I got quite a bit of positive feedback on my last “beginner’s guide” post on reloading (check it out HERE) so I figured I’d try to share a little more knowledge in here, this time on ballistics calculators in general and Applied Ballistics specifically. This isn’t going to be a short post, so make sure you’ve got a few minutes to read through this in its entirety.

This isn't KAC-specific, but I want to try to make you guys better shooters. I don't give a rats ass about 99% of ARFcommers, but we have a pretty good crew in here, and I'll help this community however I can. You can apply this stuff to any rifle you've got, but I'm going to give out examples that are based on SR-15s and SR-25s.

There are a bunch of ballistics programs available for both iOS and Android. Most are available on both platforms, while others are specific to one or the other. Some are free, some are a few bucks, and others can be quite expensive, I believe I paid $125 for AB Tactical. Below is a list of the programs I currently have installed on my phones. I don’t actively use all of these programs, nor do I recommend most of them, but I keep them around so that I can stay familiar with them in case buddies are using them and need me to troubleshoot something for them. All of them except AB Tactical are available in the iTunes and/or Google Play store, and they can be on your phone in a few seconds.

Applied Ballistics
AB Tactical
BallisticsARC
Ballistics AE
Shooter
Strelok Pro
TRASOL
Bushnell Ballistics
Hornady 4DOF
BulletFlight
Lapua Ballistics

For new guys looking into long range shooting, I ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS recommend Applied Ballistics. In my opinion, it is the easiest program to use, and it is also provides the most accurate data. The app is fully supported by Applied Ballistics LLC, it’s constantly being updated with new bullet data, and if you have issues, Doc Beech will get back to you within 24 hours (usually). The AB bullet database is the best available, and when you couple that with their Custom Drag Models (CDM), there is really no reason to run any other program. Inside most “practical” distances, say 7-800 yards for the SR25 guys, most of the apps listed above will get you close enough to hit an IPSC/man-sized target. However, if you want to start popping 1MOA targets consistently, especially at further-than-normal distances, and assuming you and your rifle are capable of it, then you’re going to want a program that is capable of giving you the correct firing solution, and that is where the other programs will fall short. I’ve personally verified the AB data out past 1700 yards with my 6.5/260 guns, and past 1300 with my 7.62 guns. I'm not talking about hitting targets at that distance on my "home range" either, where I know the hold-overs / drops by heart. I'm talking about going to a new place, that I've never been to before, and being told to hit that target at 1475 yards with my first or second shot. Applied Ballistics does that for me, and it will do it for you. I’ll get more into the differences in data later on in this post. The rest of this post is going to be AB specific. Most of the information will be cross-compatible with the other programs, but the work flow or nomenclature will probably be different.

***If you use another program and the results you get are satisfactory to you, then by all means, rock on. I don’t want this post to degrade into a pissing match over what app you personally use. If you’re already running an app then this post probably isn’t for you anyways***

First off, you need to get the app installed. Head over to your app store and search “Applied Ballistics”. The correct program logo is a blue box with a white “A” inside. I think the app is $30, it’s the best $30 you’ll spend in your shooting career. Get it installed and then open it up.



Once it’s open, you’ll be greeted with a blank screen and a few buttons in the top right. The “+” button will add a new rifle profile, and the “box/arrow” (three dots on Android) will take you to the preferences menu. Most of the options in the preferences menu are self-explanatory, but double check the following:

-Operation Mode: Advanced
-Automatic Atmosphere: Off
-Save Last Environment: On
-Always Enable Spin Drift: Your preference, I leave mine off
-Always Enable Coriolis: Off
-Range Step Size: 5 or 10 is preferred



Once you’ve got those set, head back to the main screen and build your first rifle profile by hitting the “+” button. Most of this stuff should be easy to fill in. I'm going to build a SR-25 PR with a H59 FFP scope in a KAC mount.

