Budget Scope's

11241 Views 18 Replies 8 Participants Last post by Jake S, Jul 27, 2004

cody221

Discussion Starter · Jul 12, 2004

I would like to hear about any scope that you guys are shooting that does not cost a ton.....lets say up to $350, it will be going on a .22-250 and the longest shooting around hear that may be done is 600 yards with average being around a buck fifty, and short being around 50...so as you can tell variable power is a must...this is also my woodchuck and just plain fun shooting gun they i will be purchasing sometime when i have some money...thank you for your opinions

1 - 19 of 19 Posts

morpheus

· #2 · Jul 12, 2004

I would suggest a Leupold Rifleman, if you want a brand new scope. But those scopes are only 1/2 inch adjustments.

But if you want a target scope go to a gun show and look for an old beat up Leupold target scope, I'm saving my money to buy a Leupold target scope (VX-II) for $350. The best thing about Leupold is if it's damaged or anything like that you can send back to them and they'll fix it up.

APK

· #3 · Jul 12, 2004

Personally I always buy the best optics I can afford. In your case a 3-9X40 Leupold VXII is the first thing that pops into my head just because it is a good all around scope. I think thatll cost ya about $250-300. But if you can afford it I would go for the 6-18X40. I bought mine for around $400 I think and it is well worth the money for the increase in power.

Just my .02, hope I could help

Jeff_850

· #4 · Jul 12, 2004

a Leupold VX-I you can get for $200 in 3-9x40mm, not a bad scope i have it on my varminter in 4-12x40mm and its a good scope
but if you can spend under $350 for a VX-II in 3-9x40mm then you should check that out, not sure what they would cost though

mele

· #5 · Jul 12, 2004

Leupold VXI & II's are nice. Also look at Burris Fullfield II scopes, I would put them on par with leupold VXII's, perhaps a tad better. Nikon Monarchs are good, and the 2004 Nikon Buckmasters have new and better optics and are also a good choice in this price range.

MEL

cody221

Discussion Starter · #6 · Jul 13, 2004

alright those were the scoped i had been considering but it feels nice to have opinions from more knowledgable individuals like yourself, and well the thing about the riflemans that turned me off was the 1/2 moa adjustments that were mentioned...what if i only needed to go 1/4 moa adjustment for a zero...know what i mean?

Jeff_850

· #7 · Jul 13, 2004

my VX-I is 1/4 moa ajustments
3-9x40mm is $200 same price as the riflemen scope... dont know what the differnce is but i know the VX-I is a good scope

Jake S

· #8 · Jul 13, 2004

I would throw my .02 cents in with APK's suggestion of the 6-18x40 Leupold VX-II. I had one on my Savage model 12 varminter in .22-250, and at $400 it was an exceptionally clear scope. I was extremely pleased with it.

Jake

Jeff_850

· #9 · Jul 14, 2004

yea that would be a good scope
6-18x40mm is a nice power however maybe its just me but i wouldnt want more than a 4.5-14x40mm for shooting in the standing position

Jake S

· #10 · Jul 15, 2004

But remember it is a variable, so you could just turn the power down to below 14x if you needed to take a freehand standing shot. Anyway it fit perfectly for my needs.

But your mention of the power level of 4.5-14x40 reminded me of another great scope, the Nikon Buckmaster 4.5-14x40 Tactical. It has mil-dots and target turrets, and only costs $300. And for the price, the glass of the Buckmaster line is very good, I had one on a Winchester .30-06, and it served admirably. Also, you might check out the SWFA Tasco Super sniper line, but remember they are all fixed powers, but good nonetheless.

Jake

sledneck827

· #11 · Jul 20, 2004

www.swfa.com

the super sniper scopes made under navy contract, NATO spec, are the best scopes under 300 dollers PERIOD

future8

· #12 · Jul 23, 2004

Jake S said:
But remember it is a variable, so you could just turn the power down to below 14x if you needed to take a freehand standing shot. Anyway it fit perfectly for my needs.

