Some things to keep in mind, the two things that will affect this the most are muzzle velocity and the ballistic coefficient (BC) of the projectile. I just did the same thing and put in for a dial, but I realized that the ammo that I have has a real low ballistic coefficient of like 0.3, which makes it drop much faster. The really high BC ammo in 300 Win Mag is like five dollars a shot. Took me awhile to find some ammo at a decent price with a decent BC of just over 0.5, $50 for a box of 20 instead of $120 for a box of 20 for the high end stuff (I chose polymer tipped projectiles). Be sure to research your ammo first and get the best ammo you can (and can shoot within your budget) before locking in the dial to it, better yet buy a bunch of that ammo before you submit your dial info so you are sure you can get that ammo. If you can't get it anymore you may have to reload. Keep in mind that the dial is only accurate with that ammo that it is designed around, for all other ammo you'll have to do small manual adjustments or ideally you'd have multiple dials, one for each type of ammo. I didn't use a chronograph, I just took the number from the box, but keep in mind you need to know the muzzle length that they used for that number. In my case they used a 26 inch barrel and that's what I have. If I had a 20 inch barrel then I'd need a chronograph because the muzzle velocity would be much different. If you do use a chronograph be sure to use the exact same ammo that you intend to use with the new dial. Also for the air temperatures, I've heard that it only changes the bullet drop about 2 inches at 1,000 yards, so temp is not that important. At 1,000 yards the bullet drops about 25 feet anyway depending on the bullet, it's a tough shot, temperature adjustment is only for professional long range shooters. Not sure how much elevation would affect things, I'm up here at 9,000 feet. I'd be curious to see how that differs from sea level.
Getting to buy a Leupold with the CDS option. I would love to see a follow up video of you field testing the it at different ranges out to maybe 500 yards.
Make sure the rifle is sighted in exactly right before installing the turret as once the CDS turret is installed you can't adjust downward without loosening the three three screws and moving the turret to a position that allows downward movement relocking the screws turning it down and then returning it to the original position. You can adjust up but then also have to loosen screws and adjust to zero.. No great big deal but somewhat time consuming . Just make sure you sight in first. Hope this made sense.
Good info, just got one question, the sight height, you put the rod thru the barrel and you measure from top of the rod or bottom of rod to the middle of the scope. Thank you and Happy New Year.
Like the elevation forgiveness +\-, did you find out if there is any forgiveness on the velocity? I’d like to get my .270 Win 140g Nos AB ordered but I handload and don’t have an exact FPS.
Hello. What size scope do you have on there? And what size are the rings? I have a 4-12x40mm on an xbolt with medium rings, but got a sight height of 1.75 inches. I want to make sure we have a similar setup, otherwise my measurement may be off. Thanks!
How are you liking that scope? Im thinking of putting a Ffp mark5 on my tikka in 6.5 prc I love the drop retticles they have on them. But also considering one of these and doing the whole dial system, What do you think? I want to be able to shoot to 1000 yds and only hunt furthest shot 500
I may have to call Leupold for the answer, but I bought a VX-Freedom AR 1.5-4x20. It has a CDS dial. I have it mounted on a Sig 556R in 7.62x39. Would they have a dial for those ballistics?
If sighting the 6.5 PRC for 100 yards zero what is the range on the custom dial? Also what is the length of your barrel so I can compare to my Tikka with a 24.3" barrel for velocity. Thanks for the help!
I can go out to 1200 or 1400 yards, I can’t remember, I run out of clicks on my scope before I hit my max range on the turret, I don’t run slanted rings, but if I was going to get the max range out of my scope I would for sure do that! The barre length is 23”
@@straightshooter7354 thanks brother. So my velocity may be a little more with the slightly longer barrel. I will run straight rings as well as this is a hunting setup that I will never shoot over 500yrds
Hey bud what state are you from? The reason I’m asking is because I’m thinking about getting me a CDS scope to put on my rifle, and I’m like you practice with it at home and hunt with it out west. I’m from TN so I know the elevation is going to be different
Just to make sure I didn’t miss something on mine. Once zeroed and the cap is re positioned to zero. The dial will not dial down the adjustments are only to dial up is that correct.
@@straightshooter7354 so in the event I needed to dial down either from changing weight or another gun I would have to remove the dial turn it 180 to dial it down remove it and put it back to zero? Just making sure I’m not missing something. Kinda concerning i can’t go down if and when needed
If you change bullet weight you would need to get a new CDS and zero, because your ballistics would be off, if you use let’s say a 100 yard zero, anything inside of 100 yards should only drop the distance from the center of your scope to the center of the bore. If you don’t use the CDS turret and keep the one that comes with the scope and the scope is NOT a ZL scope then you can go backwards on your turret
@@straightshooter7354 yeah I have a zero lock. I’m just trying to give my self piece of mind for dialing down. Not that I think I’ll ever need it just good to know it’s there if needed. Thanks for the info
Just out of curiosity, I live where I have readily access to a private range however, range is at 2100 ft elevation, and it's currently in the low to mid 70's Fahrenheit. I hunt at 5000' feet of elevation, and it averages at 35°, so how would I sight in properly?
Thanks for the comment. I would start with zeroing your rifle at either 100, or 200 yards. When you order the turret they give you a margin of I think it is 1,000 feet +/-, and 10 degrees +/-. If I was you I would use the information from where you hunt, and I think it will be pretty close to your current residence. If possible, when you get to where you will be hunting you can check your zero and make minor adjustments there if needed.
@@straightshooter7354 hey man, just got my custom turret and have sighted the rifle, it was great especially when I dialed it out to 650 and found its mark right where I put the cross hair. Thanks and keep up with your great videos!
Might be a stupid question but I have a leupold vx-3i 4.5-14x40 that didn’t originally come with a cds. Would I be able to order the cds and add it to my scope?
My first thought would be no, if it wasn’t labeled a CDS scope from factory. I haven’t ever tried it, but if it has a removable turret it might work?! Ha
Why do you need to check for heat ? If your in the woods it’s cold and your only shoot 1 or 2 times top at a deer so your gun not going to be hot lol I’m confused and to tell your fps do you got to shoot to see or just go off the box ?
Hey Matt thanks for the comment, to answer your temperature questions, it doesn’t have to do with the gun, but everything to do with the bullet and how it effects drag and resistance levels. For the FPS, you always want to shoot the gun through a crono, the number on the box is almost always to high. Manufacturers typically get those velocity’s from shooting longer barrels
Factory ammo often uses a 26" barrel for the velocity on the box. If you're using a 20" - 22" inch bolt gun, the velocity you're getting may differ significantly from the box or website.
If temperature and elevation matter that much, I don't see how it could hold accurate for all the seasonal changes, and hills and valleys. A 15° day at 3500 feet, and a 90° day at 500 feet are nothing close to the same, and I shoot in both
Is not possible to use that serial number even if you still didn’t used because the ordering forms required the owner informations: name, address , email..name of the optic shops what the scope purchased.. the purchasing date..
@@straightshooter7354 a friend of mine laughed at me too. I thought they would have them already made. LMAO!! I was wrong for sure and i will admit i'm not very patient. He said "you moron they can't just crap you one out, it takes time to build it to your specs you sent" I indeed felt like a moron after learning the process. 🤣
How long did Leupold take to send you the turrets? I just placed my order today hoping they are here by NY opener (mid Nov) Also great setup I have the xbolt hcs .270 with vx5hd 3-15x56. Best of luck this season and really looking forward to your response to my question above. God Bless.
Thanks for the comment! I want to say it took less than 3 weeks, so you should have it in plenty of time! Good luck this hunting season to you as well!
