Re: New scope set-ups for the Woodsman! (Update 2)
|
New scope set-ups for the Woodsman! (Update 2) April 02, 2012 05:51PM |
|
Finally, my Nikon P-22 scope with the BDC reticle came in.
I can't say I'm impressed with the way Optics Planet packaged it.
A box full of styrofoam peanuts is not the best way to protect a scope. PA does a much better job packaging pellets!
This project involves the 2-7x P-22 scope for hunting/close range and also being able to swap that out for the NightForce scope for long range work. To do this, I had to take off the custom made scope mount and put on a BKL Weaver rail, That will let me use quick disconnect rings to change configurations. For mounting the NightForce scope, I decided to use Barrett rings that allow for 15-30 MOA drop compensation. The Barrett rings came packaged better than the Nikon scope! To be fair, these rings cost more than the little Nikon but still..
The recent deliveries.
The BKL base.
Nice instruction card with the Barrett rings. Easy to read and complete.
Taking the custom scope mount off the Woodsman was almost emotional! It's such a fine bit of machining and engineering but I had to do it...
That's the gun with the P-22 mounted on the BKL rail with Weaver quick release rings. I think I lost about a pound going to this scope. The back end of the NightForce scope is visible in this picture. For the long range set-up I'll get that pound back and a bit more.
Per my normal procedure, I drew a plumb line and a horizontal on the target wall and got the scope nice a square to the gun. Then it was time for sighting in. The first shot was pretty close and that made things easy.
After the first couple adjustments, these targets were shot starting from the bottom right and going clock-wise in order. The first target had me still having to walk in the adjustment from left to right. The next one was five shots and I thought I had it nailed. There was a good bit of wind out but I don't know how much that messed with me at 40 yards, probably a bit but not much. The bottom left target was next and 5 shots without adjustment told me I needed some left clicks. The top left target is a dozen shots. the first 4 show I went too far left on the scope and the last 8 were pretty good.
Afet figuring I had the gun sighted, I took a shot at a little dot target (still at 40 yards), guess I might need to work a bit more...
Maybe tomorrow I can mount the NightForce scope. Too bad I don't have a vineyard here for long range work. I'd really like to get both set-ups done.
The Woodsman with the P-22 mounted.
Close up..
Close up of the weaver quick disconnect rings.
This is the gun with the NightForce scope mounted.
I set this target up at 18 yards to "get on paper" as the first shot at 40 yards was impossible to find. At the very top is the first shot. I dialed in a full turn down and the second shot was about 3" lower than the first. Then I dialed in 2 more full turns and I was still high. Another 3/4 turn put me in the bull.
Moving back out to 40 yards I had to shoot a couple tick marks low on the reticle but results were good. The top right target is shot with my own boat tail SWC design and the bottom is with Barnes Bishops. After I thought I was sighted in, I aimed for a different target that happened to be stuck to the target wall. Looks like I'm sighted in! That was with a boat tail...
BTW, the group under the dime measures .182" CTC...
OK, update 1:
I took the Nightforce off the gun and re-installed the P-22.
You can see that the forward mount lever does not clear the windage turret. Fortunately, pulling out the lever on it's post and repositioning allows the ring to be tightened without too much bother. This is not a problem with the scope or rings, just a matter of geometry for this application.
A picture of the elevation turret for reference. The P-22 with the Nikoplex reticle may have a different design. This is the BDC 150 model.
This is a view through the scope. This picture is accurate for the reticle but unfair to the scope's picture. The camera can only focus on one thing and I can't hold it all that steady to boot. I can tell you that the picture to my old eyes is absolutely clear as a bell at 40 yards. The scope is parallax free at 50 yards according to Nikon, it is not a AO scope. That said, note that all the groups I've shot are at 40 yards and not the set point of 50.
That's the first 3 shots after remounting the P-22. I didn't have a dot for an aimpoint and you really can't see the circle I was centering in but the aimpoint was pretty much a third of the way in from the left side of the second shot. The scope remounted with lethal accuracy on anything the size of a quarter or more.
