spend as much on a scope as the rifle?

Then you are very lucky. Every Simmons scope I wasted money on was a colossal pile of ████.

I wouldn't expect to repeat your results.
 
Just wondering. Any body know which manufacturer started this rumor about spending more on the scope than the rifle? Been reading about it a long time but never actually bought into it.
 
I've never cared much about a scope's optical quality.

Mechanical quality is 12 times more important. Adjustments have to be very repeatable from shot to shot. Low cost Weaver model T fixed power scopes may well have been the best.
 
Now that is funny. I agree the Weaver T36 works really well but it’s pretty rough even at 100 yards I can’t imagine at 300 yards in a rain storm! Still, it makes wait and poa will equal poi at 100 yards.

I’ve had scopes valued up to about $1000. I’ve also shot animals with scopes that weren’t worth $.55. That said I’d rather have a decent scope on my rifle when hunting. I like to look at the $3000 scopes at the range but I just can’t pull the trigger on that kind of money.
 
Don Fischer said:
Just wondering. Any body know which manufacturer started this rumor about spending more on the scope than the rifle? Been reading about it a long time but never actually bought into it.
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I don't know where it started, but it's generally a true fact.
Yes, There are plenty of people that have had $50 - $100 scopes that have never let them down. Good for them! I've never been that lucky, and had plenty of them break.

The cheapest scopes I own now are my Japanese Weaver scopes that are on some 22's & hunting rifles. They are all in the $375 - $700 MSRP range.
All of my precision / long range rifles get scopes that suit the job, and range from $1k - $3500 MSRP range.

People that take the time looking around can find top tier scopes used for some really good prices. I've bought many high end scopes on clearance sales and used for 1/3rd to 1/2 price.

I sold my $2800 Revic PMR428 for $2k a while back. Two days later, I found a LNIB S&B PMII 5-25x56 for $2200.
So I bought a $3500 MSRP scope for $1000 when it was said and done, and it doesn't have a scratch on it. It just takes a little time looking to find a great deal on a quality scope.

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I don't know where it started, but it's generally a true fact.
Yes, There are plenty of people that have had $50 - $100 scopes that have never let them down. Good for them! I've never been that lucky, and had plenty of them break.
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I only have had a few scopes go down over the years, but I learned early on to stay with quality in terms of mechanical build at a minimum. Still have a few old Redfields that just keep on ticking, :) I have a $750 optic on my precision rimfire, not for price, but for specs I wanted on it.

And TXhillbilly, you have more in your rings and base on that rig that most people posting have in their scope. Looks like a fun rig.
 
Some seem to be saying that if you pay $1500 for your rifle you may not be able to find a scope good enough to work on it. I think people that want to lay out that kind of money should go ahead and do it, I also think you can do just as well spending a lot less on the scope. The vast majority of hunter's see well enough to shoot well with a $150 scope and I suspect they also can't afford a thousand dollar scope. I'm also quite certain the vast number of hunter's will never find a place to practice shooting to 500 yds nor will they ever try the shot just for hoots! But well heeled shooter's that like to tell of extremely long shot's champion the idea that you need to spend more on the scope than the rifle.

Thinking about that, should I get a Nightforce scope for the Mossberg I paid $300 for? Will it do anything to make either myself or the rifle shoot any better? With a $165 Vortex Crossfire I get right at 1/2" group's at 100yds off a bench with it, consistently!
 
This is good. Just read on another forum, a guy has a rifle he paid $1139 for brand new. On it he put a Vortex Viper FFP 6-24x50 he paid $959 for brand new. He obviously got his self a crappy scope for the rifle he has! Just though I'd mention it!
 
Don Fischer said:
This is good. Just read on another forum, a guy has a rifle he paid $1139 for brand new. On it he put a Vortex Viper FFP 6-24x50 he paid $959 for brand new. He obviously got his self a crappy scope for the rifle he has! Just though I'd mention it!
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From the quality standpoint of Vortex over the past couple years, you are correct on the crappy scope part.

And yes, If you can afford a Nightforce, then put one on your Mossberg. It might just help you out.
I've put a $2k Swarovski on a used $350 Savage before. It beat the hell out of the POS scope that was on the rifle when I bought it. Never missed any deer or elk that I ever put in the crosshairs with it.
 
