Aiming at the right target, firing the bullet precisely without letting your prey run away, require looking for a quality rifle scope. You may have hunting rangefinders or binoculars, but when you are shooting in the woods, covering the long distance.
I will recommend you to use a rifle scope for unmatched accuracy. In the big game prize, having a good rifle scope would be an absolute win.
In this article, we will elaborately talk about rifle scope like how it works and how you can set up each and every part of it.
Hopefully, at the end of the article, your amount of time here to read this article would be fruitful.
Parts of a Rifle Scope
The most integral parts of any rifle scope are the ocular lens, they work just like a telescope. From the objective lens, the light passes through and then the ocular lens magnifies that light using the focal point.
From where you will take the vision to aim at the target? Well, it is called the earpiece. By the way, the objective lens houses by the objective bell. When you shoot the target the reticle will point on that and help you to pull the trigger targeting in the right place.
Most importantly, the power ring is absolutely a great feature. It takes different magnifications to have different visions on your target starting from 3x to 9x.
It means if you use the 3x vision the target would be more than three times closer to you than the ordinary vision and it continues up to 9x vision.
Rifle Scope Working Basic
Imagine you went to the gun store and pick up a rifle scope just under 300 and after adjusting it, you can take down every target magically. This could be happening in your game but in reality, you need to know how it works.
Yes, you can consult with the shop retailers and according to his experience, he will definitely help you with that. Besides, you can get the best scope but does it take you to the end?
The first thing you need to know about the reticle location which is located at the front focal plane. Within this reticle point, you can aim at your target and pull the trigger.
The main tube diameter varies from 1 inch to 30 mm. So you can see that the one-inch diameter is the traditional one whereas the European scope makers have a bigger 30 mm tube.
Interestingly, the Atlantic scopes are now followed by the European scope’s type and they also churn out the same size.
Most importantly light transmission has a great role in any rifle scope. To be frank, there is no perfect light transmission before you make sure to use an ice pick that helps to make your scope clear.
On the other hand, light travels differently depending on the different rifle scopes. By the way, in a dark situation, you may not see the target of your scope and in low light, it would be hard to see an animal too.
On the other hand, some expensive rifle scope nowadays has sophisticated light transmission enabled lenses that can bring light even in the dark.
Surprisingly, it can not only manage optimum light transmission but also able to give you a clear vision of the target.
Adjusting the scope is really important for a perfect shooting experience. Hence, we wrote a comprehensive guide on how to adjust a rifle scope, read it here.
How to Use a Rifle Scope – Step by Step Guide
Using a rifle scope may vary from one rifle to another. For example, when you have a rifle scope for deer hunting and for regular target shooting both of them may come from the same manufacturer but they will be fully different.
Therefore, you need to know the type of rifle scope you are going to buy and then how to use it correctly.
Introduced with Different Parts of a Rifle Scope
I assume you as a novice who doesn’t know how rifle scope stuff works. Hence, learn about the different parts of it.
Normally, knowing the functionalities of any rifle scope is not rocket science that takes a lot of time to understand. So it nearly takes an hour or so to introduce it.
Let’s see how different parts of a rifle scope works:
- A rifle scope is consists of a variety of parts or pieces like the main body, objective lens, eyepiece, shoulder, elevation, windage, and finally parallax knobs.
- The eyepiece is the first that you will come to know where you will look and see the vision to the target beside it shows the magnification towards the aim of your target
- The shoulder of your rifle scope is placed where you can see the diameter is increasing and that hold the lenses.
- Elevation knobs and the windage may move around the reticle, up and down or side by side.
- Parallax knobs are hard to adjust and it affects the movement of the rifle scope’s reticle in regards to the target.
Mounting Your Rifle Scope
Before mounting your rifle scope, you need to make sure to buy the right equipment. Don’t go straight to the shop like a novice and bring the equipment that won’t fit perfectly.
Normally, rifle scopes come to you as pre-drilled also tapped in order to scope the base. Besides, the grooved section provides more mounting attachments, which is an ace for you.
If you don’t know which hardware comes to fit then make sure you ask the retailer to help you. Afterward, tighten up the screws correctly so that they can hold the scope.
Moreover, you should confirm that you tighten up in the right manner so the pressure exerted on each and all screws are even. However, too much tightening may cause crushing your rifle scope which leads to damage.
Now let’s discuss more deeply about mounting. The main stuff is scope rings and it is an integral part to consider first. Scope rings come in two different pieces.
The tube of the riflescope is constructed within 1-inch or 30-millimeter models, and hence you need to correctly measure it and size it that fits with the diameter of the scope tube.
If you don’t care about the height of the scope rings adjusted with your cheek weld, size of lens diameter, eye relief then all efforts would be meaningless.
Zeroing In
Whenever you are shooting with the help of your rifle scope and the mounting stuff is almost done then adjust the range to zero. It means the distance and the target will be adjusted and the bullet lands closely where you have aimed at.
However, it has no relationship with wind speed or elevation. More or less, every standard rifle is zeroed at hundreds of yards, so make sure you did it correctly.
This is the most essential part while setting up your rifle scope in a static position. Hence, you will be confident that your rifle scope will be in a controlled position so it won’t move an inch.
Ironically, it works while you are shooting in the wood targeting the most precious prey. So, when you are in the shooting field then all of your bullets will directly shoot on your target correctly which is called zeroing in.
