Side Wheel Selection and Marking

[r1lover]

This could go under several subject categories so will post here in this catch-all.

I try to avoid cumbersome and/or expensive gadgets and opt for little and cheap when possible, like this side wheel and metric steel measuring tape set up.

The wheel came in a box of junky parts someone handed me and the tape measure from Amazon for a few bucks.

Starting from the "0" end of the tape, I cut a length long enough to go around my wheel so the ends meet. This is more for aesthetics as I never use all 360 degrees of the wheel. I used scissors to slice the tape lengthwise so its width approximates the width of my wheel.

I applied Goop adhesive to the surface of the wheel and the tape according to the manufacturer's instructions, turned the wheel all the way to the nearest focus setting and began applying the "0" end of the tape at my pointer, wrapping the tape around the wheel and securing it with a rubber band until the adhesive cured.

My dope card is two sided. I focus, read the value on the tape at the pointer, look at my card, hold and shoot.

I've been teased about having the tiniest wheel at FT matches but I can range as well as anyone because the markings are so numerous and close together.

 

[JP806TX]

This could go under several subject categories so will post here in this catch-all.

I try to avoid cumbersome and/or expensive gadgets and opt for little and cheap when possible, like this side wheel and metric steel measuring tape set up.

The wheel came in a box of junky parts someone handed me and the tape measure from Amazon for a few bucks.

Starting from the "0" end of the tape, I cut a length long enough to go around my wheel so the ends meet. This is more for aesthetics as I never use all 360 degrees of the wheel. I used scissors to slice the tape lengthwise so its width approximates the width of my wheel.

I applied Goop adhesive to the surface of the wheel and the tape according to the manufacturer's instructions, turned the wheel all the way to the nearest focus setting and began applying the "0" end of the tape at my pointer, wrapping the tape around the wheel and securing it with a rubber band until the adhesive cured.

My dope card is two sided. I focus, read the value on the tape at the pointer, look at my card, hold and shoot.

I've been teased about having the tiniest wheel at FT matches but I can range as well as anyone because the markings are so numerous and close together.

View attachment 342727

View attachment 342728

View attachment 342729

OMG this could go into the twilight zone
0.20 Caliber
20 yard zero
20/20 vision
19.9 FPE (rounds out to 20FPE)
OMG
Where's the rest of the dope card?
21-55 yards? (secrets)

Last time I saw that side wheel...I didn't bring my tape measure...but I think it was a 20mm diameter side wheel (according to urban legend ... maybe it was smaller)

 

[491458]

Hmmm I have to admit using a tape measure instead of the yard markers on the wheel is an interesting idea. Seems a little more work on your range card but you never have to relabel your wheel just change your card. Clever what ever works.

 

[Gear_Junkie]

What a great idea, thanks for sharing!

 

[Bigragu]

@ R1LOVER- please explain it to me so my Swiss cheese brain sees the concept better-
So does this mean, based on your marker, that your sidewheel is focused crystal clear at 49 yards(or approx 50 yds)? Is this how the tape was meant for?

If so, and this is where I’m confused, because like say on one of the scopes I own, to go from 35 yards to 50 on the parallax focus turret it is a small gap for the 15 yard difference , but in other areas like going from 60 to 80 yards the gap is way wider, same with 10 to 25 yards. I guess where I’m confused is in a tape measure the gaps between lines and numbers are 100% guaranteed to be identical from zero to infinity, but on a scope wheel the gaps are not.

I already know that pulling the wheel off and moving it to another identical scope will also be different as 35 yards crystal clear on one scope could be at 50 yards on another identical scope, due to tolerances, gear backlash, etc.

I do find your concept intriguing, one I would like to incorporate myself, but I need to better understand it

Thanks, man, for being patient.

 

[Ca_Varminter]

Again take a look at ScopeKnob software
This will help you print your Custom Tape for any size wheel.....

Eric Sanders is an Avid FT shooter..
His software is very User Friendly
He also Make Large Elevation Turrets and Side-Wheels!!!

SoarSoft Software

Airfoil template modification and printing system, with 3D rendering of your wing structure. Feather/Cut foam Cutting machine, ScopeKnob air gun scope elevation tape software

www.compufoil.com

 

[r1lover]

@ R1LOVER- please explain it to me so my Swiss cheese brain sees the concept better-
So does this mean, based on your marker, that your sidewheel is focused crystal clear at 49 yards(or approx 50 yds)? Is this how the tape was meant for?

If so, and this is where I’m confused, because like say on one of the scopes I own, to go from 35 yards to 50 on the parallax focus turret it is a small gap for the 15 yard difference , but in other areas like going from 60 to 80 yards the gap is way wider, same with 10 to 25 yards. I guess where I’m confused is in a tape measure the gaps between lines and numbers are 100% guaranteed to be identical from zero to infinity, but on a scope wheel the gaps are not.

I already know that pulling the wheel off and moving it to another identical scope will also be different as 35 yards crystal clear on one scope could be at 50 yards on another identical scope, due to tolerances, gear backlash, etc.

I do find your concept intriguing, one I would like to incorporate myself, but I need to better understand it

Thanks, man, for being patient.

