Hornady 4DOF users - how are you liking this?

[Strike_out]

waveslayer, If bullet is not listed you are limited to using the BC calculator only as there is no doppler data for the bullet available. Stuff below applies directly only if you are using the free Hornady iPhone app. but I suspect other existing versions of calculator will work similarly.

I was able to save a new "Favorite" profile using a bullet I made up that was not available on Hornady's list. Here is what I did:

1. Opened iPhone app
2. Selected "Standard Ballistics Calculator"
3. Selected "Favorites"
4. Made sure "BC Calculator" was selected (lettering displayed on red background)
5. Tapped "+" sign in upper right corner
6. Provided Title, Rifle, and Optics info, and expanded "Bullet/Ammo" menu by tapping field
7. On Select Bullet screen, tapped "Enter BC Value" under the "Don't see your bullet listed?" line
8. On newly displayed dialog screen, enter Bullet Name, Weight, BC, select drag function, and hit "Set'"
9. This returns you to the "Add Favorite" screen. Finish entering load and rifle info, select I/O options and choose Results Units
10. Hit "SAVE" on upper right hand of screen, this will save the data along with the bullet info you provided

You will now be able to reload the saved Favorite by tapping it to bring up a selection menu that allows you "Select, Edit, Clone, or Delete" the entry. If you choose "Select" the saved rifle/bullet data you entered will be loaded for use on the BC Calculator.

Hopefully this is what you were asking clarification for. If not, simply ignore it!

Thank you

 

[Gungnir Precision]

We’re you running a bullet that is in the library?
If not maybe it’s not really as important to the program as I thought initially.

I was actually running prime 130's, using the data for the 140 eldm and then just adding a little to the data for the increased velocity....honestly the holds given by 4DOF for the 140 were so close to what this 130 prime was doing....it was within a .10 mil almost every time. On the steel it was really hard to notice until i got down to the .5moa targets.

 

[waveslayer]

Perfect! Thank you

 

[Jackomason]

Just started reading this thread so maybe it's been covered. Where does the axial form factor come in while truing data? MV is for 500 and in, BC is 800+. I don't fully understand what the form factor is either. Maybe I have a thick skull but I've watched the video and it didn't make a whole lot of sense.

 

[_Windrider_]

Just started reading this thread so maybe it's been covered. Where does the axial form factor come in while truing data? MV is for 500 and in, BC is 800+. I don't fully understand what the form factor is either. Maybe I have a thick skull but I've watched the video and it didn't make a whole lot of sense.

In a nutshell, the 4 DOF doesn’t use BC. It uses form factor to determine the drag coefficient of the projectile.

 

[Rob01]

Been using the 4Dof more and more over the past couple months comparing it to my old stand by JBM over a few matches. After shooting them I found the 4Dof to be more accurate. Example, in my last match JBM said 8.3 mils for a 1000 yard shot and I used that as I was doing well with it up to that point at shorter range. After my first shot I had to make a correction to 8.5 mils. After the stage I checked the 4Dof calculation for that stage. 8.5 mils. From that point on I stuck with the 4Dof and will from this point on.

 

[Kopfjager1]

I was comparing the 4DOF to AB Foretrex 701, Kestrel 5700, and the AB app. Took it out to 1801 yards (GPS, +/- 3 yard accuracy at Target and my position), 4DOF was off 0.2 mRads, while the Foretrex 701 was off by -1.1 mRads, the 5700 was off by -1.0 mRads, and then my AB app was off by -1.2 mRads. At 1235 yards (beginning of transonic region for my 6.5 CM) all of the programs were within 0.1 mRads of actual elevation.

 

[FLEric308]

The 4dof has been spot on as far as ballistics goes. Probably the most accurate program I have used. My only issues are; I cannot get the BC calculator to work or get the program to pair with my Kestrel. For me the BC Calculator just does not work. Anytime I try to connect to my Kestrel the app crashes. I have tried reinstalling the program with no fix.

 

[Jackomason]

The 4dof has been spot on as far as ballistics goes. Probably the most accurate program I have used. My only issues are; I cannot get the BC calculator to work or get the program to pair with my Kestrel. For me the BC Calculator just does not work. Anytime I try to connect to my Kestrel the app crashes. I have tried reinstalling the program with no fix.

I'd just really like a print function on the app. It's nice to have hard copies & something to write on. I'll have to check out the website but I like JBM for that reason.

 

[FLEric308]

I'd just really like a print function on the app. It's nice to have hard copies & something to write on. I'll have to check out the website but I like JBM for that reason.

Completely agree. I wish there was a way to either print or export your data to a printable form. At the same time the app allows you to keep up with the most of to date data by adding your environmental data just before taking a shot.

 

[Rob01]

You can print it from the computer. I have a few times.

 

[isofahunter]

Upper right Save Results. Choose your max distance and interval then choose Set. Enter name for results and save. This gives you data for your conditions in a sheet format on your screen. You can then access this data under Results on the home screen for future use. You can print when logged into Hornady.com.

