than 2.5". Have no issues with 0-400 with duplex and inches hold.

Can see 10” on a rack and call slot fish within cm at a glance and trades life so intimate with the tape at either end of the scene. Our brains spatially and visually wired and subconsciously can call it, like height and weight of everyone in the coffee shop, within an inch or two and and 10-15 lbs lol.

Anyhow, have shot well with lr duplex style to 520 on game, 575 called out by buddy and last hash was 550, and of course dialling no prob. But now with all the rules like 1. We suck and shooting and 2. Improper zero...and age with eyes and readers for close stuff, you combo it all up and solve. I got ballistic rangefinder now that focuses display that feeds a scope that focuses reticle and capped to remove all zero variability. Even with good close vision the argument is sound to roll reticle to the distances mentioned here and where almost all killing done.

Aside from group hunting, culling, school teaching, and distances beyond the tag filling reality. The newer reticles make it even better. Like this half mil dmx in an nx8, moose I think around 375, she popped out at around 430 and started coming at me, only tag I was after was whitetail, she popped back into bush around 350, I was watching to about 600 there and 3 crossings for whitetail at the time, scope on 6x pretty sure, and obviously hand holding older iPhone 6s to scope trying to snap pics before she buggers off...image quality lol, a little different with naked eye. I had already pre ranged the 3 main trails that crossed that scene and had flagging tape out there to help so I didn't even need to range, just see animal and get in scope, 1.5, 2.7 and 3.1 from recollection I had pre memorized. No dialling, no nothing, the big ole buck I was looking for just never crossed. I only got to zero check a coyote at 214. Time was of the essence here, they would only come out and dick around briefly so all naked eye watching and then straight into the scope.

The hold points make sense 400-600, kill zone precision available, to 400-ish hold over kill zone precision proven since the dawn of time. Beyond 600 will need good reticles or dialling for the precision required there.

All of it works well to 400-ish, two of them work beyond that. Play with it all. My groups at 600 no different with this reticle than dialling. Just list all the reasons and pros and cons and try it all and then see what sticks and run it. There isn’t one way to skin a cat. If you only hunt this is simpler, if you compete and or train people etc then your crossover stuff comes into play where you may choose things that have precision required for way past tag filling and make it work for tag filling duty so its a constant in gear/training etc.

I mean there's prolly 6 mil there I'll never use for what I do but never know, I know with my zero this 308 hits 1000 on the 10 mil line lol, it just doesn't get in the way, windage could squeeze in to about the same too but whole different threads picking fly sh1t from pepper. A 5-6 mil square of this would be pretty 'hunt' friendly. Not sure why German 4's aren't coming out (most ~4 mil to post) with 3 mil (0.5 increments) on the thin stadia in all 3 directions, and some wind on lowers like this also...the s2h is close but I just aint dialling, square that thing, give it capped turret option, and throw it in the 2-8x36 talked about and look out

Edit, if she’s 36” and I see about 2.3 mil then 434 yards lol. It’s coming back to me she came out around 450-475 and went back in around 350-375. Haven’t played with the mil ranging side yet, that’s fun.