Old guys

I have found over time, I prefer the lowest power possible for getting the job done.
You'd be amazed at the long range results as well.
I seem to group better when I'm not chasing around a cross hair on a flea's rear end.

I have never liked scopes that can go up further than 8x and I prefer less than a 40mm objective.

My preferred scopes are Leupolds and those are the 2.5x20, 1-4x20, 1.5-5x20, and 2.5-8x36.

This is mostly in part to me never using cartridges that reach out further than 200 yds. I mostly use straight wall big bore stuff or other cartridges that would be chambered in lever action rifles.

Open country and flatter and faster cartridges would most assuredly change that.

I think it depends on your eyes, everyone sees different thru scopes. Eyes change to, even if your 20/20 two people may see thru a scope differently.

I like 4 power, really wish they were still made. I don't have good eyes,4x is plenty for me to hunt but having a higher mag is nice to count antler points or see other things you may not see with lower power.

The only scopes I own (not counting red dots) are for my rimfires. I’m an “eye-run” sight shooter for the most part. Even then my two rimfire scopes are both 4x. I prefer the optics lightweight and compact, and 4x is plenty for anything I’d ever use a .22 for. The last thing I need or want is to lug around the Hubble space telescope on a rifle used to fire at tin cans and tiny rodents.

I'm not an "Old guy".....or well at least not by age......Ive always shot scopes tho, and have constantly gravitated to higher and higher magnifications. My two primary hunting guns wear a 3.5-10 Leupy, and a 6.5-20 Meopta respectively.
The last sheep I shot Id forgotten to turn down my scope and didnt even notice I had it cranked untill after the shot. Id probably have had an easier time, since I was looking straight into the rising sun, but it didn't hinder me significantly. I did turn it down when we chased the rest of the herd a little farther down the flow, and would have been quite comfortable taking any shot offered at the 8 or so it was set on.
My .22s both wear higher mag scopes, the Ranger is 4.5-14, the CZ is 6-20, and I shoot them close to max most of the time.

My dad IS a certifiable old guy, but doesn't really hunt. He's mostly shooting targets, but seems to do just fine with scope in the 3-6 range. Hes a half foot shorter than I am with similarly shorter arms, so my stocks are all way too long and the distance to my scopes too far for him to use them on max power (for the most part.) still went 3 or 3 with the carbon CM on 10" gong at 500 with the scope set at 4.5 or so.

My go to gun, a 300WSM in a lightweight Savage 10, has worn a 2-7X Leupold for 20 years. Sighted in 3" high at 100 yards the PBR is 300 yards. A 10" hold over will be good out to 400. My long range guns have scopes that top out at 14X and 18X. They only get used at the range or when I hunt fields. I messed up a couple of years ago and took my Bergara with a 6-18X into the timber. The acorns were coming off and the deer were in the woods. Five does came by at 30 yards and one completely filled the scope. I took the Savage with the 2-7X after that.

To be honest, some of my longest shots on deer were with a 270 wearing a 1.5-4.5X. Even shot some sub-MOA groups with it.

I just ordered a 4-16x44 for my 308. I like that it has 4x and I doubt I will ever shoot at over 10x. It's nice to be able to zoom in on targets or animals though. And yeah, it looks like the Hubble telescope.
Everything else is red dot.

Edit: I'm 68 years old.

I use scopes from 2x to 25x ,.I will be 60 in a week ,not sure if that's old or not . I make my decisions on distance and terrain . I am well "seasoned" , that has little to do with it . Common sense dictates ,

This old man shot 3x9s hunting for some years before I got into what I call duel purpose rifles. I like hunting mid size game as well as paper punching and developing clover leaf shooting loads with rifles that are capable of doing so. I have settled on 4x14 or 16 power scopes. Low power for hunting and high for range work. I can't get those clover leafs with a low power scope. Shooting on high power helps me keep my breathing and trigger technique in check as well...ymmv

I bought a Rem 700 in .30-06 over 25 years ago, with a 3x9 on it. Quickly discovered hunting the Ozarks that even 3 was almost too much, and 9? Nothing but hair in the scope, which end am I aiming at? It was quite the change from a first gen Aimpoint I had been using since about 1980.

