Evaluation of Elevation: Holdover Reticles vs. Dialing

Long-range shooting has become more popular over the past decade. As shots get longer, the gear becomes more sophisticated. A quarter century ago, the 1,000-yard shot seemed impossible for most shooters. Stories of snipers such as Carlos Hathcock caused many men to raise an eyebrow and listen rather than talk. As the first quarter of the 21st Century draws to a close 1,000 yards is not as far away as it once was. I’ve seen people who have never fired a rifle beyond 100 yards successfully fire the 1,000-yard shot after just two days of training. The gear, including ammunition, optics, and rifle, is better than ever, but the technique must be perfect. Massaro Media Group. Massaro Media Group. Not all riflescopes are the same. Shooters who need to adjust their bullet’s trajectory have a variety of options, including sophisticated holdover and elevation reticles and windage turrets. Sometimes, they can even combine both. Learning to StretchIf the barrel of your rifle were perfectly level, perpendicular to gravity, the projectile would immediately drop from the barrel, away the line of sight. To allow our projectile to hit distant targets, the barrel must be raised at the muzzle. People have claimed that bullets rise after being fired, but this is not true. The barrel must be elevated at the muzzle. The most popular zero distances are 100-200, 250 and 250 yards. To minimize holdover, hunters will use a longer zero. Target shooters will prefer a 100-yard zero. A Leupold VX-3HD 3.5-10x40mm is used by the author’s Tikka T3X Lite. It has a simple duplex-reticle that can be dialed for elevation adjustments. However, a turret with yardage markings would be better. Massaro Media Group. No matter what distance you shoot or hunt, you will need to compensate for the bullet’s loss. A shooter used to have a dope chart that was based on real-world experience. If the distance to the target was not known, the distance was calculated. In hunting, there were reticles with marks that looked a lot like the stadia hairs in a surveying transport. This was used to estimate distance. Modern rangefinders are a blessing. If we can accurately measure the distance to the target, a ballistic chart will give us the information needed to hit it at that distance. If you don’t choose the system that makes sense for you, it can be difficult to correlate the required amount of holdover with the adjustments on your riflescope. People will say, “Just get closer and not worry about it.” But there are times when you can’t reach 250 yards with a Coues deer or bull elk, or even a mountain goat. I hunt and want to be as close as possible. But, when hunting is my primary focus, it’s not always possible. Swarovski’s BRX-1 reticle provides 0.5-mil increments between dots and lower crosshairs. There are also additional hash marks to adjust wind speeds. It can be used at maximum magnification with a second-focal scope. Photo by Massaro Media Group. Long-Range LingoLooking at ballistic charts you will see trajectory adjustments marked in inches (minutes of angle), or mils (milliradians). These are all simply measurement systems that get the bullet where it needs. Inches is the most common, but you’ll also see MOA (minutes of angle) and mils (milliradians) on common ballistic charts. Minutes of angle are exactly what you learned in geometry class. A minute is an arc, 1/60th degree. 360 degrees are found in a circle. 60 minutes are included in each degree. 60 seconds are included in each minute. A radian is an arc whose radius equals the arc length. There are 2xp circles. If you divide one of those numbers into 1,000 pieces, you get a milliradian. One MOA is just over 1 inch at 100 meters (actually 1.047inches), while one milliradian is 3.6 inches. Most popular riflescopes have adjustments in 1/4 MOA and 0.1 mil. The MOA scopes are actually 1.047 inches at 100 yards, while 1 milliradian is 3.6 inches. The adjustment of the elevation turret (or “dialing”) to compensate for trajectory and windage is becoming more popular, even among older hunters who don’t want anything moving. A zero-stop indicator, the Leupold silver button, can quickly tell you if your scope has been reset to zero. Massaro Media Group. Depending on the size and amount of elevation available, some scopes can offer up to three revolutions of the elevation turret. If I am going to dial for elevation, I want a scope with bold, large markings. I love scopes with zero-stop, bold markings. This makes it easier to dial for elevation. You might be able to bump another deer at 150 meters, but you still have 420 dialed in. This happens more often that people would like to admit. To correlate the trajectory of your load with