Nikon Prostaff BDC

B

Blindstitch

New member
On black friday Cabela's will have the Nikon Prostaff 3-9x40 at the price of $99. I like nikon glass for my cameras but I have a 30-06 that deserves a good piece of glass for deer hunting. It already has a Tasco 3-9x40 on it but would the nikon be a big upgrade, little upgrade, or the same thing under a different name.

I really like the idea of a long term warranty as i've had really good luck and quick returns on camera equipment. I don't intend to be throwing the scope around but added insurance of a warranty would be nice.

http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/prod...product.jsp%3FproductId%3D1213653&WTz_l=Chart
 
The Prostaff is Nikons cheapest budget scope, but at $99 is a good deal and a small upgrade. I find the glass on Nikon scopes to be above average among scopes in the same price range, but there are other features that I like better on other scopes.

You might also at least look at the Leupold VX-1, Burris FF-II, Redfield Revolution, and Vortex Diamondback. I think all 4 are slightly better scopes than the Nikon. Normally all are priced very similar and I'd recommend the others. But for $99 even I'm not sure they others are enough better to justify the expense.
 
I saw that in one of Cabela's fliers. $99.00 is hard to beat, and top that off with free shipping. It's a November 24th ONLY, one day deal.
 
I have a prostaff and a couple prostaff 5 scopes and don't see much difference in them. the prostaff should be a good scope for you at a great price
 
I had a tasco 3-9 that I liked a lot. I sold it with the rifle it was attached to.

That said, my savage trophy hunter came with a Nikon 3-9x with BDC. I don't know if the quality of the glass is "another galaxy" better, but it's a step up (and 20-30 years of evolved technology). I like the BDC on the cross hairs.
 
I would want at least a 50mm objo and a 12X for hunting.

I wouldn't do it black Friday is of the devil. It takes people away from their families right after Thanksgiving Day dinner.
 
I wouldn't go in store because that place is a madhouse. I would just buy it online. As for being away from family I was just there for 9 days of deer hunting and don't have time off to get back there. 300 miles away to the nearest family members.
 
I have several Nikon Scopes. I have a Nikon Prostaff 5 on a .270 win hunting rifle, I have a Nikon Monarch Gold on a .300 win mag hunting rifle, I have a Nikon P-22 on a .22LR, I have a nikon prostaff range finder, and a nikon prostaff P-22 on another .22LR.

Nikon glass is the best for the money. They make their own glass in Japan for their camera's, scopes and other optical devices. The Monarch has as good a glass as my Leupold VX-3 but not as good as my Swarovski Z3 ($1,000 scope). The Nikon prostaff is the best "budget" scope for the money. The glass is very good. The reason it is cheaper is that the windage and elevation turrets are very basic and somewhat cheap so they arnt as crisp or as smooth (but they work fine). And the tube construction isn't as rugged as a Leupold or a higher end Nikon.

The light gathering of the Prostaff is very good for the money, not as good as my swarovski but my swarovski was a very expensive scope. The prostaff is however as good as my Leupold VX-R at light gathering which was 5x the cost. I have also never had any fogging issues and it holds zero perfectly on a .270 win which has a snappy recoil.

All in all, for scopes $300 and under, the Prostaff is the only scope I would buy.
 
At the moment it looks like I'm going to try and pick one up online in the morning.

One of the reasons I'm doing this is I like to reward my rifles if that's possible and I was long term loaned a Winchester U.S. Model of 1917 that was sporterized nicely. I shot two boxes of shells through the rifle a few weeks ago trying to get use to the long heavy trigger.

Well opening day of Michigan Deer season I bagged a tight racked 5 point after being out for about an hour. That 30-06 hit the deer hard in the highest part of the heart cutting it free from all the other organs and dropping in the deers chest. The deer dropped in its tracks.

I have a cousin that eats organ meat and she was excited about the almost damage free heart.

The next upgrade will be a timney trigger. Guess they're only $55 so I'd be nuts not to upgrade.
 
Ive had a lot of nikon buckmasters over the years but the new nikon BDC circles I do not like. I have bought a few Vortex scopes with BDC and am verry happy with them for their cost.
 
