Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Schmidt and Bender 1.25-4X with Post (L2) Reticle

I took the rifle to the range yesterday and zeroed-in the scope with my optimal hand loads. I learned to use the large target circle and the horizontal wire in the scope to center my aim. The point of impact is right at the tip of the post. Nice and sunny day with gusty winds. I rolled some cloth on the top of my shooting rest to provide a soft grip for the rifles slim stock.

Overall I am very happy with this set up, can't wait to take it hunting..





The rifle and the optics:



Picture of a 100Y group taken through the spotting scope:

Load Info:

Brass: RWS, once fired, body sized, then neck-sized using Redding bushing-style die
Primer: Federal 215 Match
COAL= 3.24"
Powder: 65 grain N570
Bullet: Lapua Naturalis 155 grain
V0= 2850 f/s

My 2 cents -

Any post type reticle - German #1 I like for running game, I sight it in with the bullet hitting underneath the tip - inline with the horizontal bar(s). That way you pick up the game with the horizontal bar follow through and pull the trigger when the vertical post crosses the desired area, leading the vital organs by the required amount.

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It works well for moving game - but is indeed counterintuitve for precision use. Lutz Möllers assessment comes most likely from the fact, that at night the heavy side bars of the # 1 reticle are used to align the height of the shot - as the black tip is washed out on the boar.

This is the second reason - I sight in my rifles with this reticle as described above.

I had one of these reticles on an old Leupold. It always made me shoot high in the field. It was not instinctual to the human eye to skip noticing the horizontal wire and only focus on the post tip. It took conscious effort to fight against wanting to align the two on target, and when finally ignoring the horizontal the shot would break high every time.

Thanks for the quote. It reminded me to read Jack O'connor's comments on riflescopes from his "Complete Book of Rifles and Shotguns" again today. What you quoted is on Page 253. Here are some additional "uninformed" and "outdated" opinions from Jack. Obviously he'd spent too much time hunting and too little time at optics booths at Shot Show:

Page 246: "A scope of from 2 1/2 to 2 3/4 [magnification] is just about ideal. Actually more power is seldom needed for any big game scope since big-game animals are large and for the most part conspicuous targets".

Page 245: "A scope used for hunting should have a non-critical eye relief. That means that a usable field of view should be obtained at any point from about 2.5 inches to 5 inches away from the ocular lens."

Page 252: "Fancy reticules fascinate the uninstructed beginner; the old-timer wants them simple".

Page 252: "A flat-top post is best, with the top subtending from 4 to 6 minutes of angle. Such a post is conspicuous even in poor light and surprisingly accurate".



-Omid