Is this a decent scope for a .30-06 bolt?

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That is a very good scope.

It may lack some of the coatings and accessories that the higher-end Leupold products offer. But, at the end of the day, they say what they mean, and they mean what they say.

Leupold and Stevens, Inc. is an American, family-owned, fifth-generation company that has been designing, machining, and assembling precision optical instruments for 100 years. Leupold’s® success has been built on our commitment to your absolute satisfaction, and our commitment to building the best optics for the shooting sports and for the law enforcement / military community. It’s for these reasons that we offer the Leupold Full Lifetime Guarantee.

If any Leupold Golden Ring® product is found to have defects in materials or workmanship, we will, at our option, repair or replace it. FREE. Even if you are not the original owner. No warranty card is required. No time limit applies."
 
It's fine. A lot of people would have you pay more for the scope than for the rifle, but you don't spend hours looking through a scope (as you do through binoculars.) In my opinion the key thing a scope should be is reliable -- and this is a reliable scope.
 
Cabela's has it for the same price. VX-I for $20 more. Great scopes for the money.

I have a Burris Fullfield II on my Weatherby .30-06 (Howa action). I like it. Same price range with a drop reticle. Also great scopes for the money. That's not an insult to them.

There's no scope in the $200 range that's not going to have the phrase for the money tacked onto any rating someone gives you. That doesn't mean there's a thing wrong with it. The picture and light transmission in a Leupold are superb, and the Rifleman is known for returning to zero right on the marks.

There are readily-available scopes for a lot more money. A Shepherd for $700 or a Zwarovski for $2200 sure as shi'ite BETTER be an even better scope than one for $200.

But the $200 Leupold Rifleman will serve you quite well, and it is a truly good value. There is junk out there, but Leupold DOESN'T make it.:)
 
There's no scope in the $200 range that's not going to have the phrase for the money tacked onto any rating someone gives you. That doesn't mean there's a thing wrong with it. The picture and light transmission in a Leupold are superb, and the Rifleman is known for returning to zero right on the marks.

There are readily-available scopes for a lot more money. A Shepherd for $700 or a Zwarovski for $2200 sure as shi'ite BETTER be an even better scope than one for $200.
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Reminds me of my Randall knifes -- is a $300 Randall better than a $30 Wal-mart knife. Yep.

Is it ten times better? Nope.
 
There's a "sweet spot" for a lot of products.

Is the $30 knife ten times better than a $3 knife? Probably. Maybe 20 or 30 times.

I think that, if you choose the maker well, the $180-350 range for scopes is that sweet spot. Above that, you will have to pay a lot for incremental improvements -- important in Alaska or Iraq, but probably not for deer hunting in Oregon. Below that, you risk buying junk. You might get lucky, or not.
 
It's a decent scope for the money, but I favor the Burris FFII's in that price range, and I've got a couple of Leupold VX1's and 2's so I'm not Leupold hater. For the same price the FFII's have a 95% light transmission and I believe the Rifleman series is around 85-87%. It does make a different when the light is poor. Glass quality is about the same for both, and the FFII's I have seem to hold up just as well.

Also look at http://www.swfa.com , they have a lot to choose from and usually about as good a price as you can find.
 
I, too, am a big fan of the FF II. Bright, durable, and the BPLEX is simple but really functional.

There have been promotions where they throw in binocs or a spotting scope with a FF II for around $200. Not a bad deal if you need one of those things.
 
for a 30-06 I would try for a little less zoom though if you plan on hunting with it.
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Why?

Also, does the number after the 2-7x or 3-9x refer to the diameter of the lens? What is the benefit of a larger or smaller measurement here?
 
2-7x means that it has a variable magnification from two time up to seven times. That Walmart Leupold is a 3-9x40mm. This means that it has a variable magnification from three to nine times.

The "40mm" means that the objective lens has a diameter of forty milimeters. Generally, a 40mm lens will gather more light than a 30mm lens. It will be brighter than a 30mm lens of the same quality, making it better at dusk.
Mauserguy
 
The "40mm" means that the objective lens has a diameter of forty milimeters. Generally, a 40mm lens will gather more light than a 30mm lens. It will be brighter than a 30mm lens of the same quality, making it better at dusk.
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That's what I figured. Thanks.
 
I'd go for a Bushnell 2X7 3200 first. Optics very good. click adjustments and Rainguard. I consider this a plus. The Rifleman also exhibits good value. Essex
 
I did a lot of side by side comparisons just last season. For truly good glass look at spending a bit more, around 300, and go Nikon. Other than that when features, clarity and warranty are all looked at....I went with a Sightron SII.

ps. I really like the Burris Signature rings.
 
Most hunting with a 30-06 doesn't require the zoom IMO. The difference between 2x and 3x might be minimal, but outside of quality I think target acquisition should be priority number one for a scope. Most stuff hunted with a 30-06 don't stand around while we try to get the sucker in our sites. Plus the maximum zoom of 7x isn't going to hamper any shots, so its not like a 9x max is major improvement. Then there is the 30mm objective bell, it might not gather as much light as a 40mm, but that doesn't matter. If you are hunting in extremely heavy brush where sunlight is that hard to come by, 2x-7x or 3x-9x is going to way to much zoom anyways, and iron sights or a fixed 1x or 1.5x scope would be ideal since a long shot would probably be somewhere around 50-75 yards.
 
I agree with the previous poster. The Rifeman 1.5 X7 might be better suited for your use. I have one and although I don't hunt I am well impresed with the clarity and brightness . The 1.5X7 is quite compact and its relative short length gives more flexibility when mounting .
 
Been shooting an '06 for a while. I've mostly used an old Leupold Vari-X II 3x9x40.

Had one kill at 350 yards with the scope set on 3X. Had one kill at 450 with the scope probably on 9X, since he was way out when I first saw the buck.

Most of the time, I walked with the scope set on 3X or maybe 4X.

I'm real happy with Leupold scopes. But an old Weaver 4x will do just as well as the most expensive Swarovski for about 95% of all deer hunting with an '06. :)

IMO, you don't need a lot of fancy. My father came back from the War and sporterized a couple of Springfields. One had an old Stith Bear Cub 4X; the other a Weaver K6. He got a lot of invites to go shoot deer for the poker players and whiskey drinkers. I know of many years when he only killed three or four bucks, but he commented one time that his high year was 32. Over a 40-year run, it added up to a bunch of deer meat...

Art
 
That's what I put on my 30-06. I love it. It's clear, bright, solid and Leupold.

Search the archives and see what I had to say about the piece of garbage BSA that it replaced, AND the knucklehead that sold it to me.:cuss:

I'll be picking up another for my 35 Whelen very soon.
 
I'll put in another vote for the Burris Fullfield II. The Burris Fullfield II is definitely a better scope than either the Leupold Rifleman or the Leupold VXI. I put one on my daughter's deer rifle, and the dang thing was as good as the Leupold VXII on my own rifle for half the price. Leupolds are decent scopes, but I can't say that they offer a good value for the money.
 
My Father mounted a Vari-X II 3X9 on a Winchester 88 in 62 or so, sighted in and it has never needed to be adjusted I mounted one on my 700 '06 it's been well over 20 years since it was adjusted.
One more plus is a Leupold is warranted forever and they will stand behind that I know from personal experience. For what it's worth made in America too, I prefer that but that's up to the individual.
Old Weavers, or Redfields etc. are good scopes, just fine, I have owned and used them, but like many manufactures just try and send one in for warranted repair.
 
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