How good is your ranging if you "eye ball" it?

Jump to latest Follow Reply
KevinWood44

KevinWood44

Member
May 14, 2021
275
77
New York, United States
Are your range guesses ever WAY off??

If I guess a range (before confirming with my rangefinder) I am usually pretty accurate inside 200 yards.

Inside 100 yards, I am usually no more than 5-7 yards off....and inside 200 yards I am never really more than 10-13 yards off. BUT today I had a few where I was WAY WAYYYYYY off. Does this happen to you??

I ranged a target that I thought was 80 yards away but it was only 62 yards off, then another which seems to me to be the same distance as the other (so 62 yards) ended up only being 41 yards away!! One ranged way long, the other way short.

Being 20 yards off when the target is only 60 yards away is awful!!! ::embarrassed::

Make me feel better, tell me I am not alone here
 
  • Like
Reactions: iAMzehTOASTY1 and Dairyboy
Pending what your trying to do, what your shooting etc ...

Out in the field with my .17HMR, anything I can see naked eye is inside 150 yards and Hold is +/- 1/2" & NO BIG DEAL.
Out shooting Field target 10-55 yards with an air rifle .... Unless you KNOW the range of all target inside or outside your zero range .. lostsa luck on doing very well.

That's relativity to your Question ;)
 
  • Like
Reactions: HogKiller, iAMzehTOASTY1, dgeesaman and 1 other person
Upvote 0
I am usually pretty good to 75 yards. Plus or minus 3-5 yards, usually. Still goof from time to time.
I shot 3D archery as a factory shooter when I was in my late 20’s. Back then no marked yardages and no Rangefinders allowed on the course during a competition. Being very good at yardage estimation was the difference between a win and just placing. Also bow hunt a lot. It is my only means of big game hunting still and I never carry a range finder.
Get past 70 yards with an air gun and I whip out the range finder. Past 100 yards and forget it without the range finder.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Pelletini, iAMzehTOASTY1 and Doc C.
Upvote 0
Motorhead said:
Pending what your trying to do, what your shooting etc ...

Out in the field with my .17HMR, anything I can see naked eye is inside 150 yards and Hold is +/- 1/2" & NO BIG DEAL.
Out shooting Field target 10-55 yards with an air rifle .... Unless you KNOW the range of all target inside or outside your zero range .. lostsa luck on doing very well.

That's relativity to your Question ;)
Click to expand...
Yes good point. I was shooting an air rifle. 2 weeks ago I shot my buddies AR and everything was inside 200 yards at 3200ish fps it shot so flat it didnt matter much. I think 200 yards was about a 3" drop. I shouldve been mroe clear that it was an air rifle
 
Upvote 0
Long time avid bowhunter here. I USED to be really good at that. It was the result of practice,practice,practice. However variations in the terrain, vegetation and lighting can really throw you off sometimes.
recently im not sure just how good I am as I’ve not been practicing as much.

BTW my love of archery was a gateway to airguns for me. there’s a lot of similar skills required.
 
  • Like
Reactions: iAMzehTOASTY1, Doc C., Vana2 and 1 other person
Upvote 0
I was a long range groundhog hunter and archer for a good 20 years before laser rangefinders were available. So I just kinda developed the ability to say that groundhog is right around 700 yards. But also use a gun that could make up for slight errors. Out to 100 yards is almost a no brainer for me except at night when using night vision. That has been quite a chore but I’m getting better. I don‘t have time in most hunting situations to piss with a rangefinder because things happen quickly. So I just focus on developing the natural skill. With the aid of a rangefinder nowadays thankfully. For me I go with the first distance that pops in my head. The more I overthink the distance, the farther off I get.
 
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: Firewalker, iAMzehTOASTY1 and Motorhead
Upvote 0
I get the impression that most in this sport use technology to solve that problem. It isn’t even a part of competition. I used to be pretty good having shot archery 3d ibo tournaments. You were your only range finder for a 300 fps arrow out to 50+ yards. Not so good anymore. It is an art for sure as how yardages “look” changes big time just depending on the back drop and environment.
 
  • Like
Reactions: woogie_man
Upvote 0
I'm good to a hundred yards or so. Beyond that things get iffy. I've never used a rangefinder.

If the target size is known, this scope tells me how far away it is by using the seven-mil bar intervals. A little mental math is not a bad thing.

J~

P5050088.JPG
 
  • Like
Reactions: iAMzehTOASTY1
Upvote 0
drpietrzak said:
Context for me. Open field is harder than if there is something I can orient nearby. I use a range finder to practice but it varies by context for me.
Click to expand...
Very good point. If you have a point of known reference (tree 30 yards away, power line 75 yards away, etc) it becomes much easier to range other targets. Good point. Open field would be MUCH harder
 
  • Like
Reactions: drpietrzak
Upvote 0
Been to some sniper competitions where there was a stop sign on the target line and they gave you extra points if you could mill the sign and calculate distance within so many yards. I would mill it in my scope, give my estimation, then break out the range finder and verify before shooting. This was starting at unknown distances of 800 yds and in. Make yourself a little spread sheet with target sizes and try milling them in your scope to see what the range is.
 
  • Like
Reactions: iAMzehTOASTY1, KevinWood44 and drpietrzak
Upvote 0
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom
Back
Home
Forums
Resources
Menu