Coyote Hunting Optic

7.62mm

7.62mm

CGN Ultra frequent flyer
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Location
Some BBQ Joint, far....far...away!!!
Looking for some opinions on Magnification ranges, and brands, reticle style etc...
It'll be going on an Maccabee Defence SLR in .223, and most shots would be within 400 yards.
Let's say I have a top budget of $1500.

Thanks in advance for your opinion!
 
I finds the Swarovski z3's are great. I have a 4-12 power with the brh reticle on my yote gun. I find that 12 power is lots. For the most part i have it on a low power for the follow up shots. Out of 18 yotes i shot last year. one was 450 yards. the rest were in the 60-250 yard range.
 
I'd look at something with 3x on the bottom end. Given your budget you may find something in the 18x high end magnification. Vortex Strike Eagle 3-18x44 is interesting
 
A second call for the Swaro. They are great scopes. Lightweight and well built. I really like my 3.5-18. Zeiss could be worth considering too.

Also I would recommend getting something with a turret. They definitely allow for better precision at distance. Hitting small targets at random distances is much easier when you have a turret. You don’t end up trying to aim between your BDC dots on your reticle.
 
My dime would be Leupold VX-3I 2.5-8x36mm Duplex

product review:
I purchased my 4th Leupold scope for my new 270 win rifle. After mounting the VX 3i scope to the rifle and with very little effort in dialing in the MOA for a 200 yard zero, I took it out on a Blackbuck Antelope hunt. My hunt was an exhilarating success with a 130 yard an ethical shot to the sweet spot. Gotta love Leupold! My scopes have never let me down... yet another sensational scope-- alway providing an excellent product with consistent reliability and clarity thats hard to beat.

product description:
The VX-3i 2.5-8x36 holds a special place in hunter’s hearts and minds. Its blend of just-the-right magnification and lightweight ruggedness have helped people find success from eastern tree stands to the western backcountry.

What do hunters want most in a scope? Plain and simple; outstanding performance in low-light conditions and an incredibly tough, lightweight design. The VX-3i delivers this and more. Our Twilight Max Light Management System lets you see details others can’t in those crucial low-light situations at the beginning and the end of the day. Everything we put into the VX-3i is there to help you tag out.

BTW: I have this scope on my Tikka T3X 223
 
In spite of never having shot one myself, I'm getting more into coyote hunting than I ever have in recent months. Saving for a dedicated coyote rig right now in fact. My shots are most likely to be within 300 yards, and I don't have the budget you do...BUT, I do have a few ideas. I've been using a Sightron SIII with a variable-power (20x top end) and their MOA-2 reticle. I love this scope for spring/summer/good light groundhog hunting...but have quickly learned it's not a great choice for coyote. Too heavy, large, more magnification that I realistically need and WAY too fine a reticle. It almost disappears in low light=not ideal. I'll likely be buying something in the 3-12X power range, side focus, matte finish. Considering Redfield, but no decisions made. I like Sightron, but since no retailers anywhere near me carry those, I want to pick something I can look through first. It's a departure from the normal types of scopes I look for...so not as eager to take a chance. I may even consider an illuminated reticle.

The Sightrons aren't an issue, I own 2 (SI and SIII) and both have been excellent.
 
I have Zeiss Conquest 4.5X14X42 with the Z-plex reticle on a couple dedicated coyote rifles. I don't like to look through a varmint style reticle when I'm hunting. If the rifle has a multi purpose as a coyote/gopher/ paper puncher then I step up the mag to 5X25. I like to try and shoot most of my coyotes at around 100yds so a bottom end of around 5 is no problem for me. I have been calling for a lot of years and I have about 20 different stands that I use where I can see the coyotes coming from a longer distance. I have 14 coyote hides in the freezer right now and I only started calling Sept 30th. I have to go a little harder at the start of the season these days as I don't get a lot of time once my boys hockey schedule gets going full bore.
 
My .22-250 wears a Leupold VX-3 6.5-20X40 Varmint reticle scope and my .220 Swift and .243 wear VX-3 4.5-14X40 Varmint reticle scopes... those are my primary coyote rifles, but I occasionally also take a .257 Robert's, .260 Rem and 6.5X55 and they all wear VX-3 3.5-10X40 B&C scopes, and work pretty much the same in hunting conditions.
 
my predator rifle sports a Nikon Monarch 3 , 4-16 x 42 nikoplex recticle (so does my moose and elk rifle) with side parralax adjustment.
Spot on app has helped me dial everything in so I can easily count clicks for range out to 500
haven't had many dogs in my sights but I have been trying. Need the snow to fly. No bag limt and no closed season on wolves in my parts so I gonna try real hard to spend at least a day a week this winter on predator patrol :evil:
 
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