How to properly use windage and elevation knobs?

[A. Tuttle]

I took my new CZ-455 to a range, and it appears POI is seriously off POA - 7in down and 1in left on 50 yards. So I have 2 questions:

1. Is it normal, or does it mean that I messed something up when installing the scope, etc?
2. is there any way / reason to make the current "7 up, 1 right" settings a new zero, or I should just use it as it is now? I mean, ideally these knobs are meant just for small adjustments to wind, right?

['ol shooter]

Take your scope off and optically zero it. Stand it front down on a mirror and light it so you can see the shadow of the reticle, then adjust until the shadow and actual reticle are one. Remount scope and see where it shoots. I have read of rings not fitting well on CZ rails causing your issue. Check out Rim Fire Central's Brno/CZ Forum, lots of good info and help available there.

http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/

[Barbarosa]

7" off @ 50 yards isn't normal IMHO. I'd take it back off and make sure there are no burrs or schmutz under the mount, rings or scope. Torque everything like you would a head on an engine - a little bit at a time and in a cross-pattern.

Pull out your bolt, set the rifle on something stable (or a bench rest if you have one) and look down the bore at something about 25 yards away. Your scope should be aiming at the same spot you see through the bore. Unless of course you have a bore sighter.

[as_rocketman]

Doesn't mean you screwed up mounting the scope. There is no guarantee that the scope came shipped with its crosshairs in the center of their adjustment range. Nor is it unusual for scope rails to be a few minutes of angle (MOA) away from the barrel axis. This is especially true of the CZ 455 with its slip-fit barrel mounting approach.

7" at 50 yards is 14 MOA. And that's in elevation. Between 25 m and 125 m, that same .22 LR will need roughly the same adjustment to compensate for distance. So I wouldn't be disturbed at all by that amount of adjustment.

On any given day you may see your personal zero shift by a few MOA as the body stretches and changes your parallax. You should also expect a few MOA change every time you change ammunition.

Sights are not set and forget -- it's good practice to learn them and adjust whenever you see consistent grouping off target, or conditions change in a way you can predict. But if you find yourself having to make a large adjustment unexpectedly, then pay attention.

[ifilef]

As in post #2, do the 'mirror' trick before mounting the scope. It works- will save you ammo.

You should thereafter be able to zero in two shots if you keep the rifle stationary and adjust the turrets to the hole you made with the first shot: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiOpQY2ORo4

[small hole shooter]

I usually make a starting point by counting the total clicks up/down divide by two, adjust to that figure, do the same side to side. This gives me a starting point that I can always go back to. Then shoot for center, adjust as needed.
If the gun is in a vice should only take a couple of shots. Then we can see how much we suck.