Zeroing Pistol Dot with Sub Par Marksmanship

Asahi

Asahi

Newbie
How does everyone zero their pistol dots? Unfortunately I can't consistently shoot tight groups at the distances needed to properly zero yet. Even If I could I'd like to remove as much human error as possible. It seems the ransom rest may be the "best" option however it also seems to be much more costly and intensive than I assumed. My current plan is try one of those Caldwell adjustable stands. I know it won't be perfect but hopefully it will be (and I don't like this term) "good enough". Let me know what methods you guys use and what you've found to work well.
 
Papabear2547

Papabear2547

Member
Asahi said:
How does everyone zero their pistol dots? Unfortunately I can't consistently shoot tight groups at the distances needed to properly zero yet. Even If I could I'd like to remove as much human error as possible. It seems the ransom rest may be the "best" option however it also seems to be much more costly and intensive than I assumed. My current plan is try one of those Caldwell adjustable stands. I know it won't be perfect but hopefully it will be (and I don't like this term) "good enough". Let me know what methods you guys use and what you've found to work well.
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Can you group at 10 yards if you shoot from a stabilized position? How about 7, or 5? I would zero it at whatever range you can group at. Watch those videos, too. Jedi has said being right on at 10 or 15 yards (where you can actually group well) and guessing some minimal holdover/under at 25 (if you can't group) is probably better than zero at 25 and estimating closer ranges. That said, the closer the zero is, your point of impact should probably be a bit lower than your point of aim.
 

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Chriscanbreach

Chriscanbreach

Established
@Asahi
If you have time please shoot 4 separate 5 round groups at 10 yards and post a picture of them if you don’t already have pictures of your groups. You didn’t really describe what your idea of poor marksmanship is or give us an idea of the group size.

While keeping all five rounds in a one inch square is possible it’s not necessary to zero.
If you’re shoving the rounds from a glock low left there is a lot you can work on with a competent instructor who’s local to you and unfortunately we’ve seen dots zeroed to that problem. But still technically they are zeroed for that shooter.

As far as how I zero. I’m at 10 yards offhand on a one inch square. Then check hold under at 25.
 
rudukai13

rudukai13

Pro Internet User
I have hand tremors that make it difficult for me to properly zero pistol RDS at my preferred zero distance (25 yards). It costs a bit, but whenever I want a newly mounted dot really dialed in I give it to my gunsmith along with a box of my preferred carry ammo and he uses his rest to zero the system. Much more accurate than I’d ever be able to get it
 
shoobe01

shoobe01

Established
Bench and bags. I can do it properly with the full size guns, but I added an RDS to the Kahr, and it was very hard to do both with iron-alignment and just holding it. Ended up on blocks and bags I had in the range bag. Worked out pretty well.
 
Derek Cox

Derek Cox

Amateur
Sounds like your question has been answered, but I'll add another data point.

I grab my precision rifle big bag and soda bag with heavy fill and dig the grip down into them. Then I work on getting good bone support on the bench like I would a rifle. After that all you have to worry about is getting your natural point of aim, again like a rifle, and then just worry about focusing on a proper trigger press. I've never had problems zeroing with this method. I shoot a 25 yard zero but YMMV.

If you're concerned with what your groups look like upload an image like @Chriscanbreach requested, that's really the best way for us to understand what you're seeing as problematic.
 
Runcibleman

Runcibleman

Member
Default.mp3 said:
I have found a noticeable difference in my bagged zero and free hand zero at 25 yards (about 2", IIRC).
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Same, I find about 1.5" difference with most (though not all) my handguns. This is why after you set your absolute zero bagged, you want to check it standing, i.e. the practical zero and make any final adjustments.
 
Default.mp3

Default.mp3

Established
PortableCougar said:
I’d wager that’s why you see a poi shift when bagged.

Try moving the bag to under the grip to remove any upwards pressure on the dust cover.
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I've tried only bagging off the mag baseplate, still a noticeable shift, and noticeably less stability, too. I'm confident enough in my free hand that I just don't bag any more; the bagging simply took less effort, but did not result in noticeably smaller group sizes.
 
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