What Range should one Zero an RMR red dot for hunting?

[Roguer]

I'm getting an RMR redot that is 3 MOA for hunting. My only experience with an "Optic" on a hand gun is my 2X Leupold on y Superredhawk in 44 mag.

So at what range for deer hunting should a red dot on a 10mm be zeroed for on a G40? I'm thinking maybe 20 yards?

Thanks for any advice, my main ammo hasn't been selected yet but its going to be a hot one.

[Bunny]

I have my RMR zeroed at 25 yards and it works well out to a hundred yards.

[Roguer]

Thanks! Since its a 10mm, I was thinking 20-25 yards, 25 yards seems like a smarter idea.

[The_Shadow]

Take that a 180 grain bullet starting out at 1250 fps if zeroed in at 50 yards here is the trajectory numbers

Velocity
Muzzle 1250 fps  25 yards 1174 fps  50 yards 1111 fps  100 yards 1017 fps

Energy
Muzzle 624 FtLb  25 yards 551 FtLb  50 yards 493 FtLb  100 yards 413 FtLb

Trajectory in inches
25 yards 0.5" above line of sight  50 yards 0.0 zero  100 yards -5.5 below line of sight

http://www.shooterscalculator.com/ballistic-trajectory-chart.php

[Rooster41]

I have a Vortex Venom on a G20. I have it zeroed for 25 yards. I can hit 100 yards pretty consistently. Im not sure what the grouping is like. The club I go to has steel plates hanging. I just shoot those and never walk down to look at them. Next time I am down there I will hang some paper and see what it does. 50 yards would probably be my max for hunting.

[The_Shadow]

Not sure what bullet and weight and velocity you are using or the actual plate size for your target, but a 180 (BC 141) @ 1200 fps with a sight at 1" above bore zeroed at 25 yards shows about -7.9" drop at 100 yards... velocity 992 fps with energy of 393 ftlb.

[Rooster41]

Sorry, maybe my post is a touch misleading. I am using handloaded 180 grain Hornady XTP and Nosler JHP. I shot a mag full of each with the Hornady having more hits than the Nosler (12-10). I don't know velocity because I have not ran them over a chrono. I am shooting at a 10" plate and I am aiming just above the plate. So I could be hitting the bottom of it.  To me consistently equals more than half my rounds hitting the plate. I had 22 rounds on target out of 30.  My Vortex was zeroed at 25 yards. I have a stock G20 with a Outer Impact mounting plate that sits in the dove tail for the rear sight.

[The_Shadow]

357_Sig, it does seem that you ammo is tracking very close to the trajectory info I posted above...Aiming at the top edge of a 10" plate and with 8" of bullet drop places the impact just above the bottom edge...   

[4949shooter]

I am with Shadow on this one. 50 yards / good to 100.

Glock on.

[sqlbullet]

The answer to this question requires your projectile BC and initial velocity.  Without that we can only guess.

Assuming a 180 grain XTP at 1350 fps we get theoretical data that suggests with a perfectly accurate bullet (0-MOA shooter) a 125 yard zero gives you a 147 yard point blank range.  That is any shot fired at the center of a 10" plate would be hit the plate.  Or any shot fired at the center of a white tail deer's 10" vital zone would hit the vital zone.

But you gun isn't going to deliver 0-MOA.  In fact, in American Rifleman testing 180 grain hunting ammo delivered 3" average groups at 25 yards.  That is 12 MOA.  Which means you may miss the 10" vitals with a perfectly aimed shot at any range beyond 83 yards just due to statistical averages.  Important to note here that 3" was the average of several groups (ten 5-shot or five 10-shot, I can't ever remember their standard).  They report the best group as 2.75" which implies the worst was about 3.25" though that implication is without access to standard deviation.  It could have been seven or eight groups between 2.75" and 2.8" and two groups of 4"

So, being good ethical hunters, we will use the 3.25" value, which now gives us 76 yards before statistics wounds rather than kills.

Armed with this starting point we know that a 75 yard zero is required for a 75 yard point blank shot.  The question is if the path at the high point plus the accuracy deviation puts us off the 10" circle. And, the answer is no.  At 41.5 yards the flight path will be 1.37" above point of aim, and the accuracy group will be at most 5.46" in diameter.  Since only have that average will be high, 1.37 + (5.46/2) = 4.10" above point of aim, and .9" from the edge of the vital zone.

This would suggest a 75 yard zero.

However, your shooting data should be used as inputs to this process.  Maybe you have a gun that will shoot a 1.5" group (6 MOA) consistently at 25 yards.  And maybe you will get 1425 fps from your extra barrel.  These number, BTW would give you a 100 yard zero for a 110 yard point blank range taking into account speed and accuracy.



https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2015/12/17/review-glock-g40-gen4-mos-pistol/

[The_Shadow]

I would suggest looking at also down range velocity & energy at 100 yards being at or near 1000 fps & energy being at or near 400 ft lb as a determining factor for a humane kill fore the animal.
While this velocity & energy is higher than a 45 ACP at the muzzle in most instances, one would have to fully understand his gun's performance with the ammo chosen, if wanting to work to the 100 yard or beyond...

[Ramjet]

The only 10mm I will shoot at game out to 100 yards is the G2 MGM barrel it will shoot 2.00" groups all day. The handguns are for 75 yards and under but mostly 50 yard guns. I have a number of specialty pistols for long range shooting.

[blaster]

I'm not a long range pistol hunter.  I sighted the Vortex Venom on my XDm at 25 yds. thats about the distance I see & shoot most of my deer & hogs. if one comes in closer or farther away, an inch or so off dead center won't really matter. I like to pistol hunt at the same ranges that I bow hunt. any farther than that is what rifles are for.