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Whacked

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Any disadvantage to sighting in at a down angle?

this is for a Ruger Air Hawk air rifle

Option 1. About 40-50 foot range but flat and decent backdrop.

Option 2. From my balcony up to 150 feet great backdrop. From a different position can go further but backdrop is smaller.

Should I stick with option 1?

Id like to get some spinning targets but those ive seen recommend a longer range than I can get with option 1
 
Yes to option 1.

Unless you plan to do a lot of shooting down-hill from your balcony in the future?

It is always best to sight in on level ground, at the longest practical range you plan to use the gun.
On level ground.

rc
 
If you sight in at a significant down angle, your shots will hit low at the same range when shooting horizontally.
 
What I figured.
Bummer.

Guess I could get another air rifle and have that my dedicated balcony shooter.
 
If you sight in at a significant down angle, your shots will hit low at the same range when shooting horizontally.
Wouldn't you actually be hitting high? Regardless if the elevation is higher or lower during sight in, hits will always be higher on target during level shooting.

Either way, always sight in on level ground and understand how elevation will affect shots different from the sight in.
 
The question was about sighting in (zeroing the rifle) on a down angle.

When you shoot at an up or down angle and a given range, the shots tend to hit higher on the target than they would at the same range when shooting on the level.

So if you sight in on an angle you will be sighting in so that your shots (that would normally hit high if you were sighted at the same range on the level) will now align with the sights. That will put them lower than the sights when you shoot on the level at the same range.

My comment about sighting on in a down angle would also apply to sighting in at an up angle. I responded in the way I did because he was specifically asking about sighting in on a down angle.
 
The question was about sighting in (zeroing the rifle) on a down angle.

When you shoot at an up or down angle and a given range, the shots tend to hit higher on the target than they would at the same range when shooting on the level.

So if you sight in on an angle you will be sighting in so that your shots (that would normally hit high if you were sighted at the same range on the level) will now align with the sights. That will put them lower than the sights when you shoot on the level at the same range.

My comment about sighting on in a down angle would also apply to sighting in at an up angle. I responded in the way I did because he was specifically asking about sighting in on a down angle.
Yup, I get it now, I see what I did. It's reversed because the actual sight in is being done at an angle.
I understood the application correctly, I just didn't think through the actual details. Thanks for clearing it up.
 
It's not the normal way to think about it. I had to practically draw a picture to make sure I had it straight. :D
 
Guess I could get another air rifle and have that my dedicated balcony shooter.
Totally unnecessary. Stick with option 1. What you need to do is learn the external ballistics of your air rifle. If you zero at 50 feet, what is the drop at 100? It's what we all do with our centerfire rifles, generally with a 100 or 200 yard zero. I say zero your scope at 50 feet so you know you are "on." Then set up some paper targets at the longer ranges and see where you hit. That will tell you needed holdover to hit at that distance. You may decide you want to sight your scope an inch high at 50 feet. My hunting rifles are set 1.5 to 2.0 inches high at 100 yards so that my "point blank" range goes out to 225 or so; that is, the flight of the bullet is no than two inches above or below the line of sight out to that distance. You should be able to accomplish something similar with your air rifle. It just takes some time and experimentation to learn the ballistics.

As far as hitting higher or lower when shooting on a level distance, remember that when your target is significantly below (or above) you, the actual distance you are shooting is the length of the hypotenuse of a right triangle. However, the bullet drop over that distance is determined by the horizontal base of the triangle, not the length of the hypotenuse.

Anyway, there are lots of ways you can accomplish what you want, but buying a second air rifle just to be able to shoot at 150 needn't be one of them.
 
