Art

With that m2 ammo you will be fairly well calibrated out 600 yards. Beyond that the flat based M2 bullet will fall off more rapidly than the calibrated ranges on the rear sight. The rear elevation drum of the M1 is calibrated for the M1 cartridge which used the 174 gr FMJBT at 2640 fps. The M1903A3's elevation is calibrated for the M2 ammo at what was supposed to be 2800 fps. However the velocity of M2 was reduced to 2650 fps just prior to WWII for use on NG stateside ranges. Your HXP63 M2 should be close to the original specs of M2 at 2800 fps. The ladder sight on the '03 is calibrated for the M1906 round at 2700 fps. M2 ammo that cranks an honest 2700 fps or reloads with M80 bullets at 2650 fps will be very close through 1000 yards.

FYI; the M14icon's elevation drum is calibrated in meters for M80/M59 ammo. It just so happens that the trajectory of m80 at 2750 fps matches the trajectory of M118 at 2550 very closely all the way to 100 meters.

Larry Gibson