Do you really need..............?

[jjohnwm]

The adjustable ocular ring is for fine-tuning the focus of the reticle only, not the image. The A.O. adjustment, in addition to eliminating parallax error at various ranges, adjusts the focus of the image. Using it to determine range is viable only if you check its markings against known distances beforehand, and maybe put your own markings on the distance scale/ring, since they are not at all accurate. Also, at long distances, you can move the ring a fair bit without seeing a huge difference in focus.

Parallax is not going to introduce any aiming error at all if your head is centered properly behind the ocular lens. It only comes into play if you move your head around from shot to shot. So don't.

John

 

[reg]

The adjustable ocular ring is for fine-tuning the focus of the reticle only, not the image. The A.O. adjustment, in addition to eliminating parallax error at various ranges, adjusts the focus of the image.

I agree. I didn't make that clear in my post.

Also, at long distances, you can move the ring a fair bit without seeing a huge difference in focus.

That's why I suggested adjusting the objective ring by focus is not a good idea. You can have the image apparently in focus but still have significant parallax error. And it seems some shooters, having ignored the ocular ring, try to focus the reticle with the objective ring, compounding the error.

Parallax is not going to introduce any aiming error at all if your head is centered properly behind the ocular lens. It only comes into play if you move your head around from shot to shot. So don't.

Sometimes this is easier said than done, especially considering the number of rifles I see with scopes mounted way too high for a proper cheek weld. I have put well over a million rimfire rounds downrange, but I have never mastered the trick of holding my head exactly the same from shot to shot, every time without fail. I am guessing I am not the only one.

 

[Suputin]

The problem with an AO in a gopher field is with the number of targets you just don't have time to adjust focus before every shot. So you end up trying to choose a good inbetween setting and leaving it there. Exactly as if you were to use a fixed focus scope in the first place.

We use Tasco 3-9 Mil Dot scopes on our rimfires because they offer enough magnification for the longer shots and the MIL dots are endlessly useful for hold overs and windage.

Top is an Anschutz 64, bottom is a cut down Finnish Lion. Both are hell on gophers.

 

[10mark22]

AO scopes

Buy the AO and you won't regret it, almost always you will get better optics for a little more money. Use it if you need it, set it at one setting and leave it alone if you don't. I use them almost exclusivley on my rimfires, as I shoot gophers anywhere from 20 feet to a stepped off 115 yards last season. Nearly impossible to make those shots without the AO. It seems like overkill, but a mildot allows long range shots if you test at the range to dial it in. Just my .02. Later.

 

[horseman2]

Plinking . . . maybe.
Silhouette . . . definitely.
But learn what it will do and how to use it effectively.
I like to tell the story of a boss whom I did not have much respect for until he told this story because then I had even less. Had his rifle sighted in for 100 yards. Saw a moose at 400, and adjusted it to 400. Could not hit that moose, and did not know what was wrong. I looked at his equipment and had him explain what he did. Adjusting the objective does not make a 100 yard rifle into a 400 yards point blank rifle even on a moose. Didn't have th heart to confirm how stupid he was . . . and probably still is!

 

[Suputin]

I use them almost exclusivley on my rimfires, as I shoot gophers anywhere from 20 feet to a stepped off 115 yards last season. Nearly impossible to make those shots without the AO.

I'm going to have to respecfully diagree with you here. I make shots from 20 feet out to a laser ranged 200+ yds all the time without an AO equipped scope. No arguments on the MIL Dots though. They are invaluable in the field.

 

[10mark22]

practice

I said nearly, did not say it couldn't be done, anyway it is easier for me, thats all. Anyway, an AO is not a requirement, but no matter what you buy, go to a range and do some testing at different distances to get to know your gun and its capabilities. Nothing makes you a better shooter like practice, practice, practice. 200+ yard gopher kills all the time with a .22 and a 3-9, I'd have to be there. Just my 02. Later.

 

[Suputin]

200+ yard gopher kills all the time with a .22 and a 3-9, I'd have to be there.

Oh, I didn't say all the time. That is a rare experience I have only been able to do maybe 3 or 4 times in the past few years.

The furthest distance I have been able to connect at regularily is probably in the 150 - 160 yd range. But this is with a heavy barreled target rifle, well tested ammo and decent wind conditions.

 

[Fassteel]

Sometimes the type of rifle you are looking to scope can be helpful in the advice people try to give others. I have a pair of nylon 66 Rems that I can't shoot very well at 50 yards with the sights on the gun. Was in a Walmart a while back and they have Tasco blister pack scopes ,Rimfire with a 3-9 for $27.99 with rings, thats what I am going to put on those rifles and they'll likely shoot a whole lot better. Now if I had just ponied up $500.00 for a new CZ it would a different story, theres a gun that deserves to have better glass. FS

 

[reg]

Sometimes the type of rifle you are looking to scope can be helpful in the advice people try to give others. I have a pair of nylon 66 Rems that I can't shoot very well at 50 yards with the sights on the gun. Was in a Walmart a while back and they have Tasco blister pack scopes ,Rimfire with a 3-9 for $27.99 with rings, thats what I am going to put on those rifles and they'll likely shoot a whole lot better. Now if I had just ponied up $500.00 for a new CZ it would a different story, theres a gun that deserves to have better glass. FS

In my experience the nylon 66 is one rifle that shoots worse with a scope.
The scope clamps to a stamped sheet metal receiver cover that is loosely mounted to the rifle. I thought I had a couple of bad scopes or loose rings on my last 66, the groups kept moving a few inches right or left at random intervals. Took me quite a while to figure it out. Turns out the scopes were ok, it was the receiver that was moving around. The bigger the scope, the more it moved around. Definitely no point in mounting decent glass on the 66 imo.