Before you even think about aiming a rifle at big game, you undoubtedly need to make sure it is accurate.
• Also read: Trophies and beautiful specimens
We have to go to the shooting range to conduct tests at certain distances.
At the root
When a gunsmith or shop technician attaches a scope to a rifle, he or she uses special tools or even a laser to make a basic initial adjustment, known as scope. Although in some cases the gun is almost perfectly aimed, I have often experienced situations where the cannonball was 10 or 12 inches away from the direct hit. In fact, with this type of presetting we achieve an accuracy of plus/minus 6 inches. We cannot take the risk of hunting with a telescope that offers so little safety.
The good old rule
When you line up, you can zero at 100 or 200 yards depending on the average distance of the shots you want to make.
If we place a target at 25 yards according to the ballistic curve, we will get the same results as at 100 yards. If we position the target at 50 yards, it is perfect for judging a shot at 200 yards.
Where things get bad
The hunter tries his luck at 25 yards. Since he is not yet very used to his caliber, which he only uses for a few days a year, he calms down and takes aim. He places two balls fairly close together, 3.5 inches from center. Delighted, he tells himself that he won’t touch his telescope because this precision suits him and the animal he’s targeting will automatically be fatally injured. He walks confidently.
A little math
The problem with the Nimrod is that it doesn’t realize that on the field it needs to compound its error by a segment of four over a distance of 100 yards. So his deviation of 3.5 inches at 25 yards becomes a complete miss at 100 yards with a deviation of 14 inches from the center zone, and that value increases to 28 inches at 200 yards. The same equation applies to shots at 50 yards, which is 200 yards.
If you thought your 3.5 inch gap wasn’t so bad, know that if a deer flies by at 100 yards, you won’t fatally hit it, except maybe an elk if you’re lucky, because its vital area reaches a size of 18 to 21.5 inches. Forget it with the deer, you will unfortunately injure him, because his vital zone, consisting of the heart and lungs, is approximately 8.5 to 9 inches in diameter in a small deer, 10 to 11 inches in a medium-sized specimen and 11 to 12 inches for an animal of good stature.
Come on, head back to the shooting range to refine your shots until you get your bullets on target. Then take the opportunity and shoot at real distances of 100 to 200 meters to get used to it.
You know the expression “I should have done that…” but forget it, you can’t risk missing out or hurting others. Be a conscientious sport hunter and act accordingly.
► I invite you to follow me Facebook.
