Steiner S1 Reticle and the 7mm-08

 

Steiner GS3 3-15x50

I recently purchased a Steiner GS3 3-15x50 rifle scope which I mounted onto a 7mm-08 rifle. The rifle is a Remington 700 with a 24 inch barrel and set into a free floated and bedded Bell and Carlson stock. The scope is mounted using Burris Signature Z Rings. 

The GS3 I purchased has the S1 reticle. This reticle is a simple design but is well suited for shots up to 500 yards. 

First, lets deal with why I purchased the GS3 rifle scope. Initially I had a Leupold VX-3i 4.5-14x50 CDS scope mounted on the rifle. To put it mildly, I was not impressed with the optic clarity. The scope was only marginally better than my Nikon Prostaff scopes. So, I decided to make a change. I have always admired Steiner scopes for their crystal clear optics and extremely rugged construction. For years I toyed with the idea of giving one a try and after doing some research into the S1 reticle I was convinced that the GS3 and S1 were a perfect match for my 7mm-08.

If there is a downside to Steiner scopes it is their weight. They are definitely heavy; but that comes with the extremely rugged construction.

One of several S1 configurations

 

The S1 reticle is designed so that the rifle is zeroed in at 100 yards; then adjusted so that the 400 yard marker is dead on. The logic is that the 200, 300 and 500 markers will fall roughly in line. Steiner offers an MOA guide that lets you know exactly how many MOA each mark on the reticle is set at. The concept is simple, but it doesn't work well with calibers that push bullets over 3150 fps, nor does it work well with slow sluggish rounds. For example, I shoot a 6mm Remington that no matter how you try, just won't marry well with the S1. 

Steiner S1 Reticle

As it turns out though, the reticle happens to be a perfect match for the 7mm-08 when shooting 140 or 150 grain high Ballistic Coefficient bullets. But ... and this is a big "but", the key is to sight the rifle in to a zero of 200 or so yards, and then use the range markers for 300, 400, 500, and 600 yards. Generally speaking, after sighting in for 200, fine tune so that the 400 yard marker is dead on. If you want to sight in with a zero of 100 yards as Steiner suggests, it still works, but not quite as well.

I shoot 150 grain Nosler Accubond Long Range bullets at a velocity of 2950 fps. When sighted in at 200 yards, all range markers on the S1 are almost dead on. I can hit a 10 inch gong out to 500 yards all day long (I have yet to try the 600 yard marker but ballistically it should be right on) Using regular 150 grain Nosler Accubond bullets I sight in at 220 yards then fine tune to be dead on at 400. It works like a charm.

Here is the MOA ballistic profile of my Nosler ABLR rounds as compared to the S1:

300 yrds -1.5 moa (S1 - 1.49 moa) 

400 yrds - 4.5 moa (S1 - 4.31 moa)

500 yrds - 7.1 moa (S1 - 7.18 moa)

600 yrds - 10.25 moa ( S1 - 10.56 moa)

In Summary, any caliber and rifle combination that offers up a ballistic profile similar to my 7mm-08 would work fine with the S1 reticle. It makes for rapid target acquisition and as long as you do your part to center the target in the scope so that parallax error is minimal, you should be right there.