Quigley Shooting Association

‘MEDIUM-RANGE’ VERSUS ‘LONG-RANGE’ SIGHTS AT 1000YDS

Ken Hall

 

When selecting a sight for your nice new Black Powder Cartridge Rifle, be it of Winchester, Sharps, or Remington pattern, some thought must be made in the selection of suitable sights. The choice is made simpler in that the rear sight must be capable of fine adjustment in order to capitalise on the inherent accuracy of these rifles, this means it should be of the Vernier adjusting type. Also, one of the first considerations must be to decide on the distances at which you intend to compete, short range (up to 400yds), medium range (up to 800yds) and long range (up to 1200yds).

 

Let’s assume a calibre of 45/70 as this probably accounts for the majority of BPCR rifles sold in this country. Testing carried out at the actual distances has given the following results which, while not guaranteed to work with every rifle / sight combination out there, should provide a reasonable guide.

 

It would be nice if the sight, when fitted, gave a reading of 0.00in when set for 100yds (the normal zeroing range and usually the shortest range to be encountered) but because of the variations in butt to action angles (comb) between the different types of rifle, and to some degree the style of front sight fitted, this is rarely possible, so once a 100yd setting is found by actually firing groups then it should be noted in your shooter’s record book.

 

Many BPCR rifles have a barrel length of around 30ins with a sight radius of around 34ins; this means that we can treat 1/100th of an inch on the rear sight to equate to 1 minute of angle.

 

The following chart plots the number of minutes, or 1/100th inch of elevation adjustment required for shoots at Diggle ranges using my Pedersoli Sharps with a load of 68gns of Swiss No 3 behind a Lyman 530gn Postell bullet.

 

    RANGE (yds)              SIGHT SETTING (inches)                   ELEVATION

    

     100                                     0.39                                         00mins

     400                                     0.84                                       +45mins

     600                                     1.21                                        +37mins

     1000                                   2.10                                       +89mins

 

Interim distances not listed can usually be estimated accurately enough to put a round on target, enabling further adjustment. It should be noted that when shooting at ranges other than Diggle these settings vary slightly depending on elevation above sea level, atmospheric conditions and range construction.

 

            Many Mid Range sights are fitted with a only a 21/2in staff, which would really be suitable for shooting up to 800yds; but the Pedersoli USA 405 Mid Range Soule is fitted with a 3in staff, although not all this can be used due to the scaled aperture block, which takes up valuable space. However, from this data we can see that if you intend to shoot at ranges not exceeding 1000yds then a Mid Range Vernier sight with a 3in staff will be adequate for the job, but with a free play of only 0.5ins or 50minutes then you are at a maximum. It can also be noted that my Sharps is fitted with a windage adjustable front sight which is somewhat taller than the fixed version, therefore it follows that the sight settings would in fact be lower if a fixed front sight was used, giving more adjustment.

 

            Long Range Vernier sights are usually fitted with a 4in staff allowing for approximately 31/2in vertical adjustment and so should be adequate for 1200yds or perhaps even longer ranges.