Sidearms & Scatterguns Red Dot Zero Distance and Group Size (Pistol)

[USMC22]

I know all of you are "sub MOA, all day long" but for real, pride aside. . . what distance do you zero your red dot and what is your group size?

Edit to add: I'm talking pistols, not rifles.

 

[CK1.0]

I zero my pistol dots at 15 yards, and 5 shots inside a 1" paster is what I look for.

 

[USMC22]

I zero my pistol dots at 15 yards, and 5 shots inside a 1" paster is what I look for.

sub compact, full size, doesn't matter?

 

[mobo215]

I zeroed my Ruger American Ranch .300 Blackout at 100yds with 150gr Hornady Interlock @1900fps. Most bullets inside of 3", a few inside of 4", and a couple of flyers inside of 6". This is with bag support front and rear. Standing, I can hit a 20# propane cylinder at 100yds fairly reliably. I use the 4 MOA dot as an excuse for the flyers .

 

[calling4life]

Set the standard on how a person should be shooting, regarding group size.

Vice, rest, offhand like you would be in a defense scenario... etc.

I didn't find I was more accurate with a red dot, my range goes to 30yds. And generally, at 25 and 30yds, I'm a 6" shooter if I'm doing normal accurate 1 round a second offhand as I'd shoot defensively. I would generally zero my red dots at 25 and see how they played at closer ranges, if I didn't like how low they were I may change it.

Faster shooting, I have 10" plates at 25 and 30 and I can beat the piss out of them.

Even slower, I have a 12x20 at 30yds with a 4" headbox, there are days when I can ring that a handful of times consecutively, but it's really not consistent enough to claim it as anything normal.

This would all be with my training ammo, which is 147gr American Eagle. My range is in my backyard.

 

[USMC22]

10 shots, 10 yards with a red dot today. cadence was quick(ish), being under 1 second per shot.

I'm no expert with a pistol but getting back to training with it versus just rifles.

NRA A-23/5 Target Used (Small Bore Rifle Target)
X ring .39 inch
10 ring .89 inches
9 ring 1.89 inches
8 ring 2.89 inches
7 ring 3.89 inches
6 ring 4.89 inches
5 ring 5.89 inches

 

[308pirate]

I know all of you are "sub MOA, all day long" but for real, pride aside. . . what distance do you zero your red dot and what is your group size?

Edit to add: I'm talking pistols, not rifles.

I zero at 25 yards and I don't shoot for groups.

I shoot to visual confirmation depending on target difficulty

CZ P-10F with Trijicon SRO, 25 yards zero confirmation on a 3x5 card. Shooting as soon as the sight picture is acceptable without delay

Same pistol, 20 rounds of doubles at 10 yards. .18 - .20 splits.

The point of all this

 

[USMC22]

@308pirate thanks for sharing, I'd been training pretty consistent a year ago but fell off. Getting back to it I'm just trying to find a "baseline" and figure out where I should be with groups. Moving forward I'll be striving for a-zone hits and reducing time on draw / splits.

 

[308pirate]

@308pirate thanks for sharing, I'd been training pretty consistent a year ago but fell off. Getting back to it I'm just trying to find a "baseline" and figure out where I should be with groups. Moving forward I'll be striving for a-zone hits and reducing time on draw / splits.

Rather than just "reducing splits" work on minimizing the time you spend confirming the sight picture to only the bare minimum required by target difficulty.

Ben Stoeger's doubles and practical accuracy drills are about 50% of my live fire training. The other 50% is spent on transition drills, basically shrinking the time elapsed between the last shot on a target and the start of gun movement towards the second target.

 

[USMC22]

@308pirate Got a link or is it one of his books?

 

[CK1.0]

sub compact, full size, doesn't matter?

I zero all my pistol dots to be the same (15 yards). Part of the reason I chose 15 yards was that I shot all-black irons for a long time, then transitioned to a red FO front/black rear for more than a few years, so my brain is sort of wired for a "6 o'clock hold" with pistols (or sometimes people call it a "lollipop hold"). I never liked covering up the target (especially for longer shots).

That said, running a dot is a different thing, and I zero my PCCs at 25 yards and really ought to re-zero my pistols to the same to avoid confusion.

I do still use a 1" paster at 15 yards as my baseline (mainly to see how bad my trigger-control has gotten lol).

 

[308pirate]

I zero all my pistol dots to be the same (15 yards). Part of the reason I chose 15 yards was that I shot all-black irons for a long time, then transitioned to a red FO front/black rear for more than a few years, so my brain is sort of wired for a "6 o'clock hold" with pistols (or sometimes people call it a "lollipop hold"). I never liked covering up the target

None of that is relevant when using a reflex optic on a handgun.

 

[308pirate]

@308pirate Got a link or is it one of his books?

His books and lately on many of his youtube videos.

 

[308pirate]

I didn't find I was more accurate with a red dot

They don't fix poor marksmanship. But they do show you your errors much more clearly than iron sights if you're paying attention.

 

[HD1911]

25y zero

 

[Cascade Hemi]

12 yard zero on an open gun, further slide mounted dot.

 

[Jimichanga]

15/50 with 124 GDHP

 

[mark5pt56]

10 shots, 10 yards with a red dot today. cadence was quick(ish), being under 1 second per shot.

I'm no expert with a pistol but getting back to training with it versus just rifles.

