Scope Advice

as far as inexpensive scopes go, im really happy with the Burris Fullfield II 3-9x i picked up with a ballistic plex.
3-9 is pretty versatile, the scope itself is quite clear and the ballistic plex is very useful.

LeBaron still has a promo going for the above scope: $300 for the scope and a Landmark 8x32 bino. the binos arent amazing but they are OK for general hunting use, or you can give them away as a gift or sell them on the EE.
 
A Leupold Var-X 3-9 or 4-12(fixed odjective) is a good overall scope for your needs. Excellent low light viewing. You should be able to buy one new for a little under $300.00. Wife has the 4-12 on her 7mm rem mag and it hasn't gone out of adjustment yet.
 
hard to beat a Bushnell Elite 3200 for $230 brand new. The Burris FFII is a good scope too, selling for around $300. The VXI Leupold another great deal selling new in 3-9x40 for about $270
 
I've got a vari x III 3.5-10x40 on my .300wsm. I took 2 animals with it last fall, works perfect. I've also shot paper at 500yds with it. Right now thats my favorite hunting rig.
 
I just got a Nikon prostaff 3-9 that I am impressed with. Really clear & bright for $200. I compaired it side by side with the bushnell elite and the optics seemed better to me.
 
For bad eyes, on cheap side and that distance, you may wanna take a look at BSA Mil-Dot in either 4-16 or 6-24 also either illuminated or not. Very good scope for what it is and the price. It costs only $120-130 in USA.
 
For a limited budget,the elite 3200 3x9x40 is a great choice.If you are going to pay the price of a leupold vxIII 3.5x10x40,you would be better off buying a zeiss conquest 3x9x40 instead.
 
I have a Burris 1.5x5, a Simmons 1.5x5 & a Elite 3200 1.5x4.
The 1st two listed are head & shoulders better scopes than the Elite, IMO!

5x scope means the deer at 300yds would equate a deer at 60yds.
I see no reason for more power except target practice.

Granted conditions i hunt rarely would ever exceed 200yds, & most much closer!

OK flame away :)
 
senior said:
I have a Burris 1.5x5, a Simmons 1.5x5 & a Elite 3200 1.5x4.
The 1st two listed are head & shoulders better scopes than the Elite, IMO!

5x scope means the deer at 300yds would equate a deer at 60yds.
I see no reason for more power except target practice.

Granted conditions i hunt rarely would ever exceed 200yds, & most much closer!

OK flame away :)
Click to expand...

I tend to agree with you, my work rifles wear 24x Leupolds but on my hunting(recreational) fiream I use a 4x Pecar, this allows me to shoot at a measured 360 yds (range length) a water filled 3 litre milk bottle (standing on my two feet with-out a rest), the irony being that I find it easier to shoot with open sights whilst standing up, and yes I do miss as well.
I find firearms that are being used with a rest benefit from higher magnification, but firearms that are used standing are more comfortable when used with either low or no magnification.
This is my comfort zone, however others may not agree and may have a different opinion.

Ps, and the wind is blowing a gale outside so you are stuck with me for another night.
 
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Bushnell 3200 value is hard to beat as many have pointed out. Rainguard is a nice feature. However, Bushnell eye relief is marginal for a 300wm.

If you consistently shooting over 200 yards, it is worth your while to consider a 4-12X scope.
 
not saying that the Bushnell 3200 is a bad scope, but there is a night and day difference between a Bushnell 4200 and a 3200. the problem is, once you get into the 4200 price ranges you really shouldnt be buying a Bushnell.

the Burris Fullfield II 3-9x40 is noticeably clearer than my 3200, albeit its not a 1-1 comparison because the only 3200 i own is a fixed 10x mil-dot. for $300 with a ballistic plex and a pair of Landmark binos thrown in, its hard to beat the LeBaron burris scope/bino combo. they dont list the combo coming with a ballistic plex but the one i ordered did, and i recommended it to a friend and his came with the ballistic plex as well.

IMO the downsides of the Burris 3-9x40 are the fact that unlike Leupold and Bushnell you have to send them to the US for service, and ive had overzealous customs morons try to charge me on RMA items several times even though they were clearly marked WARRANTY RETURN.
the other downside is its a little big. IMO the ideal size scope for a hunting rifle is something along the 2-7x33mm range.

the Leupold Vari-X IIIs are nice scopes, but you can hardly recommend them when he says 'wont break the bank'. right now the mid-quality scopes are the best bang for your buck -- once you start getting into the higher end there are diminishing returns for your money spent. ie: spending 3x as much money doesnt necessarily get you 3x as good a scope.

