.22 rifle problems

JERKY · November 2, 1999, 06:35 PM

I was at the range last weekend shooting my new marlin .22 rifle. I have a 9x scope on it and i sighted it in at 20 yards.At 20 yards i put em all in the same hole. when i moved to 50 yards it started shooting high about an inch. when i moved to 75 yards it started shooting about 2 1/2 inches high.
When i moved back to 30 yards it was right on target.

Any ideas as to why its shooting higher and higher as i move farther down range ?

Any help is appreciated.

------------------
TIM : )

**Mal H** · November 2, 1999, 07:05 PM

As you know, a bullet starts falling to earth as soon as it leaves the muzzle at the same rate it would if you just dropped it from muzzle height. If your rifle was absolutely level and the targets were all in line, you would see what you expect to see. If it was on target at 20 yd, it would be low at 50 yd and lower at 75 yd. What you are actually doing, however, is angling your rifle slightly up. So if it is on target at 20 yd, the bullet, still traveling in an upward direction in its arc, will hit the 50 yd target a little higher, etc. If you continued your testing out to 100 and then 150 yd, you would then see the bullet dropping down the targets at a fast rate.

George Hill · November 3, 1999, 04:51 AM

MAL is exactly right.
A little .22 has a good balistic arch. - it climbs a good way before it drops - but then when it does - it drops quickly.
This varies according to its Zero.

------------------
"A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity." - Sigmund Freud
RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE

Art Eatman · November 5, 1999, 12:24 PM

Hey, whoa! You're using a scope, right? The axis of the scope is above the axis of the bore, right?

So, sighting in at close range, you are making these axes intersect in order for the bullet hole in the target to be at the junction of the crosshairs on your point of aim. The bullet is "rising" to the point of aim.

After your zeroed distance, the bullet is still rising. At intermediate distances, then, it will be above the line of sight. At some point it will be back on line, and then fall below it.

I regularly start new-sight-in process with centerfires dead-on at 25 yards. This is commonly 2" high at 100, and dead-on at 200. (Round-number generalization)

Later, Art

November 2, 1999, 06:35 PM	#1
JERKY Senior Member Join Date: October 29, 1999 Location: GLEN BURNIE MARYLAND USA Posts: 179	I was at the range last weekend shooting my new marlin .22 rifle. I have a 9x scope on it and i sighted it in at 20 yards.At 20 yards i put em all in the same hole. when i moved to 50 yards it started shooting high about an inch. when i moved to 75 yards it started shooting about 2 1/2 inches high. When i moved back to 30 yards it was right on target. Any ideas as to why its shooting higher and higher as i move farther down range ? Any help is appreciated. ------------------ TIM : )

November 2, 1999, 07:05 PM	#2
Mal H Staff Join Date: March 20, 1999 Location: Somewhere in the woods of Northern Virginia Posts: 16,947	As you know, a bullet starts falling to earth as soon as it leaves the muzzle at the same rate it would if you just dropped it from muzzle height. If your rifle was absolutely level and the targets were all in line, you would see what you expect to see. If it was on target at 20 yd, it would be low at 50 yd and lower at 75 yd. What you are actually doing, however, is angling your rifle slightly up. So if it is on target at 20 yd, the bullet, still traveling in an upward direction in its arc, will hit the 50 yd target a little higher, etc. If you continued your testing out to 100 and then 150 yd, you would then see the bullet dropping down the targets at a fast rate.

November 3, 1999, 04:51 AM	#3
George Hill Staff Alumnus Join Date: October 14, 1998 Location: North Carolina Posts: 11,546	MAL is exactly right. A little .22 has a good balistic arch. - it climbs a good way before it drops - but then when it does - it drops quickly. This varies according to its Zero. ------------------ "A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity." - Sigmund Freud RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE

November 5, 1999, 12:24 PM	#4
Art Eatman Staff in Memoriam Join Date: November 13, 1998 Location: Terlingua, TX; Thomasville, GA Posts: 24,798	Hey, whoa! You're using a scope, right? The axis of the scope is above the axis of the bore, right? So, sighting in at close range, you are making these axes intersect in order for the bullet hole in the target to be at the junction of the crosshairs on your point of aim. The bullet is "rising" to the point of aim. After your zeroed distance, the bullet is still rising. At intermediate distances, then, it will be above the line of sight. At some point it will be back on line, and then fall below it. I regularly start new-sight-in process with centerfires dead-on at 25 yards. This is commonly 2" high at 100, and dead-on at 200. (Round-number generalization) Later, Art