458 WM glass: 1.5-6 or 2.5-10?

Gatehouse said:
How far are you going to shoot? 6x is plenty for 300 yards. If you want to shoot further then go for the 2.5-10
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20-200 yards is the plan, mostly on the 20-100 yards.

Having said that, it sometimes hard to pass a broadside shot at a big animal at 250-300.
 
Why bother with a variable magnification scope at all?

Find a decent fixed power, 4X or less.

Who makes fixed power scopes?

Here are some manufacturers of fixed power scopes:
 
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I always found anything x24 was lousy in a dark winter forests. In one case I could see deer with the bare eye but could not make them out through the 1-5x24 that I had. 1.5-6x42 used to be the classic driven hunt scope in Europe combined with fantastic glass. In the last 15 years I had a 3-12x50 S&B Zenith with flash dot that served me very well but a friend is using it now. The Leupold 1.25-4x24 fire dot that I am using this season on the driven hunt rifle is OK but optically not great.
edi
 
Ok, so much praise for lower magnification I think that’s what I’ll do. Was looking at a used Zeiss Diavari in 1.5-6x42, but I might hold out for a Swarovski in the same size.

I do have a 4 power Swaro fixed on my 358 savage, but that feels like a bit of compromise in magnification for reliability and the 2.5 power scopes I have have worked pretty good on my 9.3x62 overall.

Also the recommended shorter range is a bit of a surprise but good to know. I bought the cheapest box of ammo, 500 grain brass solids for the smith to ream the chamber to, but have dies and 350 grain partitions for reloading.

I’ll be working on the stock (ebony bits next then oil) over the break. Lots of time to put some cash away towards glass/mounts before anything is open or my shooting spot is dry and warm for site in.
 

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boxhitch said:
expansion is overrated when it starts out being near 1/2" dia
momentum and penetration for the win
maybe even forego the plated bullets and run straight hard cast for fun shooting as well as a killer hunting load
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I have a load with 485gn gas checked cast bullets(I believe they are hard cast…) and I want to try them in some media to see how the bullet does. They go just over 1900fps.
 
Hunter7 said:
Whatever you decide to get, make sure it has lots of eye relief.😳
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If you know how to handle it it’s not that much for recoil. My guns 9lbs and with full house 500gr loads your only looking at 67 is pounds of recoil. A standard 12ga slug is somewhere in the neghiborhood of 30-35lbs depending on gun weight. A proper stance and a little push pull and theirs really nothing to it. My hunting load only produces around 12ga recoil. I may throw the scope rhat came with my gun back on it hopefully it can take the recoil.
 
Dogleg said:
You can go either way. I’ve run 1.75-6 powers but have a 2.5-8 Leupold on mine. I’ve killed 123 buffalo with that M70 and scope and never wished for less power. That includes a charging bull in Mozambeque. More got shot at the highest power than the lowest, though most were right in the middle of the range.

It’s not that I need high power to hit a buffalo, you don’t even need a scope for that. I’ve found that while hitting a buff is easy, missing all the bush is harder. Its easier to thread a bullet through the brush when you can see it.
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123 buffalo, I’d say that’s a well qualified opinion! I do sometimes wonder whether there is any hunting scenario inside of 300 or 400 yards that a VX3 2.5-8 can’t handle almost perfectly. I’ve been thinking of switching from lower powered variables to the 2.5-8 on a couple of my .375s.
 
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antiqueguy said:
It will act like a solid if it’s hard but that said don’t really need much if any expansion.
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I just want to try them cause a friend had some that disintegrated in some media. I want to make sure that the one I have actually stays together
 
CanadaBoy said:
123 buffalo, I’d say that’s a well qualified opinion! I do sometimes wonder whether there is any hunting scenario inside of 300 or 400 yards that a VX3 2.5-8 can’t handle almost perfectly. I’ve been thinking of switching from lower powered variables to the 2.5-8 on a couple of my .375s.
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I’m a big fan of the 2.5-8, if I could have only one scope for everything it would be it! With a #1 or #4 reticle!
 
I have a bushnell 2-7x32 on my 458wm
I play with lighter bullets. 300gr at 2700fps however I hunt with a 400gr ppsn woodliegh at 2400fps. Zeroed at 50 yards it drops a talll boy can at 225 yards when resting the crosshairs on the top I nick the bottom of the can.
Either choice would be fine. I'd be more considerate of the rings and mount and screws holding them all. Depending on the load the 458wm can drive some hard and fast recoil

300gr hollow point at above 2600fps is basically a varmint load.

1 to 6 or 1 to 8 is likely ideal in my opinion
 
DGY said:
I just want to try them cause a friend had some that disintegrated in some media. I want to make sure that the one I have actually stays together
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Depends on the alloy something like Lyman number 2 will hold up better then say Linotype.

Scope rhat came with my gun is an older made in japan bushnell banner 1.5-4x20 I have debated about putting it on the gun bc I don’t know if it can hold up to the recoil.
 
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DGY said:
I’m a big fan of the 2.5-8, if I could have only one scope for everything it would be it! With a #1 or #4 reticle!
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I’d love a #4 reticle in a 2.5-8, I’ve been meaning to ask Korth if they’ll put #4 reticles in a couple of 2.5-8s for me.
 
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For combination of price clarity size weight and reticle i really like the bushnell engage 1-4x20 with the illuminated dot reticle. It has a much longer tube for spanning various actions unlike my elite 4500 1-4 yet it still holds up on a 3.5" chambered 12ga firing heavy turkey loads. The glass is not quite on par with my forge but its close enough and more than acceptable for any hunting situation within 200 yards. Further with a flatter shooting cartridge. Just my opinion but ill likely be swapping my older 2-7 out for an engage
 
I would go with something that keeps weight down. On heavier recoilers the inertia from a chunky scope can't be a benefit
 
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