For much of what I can see in the typically denser broken woodlands where I hunt, a wide field red dot does just fine. I haven't bought a magnified optic since. I'm tempted by the LPVO's but the price - even from China - tends to put one off. I'm leaving that decision later as for now in the literal middle of eye surgery - it's an astonishing difference. I'm half convinced I don't need no stinkin scopes now, I can see for miles and miles . . .

The highest magnification I've ever used on a hunting rifle are the Burris 3-9X40's that are on my Remington Classic .220 Swift and my Ruger 77 .280. In the field, both rifles scopes are kept set on 3 or 4X. The longest shot I ever made on big game was a smidge over 350 yds. on a bull elk. The rifle was my .35 Whelen and its scope is a Burris 4X Fullfield. My heavily used Scout Rifle in .308 wears a 2.75X Scout Scope. Between my oldest daughter and I, we've killed a truck load of game with it, never once wishing for magnification. My dad has always been a fan of 1.5-5X scopes, but when he got in his '70's found he needed a little more magnification for his aging eyes and switched to a 2-7X40.

Higher magnification scopes can be a bane, and I've lost count of the number of my buddies who missed shots on game because "....dangit....I jumped a buck, but I forgot to turn the magnification down and couldn't find him in the scope.". A 4X scope at 25 yds. has a field of view of around 7'. At the same distance a 9X scope has a FOV of around 3.5', and a 12X around 2'. The glass manufacturers have done a great job in convincing us that more magnification and objective lenses the size of trash can lids are better and I just have to shake my head in disbelief when I see hunting rifles, especially the light, trims ones, that appear to have been mounted to the scope, rather than the scope having been mounted to them. The up side to this is that quality, used 4X scopes are readily available at good prices.

35W

I like Leupold 3.5x10 on most of my hunting rifles. I drew Co archery buck tag,rifle bear tag, rifle elk tag and plan on taking 280AI using 175gr ABLR @ 2941fps for elk and 30-338mag for bear tag. I can still see 5 pins on my bow sight.

I'll be 80 in 6 month, got to love being old.

Remember, this isn't the 1970's anymore. Back then virtually all rifle owners were primarily hunters. The number of hunters has declined significantly in the last 50 years while the number of rifle owners has grown. Most of the new shooters are primarily target shooters. And a lot of those who still do hunt shoot a LOT more at the range than they do in the hunting fields. I'm fortunate to live in a state with a 2 1/2 month rifle season. But for many guys 7-10 days is it.

It is to be expected that the rifles, optics, cartridges and other gear will reflect this. If I put several thousand rounds down range every year with my target rifle then that is the rifle I'm most likely to reach for when hunting season rolls around.

I'm 63 and qualify as old. But my rifle and gear choices have changed. Now that I'm retired I have a lot more time and money to shoot than I did working 50-60 hours a week raising 2 kids. I find myself using rifles that would be considered "light varmint" type rifles and 308 and 6.5 CM have replaced 30-06 and belted magnums. My scopes are in the 2-10X range, but I've learned to use dials and dots for those longer shots. I may never need them while hunting, but I have them and know how to use them.

For my "big game" rifles I tend to stay in the medium range of magnification, but I set rifles up based on game and terrain:

.260 Rem M7: Leupold 2.5-8x
.270W Nosler M48: Leupold 2-12 6XHD
.270W Steyr M7: Swarovski 2.2-9X
.350 Rem Mag Rem M7: Swarovski 1.25-4X and Leupold 2.5-8X (QD mounts)
.300WM M700: Leupold 4.5-14X
8x68S Steyr Mod S: Swarovski 1.5-6X

The .260 and .350 are my "close range" set ups, the 8x68 was set up for Elk (big tgt), everything else is geared towards more open country. Longest shot on game I've ever made was on a Chamois in Austria at 440 meters with a 6X. I've never had an issue hitting at 300-400 with 6-10X, so I've stuck with that range of magnification.

IF the polls/surveys periodically conducted here dealing with "longest shot or average shot on game" are correct, then the average deer is killed at under 200yds. So a standard 3-9X should work well. I honestly don't "target shoot" with my hunting guns, I have purpose assembled target rifles for that. I do practice with my hunting rifles on steel at the ranges I've set them up for though.

