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If it does three in the red three days in a row, i would say you are good to go.
Nice group on first three. When you say next couple of strings- when are they shot? Next day, or after 30 minute cool down? If you take the five shots sequentially say 30 seconds apart do they all groups same, or does POI move as barrel heats up. Also record and number each shot so you can see any patterns. During your 10 minute wait did you keep the rifle undisturbed on the bench or did you reposition it?
This was today. Each string was about 10-15 minutes apart. I didn't take 5 shots in a row at that pace.
Where I hunt there is generally not enough time to range your target then do all kinds of computations to figure out how much to dial up in order to hit a deer or other animal. Unless the deer is in an open field, which there are several in the area I hunt if you have twenty seconds to see, identify and take your shot you are lucky. That is why I generally have either a 100 or 200 yard zero that lets me shoot longer distances by simply holding dead on. It's kind of like a, "Battlesight zero," for hunting. Anyone who has ever shot a 400 yard/meter qualification course in the military knows exactly what I mean.
Just an honest question. Why did you quote me with that response?
Just so you know, I do have a range finder and use it a lot. The best use for it when hunting is to range different objects in my hunting area to see how far away they are before any animal comes into view. That way I have a very good idea what distance that I will be shooting at. If hunting my normal area I pretty well have the different ranges memorized, when in a new area I range objects, write them down on a piece of paper for a ready reference. That way, for instance I know that the intersection of those two farm roads is exactly 228 yards. I don't have to fumble around with the range finder or try to range it using the scope reticle and all the math involved. Just simply hold where I need to hold on the target and shoot when the trigger breaks and send the round heads down range to the target. I can hold dead on since the rifle is sighted in at 200 yards. Works well and saves time when whatever animal I am hunting shows up unexpectedly, which is almost always the case. By the way if I'm shooting the .270 a dead on hold is good out to 300 yards, the max range I will shoot at an animal.
That makes sense. If you are sitting the same spot and have a max range of 300 yards, having a zero you can shoot from 40 to 300 works great. And you really wouldn't even need a rangefinder at those distances. 200 yard zero puts you about 1.3-1.4" high at 130-140 yards, and only 5-6" low at 300. Maybe add 1/2 MOA to your zero, and be even more forgiving.