-Barrel twist is 1 in 7 for SR15 or 1 in 10 / 1 in 11 for SR25 depending on what model you’ve got.
-Twist direction is right.
-Sight Height is dependant on what mount you’re using. Receiver height is 1.2” for the SR15 and 1.318 for the SR25. You’ll add the appropriate number to whatever height mount you’ve got. Most scope mounts are in the 1.5” range. If you have to physically measure, measure from the center of the bolt face (firing pin hole) to the center of the windage turret or scope tube. Try to get as accurate of a measurement as you can, within 1/10th is ideal.
-Sight Offset is 0.
-If AB has your reticle then pick that one, otherwise just pick something, it doesn’t really matter.
-If you’ve got a first focal plane reticle, then select that and it will lock out the next few boxes.
-If you’ve got a second focal plane reticle, then put in the power range of your optic. Most optics will be “true” at their highest magnification. So if you have a NF NXS 3.5-15, put 3.5 as the low mag and 15 as the high mag and true mag.
-Select the appropriate turret units for your optic
-leave both correction factors at 1



To edit the rifle profile in the future, or ammo profiles, you swipe right-to-left. Hit "More", then "Edit". On Android, you long press on the rifle or ammo profile.

Once you’ve got all that stuff filled in, hit “done” and it will pop you back to the main screen and you should see the rifle you just built there as a selectable profile. Select that rifle and it will bring you to another blank screen where you will need to build a load profile for the rifle. I’m going to use Fed Gold Medal Match 308 175gr ammo for my example.
Hit the “+” again and select “From Bullet Library”. From there, scroll down until you see the appropriate bullet diameter and click into it, .308 for me. After that, you’ll select the bullet manufacturer, and then pick the actual bullet from the list. If you’re running a common bullet, most of the fields in the next screen will auto populate. If your bullet is not in that list, scroll to the bottom of this post to get the info you need, and then come back here. You’ll need to name the load profile, input your correct muzzle velocity, input your zero range, and BUY A CUSTOM DRAG MODEL. The CDM is what separates AB from the rest of the programs. Pay the $2 you cheap bastards and then make sure that CDM is selected for Drag Model. You won’t be able to put in a number like you normally would with a G1/G7 drag model, don’t freak out, the CDM doesn’t require any input from you. Once you’ve got all that info in, make sure that Enable Zero Atmosphere is disabled and then hit “done”. In the future, when you build additional ammo profiles, the program will tell you what bullets you've purchased CDMs for by putting "CDM" next to the bullets name















After the ammo profile is built, you should be able to select it, which will take you to YET ANOTHER screen. This screen is where the magic happens, so pay attention:

Target
-Load Target: you can load a target if you have one previously saved
-Distance: This is the max distance on the range card that the program is going to generate for you, I usually put it for the max distance target that I have available to me during my range sessions.
-Look angle: Used for shooting high angle / low angle stuff, I don’t generally worry about angle unless its over 8 degrees and I’m shooting past 1000 yards.
Move Speed: Speed of a target that is moving.
Move Angle: Angle the target is moving in relation to your position.

Atmosphere (This is where it gets tricky)
-Load Station Atmosphere: NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER use this. Buy a Kestrel.

-IF YOU’VE SELECTED USE DENSITY ALTITUDE IN PREFERENCES then you’ll see Density Altitude and Temperature

-IF YOU’VE DESELECTED USE DENSITY ALTITUDE IN PREFERNCES then you’ll see Altitude, Baro. Pressure, Pressure is Absolute, Temperature, and Humidity

Fill in this stuff as appropriate using numbers from your Kestrel (you did buy one right?). If you’re using baro pressure, select Pressure Is Absolute, which will gray out the Altitude box.

Wind Speed: Speed at the shooter’s location
Wind Angle: Wind angle in relation to the shooters direction of fire.

Spin Drift
Enable: Up to you, I generally leave it off. If you leave it off, the other fields will be grayed out. If you turn it on, then the fields should auto populate based on the ammo profile you’ve loaded

Coriolis Effect
Enable: I always leave this off, you’re not shooting far enough with your SR15/SR25 for it to matter.

Once you’ve got all that info in, hit the top right “trajectory” button and viola, you’ve got a legit dope chart for your rifle. Scroll down to whatever range your target is at, dial that onto the scope or hold in the reticle, correct for the wind, and then start making hits. You don't need to update you atmospheric conditions every 5 minutes! You won't see a noticeable difference in dope unless your environment changes significantly. I check it once an hour when I'm shooting a major match.







I scaled this to 25 yard increments, I normally use 5.