Here's the second 3 shots taken. No adjustments were made. I'm a little right and since the gun is clearly shooting well, I need some left clicks.
I dialed in 3 clicks and got one on center and 2 in one hole a touch left. Now, the wind is gusting (not too bad for a BB though) and I'm shooting off a deck table, not a bench. I'm satisfied the scope responded to the small adjustment and I need to keep up with the gun.
So, how about we take the gun way off zero and then try to bring it back? Kind of like a real scope tester would do, just not a full box pattern because I have work to do and I'm feeling ill and shooting between relief trips...
Here I shot the first shot and I was off a bit to the right. I chaulked that up to my mistake or the wind but what's a quarter inch between friends? Then I dialed the scope up 8 clicks and right 8 clicks and fired a shot at the original aimpoint. Then I dialed the scope back 8 down and 8 left and shot again. Shot three landed just above the aimpoint you see.
There's more to look at but I'm very happy with this scope so far. It is clear as a bell and so easy to get a picture with. BTW, all the shots and the reticle pictures above have been on 7x, the highest magnification.
One last thing, all the Bishops used for this test have been unsized and unsorted bullets. Something always has to give and sizing and sorting were what gave this time. If I had not been able to print a cloverleaf or two, I would have sorted or sized but it was clear I had consistent enough ammo for this test.
I had a chance to get on the Nikon "Spot On" website and try it out. It seems pretty handy and the more you navigate around, the more there is. It's very intuitive for the basic functions and it looks pretty bare bones at first but if you check out the menus, you'll find functionality for the advanced geeky guys too...
I found some old BC data I had gathered for the Bishop slugs years ago that happened to match pretty close what I was shooting them at for the above testing. I plugged that data into an old ballistic calculator, the newest version of Chairgun and the Nikon software. I got very similar ballistic tables for POI at range (Nikon calls it "path") so that made me a little more confident in what the Spot On S/W was producing.
As an aside, only the 3 year old ballistic software allowed for more than one BC as a funtion of velocity. That is significant because I have already tested and verified with a few slugs significant BC changes between the 900 ish and 650-750ish speed range. It's hard to tell if the BC going from .072 to .122 between 880 fps and 650 fps really matters much but I wonder. On the other hand, at least with pellets, Chairgun has produced some extremely accurate scope tapes (see Neils awesome shots)
Anyhow, after digging around the Spot On site and printing out some reports, I think it might be pretty useful for guys that can't get all there starting data on the range. The smart shooter will verify anything some program gives him but having a decent starting point will save time and bullets for even the guy with a range out the window...
I printed up a few of the available outputs. Most of these are also available as .pdf files or Excell spreadsheets.
The top right item is off the main page. If you put in your customized bullet weight, muzzle velocity, zero ronge and BC (after selecting your scope/reticle) this comes up and can be printed. You can drag a slider to any magnification the scope has and get a basic picture like this for that magnification, you can choose to have wingage displayed or not as well.
The bottom 4 items are exploded views of the reticle that show on target ranges not just for the center but the top and bottom of each ring as well as the bottom post. Windage at any speed and angle remains an option here too. I chose a 90 degree West wind at 5 mph.
The center Item on the left is pretty neat and taping it to your gun stock for a hunt might help. It's a quick reference for the on target range for all the reticle rings and the post at each whole magnification level (2x, 3x, 4x etc.).
The top left item is a ballistic table I printed after selecting what items I wanted displayed. I selected range, velocity, energy, Path (poi drop from zero) and Zero Adj in clicks. I figure if I end up shooting at a fixed range, I might just want to dial the scope instead of using a hold off ring...
I'll have to see how close the values are in the real world but the correlation to other software that has got me on paper quick in the past is encouraging.
BTW, ignore the bogus time stamp on the picture. Freaking camera re-sets with every damn battery change...
Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 04/04/2012 10:34PM by Jerry.
I can't say I'm impressed with the way Optics Planet packaged it.
A box full of styrofoam peanuts is not the best way to protect a scope. PA does a much better job packaging pellets!
