Nobody has time to dial in the field as a practical matter, especially when you're hunting and seconds count.
The critter might scoot away while you're fidgeting with the magnification ring or trying to count "clicks" up or down.
For the seasonal Fuddley, a fixed 4x (at most) along with the standard hunting reticle, and knowing what the rifle is zero-ed for, ... well, said Fudd is good to go for venison.
Now maybe if you're a SEAL Team sniper perched on the side of an Afghan mountain, 1500-yds from a caravan of terrorist militia, ... that's different.
Jake,you have done pretty well at telling us about yourself.and your world.
Thats OK.
I have described several times on TFL that with my primary hunting rifle for the last 20+ years, a 257 AI with a fixed 6X the duplex post to post is right at 2 mils. This rifle.scope weighs 7 lbs
The hanging duplex tip gives me a 100 yd aiming point. The center crosshair is precisely sighted at a lasered 300. The lower standing post hits at 430 yds.
Two mils is near 7 inches. If a pronghorn chest fits post to post,its close enough to 200 yds. I interpolate from there.
If a pronghorn fits from center crosshair to post,its about 400,and I need to crawl through some cactus. If it fits smaller than that,the range is "Too far"
All in a glance through my scope,I can do well enough at ranging and holding to 400 yds. It has served me a lot of antelope backstrap sizzled in garlic butter.
Same ranch,pronghorn,my younger brother has a different style. Thats OK.
It works for him. The two of us walked in before dawn. Sun up,there was a herd about a half mile /1000 yds away. Other side of the fence,a different ranch where people drive around and run the antelope off.
I told brother,"There is your buck. You just need to Geraldo (Rivera) up on him. (Has to do with Geraldo in Afghanistan footage)
So brother has his rifle. One rifle kind of guy. Its an AR-10 T Has a 10X Leupold scope like the GI sniper scope. He has the best Leica laser rangefinder. And he has the deluxe Kestrel wind guage He has ballistic software in his hand. He wore the rifling out on the Badger Barrel that Armalite installed. It now has a Kreiger.
He took off crawling . Lots of prickly pear on this ranch. I stayed put and watched him.
He got to a spot where getting closer would expose him. He ranged them. He read the wind. He twisted knobs. He settled in and shot. One round. Drop dead antelope.
He hit within an inch and a half of his hold point . 308 168 gr Ballistic tip. Varget. Lasered 653 yds.
Backstrap sizzles in garlic butter.
A clean,confident kill.
Its a big world,Jake,and it has some folks who do things different.