At age 75 and having shot scoped rifles for around 50 years, I've tried many variations in all kinds of conditions on targets big and small. In the past 25 years I've gravitated to more magnification. Highest scope is my Bushnell Elite 6-24X on my Kimber .204 prairie dog rifle, but I kill more dogs with my .223 with a Bushnell Elite 4200 4-16X and kill even more with my 17HMR using a Tract 4-12X. My .22 squirrel rifles have Leupold 3.5-8X, but I also chase squirrels with a 17Mach2 with a Bushnell Elite 4-16XAO, which really comes in handy for the occasional long distance squirrel. Even though I don't shoot long shots at deer (all but one deer I've killed in the last few years have been under 100yds), I still prefer higher magnification and precise shot placement. Now another issue has arrived. Later today I''m having my 2nd cataract surgery. The first produced 20/20 vision in my left eye. If I gain 20/20 in my right too, we have a new ballgame!!!

I'm not an old man by any means, but I have used 3-9 power scopes most all of my life. My 30-06 and 243 each wear Leupold 3-9x40's, my 17 carries a Simmons 3-9, and my 222 wears a vintage El Paso Weaver 3-9x38 AO (my only AO scope). Now, I do have a couple fixed 4x scopes (and one 6x) on 22's and they are just fine for plinking and popping squirrels at 40 or 50 yards. But for serious deer/varmint hunting, I want all the magnification I can get within reason. I like to be precise in my shooting, and I feel like more magnification helps that.

Mac

3-9x or 3.5-10x is plenty on any hunting rifle I own and I could get by with less.

Probably not old enough myself to be qualify for the membership card yet, but I can tell for certain that anyone who carries a rifle all day may start rethinking the 5 pound scopes. Personally I really like the compact 2-7x and fixed 2.5x or 4x scopes for hunting just because they are lighter, don't catch on brush as easily and provide a decent sight picture when while standing. I don't know anyone who actually shoots high magnification unsupported (they all use prone, benches, sticks/bipods).

I'm a late Boomer, so I guess I'm old. I like variable scopes and most of my hunting rifles wear Leupolds in the 3.5-10x40 range, a couple lower (1-4x20, 2.5-8x36), a couple higher (4.5-14x40). I tend to carry them set in the middle of the magnification range, cranking them down to the bottom when still hunting and up to the top when stand hunting. Just personal preference. I do have a few high magnification scopes, but they aren't on dedicated hunting rifles.

This Model 7 in 7mm-08 is wearing a Leupold 2.5-8x36.

I think even us young (or I guess middle aged since I'm on the upper end of my 30's) shooters understand the difference between hunting and target shooting. I might have high magnification optics on my target guns, but my 4 hunting guns have a red dot, a two 3-9x (normally left at 3x), and just iron sights on the last.

Usually a 3-9x on my elk rifles, carried in the 3-4x position.

I am old (in my eighth decade). Most of the game I seek are within 200 yards.
My eyes are not up to seeing much game at 600 yards and over, and my eyes will not last giving good vision for a match. So long distance shooting does not interest me. I would probably enjoy bench rest, except for the 'eyes lasting' part.
I can still shoot large dangerous game rifles. I have a .458 Winchester and developed a load for it. But I prefer to shoot rifles of lesser recoil these days.

Everyone's situation is different. Everyone's interests are different. Enjoy yourselves, everyone.

Funny how my medium range weapons all have red dots or iron sights, but for hunting or long range i tent to keep it 12x or 14x because i really like to see where the bullet is hitting. Also where you are shooting too, for me it’s either a urban environment or across a 300-500 yards swamp

9x56MS said:

I find it ironic in this age of more shooters going long range that I find myself choosing smaller lighter lower power rang scopes. May it’s because as a hunter With shall we say a bit more experience under my belt I have never taken a shot at an animal that required more than a 4x scope. Anyway just wondering if any other “seasoned” hunters find themselves in similar circumstances?

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I've never gone with high magnification scopes, and rarely with variables. In my opinion, the best hunting scope is a Leupold M8 in 4X. My dad hunted in Africa (he was in the oil exploration business and spent literally years in the bush) with a 99 Savage in .250-3000 mounting a Weaver K2.5.