This project involves the 2-7x P-22 scope for hunting/close range and also being able to swap that out for the NightForce scope for long range work. To do this, I had to take off the custom made scope mount and put on a BKL Weaver rail, That will let me use quick disconnect rings to change configurations. For mounting the NightForce scope, I decided to use Barrett rings that allow for 15-30 MOA drop compensation. The Barrett rings came packaged better than the Nikon scope! To be fair, these rings cost more than the little Nikon but still..
The recent deliveries.
The BKL base.
Nice instruction card with the Barrett rings. Easy to read and complete.
Taking the custom scope mount off the Woodsman was almost emotional! It's such a fine bit of machining and engineering but I had to do it...
That's the gun with the P-22 mounted on the BKL rail with Weaver quick release rings. I think I lost about a pound going to this scope. The back end of the NightForce scope is visible in this picture. For the long range set-up I'll get that pound back and a bit more.
Per my normal procedure, I drew a plumb line and a horizontal on the target wall and got the scope nice a square to the gun. Then it was time for sighting in. The first shot was pretty close and that made things easy.
After the first couple adjustments, these targets were shot starting from the bottom right and going clock-wise in order. The first target had me still having to walk in the adjustment from left to right. The next one was five shots and I thought I had it nailed. There was a good bit of wind out but I don't know how much that messed with me at 40 yards, probably a bit but not much. The bottom left target was next and 5 shots without adjustment told me I needed some left clicks. The top left target is a dozen shots. the first 4 show I went too far left on the scope and the last 8 were pretty good.
Afet figuring I had the gun sighted, I took a shot at a little dot target (still at 40 yards), guess I might need to work a bit more...
Maybe tomorrow I can mount the NightForce scope. Too bad I don't have a vineyard here for long range work. I'd really like to get both set-ups done.
The Woodsman with the P-22 mounted.
Close up..
Close up of the weaver quick disconnect rings.
This is the gun with the NightForce scope mounted.
I set this target up at 18 yards to "get on paper" as the first shot at 40 yards was impossible to find. At the very top is the first shot. I dialed in a full turn down and the second shot was about 3" lower than the first. Then I dialed in 2 more full turns and I was still high. Another 3/4 turn put me in the bull.
Moving back out to 40 yards I had to shoot a couple tick marks low on the reticle but results were good. The top right target is shot with my own boat tail SWC design and the bottom is with Barnes Bishops. After I thought I was sighted in, I aimed for a different target that happened to be stuck to the target wall. Looks like I'm sighted in! That was with a boat tail...
BTW, the group under the dime measures .182" CTC...
OK, update 1:
I took the Nightforce off the gun and re-installed the P-22.
You can see that the forward mount lever does not clear the windage turret. Fortunately, pulling out the lever on it's post and repositioning allows the ring to be tightened without too much bother. This is not a problem with the scope or rings, just a matter of geometry for this application.
A picture of the elevation turret for reference. The P-22 with the Nikoplex reticle may have a different design. This is the BDC 150 model.
This is a view through the scope. This picture is accurate for the reticle but unfair to the scope's picture. The camera can only focus on one thing and I can't hold it all that steady to boot. I can tell you that the picture to my old eyes is absolutely clear as a bell at 40 yards. The scope is parallax free at 50 yards according to Nikon, it is not a AO scope. That said, note that all the groups I've shot are at 40 yards and not the set point of 50.
That's the first 3 shots after remounting the P-22. I didn't have a dot for an aimpoint and you really can't see the circle I was centering in but the aimpoint was pretty much a third of the way in from the left side of the second shot. The scope remounted with lethal accuracy on anything the size of a quarter or more.
Here's the second 3 shots taken. No adjustments were made. I'm a little right and since the gun is clearly shooting well, I need some left clicks.
I dialed in 3 clicks and got one on center and 2 in one hole a touch left. Now, the wind is gusting (not too bad for a BB though) and I'm shooting off a deck table, not a bench. I'm satisfied the scope responded to the small adjustment and I need to keep up with the gun.
