Scope Question.

It depends on what kind of hunting but I'd say for the most part it'll be a bad choice. Their big and heavy, you'll always be messing with the AO and you have too much power. Myself, if I'm going for a walk I like low power or even open sights. If I'm blasting at gophers or at the range, more power is fun.
 
If you want to be able to acquire your target quickly, you either have to leave the magnification turned right down or you better practice putting that scope up to your eye.
 
for most hunting of biggame a fixed 4x is more than enough for shots to 300 yards or so.for long range yote/gopher shooting or target the 6-24 will work fine. varible power scopes in the 2.5-10,3-9,2-7 range are good alround scopes for most hunting.
 
The bigger the game, the smaller the scope magnification can be.
The smaller the game, the larger it needs to be.... all depending on range of coarse.
You'll catch on soon enough!;)
 
I'll put another spin on it.

Many hunters have used 6X fixed scopes for years for various hunting situations and needs and swear by them.

For general hunting put it on 6X, set the A0 at 100 yards and hunt to your hearts content.

Now, if you also want to go target shooting or varmint hunting you can crank up the magnification and go hard.

If anything you have more flexibility.If it works for you it works, enjoy your scope.
 
For hunting all Manitoba big game, probably the best scope you could have would be about a 2.5 or 3x fixed power, such as the old Texas made Weaver K2.5 or K3.
When those jumpers come to life in front of you and all you see is white tails bouncing through the brush, a scope with a very low power, large field of view is your best chance at hitting one.
If by chance, or superb hunting, you get a classic shot at a standing animal, a low power scope is all you need.
I have an old, but still in excellent condition, Weaver K3 scope on one of my rifles. A friend who uses nothing but high power variables has been shooting that rifle and amazingly, he just loves the old Weaver. He says he just can't believe how fast it comes on target and how sharp and clear it is.
Another classic scope I have on another rifle is a 4x Lyman All American.
If you want a variable on your Manitoba hunting rifle, I would highly reccommend another scope I have. A Bushnell 3200 Elite, 1.5 to 4.5 power.
 
H4831 said:
For hunting all Manitoba big game, probably the best scope you could have would be about a 2.5 or 3x fixed power, such as the old Texas made Weaver K2.5 or K3.
When those jumpers come to life in front of you and all you see is white tails bouncing through the brush, a scope with a very low power, large field of view is your best chance at hitting one.
If by chance, or superb hunting, you get a classic shot at a standing animal, a low power scope is all you need.
I have an old, but still in excellent condition, Weaver K3 scope on one of my rifles. A friend who uses nothing but high power variables has been shooting that rifle and amazingly, he just loves the old Weaver. He says he just can't believe how fast it comes on target and how sharp and clear it is.
Another classic scope I have on another rifle is a 4x Lyman All American.
If you want a variable on your Manitoba hunting rifle, I would highly reccommend another scope I have. A Bushnell 3200 Elite, 1.5 to 4.5 power.
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There are open spaces in Manitoba, H4831, and longer shots do present themselves. Heck, parts of Manitoba look just like Saskatchewan! ;)

3X9 will cover all your shooting needs in Manitoba.
 
too large. too bulky for hunting. 2x7 32mm or 3x9 40mm are plenty for anything i will hunt. fixed 4x and 6x also good. i usually leave my varibles set arount 4x to 5x. if its a long shot you usually have time to crank it up.
 
As everyone has said, it depends onn the landscape in which you hunt... I hunt in Ontario and my typical landscape ranges from fields to bush. At one point in time I had a 3-9 scope and found it great for fields but way too much magnification for bush... I even missed a big buck because of it in the bush. I now use a 1.5-4 magnification and on 1.5x it is fine in the bush and at 4x I have shot deer at 350yds... so good for both worlds.
 
joe-nwt said:
There are open spaces in Manitoba, H4831, and longer shots do present themselves. Heck, parts of Manitoba look just like Saskatchewan! ;)

3X9 will cover all your shooting needs in Manitoba.
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Joe, someone who is planning on shooting game at ranges well beyond 400 yards and is using a range finder, will want a high power scope with knobs to adjust for the super long range.
For the other 99% of us, which will obviously include the OP, a three or four power fixed scope, or like I suggested, a 1.5 to 4.5 good variable, will be all the scope needed and any poor shots made, will not be the fault of the magnification of the scope.
I shot quite a lot of game, including several mountain goats, with a 30-06 and aperature sights, with an excellent flat top blade front sight.
Whenever I put the top of that post on where I wanted to hit a game animal and released the trigger, there was a dead animal. With only one exception. A bull moose was standing in the snow on a side hill. I estimated 400 yards and held accordingly. The moose trotted off and I went to where he had been. I guess the distance was more like 500 yards, because my bullet hit the snow of the hill, just behind his front legs, but also just under the animal. If I had been using an 18 power telescopic sight my bullet would have hit in the same spot, because I held for 400 yards, but the animal must have been about 500.
A scope allows for much better visibilty in poor light conditions and is an improvement over, even good, aperature sights.
But I will stick by my judgement, no more than 4 or 5 power is needed for any normal big game hunting in Manitoba, the province where I was born.
One to three power is ideal in bush conditions, where high power is a definete hindrance.
 
H4831 said:
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But I will stick by my judgement, no more than 4 or 5 power is needed for any normal big game hunting in Manitoba, the province where I was born.
One to three power is ideal in bush conditions, where high power is a definete hindrance.
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I wasn't disagreeing with you! Just pointing out that not all deer in Manitoba are shot at bounding through the bush in front of you. Some are longer shots in the open and some magnification is nice if for no other reason than shooter confidence.

I would like to point out that the 3 power you recommend as adequate for bush hunting is at the lower magnification of a 3X9, and the 4-5 power you recommend for normal big game hunting is in the middle........:D;)
 
joe-nwt said:
I wasn't disagreeing with you! Just pointing out that not all deer in Manitoba are shot at bounding through the bush in front of you. Some are longer shots in the open and some magnification is nice if for no other reason than shooter confidence.

I would like to point out that the 3 power you recommend as adequate for bush hunting is at the lower magnification of a 3X9, and the 4-5 power you recommend for normal big game hunting is in the middle........:D;)
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We don't have much to disagree on!
you've picked out certain things I've said, but somewhere along the line I said my 1.5 to 4.5 Bushnell 3200 Elite was as good as it gets, or something to that effect. Low power perfect for bush and/or running targets, with the 4-5 power all that is needed for maximum power.
That 4-5 power you mentioned is what I considered maximum magnification for Manitoba, and I did not (at least intentionally) state that power was best for all around normal hunting.
 
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