View attachment 342950

Bigragu,

No sir, not how it works and I will start from the very beginning.

I cut the tape measure to fit my wheel, turned my wheel so the scope was focused as close as possible (which I know is 10 yds.) and applied the tape with adhesive around my wheel, with the "0" end of the tape starting where my pointer was. So now I know if I turn my wheel and focus on a target and the pointer is on the "0" of the tape, my target is 10 yards away and I recorded these two values in the left and middle columns of the card.

To continue filling out the card I placed targets on the ground in measured 1 yard increments starting at 11 yds. going out to 20 yds.

I then focused my scope on the 11 yd. target and recorded the number in the left column that the pointer pointed to on the tape (10) along with the known yardage to that target (11 yds.) next to it in the middle column. When I focus on a target on the range and the pointer reads 10 on the tape, I know my target is 11 yds. away.

Looking at the card you can see that when I focused on targets at 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16 yds. away, the pointer read 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40 respectively on the tape.

The column on the right is my actual POI I recorded when I shot at each target while aiming dead at it.

So the example in the above picture would be:

I focus on my target, look at the tape on the wheel and see the pointer is on the 47. I look at my card and see that my target is a smidge over 18 yds. away and my holdover is "0" (i.e., dead on).

In another example if I focused on a target and the pointer read 25 on the wheel, I would look at my card, know my target was only 13 yds. away and my pellet was going to strike 2 MIL's below my point of aim because the target is so close. I will need to aim 2 MIL's high to hit that target.

It's actually very simple and quick. Focus, read the tape at the pointer, look for that number in the left column of the card and the hold in the right column, aim accordingly and shoot.

The back (secret) side of the card as Mr. Poh calls it, it similar but from 21 yds. out to 55 yds. Beyond 27 yds. though I began setting and reading targets in 2 yd. and then 5 yd. increments out to 55 yds.

So there is no misunderstanding, I use hold-over, I do not click my turrets as the shooter in Varminter's picture is doing.

 

[Ray1313]

This could go under several subject categories so will post here in this catch-all.

I try to avoid cumbersome and/or expensive gadgets and opt for little and cheap when possible, like this side wheel and metric steel measuring tape set up.

The wheel came in a box of junky parts someone handed me and the tape measure from Amazon for a few bucks.

Starting from the "0" end of the tape, I cut a length long enough to go around my wheel so the ends meet. This is more for aesthetics as I never use all 360 degrees of the wheel. I used scissors to slice the tape lengthwise so its width approximates the width of my wheel.

I applied Goop adhesive to the surface of the wheel and the tape according to the manufacturer's instructions, turned the wheel all the way to the nearest focus setting and began applying the "0" end of the tape at my pointer, wrapping the tape around the wheel and securing it with a rubber band until the adhesive cured.

My dope card is two sided. I focus, read the value on the tape at the pointer, look at my card, hold and shoot.

I've been teased about having the tiniest wheel at FT matches but I can range as well as anyone because the markings are so numerous and close together.

View attachment 342727

View attachment 342728

View attachment 342729

What a great idea, thanks for posting. Going to have to revisit my own side wheels

 

[r1lover]

Hmmm I have to admit using a tape measure instead of the yard markers on the wheel is an interesting idea. Seems a little more work on your range card but you never have to relabel your wheel just change your card. Clever what ever works.

As long as this wheel stays on this scope the left and middle columns won't change*. Only the right column will change if I my pellets/velocity changes. That's why that column is in pencil, lol.

* Folks with much more experience than I have will tell you that ranging (and everything else) may change with temperature so someone who shoots at that level might want more than one dope card.

 

[Bigragu]

@ R1LOVER- thanks for the patience in re explaining the design. I fully understand it now.

 

[JP806TX]

I think the intent was to have a weather proof, consistently spaced (reference) markings and multiple markings on the side wheel so that it'll be easy to estimate was it 12.5 yards?...vs 12.7 yards.
Because the game of Field Target demands that level of precision. As played in the USA, at 10-15 yards (some sadistic match directors), torture us with shooting at 3/8" to 1/4" holes. So there's very little room for error for POA with those teeny tiny kill zones.

 

[JimD]

Great idea! I've marked big wheels on two of my scopes but now second guess my markings some. I've changed the tape on one of them. But this way that is not necessary.

I looked on Amazon and Aliexpress for a self adhesive tape for this. I need it to be only 6mm wide for the wheel I want to change. I could not find anything that narrow but I bought the "Edtape workbench ruler" from Amazon for $10. It is over half an inch wide but it includes imperial and metric measurements. So I should be able to cut off the metric part and get it to 6mm. Aliexpress has metric tapes as cheap as $2 but they were 13mm wide and it wasn't clear I could split them in half and still have the labels. No glue necessary with the self adhesive tape, I will just cut it to length and width, take off the old tape and clean the wheel, then peel off the backer as I put the new tape on the wheel.

It also seems to me the range card could be simplified by leaving off the yardage. All you really need is the wheel indication and the hold over. For hunting, I put simplified information on a sticky label inside the flip up cap for the ocular lens.