Best $300 rifle scope?

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leadcounsel

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I've got two Savage 10 FCP and FP .308 rifles that I want to put scopes on. These rifles are very nice, and are about $1,000 each. My budget is $300 per scope. Am I making a mistake in such a low budget? Or should I just buy one for now at $600, and save for an second scope at $600 later?

These will be set up for competition tack drivers.

Thinking Leupold, Nikkon, Bushnell... or....

I'm wanting a good warranty, and I know Leupold has a great warranty.

Questions:
1. Is there a notable difference in a 3-9x40 or a 4-12x40 or 4-12x50 scope in practice?
2. Would you put the extra money in the size of the scope, or the brand? Meaning a larger Bushnell, or a smaller Leupold?
3. I've found some sub-$300 scopes on Amazon... but is there a better place to buy?
4. Scope rings. I have a nice set of 30mm rings, but the scopes that fit these are very pricey. Conversely, UTG seems to make some great rings for under $20, that get high ratings.

As always, thanks.
 
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Is 600 yards realistic? Perhaps 1000 yards?

I have a few cheap $50-100 scopes (Tasco, Bushnell, etc.) but assume these won't get the job done.
 
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stay away from cheap scopes....I am a Leupold person, cant really afford the Swaroskis, Nightforce etc. but if I need a scope for a $800 rifle, I put a $800 scope on it. the low end Leupolds are ok as are the Redfields made by Leupold. right now I just put a Burriss Fullfield II 4.5x14x44 ($300) on a Bushmaster 308 ORC, a real nice scope, should be good for past 500 yards, if you can shoot that far.
 
make that a 4.5x14x 42, it has the adjustable objective, neat looking scope, great clarity and stands up well to the .308. Midway USA and Optics Planet, SWFA all have great deals on them right now.
 
I'd take a look at Vortex. Lifetime warranty, and great clarity. I compared it to a similarly priced Redfield, and bought the Vortex after researching and physically testing both optics. I was very happy with the purchase.
 
Leupold is rarely a mistake when you desire quality and value. I have a VX-2 3-9X and it fits your current budget. It is a nice clear scope for the money. I also have a couple of Redfield Revolution 4-12X scopes, good value for the price. One is mounted on a Stevens in .243 Win and the other rides on my S&W M&P 15 Sport. For your purposes, if you could sqeeze a little more out of your budget, the Vortex Viper is available in a 6.5-20X 44mm objective with a 30mm tube for around $429 + shipping. Cameraland has offered them a couple of times with standard duplex reticle for just $279 plus shipping. You might contact Doug at Cameraland and see if they have any plans to order another shipment of those. If they are planning another offering, I would go for one of those. Nice, clear optics, 30 mm tube, side focus, and outstanding (from what I have heard, no personal experience yet) customer service.
http://www.cameralandny.com/optics/vortex.pl?page=vortexviper6-20x44
 
Vortex for me is one of the best cheep scopes out.right now. The only thing I've found that shows cheepness is kind limited eye relef

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk 2
 
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I run a Redfield revenge 3-9x40 on my MVP, it beats my friends prostaff Scopes, and at $220, they are well worth the price, they even I have a model that let's you see exactly what your magnification level is while looking through the scope
 
Either of the scopes you linked to in post #12 should do well. You will not be happy with a FFII for this use, they are a good little scope, but not up to what you want here. Midway puts this Vortex 5-15-44 on sale for $100 off, or has anyway. I bought one and it is very nice. I used TPS rings for it and they are superb. Do not put UTG on a precision rifle. This was the first time I spent that much on rings, and I have not only not regretted it, for a rifle I expect to shoot well, I will no longer buy any less of a ring set. You pay for precision. Actually, I have spent that much on rings before. Kelby rings on my Bench gun. been awhile. I decided I wanted more power and replaced the Votex 5-15 with a Sightron SIII 8-32-50. Wow is it nice, although you cannot always take advantage of the higher settings in poor conditions. With a straight 36X scope you just have to deal with it, but with a variable, you can dial it down..

Don't cheat yourself if you are going for precision, but don't gold plate a rifle that is not capable.
 
I'd buy quality over higher magnification. More X's = more money, but not necessarily better quality. You get the most quality for the dollar at 3-9X40.

As others said Leupold is never a mistake, and I'd vote for a new production VX-2 as the best scope value for the dollar. Leupold upgraded their entire line of scopes starting in 2012. The VX-3's were upgraded and a new VX-2 is basically a 2011 VX-3 as far as lenses and lense coatings. They upgraded them to click adjustments at the same time. Older VX-2's were good, but I'd pass on the older version to buy the new one.

I bought this one about a year ago.

http://swfa.com/Leupold-3-9x40-VX-2-Riflescope-P51800.aspx

The basic scope is $299, I paid $30 more to get the LRD reticle and it was $30 well spent. This scope is better than a 5 year old VX-3 I own and was $150 cheaper. In fact it compares very close to my Zeiss Conquest. You'll have to spend close to $1,000 to see any real advantage.
 
If the scope is not going to be used for hunting, then I would suggest one of the SWFA SS fixed 10X or 12X scopes for $300. I have the SWFA SS 12X and it's great. I was consistently dinging the 6" target at 1000 yds last weekend with my Savage LRP 260.
 
leopold is a good scope but overpriced because of their warranty. I have heard guys brag they sent a 30 year old scope back to them and they fixed it under warranty. well you pay for that when you buy a new one. it is like $300 fishing rods with lifetime warranty . you are paying for 3 rods when you buy one. no company will spend their money to fix their product they will spend your money
 
I would get one scope to start since these are very similar rifles for competition. That one scope would probably be either a SWFA SS 3-15x, which looks great, or a Burris MTAC 4.5-14x mildot, which costs somewhat less. Both have lifetime warranties.

If you want to stay at $300 or so and get two scopes, the SWFA SS fixed 10x and 12x scopes would be a top choice. They are excellent value and have adjustable parallax.

For quality rings without spending too much I would choose TPS or Warne.
 
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