Aiming Advice for F-Class Shooters
In our Shooters Forum, one newcomer wanted some advice on selecting a reticle for F-Class optics. He wondered about the advantage of Forward Focal Plane (FFP) vs. conventional scopes and also wondered if one type of reticle was better for “holding off” than others.
In responding to this question, Forum regular Monte Milanuk provided an excellent summary of aiming methods used in F-Class. For anyone shooting score targets, Monte’s post is worth reading:
Aiming Methods for F-Class Shooting — by Monte Milanuk
F-Class is a known-distance event, with targets of known dimensions that have markings (rings) of known sizes. Any ‘holding off’ can be done using the target face itself. Most ‘benefits’ of forward focal plain (FFP) optics are null and void here — they work great on two-way ranges where ‘minute of man’ is the defining criteria — but how many FFP scopes do you know of in the 30-40X magnification range? Very, very few, because what people who buy high-magnification scopes want is something that allows them to hold finer on the target, and see more detail of the target, not something where the reticle covers the same amount of real estate and appears ‘coarser’ in view against the target, while getting almost too fine to see at lower powers.
Whether a person clicks or holds off is largely personal preference. Some people might decline to adjust their scope as long as they can hold off somewhere on the target. Some of that may stem from the unfortunate effect of scopes being mechanical objects which sometimes don’t work entirely as advertised (i.e. one or two clicks being more or less than anticipated). Me personally, if I get outside 1-1.5 MOA from center, I usually correct accordingly. I also shoot on a range where wind corrections are often in revolutions, not clicks or minutes, between shots.
Some shooters do a modified form of ‘chase the spotter’ — i.e. Take a swag at the wind, dial it on, aim center and shoot. Spotter comes up mid-ring 10 at 4 o’clock… so for the next shot aim mid-ring 10 at 10 o’clock and shoot. This should come up a center X (in theory). Adjust process as necessary to take into account for varying wind speeds and direction.
Others use a plot sheet that is a scaled representation of the target face, complete with a grid overlaid on it that matches the increments of their optics — usually in MOA. Take your Swag at the wind, dial it on, hold center and shoot. Shot comes up a 10 o’clock ‘8’… plot the shot on the sheet, look at the grid and take your corrections from that and dial the scope accordingly. This process should put you in the center (or pretty close), assuming that you didn’t completely ignore the wind in the mean time. Once in the center, hold off and shoot and plot, and if you see a ‘group’ forming (say low right in the 10 ring) either continue to hold high and left or apply the needed corrections to bring your group into the x-ring.
Just holding is generally faster, and allows the shooter to shoot fast and (hopefully) stay ahead of the wind. Plotting is more methodical and may save your bacon if the wind completely changes on you… plotting provides a good reference for dialing back the other way while staying in the middle of the target. — YMMV, Monte
We have found that continually changing the scope settings is a BAD idea. Some scopes do not repeat and some seem to lag after adjustment until after the first shot. We have found that after the inital sight in period, it is best to change your POA to compensate for changing wind conditions.
The plot sheets are an excellant tool to both use for changing wind hold adjustments and to record your hits to help determine if your load is proper (i.e. no unexpected impacts and little on no vertical).
George
I would mostly agree with George, and always hold off when shooting myself. However in Teams shooting the choice is not so clear cut. There is something to be said for having the shooter always aim at the middle and have the coach do the “knob twiddling”. I have seen a few systems, both oral and graphical, for the coach to convey hold off instructions, but they can be both awkward and error prone.
Alan
The plot sheet is a fantastic tool. Linear plotting is an excellent tool for mapping trends as opposed to just putting corresponding dots on the miniature target face. The attached plot sheets are excellent in that regard. Just neet to talk their creator into making them in ICFRA dimensions… the target that the rest of the world uses.
I used to think the same way about FFP scopes until I tried the March 5 – 40x FFP on a F Class target. Practically perfect as the floating dot is the same size as the X ring (throughout the power range).
So, what happens when you cannot see the scoring rings through mirage? This is a common situation at Camp Pendleton’s Range 117. I use the NF NP-R1 reticle at 42X where the ticks subtend ~1.07 MOA. I only touch my no-wind zero if conditions are extreme, requiring more than 5 MOA windage. But, I frequently correct elevation as required to hold target waterline. That is usually only 1/8 or 1/4 MOA during a string.
Does anyone know where that awesome Trophy can from Monte is holding in the picture at the end of the article? Someone please let me know dja1070 (@) hotmail .com Thanks!
@ Steve. Good point. The answer is better glass – with a March 10 – 60x I was able to see things at higher magnification in thick summer mirage that the NF scopes were not able to pick up. ie I could see rings where the other shooters on the line were struggling with the target.
I won the day as a result.