Test Your Scopes Tracking: The Box Test

[BurmKiller]

The experienced shooters are all familiar with this process, but for new shooters – or shooters new to using frequent scope adjustments – this may be helpful information.

Not all scopes are created equal. You have the obvious features like light transmission, clarity, correct color, parallax, eye relief, etc. These are usually a function of the price of the scope (quality glass simply put, costs money) and most shooters can adjust to any shortcomings in these areas. One feature often overlooked but critical for competition is tracking. For a hunting scope this is not as critical. A hunter will typically zero in at 100 yards and use Kentucky Windage in the field. In competition it is a different story. Tracking is everything. This is the ability of your scope to return to the exact POI given the same turret adjustments every time.

The ideal situation is to obtain your sight settings at each yard line and keep notes as to the POI difference per click (both windage and elevation) for each yard line. Then choose a consistent and easily selected point of aim. Many shooters use the leg/body junction as this is easy to identify on the all black targets we shoot. This allows the same sight picture from yard line to yard line.

When first sighting in your new scope, after you find it’s zero and set the turrets to lock in this point, you should perform a box test. Simply put, get a large target and place it at say 50 yards. Make sure there is an aiming point in the center of the target. With the scope set to your zero mark, you should hit this aiming point. All additional shots are firing with this same POA.

· Crank the turrets say 10 MOA up and 10 MOA right. (The actual adjustment will depend on the range of your scope and the distance you placed the target.) Fire a round.
· Adjust the turret 20 MOA down, fire.
· Adjust 20 MOA left, fire.
· Adjust 20 MOA up, fire.
· Adjust 20 MOA right and fire. This shot should impact the first shot fired on the top right corner, completing the “box” your rounds form.
· Adjust back to zero, fire. This should impact your POA.

The further you adjust the turrets for each of these rounds, the better then test – but you may need a bigger target or bring it in closer. If you want to take it a step further, you can perform this same test on your iron sights as well. This box test will either point out a weakness in your scope’s ability to track – or give you the confidence needed in those frequent sight adjustments. And after all, it is a mental game, so confidence is king.

[marshall623]

Thanks I'll give that a try