The best cheap glass I have found is NC Star handgun scopes. I have about six of them and I utilize them in lieu of Scout scopes thus I call them the poor man's Scout Scope.
Handguns by their nature give a much more violent recoil impulse to the scope and for this reason the handgun scopes must be built more rugged than the conventional rifle scopes.
With their being a long eye relief you have to mount them so the rear eyepiece is in front of the receiver so they have to be barrel mounted. If you have never looked at a Scout Scope set up you need to try one to see how fast they point and shoot.
Jeff Cooper is the father of the concept and he is at the big range in the sky but his thoughts etc can still be read:
http://www.dvc.org.uk/jeff/
I highly recommend all read the above.
The NC Star handgun scopes come in 2X and 2-7X and there is a version with a lit reticle. The 2X can be had for like 40.00 and the variable is like 52.00. I have also found them on ebay.
I can't speak for their rifle scopes but neither me nor my friends who have bought the pistol scopes have had any problems.
The 2X at 300 yards are good on targets down to 5" diameter. I have 5" steel discs on my range at 300 yards and I can hit them. Smaller than that the target is hidden behind the cross hairs. Thus for smaller targets beyond 300 yards I would suggest the variable power style.
They are duplex reticle so if you zero for point of aim point of impact POA/POI at 300 yards the 6:00 reticle post can be used as a aim point between 500 and 600 yards.
Google NC Star Scope sales.
Below is a 2X scope on several rifles on the 600 yard range.
This is on a shorty AR with a superiorbarrels.com com barrel and Daniel Defense 14" handguard. Barrel is 16"
This one is a Swiss 1911 rifle rebarreled with medium heavy barrel still in 7.5 Swiss caliber.
This one mounted on 700 Remington 7/08.
The above two rifles are barrel mounted using a Weaver 92A handgun base (for Thompson Contender Super 14). The scope mounts are Weaver see thru bases. I get the mounts from Wally World for about ten bucks and the 92A bases for about 8.00 at various places so you can literally mount the scopes for about 20.00.
This is shooters view of the first picture above and makes for a very fast pointing short rifle.
The camera did not focus correctly on this shot but the rifle is aimed at a target 600 yards away using the 6:00 o'clock post as a aim point. The image looks fuzzy because the camera focused on the close object.
The below is a NC star on a Ruger MkIII with a 10 shot group shot at 100 yards with Winchester Standard Velocity Ammo. If you look closely you will see the letters POA in red right above the bull. That is where I aimed to have the shots impact 10 ring at 100 yards using a 50 yard zero as 22 will drop about 6 1/2" from 50 to 100 yards.
25 yard pistol target shot at 100 yards.