BSA is very hit or miss in terms of quality. IMO they wont survive a 300 mag for long, and many people report problems with them right out of the box and have to return them 1-2 times to get one thats good. this is no problem if you live in the states and it entails a 5 minute drive to your local store for an exchange, but is not worth the trouble for Canadians. i would not buy a BSA scope as a Canadian, their reputation is sketchy.
 
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Coditions will rarely exceed 250 yrds, but may be 300 yrds, but not the norm
Most shots at 200 yrds.

Bad eyes is a real concern. Not so bad, you can't see, but glare and haze combined with astigmatism makes it hard sometimes.

Is anyone using higher power scopes on the magnums, like up to a 12 , 18 or 24?

I'm not sure why if say 300 or a 250 yrd shots are possible, no one is using the high powers, but a lot seem to opt for a 1.5-4 or 1.5-5 or fixed 4.
Is the a reason behind this? or is just field of view?
Running shotsare very very unlikely.
 
I have a Bushnell 3200 Elite 3x9x40 and I don't have anything bad to say about it. It's cost effective, clear, and the rainguard works awsome.

There's better scopes, but hard to beat for that price.
 
sealhunter said:
Coditions will rarely exceed 250 yrds, but may be 300 yrds, but not the norm
Most shots at 200 yrds.

Bad eyes is a real concern. Not so bad, you can't see, but glare and haze combined with astigmatism makes it hard sometimes.

Is anyone using higher power scopes on the magnums, like up to a 12 , 18 or 24?

I'm not sure why if say 300 or a 250 yrd shots are possible, no one is using the high powers, but a lot seem to opt for a 1.5-4 or 1.5-5 or fixed 4.
Is the a reason behind this? or is just field of view?
Running shotsare very very unlikely.
Click to expand...

FOV is one benifit, it allows quicker target acquision which allows more time to shoot.
4-5x is about all I can hold steady enough off hand for any kind of distance shot, high power has it's benefit but again IMO only if you have a rest readily available.
Again 5x equates a 300yd shot to equal a 60 yd shot with no power, if you can't make a 60yd with no power then I seriously doubt more X power would help...again IMHO:)
 
my eyes too are getting old. i'm still happy with a 4x on lever guns or my mini 30. up to 200 yards they work great. my biggest scope is 3x9 and for hunting never gets above 6x. i also like 6x fixed scopes as i can use at close range and have enough power for long shots in the field. the quality of the glass is as important as the magnification. i would rather have a luep 4x than a bush cheapy 4x16. unless i was shooting rodents i wouldn't want to pack any scope as large as 18 or 24. deer,bear and moose are large targets and don't usually require a 2 pound telescope.
 
Personally I would not get any scope that tops out over 9-10 on a hunting rifle even if it is for 500yd work, because most hunting shots are still under 200 yds. The last moose I took was at 190yds and I never turned the scope up from the 2X that it was set on. Moose tasted great by the way, and it died to a dodgy old 30-06 with a conventional speer bullet. I say tops 9-10, because anything over that requires parallax adjustment, and who wants to #### with that on a hunting rifle, weight of scope also comes into play as the rifle becomes top heavy. I think the guys saying 3 X9 3200 are on the right track, although I vote 2 X7. Take a look on the optics sell forum, I wouldn't hesitate to buy a well kept VX-II or III in 2 X 7, or 2.5 X 8 Leupold. Nice and light and all the power and light gathering you need for any hunting rifle.

Good luck, Homesteader
 
The best 300 WSM set-up I've seen and used to date is the Burris Euro Diamond in the 2.5-10x44 with the 30mm tube and Ballistic Plex reticle. For what ever reason @ 10 power the ballistic plex lines up perfectly with a 180 g Nosler Accubond loaded by Winchester. The scope is extremely clear and offers loads of eye releif and feild of view. This would be my choice for a 300 WSM. Objective diameter and light transmission as well as how well the scope manages light is very important for low light moose encounters and even deer. I didn't realize the real advantage until this past deer season when at a couple seconds after legal shooting time I slammed a nice doe @ 200 yards with my 270 Win. On top, a Leupold VX II 3-9x50 LRD.
 
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