I've read a few posts from Glock gunsmiths saying that "most" Glocks are set at the factory, with Glock sights, to be zeroed at 25 yards. What I don't know is whether this is the near-zero or the far-zero in the bullet trajectory, and I haven't been able to find much on this topic at the Glock website. I know there are many variables -- including of course which model, what specific round / bullet weight, etc.) -- but wanted to know if there is a rule of thumb that can be applied here?
Factory Zero (near and far) for Glocks
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QuebecAlpha
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I've read a few posts from Glock gunsmiths saying that "most" Glocks are set at the factory, with Glock sights, to be zeroed at 25 yards. What I don't know is whether this is the near-zero or the far-zero in the bullet trajectory, and I haven't been able to find much on this topic at the Glock website. I know there are many variables -- including of course which model, what specific round / bullet weight, etc.) -- but wanted to know if there is a rule of thumb that can be applied here?
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Don't matter. Not important.
Don't trust them.
Sight in your own guns, for you.
Your life may depend on it.
I suspect the factory installs a front and rear sight matched by calculation to hit at a set distance (25 yards) then mechanically centers the rear. I seriously doubt there is any shooting going on.
You are inquiring about near and far zero - would that be the 1st and 2nd time the bullet crosses the line of sight?
Don't trust them.
Sight in your own guns, for you.
Your life may depend on it.
I suspect the factory installs a front and rear sight matched by calculation to hit at a set distance (25 yards) then mechanically centers the rear. I seriously doubt there is any shooting going on.
You are inquiring about near and far zero - would that be the 1st and 2nd time the bullet crosses the line of sight?
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Yes...my question is what the factory protocol is for their design. My assumption is their zero is set for near -- but wanting to confirm. And yes, completely agree with you on individual sighting in... I'm curious more than anything what Glock's intent is on distance for the zero on a stock pistol...
Given a trajectory crosses twice on zero...wondering which crossing Glocks (or any semi-auto for that matter) are typically calibrated for...
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Got to agree with bustedknee. I do know that my Gen4-26, hits about 3 inches above P.O.A. at 10 yds. At 25 yds, it's very, very close. At under 5yds, it's point and shoot and it hits where you point. All with 115 gr. target ammo. My 126 gr. carry ammo, doesn't change enough to adjust where I hold.
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I think if you want that level of precision, you should get a model with adjustable rear sights or add your own.
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I agree with all your comments....and not looking for precision. Just wanting to know the ballistics / trajectory / POA-POI that Glock sets their pistols for at the factory. I'll give 'em a ring at the factory on Monday.... Thanks for the info.
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No, there is not a rule of thumb. Bullet weight and velocity are going to be the main factors. I don't think you are going to see many Glocks with a near zero at 25 yards.
You need to determine how each individual pistol prints for you personally, with each type of ammo you plan to use in it. Then adjust the sights accordingly. You need to determine where you want the gun to zero, and make it so.
Typical example of trajectory from personal experience: The vast majority of my ammo is 147 or 150gr 9mm at around 130 PF. I zero my guns at 20 yards, and I like them to print a little high. Using a 2.75 inch dot on the target surface, I want to index the top of the post a little above the bottom of the dot, and have all the hits on the dot at 20 yards. That would be what you're calling the the 'far zero'. 'Near zero' would be around 8-9 yards. Bullet would drop quickly after 35-40 yards. I have to hold somewhere on the head of a USPSA metric target to be on paper at 100 yards.
Of course lighter bullet/higher velocity means a flatter trajectory.
I set up my carry Glocks to print same as my match Glocks (per above).
You need to determine how each individual pistol prints for you personally, with each type of ammo you plan to use in it. Then adjust the sights accordingly. You need to determine where you want the gun to zero, and make it so.
Typical example of trajectory from personal experience: The vast majority of my ammo is 147 or 150gr 9mm at around 130 PF. I zero my guns at 20 yards, and I like them to print a little high. Using a 2.75 inch dot on the target surface, I want to index the top of the post a little above the bottom of the dot, and have all the hits on the dot at 20 yards. That would be what you're calling the the 'far zero'. 'Near zero' would be around 8-9 yards. Bullet would drop quickly after 35-40 yards. I have to hold somewhere on the head of a USPSA metric target to be on paper at 100 yards.
Of course lighter bullet/higher velocity means a flatter trajectory.
I set up my carry Glocks to print same as my match Glocks (per above).
I zero mine for 50 yds, with non-Glock night sights. Stone down front or rear sight VERY carefully and shoot several 10 shot groups over several days, it's a real PITA to put metal back on.
A 50 yd zero will put the bullet about 1" high at 25, which is more precisely than I can aim. With this setup, the bullet should be within 1" of POA from the muzzle out to about 60 yds.
Shooting from a rest will give smaller and more consistent groups, but for me they will usually be a different POI from a normal standing two-hand position.
IIRC, Formula for corrections:
Inches of error divided by inches of range, then multiply by inches of sight radius.
A 50 yd zero will put the bullet about 1" high at 25, which is more precisely than I can aim. With this setup, the bullet should be within 1" of POA from the muzzle out to about 60 yds.
Shooting from a rest will give smaller and more consistent groups, but for me they will usually be a different POI from a normal standing two-hand position.
IIRC, Formula for corrections:
Inches of error divided by inches of range, then multiply by inches of sight radius.
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On the near/far thing...
I'm mainly a competitive shooter. For 99% of targets, I index the sights the same way. Obviously the gun does not print the same at all distances, but I'm only specifically concerned about that at certain distances. The key is to determine what those distances are, and make sure the gun prints properly at them.
