• Watch Out for Scammers!

    We've now added a color code for all accounts. Orange accounts are new members, Blue are full members, and Green are Supporters. If you get a message about a sale from an orange account, make sure you pay attention before sending any money!

Head and tail wind effects on elevation adjustments

702lineman

Private
Supporter
Full Member
Minuteman
Feb 19, 2017
857
428
southern IL
After shooting the KRG Extreme elr match this weekend I have been researching this topic on the 14hr drive home with no good answer.

I know this doesnt make a big difference till you get out past 1000 yards, but several stages this weekend while glassing before I shot, I noticed several people consistently low or high when shooting with wind at 12 or 6 oclock. We are talking 1500-2400 yard shots with 12-25mph winds. I had subtracted .3 mil and added up to .4 mil of elevation on top of what my kestrel called for(ad jump, spin drift, ect all turned on) to make centered hits at these ranges. Dope was trued up and on the rest of the match, and I seen several shooters miss consistently low shooting into the wind at those ranges.

My question is there a formula besides just a guess on accounting for this? I accounted for this after noticing these trends, but when trying to make first round impacts is there a formula?

From my observations and after thinking about it on the drive home it seems like .1 mil + or - per 1000yards for around a 10 mph wind. Is something else causing this?

Not that it matters really, but shooting 300nm, 245 hybrids @ 3k fps
 
What AB you running?
The biggest thing is you don’t know what the winds doing until you shoot and during the match you don’t get to adjust what true wind is during fire.
My Elite X was bang on out to 3000 yards on practice day
 
Yeah, I was on at 3k on practice day also.

The 2400 yard target on day 1 is a prime example if you were there. I hit it 3 times but added 4 tenths to my dope. Had 1130 wind at 18ish
 
Last edited:
on Sunday at the 2400 I had to make a large wind correction. once I translated that correction into my Kestrel everything lined up.
 
You need to know where in the flight path,... The River Of Wind,... is influencing the most. I've seen head wind make for less up as well as more up. Same with tail winds. Wind flags are an easy read as are nearby trees, very tall weeds and such help as well. Your last shot just gives you info on then,... your next has to be based on now.
 
You need to know where in the flight path,... The River Of Wind,... is influencing the most. I've seen head wind make for less up as well as more up. Same with tail winds. Wind flags are an easy read as are nearby trees, very tall weeds and such help as well. Your last shot just gives you info on then,... your next has to be based on now.
I go in and adjust the wind speed until my wind hold lined up and look at what that was. Then I decide is it plausible the wind is x mph faster out there than it is here, or is it more likely the wind direction out there is different and took a 10:30 wind and bent it to 9 o'clock (or whatever) or maybe its a combination of the 2, once your wind is lined up the elevation factor should be bang on (or very close)

I'm running a Kestrel Elite X with AB custom curve so YMMV.
 
Yes, im running same kestrel. My elevation lined up on half or fv wind.

I guess Ill just keep making educated guesses at it. I just didnt know if there was a rough rule of thumb, or a formula to use. Its kind of an odd scenario for most shooting I do anyway.
 
Yes, im running same kestrel. My elevation lined up on half or fv wind.

I guess Ill just keep making educated guesses at it. I just didnt know if there was a rough rule of thumb, or a formula to use. Its kind of an odd scenario for most shooting I do anyway.
switching from a half to a full value wind should change your elevation.
 
I think more than head/tail, there are up/down winds (and vectors in all planes), especially when shooting across canyons/featured terrain as we often are wherever we have space to shoot 3000 yards. Updrafts.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Taylorbok
I think more than head/tail, there are up/down winds (and vectors in all planes), especially when shooting across canyons/featured terrain as we often are wherever we have space to shoot 3000 yards. Updrafts.
I agree with updrafts can cause weird elevation but in this case the terrain was basically flat all the way to the target I don't think there was really any spot for an updraft.
 
  • Like
Reactions: secondofangle2