So, what do you need to do for zeroing in? In that circumstance, you need to mount your rifle on a rifle stand and adjust it correctly. Don’t forget you have the best rifle scope that allows you to take down your target effectively.
Align the Reticle/Crosshair Correctly
When you pull the target trusting on the pointer, that pointer is called reticle or crosshair. So imagine how important it is to set up properly.
It usually points in the middle of two crossbars, one comes as horizontal another is vertical and the middle point is the reticle.
The reticle point obviously comes as thin lines as a center point of your aim at the target. On the other hand, some reticle behaves like red dots sign, unlike the two crossbars.
However, both of the reticle types determine the aim of the prey.
Eye Relief
If you are not a novice shooter, I’m pretty sure you know about eye relief. It really important while you are shooting to constantly keep the distance of your eye from the rifle scope while recoiling.
What to do for adjusting it correctly? First off, try to place the scope within an adequate distance whenever you are mounting your hardware.
Having full eye vision (FOV) is another important thing along with eye relief. So it doesn’t mean there is any chance to leave any portion to get the full eye vision.
Now, when you can adjust between them and are satisfied with your vision, ensure to tighten the rings along with the screws. But keep in mind to fix them all allowing similar pressure.
Trial Your Rifle Scope
Normally, you are supposed to know how any rifle scope works as you have already read the manual that I believe. Or, from this article, you get to know about it.
Hence, you know every other part of it like the eyepiece, objective lens, elevation, shoulder, and body.
When your rifle scope has a variable power lens, you have the preference here to choose between them as the different levels of magnification. Hence, you can come to know how comfortable you are dealing with it.
For example, let’s give you a model number to understand and that is “4-16 x 36”. Now, you can adjust it from four to sixteen, right? By the way, the number 36 here determines the diameter of your lens.
Now it is your time to go to the woods or firing range and hit your target and see how it works. Depending on your testing, either you come to understand what I mentioned above or you still need some mentoring.
Make a Perfect Shot
Now you are all set to go for a perfect shot as you have successfully come to the last stage.
Thankfully, you have done all the above steps perfectly and are ready for making your perfect shot using the rifle scope. You come to know how it works, and to set up it accordingly.
Now let’s educate you on the last but the most important tips. Using high magnification in the right way is not that easy especially when you want to sight things.
The problem is, you need to minimize your eye relief, to be frank. However, leaving the eye relief and taking the perfect shot simultaneously is the hardest part you are going to experiment with.
It would be tougher for you when you will take shots multiple times. So be careful with each shot and make your vision perfect while taking one shot and after another.
It is due to make your every shot consistently perfect and for that ensure your calibration and other factors are on the right track.
All of this will make sure your shooting accuracy so your skill to use the riflescope is the most important thing to consider.
Finally, the elevation and windage is crucial factor to consider. In different circumstances, you need to use them perfectly and that’s the hurdle, to be honest.
The factor determines your distance and the target after the weight of your bullet, more importantly, the wind condition which is unpredictable indeed.
Why Use a Rifle Scope?
A perfect rifle scope is for unmatched shooting accuracy. Depending on the rifle types you need to switch between different rifle scopes.
Most importantly, it saves time while targeting and gives smooth handling. Here are some reasons for using a rifle scope.
Improved Accuracy
It is beyond imagination to have a rifle without a rifle scope. More or less every modern rifle nowadays has well-equipped rifle scope. The main objective of having a rifle scope is to improve accuracy.
As I have mentioned earlier, a rifle scope varies from one rifle to another. Hence, you need to make sure you have tuned with the right rifle scope.
Better Scores
If you are in the firing range and want to have a better score on your scoreboard then there are no alternatives to have the best rifle scope. Experts shooter knows well how to set it up and how to deal with it at a different range of shooting games.
So, when you will have a quality scope under the hood, chances would be reduced dramatically to miss out on targets.
Moreover, it helps to track more precisely the target and the magnification would be mind-boggling.
Take Down from a Long Distance
Your rifle may cover a long distance and for that, the bullet travels over there easily. But, if your rifle scope is unable to take you to that target and let you aim at it precisely, pretty sure you will lose the target.
So, whenever you are aiming at a target that is far away then a powerful rifle scope is badly required.
That’s why people who cover the long-distance always focus on their rifle scope. Moreover, when you will be bored with short-distance shooting, then a good rifle scope will give you more space and entertain you.
Boost Your Confidence
When you can have more perfect shots then obviously you can boost your confidence in no time.
In a shooting game, confidence is a pretty important factor. A confident shooter tends to shoot down his target easily compared to that shooter who has the same skills but lacks confidence.
When you will experiment that your every shot become successful then you don’t even think twice to spend a lot to buy a perfect rifle scope, don’t you?
On the other hand, while you are a novice shooter and you are not feeling motivated enough then you must bring a great rifle scope. It helps you more than you can imagine and bring you more confidence.
So, it is not only limited to the expert hitters but also a beginner shooter will bring enough confidence to struggle in his early career of shooting.
Conclusion
You can sacrifice with the ordinary rifle but not with the rifle scope. Many expert shooters believe they took down many targets even with the worst rifle but still, they had the best rifle scope.
Obviously rifle scope helps you in the firing range but make sure you have educated on the above article what I have covered on how to use a rifle scope properly. In addition to using weapon accessories properly, any Columbus gun crime lawyer would suggest gun owners also stay informed of any new gun legislation being introduced in their home state.