Field Notes

The short version of how to sight in a thermal scope: you cannot see a printed target through thermal, so the first job is building an aiming point that shows up as heat, not ink. Once the target is visible, most thermal units let you fire one shot, freeze the image, and drag the reticle […]

The short version of how to sight in a compound bow: confirm the peep is aligned and the sight is levelled, set your top pin at 20 yards until three arrows land centered, then leave it alone and set each remaining pin at its own distance by moving only that pin. Windage is set once

The short version of how to sight in a bow and arrow: shoot a small group at a close distance from a repeatable stance and anchor, then move the sight pin in the same direction the arrows landed. Arrows hitting low and left means the pin moves low and left, which is why archers call

To sight in a rifle: confirm it is unloaded, build a rest that removes your body from the equation, get on paper at short range, then shoot three-shot groups and move the sights to the center of the group. With iron sights you move the rear sight in the direction you want the group to

The short version of how to sight in a red dot: confirm the firearm is unloaded, check the mount screws, fit a fresh battery, then get on paper at close range before you back up. Pick one zero distance and commit to it, shoot three-shot groups from a solid rest, and move the dot to

Sighting in a rifle scope is a hardware problem before it is a shooting problem. Get the ring height right so your cheek sits naturally on the stock, set eye relief with the rifle shouldered in your real shooting position, level the reticle to the rifle rather than the horizon, and tighten the rings evenly

Here is how to sight in a scope, whatever the optic is bolted to: confirm the firearm is unloaded, tighten and level the mount, bore sight to get roughly on paper, then shoot a three shot group at 25 yards from a solid rest. Measure from the center of that group, dial the correction using