Help me choose a rifle scope

DH56

DH56

Active Member
Jan 17, 2014
317
280
Northern, Ohio
swampokie said:
Leupold is the golden standard in american scopes. I own several of them and the performance is unquestionable and customer service is second to none. The vx-l may be an option for a lower mount with a 50mm
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Same here- great scopes and I have many and for antelope I have the 4x14x50 mounted on my STW. That 50mm will get the light you need on low light conditions and be a benefit.

I have Zeiss Bino's and a Swarovski spotting scope and they have great glass as well. Good Luck in you choice.
 
johnsd16

johnsd16

Active Member
Mar 16, 2014
353
4
N Idaho
Alight, I've had a lot of fun looking at scopes. I think I may have decided to pick up a Leupold VX-3 4.5-14x50 side focus. Now, what I am debating, is whether to get the CDS for elevation. It looks like it costs about $50 or so above just the side focus. It also looks like the 30mm tube and 50mm objective are each $100 over the 1" with 40mm objective. Makes a $600 scope $850 pretty quick.
 
Hilltop

Hilltop

Veteran member
Feb 25, 2014
3,847
2,230
Eastern Nebraska
johnsd16 said:
Alight, I've had a lot of fun looking at scopes. I think I may have decided to pick up a Leupold VX-3 4.5-14x50 side focus. Now, what I am debating, is whether to get the CDS for elevation. It looks like it costs about $50 or so above just the side focus. It also looks like the 30mm tube and 50mm objective are each $100 over the 1" with 40mm objective. Makes a $600 scope $850 pretty quick.
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John,

I have the BC reticle with nothing else adjustable. I am very comfortable out to 500 yards with this set up. My 30-06 doesn't produce enough killing power beyond 500 for elk so that is my personal limit. I don't care for the adjustable focus myself...
 
Colorado Cowboy

Colorado Cowboy

Super Moderator
Jun 8, 2011
8,348
4,741
83
Dolores, Colorado
Hilltop said:
John,

I have the BC reticle with nothing else adjustable. I am very comfortable out to 500 yards with this set up. My 30-06 doesn't produce enough killing power beyond 500 for elk so that is my personal limit. I don't care for the adjustable focus myself...
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I'm old school when it comes to reticles. All of mine have the Leupold Target Dot reticle, I have shot a dot since my first Weaver K3 60 years ago.
 
S

stevevan

Active Member
Mar 22, 2014
305
0
Michigan's Upper Penninsula. South central in Delt
I set-up my 25-06 as a specialty rifle with open country antelope/deer in mind. I mounted a Leupold VX6 3-18x 44mm with the B&C Reticle. After going through some other set-ups I find this to be the one I like most. I still find the fixed RF reticles to my preference as I can sight in the trajectories of various loads should I choose to do so without the need to have another turret made up. Also, I like the " keep it simple" idea and not have something that you have to keep working the internal components of your scope. As good as todays scopes are, with all that constant changing/dialing of the turrets you run the risk of something failing and with the getting rarer opportunities at a trophy you want to keep "things that can wrong" to a minimum.
 
Colorado Cowboy

Colorado Cowboy

Super Moderator
Jun 8, 2011
8,348
4,741
83
Dolores, Colorado
stevevan said:
I set-up my 25-06 as a specialty rifle with open country antelope/deer in mind. I mounted a Leupold VX6 3-18x 44mm with the B&C Reticle. After going through some other set-ups I find this to be the one I like most. I still find the fixed RF reticles to my preference as I can sight in the trajectories of various loads should I choose to do so without the need to have another turret made up. Also, I like the " keep it simple" idea and not have something that you have to keep working the internal components of your scope. As good as todays scopes are, with all that constant changing/dialing of the turrets you run the risk of something failing and with the getting rarer opportunities at a trophy you want to keep "things that can wrong" to a minimum.
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Nothing wrong with what you are using and your reasoning. Years ago I tried a reticle with all the extra dots and "stuff" inside with the same idea, but I didn't like the cluttered look it had. I like the single dot to view and the clear imaging I get. (Like I said in a previous post...I'm old school, goes with my age!) As far as moving the turret to set the range, I find I really don't use it all that much. Most of my shooting is 250 yds or less and my zero is 200 yds. Pretty much dead on aiming. Also as I shoot all Leupolds and their warranty is lifetime...no worries mate!
 
johnsd16

johnsd16

Active Member
Mar 16, 2014
353
4
N Idaho
Bitterroot Bulls

Bitterroot Bulls

Veteran member
Apr 25, 2011
2,326
0
Montana
johnsd16 said:
The mark 4 has better glass than the VX-3?
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No they do not.

They use the same optical technology (coatings, etc.) as the VX-3. The Mark4 version does have side focus rather than AO though. That particular Mark 4 scope (and the VX-3 counterpart) does have quite a bit of variable eye relief (3/4").

The Leupy's are good scopes, but personally I prefer Vortex Viper scopes in this price range. The HST is a nice scope, and you can set up a rotation stop with the included shims. Eye relief is constant.

EDIT:

I see the OP mentioned the Swarovski Z3. I have the 4-12X50 with the BRH reticle, and it is one of my favorites. It is an excellent hunting scope if it fits in your budget.
 
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