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Tall test explanation...

Pastureman98

Private
Full Member
Minuteman
Apr 2, 2017
35
7
Holyrood, KS
As I am playing with tall tests to find the node, are we looking for hits that line up vertically or horizontally?

Or would I be better served to find a consistent load with lowest ES?

Please keep the answers simple. I gave the below info to show I am not new to all this, shooting, or reloading.

Gents - My Previous 30 years of reloading I would pick the bullet that matched the twist, set length to work in BDL style magazine, pick 3 or 4 accuracy loads out of newer loading manual. Get something shooting an inch or so at 100 yds, then tweak it up and down for tightest group. Take best powder charge from there and play with the length (to not exceed factory box). Sometimes try a few different primers to see if anything changed, then shoot and record several truly cold bore shots to simulate hunting situation. Lastly I would shoot 5 shot groups to max yardage I would be hunting, zero the knobs and was good. Killed 50+ whitetails over the years most with neck shots and all DRT.

No chrony, no kestrel, no match dies/brass/case prep etc. Most of the aforementioned equip was not even made during these years....

Before you judge, most of the south has very liberal limits, high does allowed, etc. I also included state licensed crop depredation kills as well.

That's the back story. FF to today and I am trying to be more precise and have all the toys, match rifles, etc.

Many thanks in advance!
 
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That is the video I needed. I was doing it correctly, just wanted to verify.
Thanks to all here, always tons of great advice from folks who pull the trigger, not stand in a gun shop talking about it.
 
A tall target test is something you would do to verify the tracking of the scope turrets. Check your zero at an aim point. Dial say 10 mils and use the same aim point. At 100 yards your impact should be 36" high.
 
If you listen to one of the latest Modern Day Sniper podcasts (episode 14), Phil and Caylen speak with Mr.Satterlee at length about his method.

Hint: Almost everyone does it wrong...there was always more to it than people understood... and Scott himself doesn't do it that way anymore.
 
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With modern chronographs (magneto, labradar, oehler), I like to find powder stability node first, then tune via seating depth after.

I personally use ES for this as if you have a low ES, you’ll have a low SD. Not always true the other way around.

Key word though is node. Don’t just take the lowest ES. For example:

30.0 - 30 ES
30.2 - 2 ES
30.4 - 25 ES

32.0 - 15 ES
32.2 - 12 ES
32.4 - 10 ES

I’d be looking to do seating depth test at 32.2 as its in a good stable ES node. I wouldn’t even consider 30.2 because it’s not in a node.
 
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