NRA A-23/5 Target Used (Small Bore Rifle Target)
X ring .39 inch
10 ring .89 inches
9 ring 1.89 inches
8 ring 2.89 inches
7 ring 3.89 inches
6 ring 4.89 inches
5 ring 5.89 inches

There's a drill out there called the 10/10/10, 10 rounds, 10 yards in 10 seconds on a B8 target. At the time of it's inception the predominate set up was with irons. While folks have cleaned it in that form, a dot would make it easily, maybe even stretch the distance for challenge.

And so nobody gets hung up on who named it, it was Ken Hackathorn, didn't want that in the above as some would wander in whatever direction.

 

[Maurygold]

10 yard zero on pistols. I shoot with a quick cadence and expect a group that is nearly if not all touching

 

[SanPatHogger]

Somewhere on here I seem to remember someone said they start with a 7 yard zero. Might have to go search it.

 

[308pirate]

I shoot with a quick cadence

View attachment 8499969

 

[308pirate]

Somewhere on here I seem to remember someone said they start with a 7 yard zero. Might have to go search it.

The answer to the question of this thread really depends on what do you expect to do with the pistol and what your skill level is.

A 7 yard zero is incredibly useless much past 15 yards so I would never use it. It's perfect for someone who will never, ever take a shot past 15 yards.

I truly don't care where other people zero their pistol red dot or why and no else should.

Think it through and make a decision.

 

[Maurygold]

If you can’t shoot pistols it’s okay to admit. Pm me if you want some help with your shooting

 

[SanPatHogger]

The answer to the question of this thread really depends on what do you expect to do with the pistol and what your skill level is.

A 7 yard zero is incredibly useless much past 15 yards so I would never use it. It's perfect for someone who will never, ever take a shot past 15 yards.

I truly don't care where other people zero their pistol red dot or why and no else should.

Think it through and make a decision.

It was a joke. Somewhere on here there was a guy trying to sight in a scope and it was suggested he start at 7 yards.

 

[308pirate]

If you can’t shoot pistols it’s okay to admit. Pm me if you want some help with your shooting

I'll destroy you any time, any place.

 

[Maurygold]

I'll destroy you any time, any place.

Talking shit with a visor on is a tactic I don’t see too often. Good luck with that

 

[Cascade Hemi]

I'll destroy you any time, any place.

Nice shooting.

 

[Cascade Hemi]

If you can’t shoot pistols it’s okay to admit. Pm me if you want some help with your shooting

Static targets aren't a flex. Your fancy pistols and targets don't mean anything. A C class shooter would yeet you into oblivion.

 

[308pirate]

I shoot with a quick cadence

One shot a second isn't quick.

This is quick, but not yet fast.


Me talking shit with a visor on? LOL

 

[308pirate]

There's a drill out there called the 10/10/10, 10 rounds, 10 yards in 10 seconds on a B8 target. At the time of it's inception the predominate set up was with irons. While folks have cleaned it in that form, a dot would make it easily, maybe even stretch the distance for challenge

A dot makes it a little easier if your fundamentals are already grooved in. And even then you have to learn to avoid the big temptation to try to over-refine the sight picture for every shot, which usually leads to a panic trigger press when everything looks "perfect".

I find drills that rely on bullseye targets and par times to be of little value for practical shooting regardless of who came up with them.

 

[mark5pt56]

A steady gun and learn to work the trigger-now

 

[Yondering]

I zero my red dot pistols at 25 yd, and then verify POI farther out as well as closer.

 

[Michael Trainowski]

I threw a Vortex Venom red dot on my FNX45T, and zeroed it at 10 yards just to have it zeroed at something, but in all honesty, I haven’t turned it on while shooting the pistol since.

I have zero experience with a red dot on a pistol prior to putting it on there, so that’s part of it, but I’m just better with irons (as ridiculous as that sounds). Plus it doesn’t help that my hands tend to shake more often than not, so the dot is bouncing around like crazy.

 

[308pirate]

I threw a Vortex Venom red dot on my FNX45T, and zeroed it at 10 yards just to have it zeroed at something, but in all honesty, I haven’t turned it on while shooting the pistol since.

I have zero experience with a red dot on a pistol prior to putting it on there, so that’s part of it, but I’m just better with irons (as ridiculous as that sounds). Plus it doesn’t help that my hands tend to shake more often than not, so the dot is bouncing around like crazy.

Serious questions

Why did you waste your money on a sight that you don't use?

How can you say you're better with iron sights when you don't know how to use a red dot sight?

My head hurts at how retarded this is.......

 

[Michael Trainowski]

Serious questions

Why did you waste your money on a sight that you don't use?

How can you say you're better with iron sights when you don't know how to use a red dot sight?

My head hurts at how retarded this is.......

Wow. That’s cute. You say I’m retarded with a comment like that. I didn’t say I couldn’t or don’t use it, I said I haven’t used it. I haven’t shot that pistol since I put it on and sighted it in. Been too worried about getting my other builds up and running.

And it’s not that difficult, put red dot on the target, pull trigger, repeat as needed.

 

[308pirate]

Wow. That’s cute. You say I’m retarded with a comment like that. I didn’t say I couldn’t or don’t use it, I said I haven’t used it. I haven’t shot that pistol since I put it on and sighted it in. Been too worried about getting my other builds up and running.

And it’s not that difficult, put red dot on the target, pull trigger, repeat as needed.