 

[Jackomason]

Upper right Save Results. Choose your max distance and interval then choose Set. Enter name for results and save. This gives you data for your conditions in a sheet format on your screen. You can then access this data under Results on the home screen for future use. You can print when logged into Hornady.com.

Yeah I played with it on hornady.com, are you saying there is a way to transfer data from the app to the website? It's really just an ease of use thing. I can work aroud it but would appreciate it if they added the print function in. But really I've liked everything about 4Dof.

 

[isofahunter]

Yes app and webpage sync. You need to log in same credentials on app and web page and data updates to any device you use.

 

[Long Range 338]

Yes app and webpage sync. You need to log in same credentials on app and web page and data updates to any device you use.

I'm not finding this. I've saved results in the iPhone app and logged into the webpage but cannot find them anywhere even after synching the app. Where do you find the results in the webpage for printing? I'm either blind or stupid but I don't see it anywhere.....

 

[Bigwheels]

So far my only gripes about it are it's not as easy to true as just adjusting the drag & the wind calls it gives are wrong. Can't turn off spin drift. It says that a 0 wind @ 1400yds needs 1.5 moa windage...

 

[CavReconScout]

I just tried my Creedmoor load with the Hornady program and at 1400yds it says it needs 0.25 mil with zero wind. Maybe something is off with your settings?

 

[Rob01]

Check barrel twist in program. Will effect the spin drift.

 

[Bigwheels]

Twist is 9.5 which is correct.

 

[Rob01]

Then that's what to your spin drift is at that range for all inputs and bullet selected. Seeing as you will never have 0 wind at that range it wil get absorbed into the wind call anyways.

 

[CavReconScout]

What is your actual wind hold at 1400 yds? How far is it off?

 

[Bigwheels]

I shot that range twice in the early morning when the patchy fog was slowly rising nearly straight up. No measurable wind @ the FFP & virtually no movement of the fog. Was hitting center with 1/2 moa wind.

 

[Bigwheels]

What little breeze there was was from 3:00 but it was so light that my kestrel wouldn't register it & the ap said I needed to dial L1/2 when I actually had to dial R 1/2. Now of course I couldn't measure the wind in the middle of the valley but I could watch the fog. Could my reticle be ever so slightly canted? Sure. But hopefully tomorrow morning I will have similar conditions & I'll see what I need with my new Razor Gen2. Maybe things will change but I've never seen spin drift for sure & I have shot in calm conditions where I had to blow my smoke away with my coat.

 

[V-Ref]

BW, keep in mind there's wind you often can't percieve or detect without shooting a shot in that specific condition. Flags, smoke, mirage all can "lie". You have to believe what the bullet is telling you. @ 1400 yds its likely there are several winds of varying velocity and direction, some of which may be very difficult to detect and value. A tall target test can be done with your scope on the rifle, yard stick or 36" level, and a survey tape/laser. This would help you determine if your rifles are unique and do not have spin drift for future LR/ELR shooting.

 

[Bigwheels]

Like I said I had patchy fog clouds scattered around that were for the most part immobile for many minutes prior to the shots. I have done tall targets etc several times & the scope was as straight as could be. But I can virtually guarantee there was no wind blowing from L to right that would have accounted for 1moa of Left windage called for by the app.

 

[V-Ref]

I wonder what it could be

 

[Bigwheels]

Perhaps an excessive compensation of the spin drift by the app?

 

[V-Ref]

Do you have access to other exterior ballistic calculators? What do those tell you?

In my case, CB, 4DOF, AB all show very similar solutions in a no wind 1400 yard ballistic calculation.

Maybe you could send a technical email to each of the ballistic app developers and tell them your problems regarding no wind solutions at 1400 yards.

Please post up your findings once you get this sorted out.

 

[Bigwheels]

Yeah I have FFS, AB, Trasol, Streloc pro, SIG, Shooter and 4DOF. I turned off the spin drift in all of them so I'm not constantly dialing too much left windage. 20" is just a bit much at that range. My go to has always been FFS but am giving the rest a good try just to see. Has been working well that way for several thousand rnds, most of which are ELR shots. Can't turn it off in 4DOF and I have called them about issues & questions and the people I've talked to gave me the impression that they didn't give a shit. They had no interest in adding a scope calibration, nor the ability to turn off spin drift. Therefor I'm pretty much done with them. I'll continue to use FFs and Trasol until something better comes along.

 

[pell1203]

I’d love to use Trasol again, but it doesn’t work worth a ‘shit’ on an iPhone 7+... and they don’t give a ‘shit’ about making it work either!

 

[Bigwheels]

Yeah it has a few bugs on my droid but it works. I still like the dedicated PDA and FFS. Pretty much bomb proof and once its trued up with my dope it tracks nearly perfectly through huge temp and elevation swings unlike many of the others.

