What size of bull for load development

[huntrick64]

I have been messing around a lot with load development out to 300. I have been using 12" bull with my smallest front aperture (.095 I believe). My eyes are getting old so I have good days and bad days on keeping everything together. When the sun is behind me I turn in pretty good groups. As soon as it is above me or anywhere in front of me, my groups start falling apart.

Out of curiosity, what size of a bull and at what distance do you all use for load development.

[fouronesix]

My best, all around combination is on a C Sharps, M74 45-110- front aperture is a thin "ghost ring" type with a .090" aperture and a .040" plain disc rear aperture. 36" sight radius. I tried off and on to use a Hadley cup for various light, but quit because it did not help me and I found myself second guessing and switching and fiddling around instead of relaxing and shooting. I use a 3" black bull at 100 and a 9" black bull at 300. I do not have young eyes.

I use similar combinations on other single shots- if possible as some of them are originals that I don't feel like modifying because of value. However, I have an original M74 Sharps in 44-90 that I was able to "rig" without modification.

[Win94ae]

I use a 6 inch target at 300 yards. I find that the smaller I go the more precise I get; and 6 inches is about as small as I can see clearly at that distance.

[country gent]

WIth a front post I use a 6:00 hold with a line of white between. I can see this the same the easiest. With appetures I want an even ring of white around 1 1/2 moa to see easily. Watch the lines of white around the front globe and bull. I have been sing the 4 post front appeture here lately as it dosnt obscure the targets.

[montana_charlie]

I downloaded a 'scaled' bullseye target which simulates using the 1000 yard BPCR target bull.
The full sized target (NRA 'LR') has a 44-inch bullseye, so the 100-yard scaled down version is 4.4 inches wide.

I have not made up a full set, yet, because I don't have access to all distances, but all of my bulls are scaled off of that target. That way, a single globe sight aperture (.090" lollipop) is the right size for all distances.

My 300-yard bull is 13.2 inches.

CM

[kokomokid]

I use a 17" bull at 360yds and a .105 front aperture for load testing. If I remember what David Tubb said it was focus on the target then focus on the front sight and leave the target a blurr. Not an easy task for old eyes but knobloch glasses sure help. LB

[EDG]

I like 6" to 8" at 100 meters for the aperture that I use.
Find what you like at 100 and it has to be a multiple of that at each 100 yards or meters.
For me that is 12" at 200, 18" in at 300 and so on.
I suppose for brightly lit long range targets my front aperture would need to be smaller and I could use a smaller bull.
My front aperture is set to work well with the rear aperture that I am comfortable with. That drives my targets to be large.
If I use a tiny rear aperture it appears out of round and full of fur - that is old man eyes for you.

[fouronesix]

If I use a tiny rear aperture it appears out of round and full of fur - that is old man eyes for you.

That's the truth and maybe the key for a good sight picture. I think that oblong image has something to do with the length of the "tube" of the rear aperture coupled with the small size. Light does funny things when going through holes :) The other part of it is making sure the disc face and the "tube" portion are plumb and square to the sight line. When I've taken care of the everything I can mechanically, I've learned to live with the oblong image and just center the front and bull inside the distorted hole. Also, as sun angles change, the amount and shape of the distortion changes.

In the end, it's all about getting the most precise and consistent sight picture with the eyes we have including working with all four planes in the sight picture to best advantage- the eye, rear aperture, front aperture and the target.

I'm not there yet but sooner or later age will catch up and then a switch to optics will take care of most all the mentioned shortcomings of iron sights.

[dagger dog]

I like 6" to 8" at 100 meters for the aperture that I use.
Find what you like at 100 and it has to be a multiple of that at each 100 yards or meters.
For me that is 12" at 200, 18" in at 300 and so on.
I suppose for brightly lit long range targets my front aperture would need to be smaller and I could use a smaller bull.
My front aperture is set to work well with the rear aperture that I am comfortable with. That drives my targets to be large.
If I use a tiny rear aperture it appears out of round and full of fur - that is old man eyes for you.

From several different sources on stopping up or down on the rear aperture diameter, "you want to stop down until you get spider webs in the aperture, then go back up until they are barely there, all this will change with available light and the position of the light".

So even though you have older eyes, they are still working!

[Doc Highwall]

NRA targets are 13"@200 yards, 19"@300 yards, 36"@600 yards. Don't make it a seeing game, make it a shooting game.