Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Need assistance on Leupold B&C scope

Hello all:

I just bought a used rifle that had a 3.5–10×40 Leupold VX-3 scope on it. It has the Boone and Crockett reticle with the dashes underneath the center cross hair. Please tell me how these crosshairs are calculated and work. I’ve never used one of these before. I believe you use some type of system to get it correlated to your specific load that you are using? How would I know if it is used on this scope or not?

Thank you,
Jeff

All:

For some reason nobody could reply to my post. That seems to be fixed now. Thank you for everyone who sent a PM offering to help.

RAS

RAS, IIRC, the reticle is calculated around the ballistics of similar-powered cartridge groups, but each group with different ballistics. For example, the 270-280-30/06 group, and then the magnum group like the 7mm Mag, the 300’s and so forth.

The first group with the 200-yd zero uses the first horizontal hash mark. The second group, however, with a 300 yd zero because of their increased velocity also uses the first hash mark. Each successive hash mark below then represents a 100 yds further out to five hundred yards generally, or more.

The literature with the scope explains this better. If you have no literature, check online for a clearer explanation or check with Leupold.

I don’t know how Leopold made their calculations except that you NEED THE SCOPE ON THE MAX POWER of its range to use the reticle as explained.

Generally, I have found the “Christmas tree” ballistic reticles of Leopold, Zeiss, and Swarovski and some others to work quite well if not quite as precisely as twisting an elevation turret.

Precisely enough to take a whitetail buck at a walked-off 500 yds pre-LRF. You do really need a LRF itself or in combo with binoculars to best use it though.

This is the general idea. I hope I remembered this correctly. Hope it helps.

There are two magnification settings you can use…the large triangle and the small triangle. Leupold’s literature explains it and there are some other ways you can use them once you figure it out.

contact Leupold or search the net and get the B&C reticle usage booklet that was included with the scope when it was new...

Google search

And this.

I like the B&C but for me it works best to ignore Leupold's recommended setup and do something else. I found that, using the 165 grain accubond and 44.5 grains of RL15, if I put the main crosshair dead on at 100 yards I can hold the first "ladder bar" lower dead on at 200 and the 2nd dead on at 320 all at 8X and be within a half inch or less. I can bracket anything in between.

What cartridge?
What bullet?
What’s the MV?

Or….

Sight your load in at 200yds, shoot using first hash mark at 300, second hashmark at 400. See where your ACTUAL group lands.
The point of the bottom duplex can work at 500, depending on chambering and load.

There’s no substitute calculation for actually shooting at distance. As I have found out…..😊

As MD has said in effect in the past, the difference in trajectory between a bunch of different popular chamberings, with most middleweight to heavyweight hunting bullets, is really very small.

As George says, use highest magnification.
As TOM says, ignore the instructions.

Have 2.5-8’s with the B&C reticle on three 270’s, a 280, 30-06, 30-06 AI, and a 308. With the exception of the 308, I could shoot 3 shot groups from the others with my elk bullets with every rifle at the same target and be hard pressed to distinguish between rifles. Well, except maybe for the size of the bullet holes…..

A guy just has to shoot at distance to find where the bullet will land.

Another option is to chronograph your loads and enter your ballistic information in a ballistic app/program that has that reticle. There are a couple out there, and I'm sorry I don't remember which ones, that do have the B&C reticle in the database. You can then get the "holds" for your particular load for each of the five aiming points and even for the various powers/magnifications so that it doesn't have to be used at the highest magnification only. You can even then make a rudimentary dope card or your holds at more than one magnification. I have a friend who is hooked on the B&C reticle and many years ago I made him some dope cards to tape to his rifle. We set them up for the lowest power (3.5X) and highest power (10X). Each magnification only had five positions so it wasn't even very convoluted or over-populated. He had no interest in dialing and for him this was a reasonable alternative option. To each his own.

No matter what you figure out from the directions, you have to shoot your setup at the assumed ranges to see how your trajectory is. My 300 RUM with 180 TSX, I use a 300 yd zero and the second hash is on at 400 yds. The third hash is more like 540 yds and the fourth hash is more like 660 yds.

I use this reticle with decent spitzers at velocities from 2800 to 3100fps. Zero the crosshair at roughly 200yds, then shoot the next bar at 300 and tweak it to be zeroed there. The 400yd bar is then generally going to be dang close to “on” also. Your crosshair might now be actually zeroed at something in the 190-220yd range. Verify dope on 300/400yd targets. This assumes the scope is set at max magnification. A bit of tinkering with a ballistics program like JBM can let you forecast the dope pretty well before you ever shoot. The main numbers to know are 2.2, 4.8, and 6.2moa for the three additional aiming points. The transition to the bold bottom picket is 7.8moa.

Also, if you need the moa drop figures to be higher, say due to a slower muzzle velocity and a less flat trajectory, you can use JBM to calculate what the drops would need to be, see what percent increase the moa subtensions would need for hits at 300/400, and then decrease max power setting by that percentage. For instance, a 2700fps 6.5CM load might have 15% more drop at 300/400yds than the 2.2/4.8moa represented by the aiming points at max power, so deduct 15% from the 10x max magnification, set the power ring at 8.5x, and go shoot 200/300/400yds. You effectively increased the moa values of the subtensions in the reticle. I’ve seen it work just fine for killing.

This is basically how I use my Leupold scopes with the B&C reticle. It's simple and fast and works out to 500 yards which is all I need.

The Reupold B&C and VH reticles,are some of THE dumbest fhuqking schit they ever tried. Hint.

To contend/quantify same,simply dangle a tape or ruler at 100yds and record substension values,at whatever magnification appeals to you. Hint.

The “system” is an archaic and arbitrary series of Dumbfhuqktitude,pawned off as an “approach”. Hint.

Just sayin’…………

Jeff,

Here's a PDF with the intel you seek:

Leupold Ballistic Aiming System(s)

Typical Reupold,they state everything but THE schit matters. With plainly denoted subtension values,their archaic stupid fhuqking reticle could be applied to ALL chamberings and ALL projectiles at ALL speeds. Hint.

Just sayin’……………

It goes right over some heads. HINT

Except for out of state hunts, 99% of my hunting shots are not over 100 yards. The longest I can shoot on my own property is 180 yards. For long range shooting at the range, I have always used turrets on my Zeiss 6.5-20 with my 264. I feel pretty comfortable out to 550 with an agreeable wind.

The scope I inquired about came to me on a 375 HH. A 3.5-10 Leupold on a 375 HH?

BDC reticles are pretty easy to sort out even if your load doesn't fall within the specified parameters of the reticle.

For instance, with the B&C reticle and my 308 Win/165 bullet load, I zero at 225 yards. First hash mark is on at 300 yards, 2nd at 400, 3rd at 450, top of post at 500 yards.

If a guy can't make a BDC work on game at sane distances he's just not much of a rifleman...