Beginner that doesn’t understand scope reticles...

[Dirt_Nap]

I've hunted my whole life and have shot a lot but never got into long range. I would never shoot over 300-400yds on game. My extent of hold over was aiming at the top of the elks back knowing the bullet would drop 8" right in the pump station. Anyway, I have 2 custom builds going on right now and I'm wanting to get into long range. I'm completely ignorant when it comes to reticles. They confuse me and I don't know where to start. Looking at the Nf atacr 5-25 or the 7-35. I want a reticle that I can learn on but don't know where to start. Wheres the best place to learn a reticle and how it works? Also, what reticle should I buy into for long term usage?

 

[Skidoo]

You can learn a lot on youtube

 

[Rick Richard]

You can also look at the manufacturer spec sheet on the various reticles. It can describe the various reticles, dimensions and what each hash mark relates too.

 

[Barrelnut]

Pretty good intro article on this site that explains the different ones and their use. If you read the article, I'm sure you will have some follow up questions that anyone here would be glad to help with. Here's the link. My preference? MOA in the second focal plane!
https://www.longrangehunting.com/articles/all-about-riflescope-reticles.1053/

 

[Patton63]

There are a number of questions to ask yourself when thinking about the reticle/scope you might need.

- when you say long distance, how far do you mean? This will influence the magnification range.

- long range target or hunting?

- do you intend to use your reticle for hold overs or will you dial for elevation?

- do you intend to use the reticle to hold for wind?

- do you like a crowded reticle (e.g., Christmas tree style reticles) or a cleaner look?

- Mil or MOA?

- First or second focal plane?

Answering these (and others I am sure I am forgetting at the moment) will help guide you to the right answer for you - as opposed to what might work for someone else.

Good luck - it's always a lot of fun to piece this together and shop for a scope.

 

[Doom2]

Use for range estimation?

 

[Skidoo]

All personal preference and you will get a bunch of opinions on these questions and none will make any sense to you till you learn some on your own if that makes sense

 

[JungleBoogey]

I've hunted my whole life and have shot a lot but never got into long range. I would never shoot over 300-400yds on game. My extent of hold over was aiming at the top of the elks back knowing the bullet would drop 8" right in the pump station. Anyway, I have 2 custom builds going on right now and I'm wanting to get into long range. I'm completely ignorant when it comes to reticles. They confuse me and I don't know where to start. Looking at the Nf atacr 5-25 or the 7-35. I want a reticle that I can learn on but don't know where to start. Wheres the best place to learn a reticle and how it works? Also, what reticle should I buy into for long term usage?

Hope this helps a little... it certainly helped clarify a few things for me.

 

[Fred G Cook]

I dial for elevation and hold for wind. You need enough hash marks for windage but not so many as to get confused. You can get reticles with way too many hash marks or dots, try to avoid that, in your first scope.

 

[73driver]

Once you get comfortable with reticles then there is wind doping and wind holds done in your head. Range finders and ballistic apps to get comfortable using. If your shots are anything further out than 500/600 yards then 1/3 MOA shooter is a priority then lots of practice with how to hold your rifle with a bipod so you are consistent. You will be well served to get a muzzle brake to tame recoil so muzzle jump is a reduced factor in throwing shots. lastly for confidence and consistency (you certainly won't want to just sling lead and hope) a 800 to 1000 yard range to practice first shot hits on at most a 10 inch rock, steel or paper target. Good luck and have fun.

 

[Tulsa Reiner]

I've hunted my whole life and have shot a lot but never got into long range. I would never shoot over 300-400yds on game. My extent of hold over was aiming at the top of the elks back knowing the bullet would drop 8" right in the pump station. Anyway, I have 2 custom builds going on right now and I'm wanting to get into long range. I'm completely ignorant when it comes to reticles. They confuse me and I don't know where to start. Looking at the Nf atacr 5-25 or the 7-35. I want a reticle that I can learn on but don't know where to start. Wheres the best place to learn a reticle and how it works? Also, what reticle should I buy into for long term usage?

I would just say that you are looking at an excellent long range scope. I have one and love it, for too many reasons to describe here. The NF owner's manual that comes with the scope describes the details of the reticle. But your first decision has to be do you want a reticle that is graduated in MOA (minutes of angle) or Mil rads (milliradians)?
I chose MOA (the MOAR reticle for NF) because I can easily understand it and calculate the MOA for different distances going out. The milrad system seems to be what the military teaches and uses.
The Zerostop feature on the nicer NF's is very helpful. It allows you to easily crank the vertical cross hair back to the starting point, after you have adjusted it for a specific shot longer than your zero (usually 100 yds).
BTW: the multiple hash marks on the vertical cross hair are for adjustment of your point of aim if you don't want to take the time to reach up and adjust the turret (usually a hunting situation). In target shooting, it is easier and more precise to turn the vertical turret to adjust the point of aim.

 

[Mike 338]

The internet is a good resource. You can Google "how to use reticle as rangefinder". Generally for hunting applications, one big advantage is to spot your shot through your scope. Your scope will have Mil or Moa hash marks on it. You can just use your scope as a ruler and count how many hash marks you missed by and either adjust your turrets the same amount of Mil's/Moa's or simply hold-off on the reticle. There's a boat load of other ways to use a reticle as well but many of those are for tactical applications in a more urban warfare type environments. It's still fun to learn though, even if you don't necessarily have a specific use.

 

[T3ninja]

I'm am a FFP (first focal plane) fan... reticle is always same size relative to target while adjusting zoom. And a MIL Fan. Everything is calculated in "10's" . Easy and fast. With that said MOA is fine too, but not for me. Also Second focal plane (SFP) is fine, and I own a few.

The MOST IMPORTANT thing you want to have is a matching reticle AND turrets!!!

As far as I know MOST reputable scopes are this way BUT you still have some turds coming from Leupold that are MOA/MIL. Totally dumb in MY opinion.

 

[jarnold37]

I've hunted my whole life and have shot a lot but never got into long range. I would never shoot over 300-400yds on game. My extent of hold over was aiming at the top of the elks back knowing the bullet would drop 8" right in the pump station. Anyway, I have 2 custom builds going on right now and I'm wanting to get into long range. I'm completely ignorant when it comes to reticles. They confuse me and I don't know where to start. Looking at the Nf atacr 5-25 or the 7-35. I want a reticle that I can learn on but don't know where to start. Wheres the best place to learn a reticle and how it works? Also, what reticle should I buy into for long term usage?

I don't want to step on anyone's manner of sight reading because to each his own. However when I am shooting long range I do not use marks on the cross hair to determine a holdover. That method is definitely quicker but usually not as precise as clicking or sighting in for each distance. When using a ballistic program the click value is very easy to do and then just use the center of the cross hair no matter the distance. I have used both but prefer just a crosshair and a sight picture that is not cluttered. This type of crosshair is getting harder to find but I certainly prefer it.