Regardless of the load, I like mine zeroed so they don't rise more than 3 inches as they get out there. Even a little less is OK.
I used to do three inches at 100 and call it good. But I've found with some loads/rifles, that put me 5 inches up at the mid to 2/3's point. That's too much when combined with the usual field position group sizes. Particularly when I need to shoot through a hole in screening vegetation or take a fast shot at a coyote.
The longer shots, even with the reduced zero range, haven't been a problem. Especially with the simple duplex reticles and knowing just how wide the opening is.
The only thing I'd add is that, for me, if he looks like 300 yds., I really need to range him at least with a reticle like the duplex. With the standard Leupold and a 9 inch spacing, a 300 yd., 4 yr. old buck fits into all of half of it's thin opening and half of the other half. If he fills the thing, he's at 200 yds. If he fills only one half of it, he's about 400 yds. Really not hard to see and to make. But I need to verify just what the range is. For some reason, in spite of lots of practice in the field, I have days where I'm surprised as to how far off my eye ball estimates are. E
