Home Forums Hunting & Shooting AR and Tactical Rifles What distance do you zero your AR or M4's at?

I've always zeroed our M4's with 16" barrels, both iron sights and red dots at 50/225 yards. My Mk 12 has a scope so it's zeroed at 100 yards. It has adjustable turrets so I can adjust for longer ranges.

Now I'm playing the AR15A4 game. It has a 20" barrel (w/plastic handguard and free float tube/sleeve) and I use the removable A4 carry handle for the rear sight, no optic or red dot. This is a range toy and a general fun gun. I'm not sure if I should stick to the 50/225 yard zero or use a different one because of the added velocity of the longer barrel. The range I shoot at mostly is only 200 yards.

This is becoming my favorite AR/M4 platform rifle/carbine to shoot. It's a blast.

NYH1.

I used to confirm zero at 200 yards but after using scopes that dial and now Trijicon BDC scopes that require a 100 meter zero, I have switched over even with red dots.

Military AR sights are a complicated gadget. You might need an A-2 rear sight to do what you want.

However, the referenced article notes that some people advocate:

"... zeroing the rifles and carbines using the large (0-200) apertures with the rear elevation set at 8/3 or 6/3. This zero provides a very flat trajectory with a maximum ordinate of just over 1.0” between 50 and 200 yards. Thus, when aiming center mass with a 12” standard at 300 yards one could expect that most rounds will impact within 4 to 5 inches from point of aim out to 250 yards.

Check this article

We do everything in yards, that's what all our ranges are around here. The range we belong to now (10 mins. from house) is 0 to 200 yards.

I like the 50/225 zero (except for scoped Mk12). I works the best for what we do.

Right now it's zeroed at 50 like our carbines. With the longer barrel it definitely shoots flatter then our carbines. I should probably just leave it. Just wondering what others zero theirs at, particularly 20" barrels.

NYH1.

Thanks for the link.

I can't put A2 sights on my rifle. The A2 sight is the 8/3 sight. To get that much adjustment the sight has courser threads and the elevation screw go's down into the receiver. I have the A4, 6/3 carry handle. The elevation screw is shorter and it doesn't go into the receiver like the 8/3 does.

NYH1.

All of my ar's are zeroed in for 100 yards.

Short barreled AR-15 EoTech sighted house guns, 36 yards.
16 and 18" barreled AR-10 house and bang around the farm guns are zeroed at their PBR.

For example, my 16" 308 REPR firing 155 gr Scenars at 2669 fps PBR zeros at 272 yards, I verify that zero, then loosen the cap on the 2.5-10x24 Nightforce, spin back to zero and retighten, I know I can hold center body to 300 yards and will be approx 4"s high at 100, piece of cake.

Thanks!

NYH1.

Gunner, MPBR used to work great back in the day before twisting turrets. I can see some efficiency there with quick target acquisition on some targets. But now days, wouldnt it be a lot more precise, to just dial for range? Aim small, hit small or something like that. With a great scope like a nightforce, I'd think you'd be twisting that turret. I know I do with mine. Shooting steel at 400 the other day was child's play.

Maybe I should've said 110 yards

Of course, but for SD/hunting/vermin guns, out to 300 is lock on and shoot, if you need to go longer, smaller numbers can be dialed much quicker starting from PBR and going up.

The less math of lower numbers is a blessing to my already strained pea!

100 meters

I like 50yd zero the best. Then i can put the dot on an 8" plate at 200yds and ring it consistently.

I'd just sight it in at 100 yards and click up from there. It's not terribly hard to stay in a K zone out to at least 500.

For M193 @ 3,200fps with a 100 yard zero it's +1MOA to 200, +2 more MOA to 300, +3 to 400, 4 to 5 and 5 to 6.

Pretty easy to remember, right? Most guys can't shoot within a minute from a field position anyway, so this is even more accurate than most can hold even if you are off by 75 yards.

Thanks guys!

NYH1.

On my A2 I set the rear drum to 8/3 minus 2 (1 moa clicks). Then zero at 50/200 using the front sight post for elevation correction.

On the carbine, 6/3 minus 4 (half moa clicks). Then zero as above.

If you cannot get minus 2 or minus 4 clicks, you can loosen the set screw on the elevation drum and rotate/retighten to get there.

I zero mine just like most other rifles. Those with dials are zero'ed at 100, the rest typically at 250.

Just for fun
https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?107572-Zen-of-the-100-Meter-Zero

25yds.

I say, for red dots and most iron sights either 36 yds or 50 yd battle type zeros. If I was shooting national match type competitions I would sight in at 100 yds. Same with any scope that has turrets that work correctly. With a 100 yd zero you will never get confused, everything is accomplished by dialing up.