For USPSA purposes, a distant "tight" shot would be a 30 yard USP or a 20 yard metric head. Those are situations where you need to do a little aiming to be sure you call hits. A close tight shot would be more like a 9 yard head, where if you're shooting minor power, it probably pays to aim enough to get 2 alphas, as opposed to just hosing 2 bravos.
I like to index the front post just under POI in both situations, with a little rattle room. I do not want hits going below the top of the post, in general. So on a 30 yard popper, I index about 6:00 on the bulb. On a 9 yard head, I index slightly below the bottom perf of the A zone. Those are analogous to your near and far zeros.
I look at combat shooting basically the same way.
Note that how the gun prints relative to the sight picture and where the gun is zeroed are 2 separate issues.
From a mechanical standpoint, when I'm shooting very fast and/or on the move, most of the errors I make tend to drive the sights down. Having the gun print a little high helps compensate for this. Shooting with F/O irons is different than shooting with a dot in this respect. I just use the F/O to locate the post at speed, not as a POA. When I transition from fast hoser splits to tight, aimed shots, I'm transitioning from a general understanding of where the fiber is to a very specific understanding of where the top of the post is.
I'm mainly a competitive shooter. For 99% of targets, I index the sights the same way. Obviously the gun does not print the same at all distances, but I'm only specifically concerned about that at certain distances. The key is to determine what those distances are, and make sure the gun prints properly at them.
For USPSA purposes, a distant "tight" shot would be a 30 yard USP or a 20 yard metric head. Those are situations where you need to do a little aiming to be sure you call hits. A close tight shot would be more like a 9 yard head, where if you're shooting minor power, it probably pays to aim enough to get 2 alphas, as opposed to just hosing 2 bravos.
I like to index the front post just under POI in both situations, with a little rattle room. I do not want hits going below the top of the post, in general. So on a 30 yard popper, I index about 6:00 on the bulb. On a 9 yard head, I index slightly below the bottom perf of the A zone. Those are analogous to your near and far zeros.
I look at combat shooting basically the same way.
Note that how the gun prints relative to the sight picture and where the gun is zeroed are 2 separate issues.
From a mechanical standpoint, when I'm shooting very fast and/or on the move, most of the errors I make tend to drive the sights down. Having the gun print a little high helps compensate for this. Shooting with F/O irons is different than shooting with a dot in this respect. I just use the F/O to locate the post at speed, not as a POA. When I transition from fast hoser splits to tight, aimed shots, I'm transitioning from a general understanding of where the fiber is to a very specific understanding of where the top of the post is.
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I ran some ballistics numbers on typical loads for 9mm, .40, and .45 all assuming about a .6" sight height above center bore...and it is interesting to see the trajectory ballistics when zeroed (far-zero) at 25 yards vs. 50 yards and how that changes the near-zero distance. Not significant for defensive situations, but for specific competitive situations or hunting...could be significant. (BTW this calculator is over at the Winchester website..pretty straightforward but not entirely customizable. Interesting nonetheless....
Here is some output at 50 yards vs. 25 yards zero on a few different cartridges:
![Image]()
![Image]()
Here is some output at 50 yards vs. 25 yards zero on a few different cartridges:
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Bear in mind that mechanics play a large role in pistol shooting. How a particular shooter mounts/grips/triggers a particular gun has a lot to do with how it prints for him.
Aiming a gun statically is one thing, but mounting and triggering a gun dynamically is another. If you use a relatively small index point on the target surface and hold yourself rigorously to the standard of seeing a crisp sight picture lift from that index point 5 times in slow fire, you will see how hard it is to manage that in a dynamic situation.
So math can give us a general indication of what to expect, but our results will be determined primarily by the quality of our mechanics and perception. This is why it's so important to learn to call shots.
Aiming a gun statically is one thing, but mounting and triggering a gun dynamically is another. If you use a relatively small index point on the target surface and hold yourself rigorously to the standard of seeing a crisp sight picture lift from that index point 5 times in slow fire, you will see how hard it is to manage that in a dynamic situation.
So math can give us a general indication of what to expect, but our results will be determined primarily by the quality of our mechanics and perception. This is why it's so important to learn to call shots.
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OP, that's a rifle trajectory. Pistols are pretty much "close zero" out to 40 yards, slight difference with bullet weights. Shoot your Glock at 25 yards and see what it looks like, nothing closer will differ that much. A .223Rem can be +/-5" out to 300, close zero and far zero.
Hmm...something doesn't sound right. Approx 3" drop in 15 yds? Your ammo better shoot flatter than that.
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You can't look at pistol ballistics like rifle ballistics. They are two totally different entities. You are over thinking this and making it harder than it has to be. Sight your gun in at the furthest distance that you are expecting to shoot and call it good.
I don't understand the first two sentences.
Pistol ballistics ARE like rifle ballistics, it's just that the rifle sights are usually higher above the bore and the bullets drop less at distance, so you can have a usable close range zero and also a usable long range zero. If our pistol sights were 2"-3" above the bore like some rifles, we'd get a similar effect.
In either case, the bullet exits the muzzle below the sights, climbs above the sights at some relatively short range, and then drops down TO the sights at the zero range.
I suspect that the difference in POA/POI between 0 and 40 yards or so is negligible, since the bore axis is only about 3/4" below the sight axis. If you're using it as a defensive weapon, it'll get close enough at ranges you'll actually use it. If you're shooting bullseye competition, then you're replacing the sights anyway.
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