Spring is the time for resident suburban squirrels to begin mating behaviors and become even more territorial than usual. Besides seeking suitable mates, they are scouting suitable nesting sites – like the attic of my freshly repainted house! That means it’s time to re-zero the Sheridan air rifle and take a few of the critters down.
I have to re-zero the rifle because I added a 3-9x Daisy airgun scope. I know, a real rifle needs a real scope. But, since this particular scope seems to be pretty well put together, with pretty small amount of parallax, it seemed a natural to mount to the gun. I would prefer a long eye relief scope, such as a handgun sight or a red dot sight. Those sights can be mounted forward on the barrel and leaving the pellet breech open for my fumbling fingers. Also, having a little more weight forward will improve the gun’s balance for shooting in a standing position.
I really try to avoid shooting unsupported in the standing position. I always look for some kind of rest to support and steady the rifle. It could be a tree trunk or branch, or maybe a rock or the side of a shed. I also try to shoot from concealment if at all possible. Anything that can make me harder to notice, or makes me look less human-like. That could be shooting from a prone position, or from behind a tree, rock, whatever. Even sitting with your back to a tree of other object will make you appear less like the two-footed terror called Man. That may let the animal come a few feet closer or make the quarry feel less threatened.
Sighting in begins with checking the mount of the scope. The mounts and rings must be mounted securely to the gun. A drop of locktite or clear nail polish (very little) will keep those tiny screws from shooting loose. Once the mount and rings are nice and snug, adjust the scope’s position in the rings to the proper eye relief, or distance from your eye. After making sure that your gun is EMPTY and safe, hold the gun as you would if shooting and slide the scope back and forth to get the clearest view. The best setup has the least amount of dark around the edges and does not black out as quickly if you move your head from side to side. Lightly tighten the scope screws, but leave them just loose enough to barely move the scope. Now support the gun in a steady position. The vertical crosshair must be straight up and down in line with the barrel of the gun and the horizontal crosshair must be parallel with the ground. Once you have it all lined up, tighten each screw a small amount, check that the crosshairs are still aligned where you need them, then tighten the screws again, snug but not too tight.
Now we can go shooting! In a safe area with a good backstop, set up a small target at 10 yards. I use 10 meters, but I am weird like that. I like to use several 1 inch circles colored with a marker on a sheet of paper. Shoot three shots at one target. This is just to get the point of impact in the ball park. Look at the pellet hole and estimate the center of your grouping. If the pellets are all over the paper, something is wrong! Maybe the scope is still loose or broken internally. Or, maybe you just can’t shoot…naaaah, that can’t be it!
Adjust your scope to move the center of your grouping to the center of the target. The adjustment screws are usually marked with arrows to show which way to turn the adjuster to move the group center. Turning the adjuster towards “Down” will move your point of impact down on the target.
Once you made your adjustment, shoot one pellet at another target. Adjust again, then repeat. When you have the scope right where you think you want it, carefully shoot a 3 shot group. Take your time between shots! Adjust if needed, but you should be good to go.
Next time we will discuss what range to dial in for and maybe pellet selection for furry grey vandals (excellent in a crock pot with gravy over biscuits).
Keep shooting!
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