Picking a scope: where to start (and more importantly .. end)

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basrijn

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Hi,

Another "What scope to pick" thread, I'm sorry :)

I'm new to the hobby. Have an interest in long range shooting and purchased a Ruger Precision Rifle in 308 as my first gun (TX Wanstalls!)

After many, many hours on Google and Youtube I'm nothing closer to picking a specific scope. To my surprise "helpmepickmyscope.com" does not exist to do some basic selection on price and major features. Combine that with what seems to be the same basic filtering on the websites of the scope brands I looked at, and I'm left with thousands of make/models to pick from :(

What I was going to search on:
- Price range around <= $600
- MRAD (born and raised metric)

At this point I don't even know if that combo exists, MOA seems to be much more common, so are MRAD scopes only in the higher price ranges.

I was hoping to start with a relatively (but not crappy) scope while I build skills, if all goes well (enjoyment, skill etc) an upgrade down the line is likely.

Normally I do a good amount of research before buying anything, so walking into a store and buy based on the salesmen's recommendation is not my first choice.

Any and all hints/directions to narrow my research are welcome!

Thank you,
Bas

P.S If there is any web designers here that would want to tackle a "helpmefindmyscope.com" problem. I can do the back-end/hosting, but suck at the UI stuff :)
 
id suggest bumping your budget to 1k at least. That opens up the field greatly.

Do research on different scopes and decide what features you want.
zero stop
reticle type
max/min magnification
illum
1in or 30mm or bigger tube
turret type
matching turret & reticles moa/moa, mil/mil
lots of features and avg glass vs some features and great glass vs features and glass
etc etc

Dont cheap out on the optics, it will make or break your enjoyment of shooting your rifle.

There are many experts here that will give very good advice,
i've got 3 leups vxiii - varixiii, and 1 sightron s3. SIghtron is better then my leups, only thing i dont like is limited reticle choice on the s3(regular mildot) would have preferred a tmr style reticle.
 
@rommelrommel That is awesome! Leupold SKU 115390 seem to fit the bill, will do some more reading
@LeftFootOfDoom I know this scope isn't going to keep me happy forever, but I think I will have many other things to figure out before being limited by the scope. Being an amateur photographer I know good glass is expensive, and I will spent the money on it. Just not yet, appreciate the insights!

Bas
 
The best way is to make a list of specs and features you want based on suitability for purpose. Next separate the ones you feel comfortable with the price from those that will sting and those that make you feel like someone kicked you in the stomach. Buy something from the third group.

That's how you start out with what you want to end up with. Its cheaper in the end.
 
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Consider:

scope clicks that match the reticle... many don't
scopes with reliable tracking ... many don't
scopes with enough elevation to make the trip AND not require to be jammed at full up at max distance. Look at a ballistics program to get a feel for what you will need
scopes with enough mag to suit your needs - how far? size of target? type of target?
scopes with good optics so you can see your target at the highest desired mag - center of gong will have different needs then edge of scoring line.

Do consider quality used... for your budget, there are precious few new scopes that will suit what you have in mind AND work reliably for LR shooting. however, when you look at scopes a few years old, things really open up.

For new, $1K'ish is pretty much the start of scopes that will work.

Also, don't skimp on the rings. Anything that can move, will move.

Jerry

PS... there is no END to this rabbit hole.
 
I was out today target shooting with my first ever Sightron.What a treat everything crystal clear,easy to adjust AO as its very close to the yardage marks.I have a Sii 624x42 Bigsky with a V plex reticle.Still nice fine cross hair for a V plex,tracking is dead on goes where you adjust it.Made in Japan.Close to your price range ,I paid $660
 
I said before that I can buy a rifle at the drop of a hat but scopes not so much. I tend to research it to death and get no closer to deciding but I can advise not to go cheap on optics. You don't have to break the bank but its worth it to figure out what is best for your needs and then save up a little longer if you need too and you will be much happier...........and don't go cheap on rings.
 
savagecanuck said:
I was out today target shooting with my first ever Sightron.What a treat everything crystal clear,easy to adjust AO as its very close to the yardage marks.I have a Sii 624x42 Bigsky with a V plex reticle.Still nice fine cross hair for a V plex,tracking is dead on goes where you adjust it.Made in Japan.Close to your price range ,I paid $660
Click to expand...

Where did you buy Sightron?
 
Mystic Precision said:
......
Do consider quality used... for your budget, there are precious few new scopes that will suit what you have in mind AND work reliably for LR shooting. however, when you look at scopes a few years old, things really open up.
......

Jerry

PS... there is no END to this rabbit hole.
Click to expand...

Gone down the rabbit hole with camera lenses :) Was wondering about buying second hand, I would think that is a bit tricky. Some people will have taken good care of their stuff before they sell, others not so much. I would think a scope is much more a precision element then a camera lens. Are there stores with a good second hand inventory (Google did not help much), or private sales?

TX!
Bas
 
Used can be tricky for beginners, but at least some brands are carrying lifetime warranties that transfer to the current owner. That's not as good as it sounds, because good optics don't take a huge drop in price because they are used and it can cost a lot of money in ammunition and trips to the range just to prove the scope is the problem. Unlike a camera lense or pair of binos where what you see is what you get, a riflescope is different in that what you see is just the beginning. Still having a warranty on used products is some protection from a disaster.
 
basrijn said:
Gone down the rabbit hole with camera lenses :) Was wondering about buying second hand, I would think that is a bit tricky. Some people will have taken good care of their stuff before they sell, others not so much. I would think a scope is much more a precision element then a camera lens. Are there stores with a good second hand inventory (Google did not help much), or private sales?

TX!
Bas
Click to expand...

With rifle scopes and shooting, most gear gets used very little. And most that use gear that was "better" in its day, had the resources and desire to do better in their shooting game. They tend to take care of their stuff. But always, ask questions and buy from someone you feel confident in.

There are lots of target scopes from the 80's to 2000's from typical big name brands with very good performance.. for its time. You may not get all the bells and whistles in fashion today BUT the basics of the scope could be solid.

Research the brands and types that shooter talked about back then.

Used carries a risk for sure... but buying junk new is no less frustrating. Ideally, you would buy good new BUT that will come at a price double where you want to be.

Jerry
 
With rifle scopes and shooting, most gear gets used very little.
Click to expand...


That's the reason why junk has managed to get a toehold. Many don't go through enough ammo to expose the shortcomings of junk, or to know the difference. Consider that factory center-fire ammo comes in boxes of 20. Yep, you read that right; 20. Since it doesn't say "sample pack" on there anywhere that's telling me that the vast majority of rifle owners think that 20 cartridges is a meaningful amount. Guys like that can have a busted scope and its going to take them 5 years to figure it out. But you better believe they have an opinion.
 
Not that long ago I was looking for a similar scope is your price range. I searched high and low and these are what I found (not including Super Sniper, since we can't get those in Canada and I didn't find the Leupold AR scopes, if they are in fact mil/mil):

Falcon 4-14x50 or 5-25
Millett 4-16x50
Weaver Grand Slam 3-10x40

For myself, in the end I wasn't happy with any of those, so I waited a bit longer upped my budget. I'm glad a did.
 
There's an old saying in hod-rodding. "There's never enough money to do it right, but there's always enough to do it over." It applies to many things, but no where more so than optics. With glass you can't tweak and tune your way out of a problem.
 
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