Something to think about. When Nightforce first got going they were in a small shop just south of Renton, Wash. I was looking for a copy of Varmint Hunter magazine and called to see if they might have a copy, certainly did. So the next week I had a load with some drops near there and stopped in. Young guy running the show then. He had a partner out back that assembled the scopes. He showed me a scope that the reticle lit up in, bright red cross wires. Really pretty neat. He was a long range shooter himself, showed me a rifle he had there. don't recall the action but it was a 308 and weighted right at 30 pounds. In the course of conversation he told me all their parts came from China and they put the scopes together right there. I have no idea if that's the way they still do it or not but it did look like a nice scope but the biggest difference I noticed from other mid range scope's was that lighted reticule. It didn't go top to bottom and side to side it somehow just hung in the middle! The wow factor cost's a lot of money!
 
Logs said:
I have used a bunch of lesser scopes like Simmons, Tasco, Bushnell, Charles Daly, Nikon Buckmaster, lower end Vortex and keep coming back to Leupold.

They all look great in the store, but when you hunt in hot weather, cold weather, rain then the better scopes shine.

My favorite hunting Scope is a Leupold 3x9x50. It doesn't fog, very clear, great field of view and holds zero year after year.

Many of the Vortex optic and others are made in China like the lower end optics.

Also look at the used market for Leupolds if you don't want to spend the new price. They are all covered by a lifetime warranty so you can't go wrong. I have picked up VX I scopes for $125 at gun shows.
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I picked up and AR10(T) with a US Optics scope on it about 25 years ago and looked down the tube. I did a double take, dismounted the rifle to look at the scope.

The owner, a swat guy, laughed. He said, "Everbody does that. Nice crisp image, eh?"

I don't believe these are the same quality of the US optics you find for sale now.
 
Based on my personal experience, sticking a tier 1 scope on a rifle with crappy construction/parts or a shooter with bad technique is not going to make the rifle shoot any better most of the time.

Mechanical quality is 12 times more important.
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Definitely agree with this, but then Bart must be blessed with bionic eyes.;)
 
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I don't have bionic eyes. I do have an optical collimator that fits in the muzzle:

https://alleysupply.com/site-a-line.html

Using a 6X monocular I look into the scope eyepiece to test these functions:

* see if one elevation and windage click back and forth is repeatable, then 2 clicks, then 3.

* zoom power back and forth in its limits to see if there's any slop in the two erector lens mounts that move to focus target image on the reticle. I've seen expensive scope's reticle make half MOA figure 8 paths zooming between stops.

I've never "boxed" a scope shooting bullets because I cannot shoot 'em under 1/16th MOA to test quarter MOA clicks
 
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The quote came from the 1970’s or so as I remember hearing it often as a kid as I was getting into hunting and shooting in the ‘80’s. So said, think of rifle prices at that time! If somebody spent big bucks on a rifle, chances were it was a Weatherby and they weren’t even $1,000. Ruger, Winchester and Remington top of the line rifles were about $400. So spending another $400 on a Leopold, Burris or other top scope wasn’t out of line.

Todays prices are what is skewing the quote as rifles cost more, but quality-wise, we can get better scopes at lower prices than we use to back then.
 
I have found the sweet spot on scopes is between $300 - $700, I have a couple that barely broke 1K but the majority are around $500
 
If a fellow is going to do some long distance shooting and expect to compete, spending big money on a rifle and on a scope seems reasonable. For a fellow like me, that mostly hunts, with shots generally under 400 yards, spending the big bucks is not necessary. Of course, spend it if you want to.

Scope shaming and one-upping is common on most shooting forums.
 
To the OP - foreign or domestic optics?

On our last range visit, my son and I shot an Italian Beretta 92, Serbian AK47, and an FN PS90 made in Belgium. Seems I have no sense of 'made in USA' with the guns..... however...

I seem to gravitate toward USA ammo, gun cases, and accessories. The price of firearms has had an interesting dynamic in the last 10 years. The optics in terms of USA made stuff seems like the price hasn't changed much. But, if you are talking about imported optics, seems most of them are less expensive and might be catching up a bit in terms of performance.

Keep in mind I am an iron sights guy on all of my guns, but the PS90 simply requires an optic. It has an old school Vortex Sparc which I am nearly certain was made overseas.... so a $1400 rifle with a (then) $ 100 optic, and it is a match made in heaven.

At the time I could not justify the enormous cost of a US made optic, but I wish it was so equipped...
 
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