Scope help questions?

R

robfromga

New member
Im getting a used, but well cared for Savage 110fp .308 next week. Its everything but the glass, I just cant afford the Leupold thats on it.

Im new to long range shooting, but understand that a good scope is $$$. I kinda have a limit at $200-300. Ive found a couple, but want some opinons on what I should get.

I will use this rifle to hunt, most shots in GA arent very long, however I do have a 1000yd range close buy. The scope wil need to pull both duties.

I saw this onehttp://swfa.com/Millett-4-16x50-TRS-1-Tactical-30mm-Riflescope-P8812.aspx and this one http://swfa.com/Vortex-4-16x50-Crossfire-30mm-Rifle-Scope-P13298.aspx The rifle will come with a mount and rings, for a 50mm scope so I was kinda trying to stay in that direction.

All that said, I really dont know jack about scopes. I do know that I will hunt with it, and would like to learn the art of long range shooting.:D
 
Hi. Where you are matters. Add your city and State to your profile.
Forget the 16X for a .308. Too much magnification and too little field of view. 2.5x to 8x or 3x to 9x is plenty.
Cabela's and most gun shops have 'sales'. Cabela's currently has Nikon 3 to 9 ProStaff scopes on sale at $144.99 - $179.99. They have 3 to 9 Leupold Rifleman scopes on sale at $199.99 too. Fifty cents for shipping.
Don't forget that you'll need rings and bases plus installation.
http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/browse.cmd?N=1100055&WTz_l=SBC;cat104752080
 
Field of view is more important in a hunting scope than is magnification. Few scope-and-mount setups work at all well for both hunting and targets beyond around 500 yards.

7X or 9X on Bambi at maybe 40 yards and about all you see is some brown, or an ear or a tine. BTDT. "A learning experience." :)

The 3x10 on my '06 works well at 3X for walking-hunting or sitting on a hillside. At 10X, from the benchrest I can get sub-MOA at 500 yards.
 
Yes, I'd say 4-16 is too much. I can't think of any hunting situation outside of the super-long range western stuff where you need anything more than 12. Even 9x is plenty for deer up to about 400 yds.

On the lower end, 4x is too much. If you are sitting on a tree stand and the deer pops out at 30 yds, you'll have a hard time finding him in a scope that is too strong.

I'm not going to make any real comments on Millet other than to say that in the price range you have listed there are much better options.
 
the more magnification only narrows your field of view and shows you how unsteady you hold is and how much movement there is!!!! I was at our 200 yard range and shooting from the bench with my 2-7x, 300WM, keeping it in about a 4 inch group, one member was on the Olympic small bore team, he was shooting a 30-06 target rifle with a palm rest, off hand, using a peep sight at 200 yards, X, X, 10, X, 10, ect!!! it is not the sighting device, it is the shooter!!!
Bob
 
My brother-in-law has built a couple of beanfield rifles. Heavy barreled hunting rifles for shooting deer across a beanfield. Your Savage 10FP would certainly qualify for that duty.

He's had good luck with Swift Scopes, especially the 6X18X44 Premier. We've got a half-dozen of these things in the family now. They get plenty of use with nary a problem.

robfromsc said:
So I was leaning toward the millet 4x16, is that to strong?
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It might be, depending on your use and your preferences. I've got a 4 power fixed on a .30-30 and I can sight targets down to 15 yards. Any closer than that and I'll just point it at the deer.

My favorite scope is a 6X fixed that's on my .30-06. It's been with me for several years and has given me exceptional service. I did miss a deer with it last year at 40 yards, but that was my fault, not the scope.

One scope I picked up at the start of June is the Weaver Buck Commander in 2.5X10. I've put it on a Savage 10 FNS and it's been to the range with me twice. Set at 2.5 power I had no trouble at all hitting a metal gong 300 yards away. Set at 10 power I could see the gong a whole lot better and place my shots with more precision.

You could pick up a Leupold Rifleman for about $200.00. They're good scopes. I've got one of those on a Remington 700 and it's holding up nicely. Something else to consider is Redfield scopes. I've looked through a few of the new ones and they're very nice glass for the money.

The thing about choosing a scope is that it's as personal as choosing underwear. Yeah, you get what you pay for, but the optics companies are making much better optics than they did when I started shooting rifles forty years ago. The current crop of scopes in the $200-300 price range are very good indeed.

Good luck on your quest, and good luck with your Savage.
 
You could pick up a Leupold Rifleman for about $200.00. They're good scopes. I've got one of those on a Remington 700 and it's holding up nicely. Something else to consider is Redfield scopes. I've looked through a few of the new ones and they're very nice glass for the money.
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+1 I've go two 4-12X40 Redfield's and couldn't be happier with them. I've got one with the accurange reticle and one with standard duplex reticle. Paid less than $200 each for both scopes. If you go this route you'll need new rings but you'll still be in your budget.

I'll dissent from the group and say 4-16 power isn't too much for hunting. I use a Bushnell Elite in that power range in my .25-06 and it works very well. I feel as long as you don't go higher than 4 power on the bottom end you'll be fine. I like the 16 power at the range a lot.
 
I have a Mueller Tac II 3-10 on my Remmy 308. Had good reviews on another site when I bought it a couple of years ago. Couldn't be happier with it. Believe it was 280 or so. Nikon Buckmaster 4.5-14's can be picked up used for 250 or so also.
 
I've shot with a TRS-1 before.
It's "feature heavy" with illumination, mildots, a huge objective, side focus,etc. It has a great deal of tunnel vision, and the glass isn't too great. Tracking is probably ok, and they're supported by the Bushnell warranty, which has mixed reviews but is still a lifetime warranty. It isn't completely up to date on the features though, as the reticle isn't 2nd focal plane, and the mildot size is only consistent on 16x for ranging. That said, it gives you a lot of features for the money.

