Steve...I've read thru the material a couple of times. I'm confused about the discussion of 1st focal plane and 2nd focal plane. Point me in the right direction to learn the difference between the two. Thanks.

John

John, a reticle that's located in the 1st focal plane i.e., a magnifying reticle, gets smaller and larger as u change magnification back and forth, and the important aspect of that is that each of those mil-dot stadia maintain their subtension (measurement) at any power, such that the reticle can be used for rangefinding and downrange zeroing at any power. FFP reticles tho are uncommon. Mostly FFP reticles are used by the military...mostly, since u don't have to think about what power the scope is on to rangefind, or for downrange zeroing with a reticle.

A reticle that's located in the 2nd focal plane (non-magnifying reticle) is what is normally seen in most scopes where the reticle does not change in size as the power is changed. But if u think about it, as the power is changed the tgt. itself gets bigger so the measurements between the reticle's stadia (dots, lines, plex post tips) on a target at any range will change.

Now the nice thing about the 2nd focal plane reticle (especially with a mil-dot reticle like your Tasco) is that as u change power the reticle measurements change PROPORTIONALLY (actually inversely porportional, complicating things slightly, because as magnification INCREASES reticle subtension DECREASES). This means that it's easy to calculate a measurement if u want/need to. U can really pick any power to zero the reticle. Many shooters complain that the mil-dot dot is too big for varmint/accuracy work, but the round dot is usually .2 of a mil. The mil (short for milliradian) is 3.6" per hundred yds. BETWEEN DOTS, so .2 of a mil is .2 X 3.6 = .72 inch per hundred yards. If u put a .7" round dot on a paper @ 100 yds. it would be the size of one of the dots.

Now look at your power ring. There should be an index mark or power mark somewhere there that's the indicator for the mil-dot magnification (3.6 IPHY)-- i bet it's around 10-12X as most are. That's oh-so-sweet, because now if u crank that power to 24, and the mil system is set up for 12X, that's 2X the power so 1/2 the mil measurement (remember inversely proportional). So now it's 1.8 IPHY between dots, and of course the dot measurement itself has changed relatively as well, so .2 (mil) X 1.8 = .36 IPHY Now u have a dot that's a little smaller than 1/2 inch, and works great for accuracy work (...and rangefinding more accurately, and downrange zeroing to a finer degree as well).

The exact same thing will apply to any 2nd focal plane reticle-- ballistic plex, Leupold's varmint hunter, simple plex, whatever. In fact, the plex reticle itself is often the simplest (and best) rangefinding and downrange zeroing reticle ever devised...IMO.

I just happened to think of another excellent system for using the mil-dot. OK suppose your ballistics program calcs bullet drop in minute of angle (MOA). U have your Tasco there that adjusts the subtension to whatever u want, as mentioned earlier. Now, 1 MOA measures 1.05 inch per hundred yds. Set up a tgt. at (exactly) 100 yds. that has 2 fine lines 2.1 inches apart (2.0 MOA, right??). Now adjust the scope power until the edges of 2 dots gap the lines perfectly (best to use the dot edges to get more precise). Mark the scope as accurately as u can to the power ring index mark. Now the subtensions of the "mil-dot" are exactly 2 MOA apart. Now run your ballistics program for your load, and note bullet drop and windage in MOA. Say if you're zeroed for 200 ,and 500 yds. your supposed to be 4.2 MOA low. Set up a steel silhouette or milk jug full of H2O, and aim dead center with the bottom of the 2nd mil-dot, and whammo, milk jug explodes...assuming averything else is working right, that is. Basically what we've done here is made a MOA reticle (common in some high dollar scopes) out of the mil-dot. IMO this is the best system for applying that scope as a ballistic reticle.

Here's something really cool. Just took a look at the Nikon specs in their catalog. The 4.5-14X Buckmasters MD is calibrated for 12X. BUT @ 14X the subtension becomes 3.12 inch per hundred yds. 3.12 / 1.047 = 3 MOA. Now, with a little improvisation u have one of the best MOA ballistic reticles available, with the added advantage in that u hardly have to take your eye off your intended tgt. to make it happen. Have your buddy range the tgt. with the laser, as you're adjusting power to the highest X, glance up at your range-verified sticker for MOA reference taped into your Butler Creek ocular scope cap cover (in 50 yd. intervals), and whammo, the 450 yd, coyote's dead.!? This is a cheap reliable scope that'll surprise most guys with it's quality.

John, when it comes to using any kind of reticle that has dots or dashes or somewhere in between, the 1st focal plane (FFP)scope (which there is not many of compared to 2nd focal plane scopes) can be on any power magnification setting and the reticle will work/be right.
With 2nd focal plane scopes the scope has to be either on the highest power setting or on a mark/dot/arrow that is on the scopes power adjustment ring.

All Burris LER's are 2nd focal plane.

All of my scopes (rifle & handgun) are 2nd focal plane.

Thanks for the info...Now I need to get my brass in gear and try this out!