You can also have data presented in a Heads Up Display format, or even generate a picture of where you should hold in your reticle to hit a target at a specified distance, just click on the "circle reticle" button instead of the "trajectory" button. You can modify target distance and wind speed/direction from the HUD to update your firing solution. I personally don't find much use for these features, but they are there and might be useful to you. The HUD does allow you to easily change between Mils to MOA or IPHY on the fly if you need to do that.

But what if you’re not making hits?

GARBAGE IN = GARBAGE OUT

You HAVE to make sure the numbers you’re putting into the app are correct. Pay attention to every field you have to fill out. Double check it. Then check it again. If the program is giving you incorrect data, it’s because you gave it incorrect numbers, and it can be a bitch to find that ONE error in all of your work. Double check your velocity numbers, and make sure you use a real chronograph to get your velocity. If you’re not using a Magnetospeed, LabRadar, or Oehler, then you’re wrong. Find someone who has one of those and borrow it. DO NOT TRY TO CALCULATE VELOCITY BASED ON DROP AT A KNOWN RANGE. You’re just guessing, which is garbage. See above.

Check that you’re putting in the right atmospheric data. Buy, borrow, or steal a Kestrel. Make sure you’re putting in the appropriate data. I never ever ever use “Load Station Atmosphere” because, in all of my shooting travels, I’ve never found a weather station on the shooting line. Getting environmental data from a weather station that is 2/5/10/20 miles away from your shooting position is useless. Garbage. See above.

If you’re 100% convinced all the numbers are correct, and you’ve verified your target distance with a laser, then start looking at the gun. Make sure your zero is good, scope rings are torqued, scope base is torqued, and turrets track correctly. IF YOU AREN’T FAMILIAR WITH A TALL TARGET SCOPE TEST then fire up google and start reading. 99.9% of scopes do not track 100% true. This means that if you dial 10 mils onto your turret, you might actually only be getting 9.6, or maybe you are actually getting 10.3. You get what you pay for with scopes, but that is the subject of another discussion. If you do test your scope and determine that your “clicks” aren’t spot on, you can tell the app that you scope adjustments are off by a bit and it will take that into account. You can correct for your scope error by going back into the rifle profile and editing the elevation and windage correction factors.



What about those CDMs?

Here is a quick comparison of a 175gr Sierra Matchking, probably the most well-known .308 match bullet around. Sierra publishes G1 data for the bullet, so lets compare that to the CDM that you should be purchasing from AB. If you run a comparison between the G1 that Sierra publishes (.496) and the CDM from AB, you'll find that there is a difference of almost 2 FEET at 1200 yards. Yes, I know that is a long ways. But that is a pretty common distance at most precision rifle matches, and dudes are still shooting .308win at those matches. Being off by 2 feet is no bueno, so good luck hitting that 2MOA target with the wrong dope.

AB's data


Sierra's data


Rarely are manufacturer-published BCs correct. This is usually why people have to "true" their data. They modify the BC and/or velocity to get their data to line up with what they are seeing downrange. ITS BECAUSE THEY ARE USING AN INCORRECT BC. Sometimes the BCs are only off by a few points, other times they aren't anywhere close to advertised (looking at you right now Nosler ABLR!) Litz and his crew are constantly testing bullets and modifying the CDMs. BCs can change from lot to lot over time as the dies used to manufacture them get worn out from use. AB will correct for this, other programs won't.

OK, that's about it for now. This will be a "living/breathing" post for a while as I revise and edit. Please, if you've got questions, throw them out. I'll answer directly and try to incorporate the question's answer into the original guide if appropriate. If you think my method is bullshit then I invite you to come out to a match and show me that your data is better.

Are you associated with Applied Ballistics?

No

Excellent write up. I been holding off diving into AB because the setup and menus looked like they would have a learning curve. This helps remove a lot of the learning curve I was looking at.

I been getting away with my magnetospeed velocities and the generic ballistic calculators online and taping the card to my stock for reference. This has gotten me on 4 MOA plates at 600. Once I get some sighters on there then I can start to fine tune the dope and where it was off.

I been wanting a more accurate solution and my goal is 1st or 2nd round hits on 1-1.5 MOA targets at 600 yards. My wind calls are the biggest thing I need to practice for my goals. Working on a 22lr bolt gun and have 300 yards very close to practice at.