The Vortex Crossfire I would avoid. I really like Vortex, but the Crossfire line has too many failure reports. They even admit that that line constitutes most of their returns.

Trick here is that tactical scopes require a lot of features that end up being unused on your average eastern deer rifle. A perfect tactical scope has illumination, resettable to zero turrets with a zero stop, a ranging reticle, turret adjustments that match the reticle (either MOA/MOA or mil/mil), good side focus, all with good glass and repeatable adjustments and high magnification. This runs the price WAY up there if you get something good.

A good hunting scope just needs repeatable adjustments, to hold zero, and decent glass with sufficient magnification to accomplish your tasks. It has a basic reticle, and maybe finger adjustable turrets (zero reset is also becoming common).

Here's a few recommendations in the $200-300 range:
1. A good tactical scope that will work for hunting and just barely fits your price range:
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct/?productnumber=598484
This scope has mildots that are correctly scaled at full power, as well as zero resettable turrets that are calculated in 1/10 mils. It lacks the big glass of the TRS1 and the illumination and side focus, but has better quality glass and very nice adjustments (same as used on the popular Bushnell 10x40mm Elite 3200 scope). It's also a far better choice as a "swing" scope for hunting, and has a lifetime warranty comparable to the TRS-1.

2. Hunting only scope The aforementioned Bushnell 4200 Elite at Cabelas is very nice. It has excellent glass, but only finger click adjustments (no turret) as it is actually a hybrid between the Elite 4200/3200 designs. It is not zero resettable, so it's better to set the zero and forget it. It won't allow for setting your ranges very easily and is more of a traditional short range scope. It has a basic duplex reticle. It also has an excellent rainproof coating for shooting in bad weather.

3. Hunting scope with limited tactical type features: CameralandNy has the Vortex Viper 3-9x 40mm in duplex only for $180. It has glass on par/slightly inferior to the 4200 Elite but better than the Weaver, but has superior zero resettable turrets that would allow you to dial in your range adjustments for long range shooting at different yardages. It is not useful for ranging however as it only has a duplex reticle. It's a hunting scope that can be used at long range, and not as optimal as the Weaver for tactical type shooting.
 
You could pick up a Leupold Rifleman for about $200.00.
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I love Leupolds, but the Rifleman is one Leupold I would NEVER buy. It is a $100 quality scope with an extra $100 tacked on to pay for the lifetime warranty. You are far better off to pay a little bit extra and get the VX-1.
 
I was in a similar situation to you... Except the rifle was a semi-custom Remington 700 .308.. I could not afford to buy the rifle with the $2600 US Optics Scope on it... So I bought the rifle sans the US optics scope... As I'm still not a in a position to buy a Nightforce or Leupold Mark 4.. I found a Leupold Mark AR 6-18x40mm AO with a Mil-dot Reticle for $400 NIB.. Since the rifle is no more than a range paper puncher, this will work for a while.. I have under $1000 in this rifle and its hard to complain about the results.. For the price I paid for the scope the optical quality is quite good although nowhere near the quality of my higher end leupold and zeiss scopes... But some of those are 3X more money or more...


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My range rifle wears a Vortex Viper 6.5-20x44...

If you want more magnification, get more magnification. I don't think that just because some say that 10X is "enough" out to 500 yards, that you can't have more...If you want a 8-32x50 scope, then get it. Me personally, I wanted more than 20x when I got the Vortex, but it was the right price so I compromised...

Get what you think you will be happy with. My hunting rifle has a 4-12X Leupold. I like my target to be big, others dont...
 
I have a Mueller Tac II 3-10 on my Remmy 308. Had good reviews on another site when I bought it a couple of years ago. Couldn't be happier with it.
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+1 on the Tac II. it is a great scope for the $$$. I have mine an a budget SPR build.

I have this 2-10x50 Nitrex by Weaver scope on my heavy barreled howa 1500. It is another scope with superb glass for $250. Natchez has them on closeou, here is the link http://www.natchezss.com/product.cf...0mm Rifle Scope Matte Finish TrexPlex Reticle
 
I found out that 4X was too narrow a field of view for an old hog at ten feet. :D

Lord, I dunno. I started out as a kid with a 1917 Enfield that I sporterized; my father gave me a Weaver K2.5 for it. Ruined a bunch of jackrabbits with it. Better eyes, sixty years back, so my handloads gave me one MOA quite regularly.

After Army and college and all that, I got back into shooting and hunting. Weaver K4 worked fine. My billfold improved and I generally used Leupold Vari-X IIs, 3x9x40. They were set on 3X 95% of the time when I was hunting. 9X mostly for sight-in.

7X is plenty good for prairie dogs at 300 yards, based on 6" of drop with a 55-grain bullet from a .243.

I sorta think folks worry too much about scopes. I hate to argue about it. :)

As near as I can tell from moderating here a long time, most any "real" brand-name scope will work okay. Avoid the El Cheapos. However, the fixed-power scopes of medium or relatively low pricing seem to be reliable.

Personally, I'm a "set it and forget it" guy, once a rifle is sighted in. For me, then, repeatability of the settings is not important. So, I can do okay with a lesser-cost scope for my purposes. Serious paper-punching is a different game, entirely.

Hope all this nattering helps, some...
 
Get the Vortex. I have 2 of them. Great scopes and awesome warranty, Forever, for any reason, no questions asked repaired or replaced. They don't care how it happened. Friendly and helpful staff in warranty dept.

I have found that 4 power is good for close up hunting and if you can get 16 power in the same scope GREAT. Used to be every hunting magazine author recommended a 4 or 6 power fixed for all big game rifles. Get what you think is best.
 
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