Scoped AR - what's your zero?

X3.
If you are going to shoot at closer ranges, CQB, FIBUA, you will need to experiment, and determine the zeros. The distance between the line of sight and the bore axis results in dramatic shifts in point of impact.
 
I really only use mine for 2/3 gun shoots, so I zeroed mine to 50 yards as it is in the middle of the usual target placement I have found. With the exception of Jim's 400 yard shot in Lethbridge.
 
My new one will be set for 100m. The range I shoot at, because some dink made the AR restricted, only goes to 150m. If I could shoot outside of "an approved range" I would set mine for 200m.

20 inch HBAR bushmaster.
 
All going to depend on the height of the scope, and the distance you shoot at most.

My Holosight works well when zeroed at 50m. Shots 2 inches low at 10m, and 1 inch high at 100m from what I remember. I just got a Vortex tripler to spend more time shooting at 100m so we will see if that remains true with some more precise aiming.
 
My 10.5" LMT cqb is zeroed at 100 yds for a couple of reasons.

1) You are not dialing in with an AR, but rather pointing (aiming) and shooting. A 100 yd zero is much more affective when it comes to holding over/under. With my 100 yd zero, I have to hold over a fraction of a hair to hit my target at 200 yds.

2) Because my ACOG TA31F instruction manual suggested zeroing it at 100 yds. The same with my ELCAN SpecterDR ;)

But most importantly, what do you intend to use your AR for and at what distances? It's all relative to what the intended use is.
 
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Some people spend too much time and effort worrying about "zero" ....
and I admit to being one of them.

With my personal AR 15, I've tested accuracy and zero with about a dozen different types of ammunition. Given that my AR 15 is a shorty 10.5" LMT, wearing a 1.75 - 5 X variable scope, and the range closest to me, where I shoot the most only goes out to 100 yds., and given that I've chosen to optimise my AR for fast close CQB shooting rather than accuracy at distance,
my effort here is probably overkill.

I chose to zero for 100 yds., with the ammunition I have the most of,
62 Gr Win white box .223 Ball ammo. I have also tested my zero @ 100 yds with several different loads, and discovered that with different ammo,
zero can vary up to 3" at 100 yds, and this variation in zero may be horizontal as well as vertical.

However,
no matter what ammo I use, if I do my part, I am pretty confident of a hit on a clay pigeon @ 100 yds.

Good enough for what I want my AR to do for me.

AND,
since I am shooting both .223 AND .22 LR,,
and do most of my practicing with my CMMG .22 LR conversion @ 25 yds.
I also have to consider ZERO @ 25 yds with .22 LR ammo.

With the several different brands of .22 LR ammo I've tested, the zero varies up to 3" @ 25 yds . Again, this variation can be displaced horizontally as well as vertically.

"Zero" is a relative term ....
what works for one brand of ammo, and one rifle, and one shooter, on one range, may not work for any other combination,
but for me,
for quick and dirty practice at the ranges I am shooting, where I know any miss will be my fault, not the zero or the ammo variation,
ZERO IS REALLY NO BIG DEAL. ...
even though,
it seems,
I've made it into one.
YPMMV
LAZ 1
[;{)
 
I use a 50yd zero since that holds the point of aim closest to the point of impact at variable ranges out to 300 yards.

As an example I'll use Bulletflight's default numbers for a 55gr bullet out of a .223 with one change (sight height moved to 2.5" from 1.5" do better reflect most ARs).

100 yard zero:
25yds = -1.5" (bullet hits 1.5" lower than point of aim)
50 = -0.8"
75 = -0.3"
100 = 0.0"
125 = 0.0"
150 = -0.3"
175 = -0.9"
200 = -1.8"
225 = -3.0"
250 = -4.6"
275 = -6.6"
300 = -9.0"

50 yard zero:
25yds = -1.1" (bullet hits 1.5" lower than point of aim)
50 = 0.0"
75 = +0.9" (bullet hits 0.9" higher than point of aim)
100 = +1.5"
125 = +1.9"
150 = +2.0"
175 = +1.8"
200 = +1.3"
225 = +0.5"
250 = -0.7" (bullet hits 0.7" lower than point of aim)
275 = -2.3"
300 = -4.3"

Drilling a bit deeper, we see that with a 50 yard zero, you are within 2" of your point of aim from less than 25 yards out to 270 yards.
With a 100 yard zero you are within 2" of your point of aim from less than 25 yards out to 205 yards.

Assuming you think 2" is close enough for quick shots, a 50 yard zero seems to be a better compromise than a 100 yard zero. When I have more time before a shot or am shooting at very long ranges, I use the elevation turret to dial in a more precise value from a drop chart glued inside my scope cap.
 
Gotta love my SpecterDR, zero'ed it at 100m and let the BDC do the rest.

Showed up at a match a while back, which I thought was a 100/200m match so I had my iron sights on... Never shot the AR with the SpecterDR before at 500m, and ended off with a third place. Not bad for a rough 100m zero!
 
NavalSniper said:
Gotta love my SpecterDR, zero'ed it at 100m and let the BDC do the rest.

Showed up at a match a while back, which I thought was a 100/200m match so I had my iron sights on... Never shot the AR with the SpecterDR before at 500m, and ended off with a third place. Not bad for a rough 100m zero!
Click to expand...

Agreed, I love the fact that my DR does the calculating for me..
I run eotech on my other with a 3X and is zeroed for 100 as well, works just as well as my DR..
 
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