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Sighting anything but level is tough! Your hold over/undr at all ranges is affected.
I'd sight in level and learn to use angles from there.
I sight my Sporters in at 39 yards and lightweight rifles in at 20 yards (Boys Rifles).
Pistols at 10m.
HTH
ZVP
 
Shooting 150' from what I assume is a second story balcony isn't going to change much at all and I would not factor it in. I wouldn't even worry about being four stories up to be honest. If shooting a tiny bulls eye with a more accurate gun at four stories maybe, but a spinner target from one story no way. Plus the gun is not accurate enough to worry about that anyway.
Imo Legionnaire was the closest to correct, it's more about the pellet drop from the rifle and pellet choice than that small angle. I will add that in addition to what he said I would find the trajectory of the pellet and sight the gun to best match that, then figure out pellet drop from there for longer shots. I always sight the gun to match the trajectory, any way else is a mistake. Basically the pellet drops first thing out the barrel, and the further it goes the further it falls. The sights however have no trajectory, just a straight line like a laser. The barrel is below the sights so the deal is to make the barrel point up so it can reach the line of the sight, but the pellet will curve up to meet that line then drop so it's only on target for a very short distance. Lets say for example the pellets zenith is at 100' and you sight it to that, the pellet will be low before and after 100'. What you should do is make it so the pellet passes above that line a slight, eg 1/4". This way the pellet is at or above the line of sight for a much greater amount of time/distance. Eg it hits line of sight at 80', goes 1/4" high at 100, then on sight again at 120'. If you include 1/4" below the line of sight then the window of the pellet being within 1/4" of the sight is even greater. Eg 60' it's 1/4 below and climbing, and 140' it's 1/4 low and falling. This window of 1/4 above and below would be considered a 1/2" window or kill zone. So if the target is a tiny 1/2" spinner then you know that within 60 to 140' you'll hit it, assuming the you and the gun do your parts. If shooting birds or gophers for example the 1/2 zone is fine. Outside that window of 60-140' you will need to estimate holdover to stay on target, closer is easier, further is harder to do and the further the target the much further the holdover. So 160' might need 1" holdover, but 200' might be 5".
The problem with sighting a gun without taking the pellets trajectory and sight height into consideration could be this common mistake: Someone sights the gun at say 33' which is the standard airgun target range, and using a scope with typical tall rings. It's dead on at 33', then they try hit a bird at 100'. They assume that since it's further away they need to aim higher, but the problem is it was sighted before the pellet reached its zenith so it was actually still climbing until beyond 100', plus their holdover and the pellet sails well over the target. This is why you need to find out what the trajectory of the pellet you are using is in your gun and match the sight to that trajectory along with whatever kill zone you consider acceptable. If shooting flies then obviously kill zone I used as an example is unsat and you'll want a smaller window of maybe 1/16", just know that window will only be good over a much shorter distance, say 90 to 110'. If your gun is weaker and/or the pellet BC is lower then the zenith will be at a closer range and the window shorter. The height of your sight over the bore is also a big factor, the higher the sight the narrower the window but further out that window will be. So ideally you want the sight as low as possible, the gun as powerful as possible, and the pellet with the best speed and BC possible. Get the free program "Chairgun" and it will give you an idea of this trajectory and sight relationship. It will also tell you how your gun shoots different pellets and how sight height changes things. You can even program in the kill zone to see when the pellet enters and exits it, and better understand how much holdover you need at ranges outside your window. The only real trick to using the program is knowing the BC and velocity of the pellet from your gun which is not easy without a chronograph. If you don't know the numbers you can estimate to at least get close. Those range numbers I gave were just examples for easy understanding, don't use them to estimate your gun.
So run the program, look at the trajectory at various ranges, then change scope/sight height to understand the difference. Then change BC and velocity to those changes. It even has a function to see how shooting from your balcony affects the shot. Have fun!
 
As the other answers have explained, shooting downhill results in the shots going high.
If the gun is sighted in for that, it will shoot lower when level.
As long as you know how much, there's nothing to lose by sighting it that way.
Airguns are kind of like archery.
It helps to develop a trajectory chart for each airgun, as there seems to be no two exactly alike.
 
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