So, how about we take the gun way off zero and then try to bring it back? Kind of like a real scope tester would do, just not a full box pattern because I have work to do and I'm feeling ill and shooting between relief trips...
Here I shot the first shot and I was off a bit to the right. I chaulked that up to my mistake or the wind but what's a quarter inch between friends? Then I dialed the scope up 8 clicks and right 8 clicks and fired a shot at the original aimpoint. Then I dialed the scope back 8 down and 8 left and shot again. Shot three landed just above the aimpoint you see.
There's more to look at but I'm very happy with this scope so far. It is clear as a bell and so easy to get a picture with. BTW, all the shots and the reticle pictures above have been on 7x, the highest magnification.
One last thing, all the Bishops used for this test have been unsized and unsorted bullets. Something always has to give and sizing and sorting were what gave this time. If I had not been able to print a cloverleaf or two, I would have sorted or sized but it was clear I had consistent enough ammo for this test.
I had a chance to get on the Nikon "Spot On" website and try it out. It seems pretty handy and the more you navigate around, the more there is. It's very intuitive for the basic functions and it looks pretty bare bones at first but if you check out the menus, you'll find functionality for the advanced geeky guys too...
I found some old BC data I had gathered for the Bishop slugs years ago that happened to match pretty close what I was shooting them at for the above testing. I plugged that data into an old ballistic calculator, the newest version of Chairgun and the Nikon software. I got very similar ballistic tables for POI at range (Nikon calls it "path") so that made me a little more confident in what the Spot On S/W was producing.
As an aside, only the 3 year old ballistic software allowed for more than one BC as a funtion of velocity. That is significant because I have already tested and verified with a few slugs significant BC changes between the 900 ish and 650-750ish speed range. It's hard to tell if the BC going from .072 to .122 between 880 fps and 650 fps really matters much but I wonder. On the other hand, at least with pellets, Chairgun has produced some extremely accurate scope tapes (see Neils awesome shots)
Anyhow, after digging around the Spot On site and printing out some reports, I think it might be pretty useful for guys that can't get all there starting data on the range. The smart shooter will verify anything some program gives him but having a decent starting point will save time and bullets for even the guy with a range out the window...
I printed up a few of the available outputs. Most of these are also available as .pdf files or Excell spreadsheets.
The top right item is off the main page. If you put in your customized bullet weight, muzzle velocity, zero ronge and BC (after selecting your scope/reticle) this comes up and can be printed. You can drag a slider to any magnification the scope has and get a basic picture like this for that magnification, you can choose to have wingage displayed or not as well.
The bottom 4 items are exploded views of the reticle that show on target ranges not just for the center but the top and bottom of each ring as well as the bottom post. Windage at any speed and angle remains an option here too. I chose a 90 degree West wind at 5 mph.
The center Item on the left is pretty neat and taping it to your gun stock for a hunt might help. It's a quick reference for the on target range for all the reticle rings and the post at each whole magnification level (2x, 3x, 4x etc.).
The top left item is a ballistic table I printed after selecting what items I wanted displayed. I selected range, velocity, energy, Path (poi drop from zero) and Zero Adj in clicks. I figure if I end up shooting at a fixed range, I might just want to dial the scope instead of using a hold off ring...
I'll have to see how close the values are in the real world but the correlation to other software that has got me on paper quick in the past is encouraging.
BTW, ignore the bogus time stamp on the picture. Freaking camera re-sets with every damn battery change...
Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 04/04/2012 10:34PM by Jerry.
|
Re: New scope set-ups for the Woodsman! (Update 2) April 05, 2012 08:10PM |
|
|
Re: New scope set-ups for the Woodsman! (Update 2) April 07, 2012 04:51AM |
Thanks Jerry, I will check them out and probably faint when I see the price
Regards
Neil
Regards
Neil
|
Re: New scope set-ups for the Woodsman! (Update 2) April 08, 2012 09:18PM |
|
Sorry, only registered users may post in this forum.
Online Users
Guests:
13
Record Number of Users:
4
on March 10, 2022
Record Number of Guests:
234
on February 21, 2021