the amount of holdover, you’ll need a chart. The routine is as follows: Range your target (steel plate or game animal, etc.) To determine the distance, adjust the elevation turret to the appropriate MOA or mils, and then press the trigger. It is important to practice dialing because there will be an interruption in sight picture between identifying the target and setting the distance. Massaro Media Group. A holdover reticle is a reticle that has some kind of graduations to establish the correct amount of holdover on a reticle. This allows you to accurately correct for trajectory. You’ll find all sorts of different reticles, from the simplest with 1-MOA or 1/2 -mil graduations on the main hairs, to very complex designs with more precise graduations for both trajectory and for wind drift.First-focal-plane scopes, which have a reticle that gets bigger or smaller according to changes in magnification, can work at any magnification range. Second-focal plane scopes, which appear to have the same size reticle, will only provide the correct values within a specified magnification range. This is usually the maximum. A reticle can be used for holdover if you are a hunter who rarely exceeds 400 yards or 500 yards. However, it can become complicated if you use it exclusively for long-range target shooting. Massaro Media Group. Making Your Mind Up. While it is easy to compare and contrast dialing and holdover, it is important to remember that both have their place within today’s shooting environment. I can see why shooters who don’t need to adjust for trajectory often would prefer a simpler reticle with fewer exposed turrets. A scope that can be dialed accurately for precise holdover is important, especially when shooting a rifle that may be used in both hunting and target situations. You could also opt for both, with an exposed target turret and a graduated reticle that can be quickly changed, especially for rifles that are used for hunting or target shooting. This scope featured an exposed turret as well as the BRX-1 reticle inside a tube. We reached the maximum elevation of 7 mils at 1,800 yards. At full 28x magnification we needed more than the holdover reticle could provide. We were able to reduce the magnification to 14x and double the subtend values. This allowed us to tackle the steel plate at over a mile. Photo by Massaro Media Group. I prefer a simple reticle for hunting rifles that has a range of 9x to 18x depending on the application. Swarovski’s 28x top end was too high for me, despite the quality of the glass. I would have preferred a simple reticle on my hunting rifles. However, it can be difficult to use the 28x holdover reticle on a target (deer or elk) when the magnification is 28x. I will not argue if you choose a first-focal plane reticle. This can provide a simple crosshair at lower magnifications and a detailed holdover at higher magnifications. The values that the reticle will subtend -once it is memorized by a shooter -will not change. A first focal plane reticle is the best option if you want to have maximum flexibility for wind deflection and trajectory. It’s an easy but effective way to holdover, especially for hunters who prefer to stay within 500 yards. Massaro Media Group. I gravitated towards a scope that allows me dial for longer shots, but also has a graduated crosshair for wind adjustments. I don’t like dialing in for wind. In fact, the Leupold CDS system is my favorite. The Oregon folks will be able to prepare a dial-turret marked in yardage if you provide them with the relevant data for your load, including bullet weight, muzzle velocity and ballistic coefficient. This eliminates the need to convert distance to arc mathematically and allows the shooter the ability to range the target, dial the number, and then concern himself with wind issues. Leupold can also make a custom turret specifically calibrated and marked to your load for their CDS system. This turret works wonderfully, according to the author. Massaro Media Group. I have used this turret in both the field and at the bench, and it works great. This dial is combined with Leupold’s TMOA reticle, which gives me 1-MOA graduations for the horizontal and vertical hairs. It makes it a system that I feel comfortable taking everywhere. This setup is in a Leupold VX-6HD (3-18x44mm), atop my Browning X-Bolt 6.8 Western and is extremely convenient for hunting situations. Massaro Media Group. There are many great scopes on the marketplace. While brand and model are personal choices, the concept behind many scopes is the same. Find the one that makes sense for you, and then practice with it. Bullseye sizes and target grids are in MOA. This is a great option for long-range shooting. Enter your email address below.