I have the 2-7x scope ordered for my Tippmann rifle. It will be primarily for 25M clinic(s) and 25yd indoor range time. Once in a while when Texas temps are favorable, **) I will trek to the 100yd outdoor range. And I harbor fantasy of managing a RKD some day so 200yds at least once. So do I zero at 100yds or something else? And am I better off with a 1070fps ammo even for RKD or is RKD better with Mini-Mag or similar even with the super/sub transition? If both are to be used when I zero at (what distance?) yds which do I zero with? Thanks for entertaining all the dumb questions. :)
A 25m/yd zero is probably what you want. That's what you need for a 25m event or a 100yd RKD. A 200yd RKD might ask you to come with a 50yd zero. The difference though is usually like .5 MOA. However, if you plan on a 200yd RKD, just make sure that there is a lot of travel in your scope. You may need to come up 30+ MOA moving from 25yd to 200yd.
CCI standard velocity will get it done at 25yd or 200yd. If shooting a 200yd RKD I recommend good quality ammo. I wouldn't go cheaper than CCI standard imho.
My current ammo stock is 3 bricks each of CCI SV, Norma TAC II, and arriving in a few days Eley Standard, whatever that is, just bought from CMP in the sale a couple weeks ago, CCI Mini-Mag plus 4 bricks of CCI Clean. I've got 4.4 bricks of Federal "Black Pack", 2 boxes of 1100 ea, and 4 boxes of 325 each Federal Auto Match, one case of 5000 Armscor 36gr HVHP also from CMP a little while back, impulse because it was $236 to my door, and an assortment of ~18 boxes various Eley, 1/2 brick Blazer and a few other odds and ends accumulated.
I figured on the CCI SV or TAC II for any Appleseed rimfire long gun clinics and the CCI Clean for Appleseed pistol clinics. I'm looking forward to that as I stand much better than I get back up. :) I'm really good at the "fall down" part of positions though. ::) So that's my motley mostly impulse accumulation of rimfire ammo. :)
That ammo all sounds good to go. Now, get out there and get 'er done. :---
I guess it's kind of hard to go wrong with any ammo at 25M or less. But I've heard the MK IV can be a little more picky about dirty ammo so I figured the CCI Clean reserved for it and 2k will last a while. And I figured I'd use an ammo I have way more than needed for the rifles, taking a second ammo in the truck for just in case.
Oh, I forgot about 2bx of 550 Remington Standard V and 250 of Federal Gold Medal Match. And maybe (probably?) some other in unopened boxes stuck away. Being disorganized isn't always helpful. ::)
If you are mostly going to shoot at 25m, then zero for 25m.
If you go to an RKD, the first day will mostly be re-zeroing at different distances and writing down every adjustment it took to go from one zero to the next. So for my first 200yd RKD in May, I came with my rifle zeroed at 25m, and the first step was to re-zero at 50yd and write down the adjustments to go from 25m to 50yd. Then do the process again going from 50yd to 100yd, then 100yd to 150yd, and 150yd to 200yd. Once you have that data, you can switch from any zero to any other.
For ammo selection, you just have to shoot each type and try it out. And you might want to try each type at different distances too. You might find that some make tighter groups than others, and some may have slightly different zeros from others too. And on that performs well at 25m might not at 100 or 200 yards.
Get yourself a nice notebook and pen!
I prefer to zero my 22s at 50 yards.
I generally only shoot standard velocity ammo. I.e. 1050 - 1080 FPS or thereabouts. Subsonic, but just barely.
The advantage is that whether I want to adjust to shoot at 25 yards or 100 yards (or anything further), I only have to dial Up on my elevation.
With a 50 yard zero, I have to dial up a couple of clicks to be dead on at 25 yards. At a 25m clinic, I do that and then just leave my scope set that way for the whole weekend.
If you zero your scope at 25 yards, then you potentially have to dial your scope down a little to be dead on at 50 yards. If your scope has a zero stop, and you use it, that could be a pain.
Great advice above. Don't stress too much about your zero, whether it's 25 meters or 50 yards. At either event you have the time to adjust your scopes zero.
My biggest recommendation is to do preliminary work! Get yourself a ballistics calculator (bunch online for free). Dial in your data, ammo selection, etc and get some preliminary data to work from for a 200RKD. You'll likely have to make adjustments (temp, pressure, humidity, can all impact your point of impact) not just at the start of the event but potentially throughout the event as things can change with the sun! The important thing is pay attention to your notes (make sure they are clear and easy to read), and make sure you know how to operate your scope!
Does your scope have a zero stop feature or a turret reset? If your scope has some big number indicators how many clicks do they represent? Is your scope adjusting in MOA or Mils? That sort of stuff can eat you up if you aren't confident with your optic, you'll start to second guess yourself and mistakes will happen!
