More specifically, what is your criteria for dialing windage?

I grew up on the A2 in High Power, which uses a 6 MOA diameter bull with 2 MOA 10-ring.

- 100-200yds, dial up to 1 MOA only if my NPA was consistent, but off center.
- 300yds rapid fire, dial up to 1.5 MOA usually based on what was felt at the firing line when the targets came up and when I reloaded.
- 600yds slow fire, I tried to assess the minimum and maximum value during the half hour before firing, dial the middle and shoot during the "constant", but dial afterwards if the constant didn't come back within a minute of time. Often, this meant dialing for every shot, and in hindsight I should've just shot faster with the same setting.

With a Nikon 3x on my M4gery, I use the same strategy to 300yds. At 600, even without seeing the scoring rings, I found I could hold off 1 MOA to the edge of the bull reasonably well (adjusting the strong side elbow for NPA). I only have a handful of matches with it, but that's worked so far.

I think once (at Carthage, Panola Co.) I dialed when within 1 MOA, which seems a common condition. Thinking back to years when I didn't have a match under 15mph, more than 3 MOA (outside the target) will be my cue to dial. Basically as long as I have a good reference, I can hold off, otherwise then dial.

I'm curious of other's vantage from outside High Power.

My strategy is to not dial at all, but hold on the reticle according to rough 1/4 mil increments determined by calculating a velocity/BC-based constant for a particular load, and according to distance and actual wind value.

ETA: I've done the same using MOA and iron sights shooting across the course, using the anatomy of the big target in the process. I've been all mils since then.

I never dial wind, it changes too quickly.   My mil gap reticle is graduated in 1/2 mil subtensions, so I just make the call and hold to it,

BC mil method.

Search-fu didn't turn anything up with that. Could you expand?

I keep a reference card with values for my ammo/rifle combo at various ranges and angles. I live in a windy area and it forces you to make a good wind call and adjustment for every slow-fire shot. I finished an XTC in September with 4.0moa windage. There’s no “set and forget” here. The wind changes too much.

ETA: My reference card isn’t an off the shelf product. I’ve chrono’d my ammo and run the calculations through Applied Ballistics to build a table in 2mph increments for wind angles at 90, 20, 45, and 65 degrees. I interpolate for angles and speeds in between these points.

I have shot a few deer past 600 yards.
I shoot them at dawn, when there is no wind.

Mil-based reticle combined with a ballistic calculator (Hornady 4DoF, personally).  Use a Kestrel to catch the high/low/average.   See what the spread from high to low is and compare that to the target size then favor to the side of the bracket I "believe in" at the time depending on current conditions.

For example, low wind is .4 mil, high wind is .8 mil, and target is .5 mils wid.   Put .6 mils center and fine adjust off of the impact.

I pull the wind off my kilo2400 then hold it in the razor2 reticle..it is calibrated in .5 MOA graduations...The only time I might dial wind is if I am going to be shooting at the same fixed target for quite a while, then I will still use hold to increase/decrease the windage as needed from the dialed setting...The kilo is setup with a 10mph fixed windage for hunting, then I just guesstimate the wind between me and the target and hold as needed...

I've shot 2 Palma matches now and the first match, I basically ignored the wind, because I didn't trust my ability to hold consistently.  It would take me 2 or 3 shots drifting horizontally before I'd make a sight correction.  The 2nd match I paid much closer attention to the flags than the first match between shots, and on numerous occasions made corrections prior to the shot rather than after.  The wind was rather mild so it was no great feat of wind reading ability, but my group at 1000 was much improved from the first outing.  I'm not even going to try "holding" as keeping that little black dot centered within two rings is about the most my brain can handle.

With a scope?  Depends on the reticle and range.  I prefer to dial elevation in nearly every case, then hold windage based on the main crosshairs subtensions.