I am going to correct JMR here: the Buckmasters 2 is now the entry level scope. The Prostaff 3 is the next one up followed by Prostaff 5, 7, then Monarch.

Nikon changed their lineup a couple years ago and prior to that, the Prostaff was the entry level and the original Buckmaster was where the Prostaff 5 sits today. Confusing, but it is what it is.

I really like the BDC reticle and have the Nikon Spot On App on my phone. I reference it in the field to remind me what the ranges are for the circles. You can also expand the BDC to see the ranges that apply to the top, middle, and bottom of each circle.

I have several Nikons and have no complaints with them. They have held up well, held zero, and are plenty clear enough for my purposes.

And unless you are really going to be stretching the range, I disagree with the 12X recommendation. Most of mine are 3-9X and the longest shot I have taken with one was 250 yards... I did not feel at a loss for power.

As for the 50mm recommendation, there's nothing wrong with them, but it will require higher rings in most cases. Two days ago, at the end of shooting light on an overcast day, I looked through the scope just to see how well it was gathering light. I had no problem seeing the grass, rocks, leaves, etc, and all of mine are 42mm.
 
At $99.00 it's priced about right. One thing about their glass is the warranty is great, they'll replace it every time you send it in. I'd rather have the warranty and not use it though like on quality glass.
 
. And unless you are really going to be stretching the range, I disagree with the 12X recommendation. Most of mine are 3-9X and the longest shot I have taken with one was 250 yards... I did not feel at a loss for power.
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Everyone has their own opinions on what the "optimal" power of a scope is.

For me, I don't like to have a hunting scope that has a minimum power above 3x, if you are in the woods and the shot is 50 yards, higher magnification can make finding the target for a quick shot difficult.

As for the max magnification, it depends on the application but as a general rule, 2-3x magnification for every hundred yards. For precision target work at 500 yards I want about 16x, for shooting steels at 500 yards 9x or 10x is plenty

I really think people over magnify their optic to compensate for crappy glass. My Swarovski Z3 has max magnification of 12x and at 500 yards it is crisp and clear and I can easily make out fine details whereas my uncle's 30x tasco is fuzzy, dim, and not a viable long range scope despite being 30x
 
12x did I forget to mention I'm hunting deer and not prairie dogs.

Well this morning I cashed in $32 of cabelas points knocking the price down to something like $73 after tax. The online order says it should be here by December 5th.

I won't mount it up till after deer season is done and gone but I have a good feeling about it.
 
I've got one on a shortened Winchester 30-06 and it's a very clear, repeatable scope. I just put a non-BDC 2x7 Prostaff on my wife's CZ-527. It is equally as good.

What sold me on the brand is a pair of basic 8x40 Nikon binoculars my wife got me five years ago, that spent its entire life freezing, baking and getting slung around an issued unmarked car or my farm pickup. They are still clear and 'un-cross-eyed' for lack of a better term.

Over the years I've had numerous scopes and binoculars from other makers, in the price range Prostaff occupies. Nikon beats them soundly in all areas and I recommend them without reservation.
 
The prostaff is one of the only sub-$200 scopes I would consider getting. I have a couple that "make the rounds" on new rifles before I can afford to upgrade and they have seen hard use and abuse over the years, and while average in function--they do reliably function and put the bullet on target if I can see it well enough.
 
. 12x did I forget to mention I'm hunting deer and not prairie dogs.
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12x is plenty for any big game hunting application I can think of. I shot a 5x4 bull elk with a Leupold VX-2 3x9x44 at 385 yards, zeroed at 300 yards with an 8" hold from that distance, with a .375 H&H....1, shot dead right there.
 
Last 2 scopes i bought, a VX1 2-7 rimfire and a Nikon P223. Both are bright ,clear scopes. Big difference seems to be that the Leupold is easier to see thru, eye position is less critical on the Leupold. In my case I couled have bought another VZ1 for about 30.00 more. Live and learn. I know other folks that swear by the Nikons. At 99.00 that's about half what the VX1 costs.
 
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