New 30 06 rifle....what scope should i get?

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Nature's Equal

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Hi everyone. I'm new to the rifle game, looking to become nature's equal, and was wondering what scope would be made for a 30 06. I was looking at a few that seem to have their mill dots set for a 308. I do want to use this for hunting but, not even sure if hunting scopes come with mill dots. I do enjoy the turrets of a tactical scope......seems to be more to learn which i like. I do want a Leupold too.

Need advice so, help if you can.
 
A miliradian is a unit of angular measurement, so it's not set for a specific cartridge. If you're talking about BDC reticules, you'll be hard pressed to find one for a 30-06. You also didn't mention what rifle you have, what kind of terrain you're hunting in, and what your budget for the scope is.
 
Don't know what a miliradian or BDC. All i know is with my crossbow, if i use the recommend weight for my bolt, I'll Robin Hood my bolts using the mill dots in my scope. If it's 70 yards....my scopes 70 yard mark is 100% accurate. Same with any distance in that scope for that particular bolt. I assume things vary like that for rifle cartridges.

I won a Savage Axis 30 06 in a raffle.

The terrain would vary but i wouldn't be travelling outside of Ontario so, i guess mainly a flatter terrain.

Budget depends on the value of what's offered. I was told i wouldn't need more than a 2 to 7 30mm scope for hunting in Ontario but, what do i know?
 
Just looked up a BDC reticle. That looks amazing. Thinking about it now, because of the distance of a projectile from a rifle like this.....mill dots would be pretty useless....unless its a scope like that Vortex PST there, but then i'd be going tactical. I dunno
 
Ar180shooter said:
A miliradian is a unit of angular measurement, so it's not set for a specific cartridge. If you're talking about BDC reticules, you'll be hard pressed to find one for a 30-06. You also didn't mention what rifle you have, what kind of terrain you're hunting in, and what your budget for the scope is.
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Not hard pressed. 30-06 reticles are easy to find in the leupold and burris fullfield2 scopes.
 
I don't like Leupold's site. I never know if the scope i'm looking at in the moment would compliment my rifle. Haven't checked out Burris' site yet. King Optics had an interesting site. Made a lot of good points. Time to turn the math nerd in me on
 
Well - Every year new guys show up in our Ontario deer camp with all the latest gadgets, including too much scope. The average shot is typically 50-75 yards, and the longest is about 200 y. A 30-06, properly sighted in, will exhibit a bullet drop of about 2 inches over that distance. So theres absolutely no need for a compensating, or calibrated reticle, contrary to what the pundits on Wild TV say. Buy a half decent, low power scope (1.5 - 4 x) and practice your shooting!
 
Nature's Equal said:
I don't like Leupold's site. I never know if the scope i'm looking at in the moment would compliment my rifle. Haven't checked out Burris' site yet. King Optics had an interesting site. Made a lot of good points. Time to turn the math nerd in me on
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king optic ?!?! if you have $$ to throw away, let me know. I'll give my Email address, you can send me a EMT...

seriously, do use the search function.
 
Hunting scopes come with mill dot and MOA hash marks. Look up on the net for info regarding these two systems for ranging targets. If U have a lazier range finder they are unnecessary, just get a BDC for your caliber and bullet weight. Now having said that I own many Leupold scopes in varying magnifications and configurations. Have just recently discovered Vortex brand. I liked the Vortex so much I bought a battery powered Viper PST in 6X24-50 in a 30mm tube for my 338/378 Weatherby. At 500 meters the scope brings up a 10 inch gong almost at arms length. The eye box has Leupold beat hands down and the glass's is just as clear for a lot less money. The scope also tracks which is something that a few of my high dollar Leupold rifle scopes fail to do. Vortex also has BDC turrets for various calibers and bullet grain weights. If U are not into long range shooting get a good brand of glass that cost as much as your rifle. Do not cheap out on your scope. Get something in the order of 3-10X50 with a 30MM tube that will allow U to see game at the magic hour. Check em out U just might like one.
 
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cosmic said:
Well - Every year new guys show up in our Ontario deer camp with all the latest gadgets, including too much scope. The average shot is typically 50-75 yards, and the longest is about 200 y. A 30-06, properly sighted in, will exhibit a bullet drop of about 2 inches over that distance. So there's absolutely no need for a compensating, or calibrated reticle, contrary to what the pundits on Wild TV say. Buy a half decent, low power scope (1.5 - 4 x) and practice your shooting!
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Some of them new guys just might be into long range shooting, 500 yards and beyond. I like high dollar and high magnification scopes, I took a moose at just over 200 yards right between the eyes from a sitting position. I knew my rifle, scope and abilities so I had a very high confidence level. I shoot thousands of rounds every year and every one of my scopes with the exception of one which I have on my 375H&H (dangerous game rifle) go way up on the magnification level. So just because you see a guy with a scope U consider to be over scoped do not jump to the conclusion that the hunter is a newbie. The proof is in the shooters ability to shoot his rifle accurately and with precision.

Cheers & Tighter Groups: Eaglesnester
 
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Nature's Equal said:
Hi everyone. I'm new to the rifle game, looking to become nature's equal, and was wondering what scope would be made for a 30 06. I was looking at a few that seem to have their mill dots set for a 308. I do want to use this for hunting but, not even sure if hunting scopes come with mill dots. I do enjoy the turrets of a tactical scope......seems to be more to learn which i like. I do want a Leupold too.

Need advice so, help if you can.
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good for you, you'll love it! 3x9x40 or 3.5x10
 
Why did you buy a .30-06?
What I mean is what is the intended use for the rifle? If your answer is that you are not really sure yet (.30-06 is somewhat an indication to keep it "versatile" as well), you may just as well look for a really versatile scope.
Money aside, look into Swarovski z6 or Zeiss V8; otherwise you may need to get really specific where (type of hunting), what you want to hunt and how far you are going to shoot (300yrd vs. 15yrd during a drive makes quite a difference if you look into a scope...).
 
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Figure out what kind of shooting you wish to do. There isn't really a scope 'made' for 30-06 as you can easily have one for a .223 that will work equally well on a .338LM ( case in poit my NF NXS 5.5-22x50 ). It seems to me that you would like a hunting scope with a bit more magnification for some casual target shooting. lIkely you don't want a $1500 scope either. Consider something like a Bushnell Legend HD with 4.5-14 mag.
 
No need for a 10X or more scope on a 30-06. Many people way over-scope their rifles. You'd be hard pressed to do better than a "plain" Leupold FXII 4x33. Take the money you save, and put it towards a good set of binoculars.
 
There's no such thing as a 'tactical' scope. Mildots can be handy for long range sighting, depending on where you are, but are not of much use for normal distances. Like Cosmic says, most deer are not killed at extreme distances in Ontario. Different conditions in places like Saskatchewan or Alberta. Mind you, a .30-06 that drops 2" at 200 isn't sighted in correctly.
Put on a regular 1.5X to 4X, 2.5X to 8X or 3X to 9X from any maker. Sight in 3" high at 100 with a 165 grain bullet, then practice shooting, off hand, at 100 yards, at a 9" pie plate. When you can hit the pie plate every time, you're ready to hunt.
 
One of my regrets is that I always bought more power/magnification than I really needed for my type of hunting. At the time, it sounded like a good idea. Up to 150-200 yards, a 2-7X33 is plenty but it depends on your needs.
 
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