By John Kleespies
One of the never-ending “discussions” in load development is the distance at which groups should be tested. Here are some of my considerations…
The range at which a round should be tested depends upon the cartridge and intended use of the round. For instance, it would make sense to test a .248win hunting rifle at 100 yards. However, if I’m loading a ridiculously accurate .338 Lapua for extra long-range shooting, then the 100-yard bullet holes may be stacked on top of each other to the point that it may be difficult to really know how the bullets are landing; here, a 200 (or 300, or 400!) yard test distance may be required to separate the bullet hits enough to accurately measure center-to-center strike points.
Even pistols rounds should be considered for testing at distances other than the “everybody knows you test at 25 yards” rule. Personally, I almost never test my pistol calibers at 25 yards… unless I’m writing an article, and I don’t want to hear complaints from the readers about testing at a different distance!
If I have a pistol for inside-the-home defense, I can extrapolate that it will never be used at a distance farther than eight or so yards. That being the case, I’m not ashamed to test at eight yards! On the other hand, for Steel Challenge competitions, several of the plates are set at 35 yards. While my 9mm SC zero was 18 yards, I did groups at 35 yards to check for group size as well as to verify my bullet drops and make time-of-flight considerations.
I think that there is also a strong argument for not group testing at the zero distance. For instance, if my .308win is zeroed for 100 yards, I’m aiming at a .25” dot on paper, and I shoot half the dot out with the first shot, followed by shooting the second half of the dot out with the second shot, then… what exactly am I aiming at for all the next shots? In effect, I’m guaranteeing an artificially large group because I no longer have a defined “center” to place my crosshairs onto. On the other hand, if I’m zeroed at 100 yards but grouping at 200 yards on that same .25” dot, now the bullet rise will ensure that my bullets will strike off the dot (i.e., off the point of aim), allowing me to maintain my center through the entire group. This will give me a more authentic group. Alternately, I can still test my group sizes at 100 yards on that same .25” dot, if I want; I just need to adjust my scope a handful of clicks off the zero so that my Point of Impact is off Point of Aim… and then remember to re-zero when I’m done.
Basically, my answer to “What’s the proper distance to shoot groups?” is that “proper” is relative and should be treated as such.