 

[Jackomason]

Has anyone used the angle feature yet? I ran it against JBM and it's way off. Maybe I just need to un-install and re install? Still works well for flat shooting.

 

[Bigwheels]

What angle feature? The zero angle? Yes I'm using it. I'm still checking it vs FFS, and my actual DOPE and it is giving me accurate drops. My only gripes with the app is the windage outputs and the user interface isn't great. I would like to see a 2, or 3 wind zones input like FFS, and CB and the ability to turn off SD. Other than that and the interface I actually like it.

 

[Jackomason]

What angle feature? The zero angle? Yes I'm using it. I'm still checking it vs FFS, and my actual DOPE and it is giving me accurate drops. My only gripes with the app is the windage outputs and the user interface isn't great. I would like to see a 2, or 3 wind zones input like FFS, and CB and the ability to turn off SD. Other than that and the interface I actually like it.

No it's the angle for shot solutions. It's on the 4dof calculator but not in the general. The box is just above the yardage bar. But I adjusted the shot for a 40° angle at 1000 yards and it gave me 42% of the straight line shot as opposed to 71% that JBM gave me. Try it for yourself but I uninstalled the app and won't be able to reinstall till I get back to WiFi.

 

[Bigwheels]

I use the angle fire on every shot. All my shooting is in the mountains so every solution has an angle. I don't use the phone to acquire the angle. I manually input what my SIG2400 tells me. Maybe your angle was wrong?

 

[Dai Bando]

I started playing with the Hornady 4dof app a few weeks ago, and I'm rather impressed.

Running 108 ELD's from a 6 Dasher @ 2843 fps (95 form factor) and I've been hammering shit out to 1,340.

Love that it compensates for powder temp sensitivity, although I need to fine tune it.

 

[pitdog85]

the issue with this app the same as many others such as the lapua app for those of us not in the US is that you cannot mix and match imperial with metric its either one or the other. With JBM for example you can mix and match imperial and metric easily.

I measure muzzle velocity in FPS and wind in mph but all my environmentals are in metric and I'm sure many outside the US do the same. this app requires you to have tables made to convert FPS to MPS and pressure from mmHG to hpa etc.

 

[Sinocopa]

I have been rather impressed by the features on it. And recently you are able to use it with certain kestrel devices.

 

[JMcBurn]

Only real features I think the product could use is a scope compensation factor and a way to turn of spin drift in the total windage call(web app can show just wind drift). Then one convenience would be either a calculator or a zero offset correction.

Scope compensation would allow me to not mess with form factor to true my vertical dope which affects my windage. (right now run two profiles to get dope or wind separately)

 

[_Windrider_]

Only real features I think the product could use is a scope compensation factor and a way to turn of spin drift in the total windage call(web app can show just wind drift). Then one convenience would be either a calculator or a zero offset correction.

Scope compensation would allow me to not mess with form factor to true my vertical dope which affects my windage. (right now run two profiles to get dope or wind separately)

It uses true zero instead of an offset.

 

[CRT2]

Found an error with data associated with 200 gr ELD X. Called Hornady and they fixed it. Recommend checking published values - hopefully what I found was an anomaly.

 

[arm017]

Just released a new update that is much stronger imo. Ui is cleaner, and it talks with the kestrel nicely

 

[JC0352]

Has anyone messed with the axial form factor to get the data to more closely match your actual dope?

 

[bab029]

Has anyone messed with the axial form factor to get the data to more closely match your actual dope?

Yes. Once I was sure about my velocity I tweaked the ff for the 105 bthp to make it line up. The Hornady app is more accurate than ballistic ae in my experience. Dead on to 1000. Not bad at all for a free app using 20 cent bullets.

 

[arm017]

Has anyone messed with the axial form factor to get the data to more closely match your actual dope?

Yep- I had to with a 140 eld bullet out of a button barreled 6.5 CM.. Had to bring her up to 1.08 and everything lined up afterward. but all other projectiles and even that 140 bullet in other guns had been spot on for me. So I chalked it up to something with the bore itself.

 

[JC0352]

Thanks!

 

[JMcBurn]

Yep- I had to with a 140 eld bullet out of a button barreled 6.5 CM.. Had to bring her up to 1.08 and everything lined up afterward. but all other projectiles and even that 140 bullet in other guns had been spot on for me. So I chalked it up to something with the bore itself.

I found that at 500 I had to true the MV to get hits then tweak the axial form factor.

 

[arm017]

I found that at 500 I had to true the MV to get hits then tweak the axial form factor.

makes sense to me

 

[Chalkeye]

To add to my grumbling about units, I just tried to go back to 4DOF today.

Who is using Kph for wind (metric units)?
I've only ever seen meters/second for wind when it comes to the shooting world.

 

[fxdrider]

Hornady Ballistics updated on my iphone today. It now shows projected come-up results when adjusting axial form factor. Seems like that will be handy. I'll be testing it this weekend.