But your mention of the power level of 4.5-14x40 reminded me of another great scope, the Nikon Buckmaster 4.5-14x40 Tactical. It has mil-dots and target turrets, and only costs $300. And for the price, the glass of the Buckmaster line is very good, I had one on a Winchester .30-06, and it served admirably. Also, you might check out the SWFA Tasco Super sniper line, but remember they are all fixed powers, but good nonetheless.

Jake

Where can I find this particular Nikon scope?

Jake S

· #13 · Jul 23, 2004

That particular Tactical model ($300 and it had mil-dots, target turrets and a sun shade, and was adjustable for parallax) I have seen on several occasions at the gun show I frequent in Lawrenceville, Georgia. They also had one for a while at the indoor gun range by my house. The Tactical model I have as of yet been unfortunately unable to find in a sporting goods store. However, if you are willing to forego the mil-dots, the standard model, which has all the same features minus the mil-dots, is available for $279 at both the Galyans sporting goods store and Bass Pro Shop near where I live. However most Nikon dealers will be able to special order the Tactical for you. It is a bit difficult to find, but is well worth it.

Jake

Jake S

· #14 · Jul 23, 2004

Well I was just on the Nikon website and it would appear that they don't catalog the Buckmaster Tactical anymore, as the only Tactical scopes they now have are the Monarch Gold UCC line, which is considerably more expensive. So you might need to scour the gun shows and ranges. However, http://www.bearbasin.com/catalog2.htm#nikon_scopes seems to have them still. Scroll down to the list of scope brands, click Nikon, and about halfway down the Buckmaster list you'll see the 4.5-14x40 with mil-dots and finger adjustable turrets. It lists for $279 also. Hope this helps.

Jake

mele

· #15 · Jul 23, 2004

Nikon just revamped their Buckmaster scopes for 2004. They now offer 92% light transmission (instead of 88 on the old model) and they made a few other minor changes. We can hope that nikon will re-introduce the 4.5-14 tactical model, as it is indeed an excellent scope for the money. All it would take would be a reticule change.

Has anyone else wondered why Leupold charges about a $80+ premium on mil-dot scopes where most everyone else only marks the mil-dot scopes up about $20 ?

MEL

future8

· #16 · Jul 24, 2004

Jake:

Do you by any chance have a picture of your Nikon scope? I checked both Nikon and BearBasin's site, the adjustment knobs shown on pictures do not look like they are target turrets or "finger adjustable."
BTW, do you know what does "Nikoplex" look like?
Thanks for all your info....

F8

Jake S

· #17 · Jul 25, 2004

Future8,

No digital camera, so no pictures... Sorry. But I can tell you that the target turrets on most of the Nikon Tactical scopes have a very low profile. Compared to any other target-turreted scopes, they will appear as though to lack them, but if you look at a regular Nikon scope, the 3-9 Buckmaster for example, you'll notice that they are substantially higher. Under the turret caps, the Nikon's look more like the finger-adjustable Springfield turrets than the massive ones on a Leupold, or most any other tactical scope. The Tactical looks just like the one on the Bear basin site, and you'll just have to check out the turrets on any 4.5-14 Buckmaster scope to see what I mean.

As for the Nikoplex reticule, it looks much like a standard heavy duplex reticule, however, these reticules are usually illuminated reticules, with just the center part of the crosshair, as opposed to the whole thing, lighting up. Its not a bad hunting reticule, but somewhat heavy for longer range precision work.

Hope that helps you out some.

Jake

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mele

· #18 · Jul 26, 2004

I was at a local sportsman shop here in town and noticed they had the nikon buckmaster 4.5-14x mil-dot scope. $279 So they are still out there, hopefully they bring the model back.

MEL

Jake S

· #19 · Jul 27, 2004

Yeah like I said they show up occasionally in sporting goods stores and gun shows. It would be nice if the line was reintroduced, so as to provide us with a steady availability of them, so we don't have to hunt them down.

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