Or just get yourself a scope with a big reticle that has enough drop, aim, point, shoot and don't touch your turrets!
I like the set and forget idea best. :) I'd like to find one with a BDC that works for rimfire and be able to use that rather than having to adjust back and forth. I've got to survive 25M first though. :)
Quote from: StuartV on July 17, 2026, 03:22:03 PMI prefer to zero my 22s at 50 yards.
I generally only shoot standard velocity ammo. I.e. 1050 - 1080 FPS or thereabouts. Subsonic, but just barely.
The advantage is that whether I want to adjust to shoot at 25 yards or 100 yards (or anything further), I only have to dial Up on my elevation.
With a 50 yard zero, I have to dial up a couple of clicks to be dead on at 25 yards. At a 25m clinic, I do that and then just leave my scope set that way for the whole weekend.
If you zero your scope at 25 yards, then you potentially have to dial your scope down a little to be dead on at 50 yards. If your scope has a zero stop, and you use it, that could be a pain.
That's a great point about zeroing at 50 if you are going to use the zero stop. My scope has that feature, but I haven't used it yet.
Quote from: LDB415 on August 20, 2026, 01:10:08 AMI like the set and forget idea best. :) I'd like to find one with a BDC that works for rimfire and be able to use that rather than having to adjust back and forth. I've got to survive 25M first though. :)
Rimfire BDC's can be particular about what speed or weight of bullet you are using so take that into consideration otherwise they can be way off! Otherwise get something with an MOA or Mil reticle. My scope is an Athlon 30mm tube and it has a reticle that goes down to 40moa. So with a ballistics calculator I can get a good estimation and hold over.
I figured it may not be exact, maybe not even being for a .22lr, but that where it may be 100, 200 and 300 for its designated cartridge maybe I can figure out it's 25, 75 and 150 or whatever. My other thought was if I zero at 50 and then shoot each dot I can see how much change each gives and somehow use that to build my own chart. Or maybe I'll just make like a camera, point and shoot. :)
Well I have Nikon rimfire scopes with their BDC. With them being second focal plane the BDC dots that are supposed to hit at 75,100,125,etc changes with each magnification. So not only are you shifting your zoom but you're also shifting the place on the reticle that you are aiming with. With my Leupold rimfire scopes their MOA reticle is good but in order for it to work you have to be at maximum magnification and it being a 1" tube it doesn't have enough drop in the reticle to reach 200 yards.
This is what led me to a 30mm tube scope. Something that can dial up or has a big enough reticle to cover the distance.
Good things to know. So optimum performance would come from a FFP 30mm scope? Nothing shifts with magnification if it's FFP? And 30mm gives more room for everything to mesh and increases total distance over which it can do so?
Quote from: Dmthomp32 on August 22, 2026, 12:00:28 AMWell I have Nikon rimfire scopes with their BDC. With them being second focal plane the BDC dots that are supposed to hit at 75,100,125,etc changes with each magnification. So not only are you shifting your zoom but you're also shifting the place on the reticle that you are aiming with. With my Leupold rimfire scopes their MOA reticle is good but in order for it to work you have to be at maximum magnification and it being a 1" tube it doesn't have enough drop in the reticle to reach 200 yards.
This is what led me to a 30mm tube scope. Something that can dial up or has a big enough reticle to cover the distance.
If you're still using those Nikon scopes, check out the SpotOn App (made by Nikon to marry those reticles to a ballistic calculator) - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/nikon-spoton/id399224811 for the IOS version. I've developed a strong preference for dialing when shooting past 50, but having an app with a calculator and accurate reticle is very helpful, particularly with 22lr since it drops very quickly after 50 yards.
(NB: there are settings to adjust the slider for zoom, so on a 3-9x scope, you can set it for 6x, put in CCI SV, and see where each reticle subtension *should* align with distance)
Quote from: LDB415 on August 22, 2026, 01:19:41 AMGood things to know. So optimum performance would come from a FFP 30mm scope? Nothing shifts with magnification if it's FFP? And 30mm gives more room for everything to mesh and increases total distance over which it can do so?
So with first focal plane scopes the reticle will get bigger and change its appearance with magnification, however it will remain accurate throughout magnification. A second focal plane scope will have a reticle that looks exactly the same no matter the magnification but it will only be precise (MOA/mils) at a set magnification for most of them it is the max magnification (at least that's how my two Leupold rimfire scopes are).
The tube size gives greater adjustment or clicks and also typically provides more room for a larger reticle. So most scopes are like 1", 30 mm is one step up, and then there is 34mm. 34mm is a big darn scope in my opinion too big for rimfire and position shooting in my opinion. 30mm is still big but about as big as I'm willing to go. YMMV