Rifle Scopes yards - meters/moa-mills/mph-kph Advise please!

[idaho1]

As a long time hunter/shooter, yards and moa were all that I dealt with. Now that I have taken an interest in practical/tactical long range precision shooting, I have been doing some homework, taken some training and am looking for some practical advise regarding the combined use of the optics and ranging gear that I have.

Scope: I have a Nightforce F1 mill-mill with H-58 3-17

Range finder: Besides the scope, my laser RF can read yards/meters

Dope cards: In the past, I have used: Distance in yards, elevation and windage in MOA, now I am using mils

My question is: Is there a standardized approach to units of measure? In other words, should I now use meters for distance/range since I am using mills? It seems common here on the hide for people to use yards for distance not meters and inches for known target size for purposes of milling the range....... in yards. Most seem to judge wind in mph then adjust in metric units. For movers, most seem to use mph rather than kph. Even the speed range/hold stair step sub-tensions on the H-58 are based on a 12 inch target the hold in mills..... does anyone besides me think this is unnecessarily confusing.
If someone with a wealth of experience would care to instruct this less experienced shooter on a proven/practical unit system, I will happily say "yes sir" and proceed to practice, practice, practice.... I just don't want to start off handicapping myself with a haphazard system of data...

Thank you

 

[roggom]

The metric and standard measurements are linear, the moa and mils are angular. You can stick with mil/yards and be fine. A mildot master will help out tremendously for ranging. Also there are some nice formulas out there to calculate wind based on the BC of your bullet. i/e for a 308 with .4 BC, (for each 4mph wind increment) you calc .1 mil for each 100Y up to 500 then .7, .8, .9 after 600Y. So 4mph wind at 400Y = .4 of correction, 8mph @ 700 = 1.6 mil, etc . For 162 Amax with .6 BC you use a 6mph wind increment.

Now this is a rough wind call and there are prob much better out there, I just like the ease of calculating in my head.

 

[Rob01]

I use mils and do everything in yards. It's a simple process. Just run your data in mils instead of MOA. Dial or hold it like you would with MOA. Just another system. No difference.

 

[dcjs]

My question is: Is there a standardized approach to units of measure?

Yes there is, it's called the International System of Units with meters for distance and radians for angles. Using meters instead of yards will only help you if you also use centimeters for target dimensions when ranging. Using meters for distance but sticking to inches for target size doesn't make sense, you might as well keep using yards.

Someone fluent in the decimal/metric system will have an advantage because he doesn't have to do conversions with odd factors, but you'd really have to be willing to wrap your mind around it. Switching from familiar units to unfamiliar ones isn't easy for most people, however beneficial it may be in the long run.

 

[idaho1]

I would not look forward to tracking a fast moving animal while hunting with that grid type reticle...good luck with that!


Agreed.... the Horus is strictly for tactical/practical Long Range shooting. When shooting at things I want to eat that are moving, I either use a shotgun or wait for them to stop.

here is a link to a good explanation of the Horus 58's mover subtensions... clearly not designed for a jumpy whitetail.

http://horusvision.wordpress.com/2011/04/15/how-to-use-the-h58-reticle-by-todd-hodnett/

 

[hugh_d]

Arc radian can be used with any unit of distance measure.
Example : 1meter@1000=1 milrad
1 yd @ 1000 yd =1 milrad
Useful formulas : Target inches / dist. Yds x 95.5 =moa

Target in / d yds x 27.778 = mrad

Target in / moa x 95.5 = range

Target in / mrad x 27.778 = range