Zeroing a Rifle – What Configuration is best?
For American cousins, deer stalking is the same as deer hunting, tracking and killing deer for sport or as a means to cull the local population. The only difference is deer hunting in Britain is traditionally performed with a pack of hunting hounds followed by unarmed riders. Hunting has decreased in popularity, whereas the often solitary practice of stalking is still an enjoyable pastime for many.
Chris Gower, a CEO of a headhunting company, is a deer stalker in his spare time and he has produced a short guide to zeroing rifles that is useful to beginners and veterans alike. Other content from Chris Gower will continue to give handy hints for British deer stalkers as they prepare for the Christmas season. Venison is a great alternative to the traditional Christmas turkey after all!
MPBR or the Hold Over?
Given the average terrain of the British stalk, even with winter having cast most of the leaves to the ground, few shots are going to be made at more than 100 yards in the forests. Anything over this will make any shot more difficult to judge and taking the standard 100 yard zero for granted will leave stalkers scaring the deer off with a miss more often than not.
Hold over shots will require the most practice as knowing that a bullet is going to drop a number of inches over a certain distance is something that cannot be taught but experienced. Knowing the rifle and working out how to zero the sight for greater distances will be useful in overcoming this problem.
The maximum point blank range shot (MPBR) is the maximum distance that the rifle has been zeroed for where bullet drop will not be a problem. Attaining proficiency at this range is again, going to take time but will save time in the long run when stalkers are confident that they can hit a 4” target at the specified range.
1” over 100 Yards
Experienced stalkers will be aware of the optimum range to zero their favourite firearm but a commonly recommended setting for UK hunting is 1” high over 100 yards. Each rifle calibre is different but by zeroing a rifle in at this configuration, stalkers will be able to comfortably hit a small target with a point blank range of 241 yards with a far zero of 166 yards.













