How to question: Estimating range?

[whipkiller]

I read a lot of posts on here about "shooting blank groups at blank yards", and I'm wondering what method(s) people use to range without being at a range with known distances, or using laser rangefinder.

My preferred shooting is BLM land, and all I can do is guess really, and it's difficult to relate to a football field when into a hillside across a ravine, for example.

Anybody got any good tricks/techniques?

[Merc1138]

range finders, measuring tape(well, a rope. If you're only shooting say, 25 yards that's easy to carry a 25y length of twine), laser range finders, reticules on scopes, gps, and so on.

The simplest example I can come up with for how this works with scope reticles:

Say your scope reticule has a mark on it that you know represents 10 inches at 100 yards. You point it at an object that you know is 10" wide, and if it's the same size then you know it's 100 yards. If it's half the size of the mark on your reticule then you know it's 200 yards away. If it's a quarter the size of that mark, then you know it's 400 yards away. Obviously there are differences that can be made to give much better precision.

The other method with some scope reticles is some mark that also corresponds to the magnification. If you have 2 marks | | like that representing 10 inches, and then adjust your zoom till those match up with being 10 inches wide(vital area of an animal you're hunting) then look back at the zoom adjustment the manufacturer may have included a range estimate. At 3x it might be 100 yards, at 6x 200 yards, etc.

[whipkiller]

Rope... I think my pea-brain can handle that one.

My cheap-azz scope I don't think has the reticle marks, it's actually just an illuminated cross-hair Barska w/no magnification, and the two times I've used it thus far it falls off my 795 after about 200 rounds. (That's a whole 'nother thread.)

I'm thinking maybe I'll go to Harbor Freight and pick up one of the big grading type measuring tapes. I know they have 100' & maybe 100 yds.?

[CSACANNONEER]

STADIA, learn it and you can get pretty close with nothing more than your eye, your thumb and something of known height. Using reticle marks is just a form of measuring by stadia.

[whipkiller]

STADIA, learn it and you can get pretty close with nothing more than your eye, your thumb and something of known height. Using reticle marks is just a form of measuring by stadia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stadiametric_rangefinding

This one? So I'd be substituting my eye and marks or wrinkles on my thumb for the telescope & transit, or other surveying tool? Interesting...

[Fishslayer]

I use the numbers painted on the wall...

[Merc1138]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stadiametric_rangefinding

This one? So I'd be substituting my eye and marks or wrinkles on my thumb for the telescope & transit, or other surveying tool? Interesting...

Yup.

If you know your target is going to be as wide as your thumb at 100 yards, if it's twice as wide then it's only 50 yards. All you really need to know is what represents a certain size at a certain distance in advance.

[CSACANNONEER]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stadiametric_rangefinding

This one? So I'd be substituting my eye and marks or wrinkles on my thumb for the telescope & transit, or other surveying tool? Interesting...

Surveyors have been making stadia measurements since surveying began. Once you get a little practice, it comes pretty easy and you always have all the tools needed. Of course, you can get more refined and more refined by using better and better equipment but, in the end, it's still the same principles.

[Bete Noire]

Use the mil relation formula or buy a mildot master. Basically you compare a know size object at your target distance to the stadia or mil dots in your scope. The scope manufacturer will tell you the distance, in mils, between each dot or stadia mark. Then use the mil relation formula to calculate distance. Use the google machine and it will mind numb you with all the info. Enjoy.

[Malmon]

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Bushnell174-Sport-450-Laser-Rangefinder/731214.uts?Ntk=AllProducts&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch.cmd%3Fform_state%3DsearchForm%26N%3D0%26fsch%3Dtrue%26Ntk%3DAllProducts%26Ntt%3DBushnell%2525AE%2BSport%2B450%2BLaser%2BRangefinder%26x%3D0%26y%3D0%26WTz_l%3DHeader%25253BSearch-All%2BProducts&Ntt=Bushnell%25AE+Sport+450+Laser+Rangefinder&WTz_l=Header%253BSearch-All+Products

[kel-tec-innovations]

I use a range finder and GOOGLE EARTH its pretty accurate

[jumpthestack]

If you don't need it to be precise, you could pace it by measuring the length of one or two steps and then counting how many steps it takes to get to the target.