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I will tell you that because of having to range find with a scope I have improved my range estimation to about 100yd by eye. I'm sure others who've been parralax range finding for a while can say the same.
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Confused by FT rangefinding
- Thread starter Centercut
- Start date
I hear you... I’d love to see someone estimate the difference between 87 and 93 yards by eye. That 5 yards is a 2 inch difference in holdover, or the difference between a hit and a miss. Not saying it can’t be done. Just saying I’d love to see it done and I’d be super impressed... 
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I hear you... I’d love to see someone estimate the difference between 87 and 93 yards by 2eye. That 5 yards is a 2 inch difference in holdover, or the difference between a hit and a miss. Not saying it can’t be done. Just saying I’d love to see it done and I’d be super impressed...
Yes you have made your point & rightfully disagree based upon how you hunt and distance you chose to attempt shots at. Thats fine ... really it is.
But having said that ... if 5 yards in distance equates to 2 inch of vertical correction error .... Your getting close to the limits in useful distance for the ballistics of the AG your using.
The internet LOVES to read about such feats of distance and have done so myself more than a few times ... But shooting air guns at game in wild open spaces at distances 75 yards and beyond is WAY THE HECK OUT THERE !!!
So if you have per-say sitting duck targets that allow you to laser range them and then artillery profile shoot at them ... Thats great & continue as you were.
In such circumstances when the distances to target get so crucial to hold over with the Air guns, I simply don't and go back to the truck and get the .17 HMR.
Different folks have differing situations in which they shoot there air guns ... we will never all agree on who's way is best suited.
So in my own defense of the one stating " The AG squirrel hunter & Species of Squirrel we hunt and kill by the 100's per day simply never sit still long enough to laser and then shoot. If we use "per-say" lasers it would be our .17 HRM's where 30-150 yards +/- 1/4" your dead !
Just a civil conversation ...
Scott
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Scott, no problem. What you say makes total sense. For you. Most of my shots greater than 75 yards are from a bipod, leaning on a fence, or prone. I too read stories online of GS headshots at 180 yards and chuckle. What isn’t said is if that’s the 3rd or 7th shot at that distance. IMHO, anything over 125 yards is pretty lucky.
I will tell you that out to 100 yards with a 18.1 grain JSB .22 is doable and repeatable depending on the wind situation. So maybe we can agree to disagree, it hard to argue against shots at those distances that have been witnessed by others. First shot, not 2nd or 3rd.
I’d love to find a gaggle (herd, flock, pride???) of GS at 10 to 50 yards I could shoot at all day until I run out of pellets or air. That would be awesome!!! Unfortunately, that’s not reality in Southern Cali.
No harm, no foul. Just different opinions and experiences. I appreciate your input and would like to learn from you about FT and also your skills on tuning air rifles...
I will tell you that out to 100 yards with a 18.1 grain JSB .22 is doable and repeatable depending on the wind situation. So maybe we can agree to disagree, it hard to argue against shots at those distances that have been witnessed by others. First shot, not 2nd or 3rd.
I’d love to find a gaggle (herd, flock, pride???) of GS at 10 to 50 yards I could shoot at all day until I run out of pellets or air. That would be awesome!!! Unfortunately, that’s not reality in Southern Cali.
No harm, no foul. Just different opinions and experiences. I appreciate your input and would like to learn from you about FT and also your skills on tuning air rifles...
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"...So I don’t understand why rangefinding is so critical? ..."
With all the variables, you'll miss a few even if you get the range estimate exact. If it's not exact, you'll miss more.
"...why laser rangefinders aren’t allowed?..."
Why? - who knows for sure? Just accept it. But FT is a game about rangefinding, and focus rangefinding is the easiest and most common method that is allowed, so that's what they do.
"...What I don’t understand is what rangefinding has to do with being a good shot?..."
There is more to the game than being a good shot or a good marksman.
Focus rangefinding is a particular skill that is somewhat unique to FT. It can also be applied to hunting/pesting out to 50 or 60 yards. Beyond that, it's of little use. Only a few companies makes scopes specifically designed for rangefinding in FT. And they are typically very pricey. Though you can get by with other scopes if you spend the time to learn/calibrate the scope.
For farther distances, a laser range finder is the ticket.
Also "ranging by eye" can be useful if you know what you are looking at. When you are familiar with the size of a target (or prey), you start to recognize the distance with regards to how much of the FOV that the target is covering. When you have a stadia type reticle (mil-dot, moa, etc.), it is even more obvious. Besides instinctive/subconscious "ranging by eye", you can do conscious "ranging by eye", where you learn more exact target sizes & stadia spacing in order to get even better range estimates. It's sometimes called bracketing and it can be useful at any distance (not just 10-55yds) if you know your target/prey and scope. It is a skill that a few long range rifle shooters still bother to learn (though most use a laser these days).
Bracketing in FT was more beneficial when I was using 12x scopes in Hunter Division. Now that I'm using 16x (in Hunter division) and 24x otherwise, I rely a little more on focus range finding. Though I'll still bracket in FT when a convenient feature presents itself.
With all the variables, you'll miss a few even if you get the range estimate exact. If it's not exact, you'll miss more.
"...why laser rangefinders aren’t allowed?..."
Why? - who knows for sure? Just accept it. But FT is a game about rangefinding, and focus rangefinding is the easiest and most common method that is allowed, so that's what they do.
"...What I don’t understand is what rangefinding has to do with being a good shot?..."
There is more to the game than being a good shot or a good marksman.
Focus rangefinding is a particular skill that is somewhat unique to FT. It can also be applied to hunting/pesting out to 50 or 60 yards. Beyond that, it's of little use. Only a few companies makes scopes specifically designed for rangefinding in FT. And they are typically very pricey. Though you can get by with other scopes if you spend the time to learn/calibrate the scope.
For farther distances, a laser range finder is the ticket.
Also "ranging by eye" can be useful if you know what you are looking at. When you are familiar with the size of a target (or prey), you start to recognize the distance with regards to how much of the FOV that the target is covering. When you have a stadia type reticle (mil-dot, moa, etc.), it is even more obvious. Besides instinctive/subconscious "ranging by eye", you can do conscious "ranging by eye", where you learn more exact target sizes & stadia spacing in order to get even better range estimates. It's sometimes called bracketing and it can be useful at any distance (not just 10-55yds) if you know your target/prey and scope. It is a skill that a few long range rifle shooters still bother to learn (though most use a laser these days).
Bracketing in FT was more beneficial when I was using 12x scopes in Hunter Division. Now that I'm using 16x (in Hunter division) and 24x otherwise, I rely a little more on focus range finding. Though I'll still bracket in FT when a convenient feature presents itself.
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