Any recommendations on which model Kestrel for the best bang for the buck?

Kestrel 5000/5500 if you’re going to buy new.

If you’re not afraid of buying used, there are always good deals on the 4000-series models on Snipers Hide. You can get them under $200 if you look around a bit.

Excellent write up brother. I know that took some serious time. Very cool. I know I speak for many when I say Thank You.

Thanks dude.

Another very good write up. I’ll have to check this one out. I’ve been using StrelokPro the few times I’ve taken my stuff out to a decent range. It’s worked for me but does seem a little clunky during use.

Damn!! Do you ever sleep?

I was using StrelokPro for the last couple years. There’s been times where I got really frustrated and didn’t know if it was me, gun, ammo, optic, so on. Usually things were fine, hits came and I felt good about it but there were times were nothing made sense. I couldn’t nail it down. I admittedly didn’t put much thought into figuring it out.

It happened recently where I was shooting the 14.5 SR25 out to 600m. At 515m I had Strelok telling me I needed 5.4 mils elevation, I was hitting low. I held 3 tenths higher and got hits. This hold was confirmed by a spotter using a mil reticle spotting scope. I thought something was wrong with my muzzle velocity number.

I was texting with FRBaseball the other day and he ran my numbers from that day in AB...MV, optic height, DA, temp, and projectile. Numbers came out right at 5.7 mils!

He emailed me the full chart generated by AB. I checked it against my notes from that day.
AB data was dead on through at each distance I shot that day.
Ran a full chart from Strelok and everything was wrong.

Strelok has given me good info before.
I suspect it has given me bad info before.
However I can now confirm that it gave me bad info.
Strelok will no longer be giving me any info.
I’m a Applied Ballistics believer now.

Can anyone look at the in app reticles, and tell me if they have Tremor3 on it now, I have this app but not for Iphone, and cant look at it.

i am helping a buddy get set up on his SR25 and this is the ballistic app I suggested. It would be cool if the reticles in app worked for him, but if not it is not the end of the world

To add to this, anyone searching for more information on ballistics and long range shooting should take a look at Brian Litz's (the man behind the program) book. This has been on my "to read" list for a long time, just need to find some free time between work and 2 kids .

Applied Ballistics For Long Range Shooting

They have the Tremor2, but not the 3.

thanks, I was hoping they just had not updated their website.

The lack of reticles on AB is the ONLY reason I will sometimes use StrelokPro. Strelok has an excellent database of reticles. Strelok USED TO HAVE the Horus reticles, but they were removed a while ago. I know that doesn't help you at all, but for others that are running any sort of BDC reticle, there is a good chance that Strelok has it.

As Bleaman has highlighted above, Strelok is not a good app as a ballistics calculator, but for shorter-range stuff, say inside of 400, it won't make that big of a difference. If you're running a BDC-optic and can't find manufacturer data on what the subtensions are in MOA or MIL, then Strelok can be a good resource. I'm fortunate to have the opportunity to adjunct instruct a SPR/DMR class for a very large metropolitan police dept., and Strelok gets brought up in every class. I try to chrono the student's guns and then give them a picture of what THEIR SPECIFIC RETICLE means out to 400 yards with the issued Speer 75gr ammo. The class is not a "precision rifle" class, if it was then Strelok wouldn't be anywhere in the discussion.

I don't trust Strelok to get me a 1MOA-capable solution, but it is perfectly capable of putting students onto a B/C steel at 400, and if necessary, and human torso at 400. I would never, in my wildest dreams, consider using Strelok in any situation that required a high-confidence precision shot. It's kind of an apples-to-oranges comparison, I use Strelok for a completely different purpose than I use AB.

yeah cant have everything, but at least we will be able to run out some good range card info, anf who knows maybe they will add the tremor3 eventually, not the end of the world, but would be nice to have that in there.

I get that, main reason is that my friend will be new to long range shooting and likes the idea of having the reticle for reference, but long term not necessary

I'm a novice when it comes to longer range shooting (and even then my access is to 600 max at the moment) so I've used Strelok to get me on target and then make adjustments as necessary. I'll definitely take a look at AP and get familiar with it.

I'm glad I found this (certainly in an unexpected spot haha).

I have owned AB for a while now, and it's a great app. Well worth the money.