lower power scope?

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back in the 70s and early 80s, almost all my scopes were fixed 6 power Leupolds, cant hardly find them anymore, I hunted South Texas and Soutwest Texas with them for years and made many a 300 plus yard shot with them, still got some of them.
 
This is only for my situation, your's appears a bit more complicated. My choice for a close quarter scope for my Marlin Guide Gun (.45-70) was geared to the following:
1. Limited range of the caliber to make reliable hits.
2. The stubby weapon (18.5" bbl.) and overall 37" long.
3. My particular hunting situation (hogs at close quarters and fast moving out o 150 yard shots.
4. Economic by having limited funds.

My research landed me with a Leapers long eye relief 1.25-4 scope with red and green illuminated mil-dot system. It is short, light, and has stood up to the .45-70 without a hitch. The 1.25 mag. is almost looking thru a window with crosshairs, but going up to 2.5 it is super great at pulling in the hogs I shoot and still give me a wide field of vision. Plus, with a low power mag. there is little "wobble" in the scope and this creates faster shots as I'm not trying to get the crosshairs too "pinpointed". The scope at 4 power is just enough mag. to get good shots off at the extent of my range of solid hits (150 yds.) and still keep the "wobble" factor at bay. Plus the range finding aspect with the mil-dot is really good. At 4 power there is plenty mag. to see far beyone my usable range and I would not bat an eye to use this scope on a much flatter shooting weapon.

The cost of this scope was $58 delivered. Rings and base about $25. The smile on my face as I see a hog drop in it's track...Priceless!

Wade
 
Leapers ? sounds too good to be true. I have a bid on a Leopold 2-7 on ebay. If I don't get it, I'll take a look at the Leaper. My experience has been that cheap scopes are a crap shoot but for that price and your recommendation I'll certainly consider it. I know they are built to withstand air rifle recoil that is hard on scopes.
 
hello everyone, new here...
My two primary big game rifles are both .308s with 1-4 and 1.25-5 scopes on them. I live in the west and hunt mule deer and elk. I have had absolutely no issues shooting very accurately out to farther than I would shoot at big game with these rifles. I practice a lot on paper out to 300+ yards with these and out to 1000 with 3-9 power scopes. I have shot .5 MOA out to 300 yards and average 1 MOA out to this distance with these scopes. 400 yards would not be a problem with perfect conditions and a perfect broadside, but I have a self imposed 300 yard limit with the .308s. I think a low power scope is fantastic for most big game hunting, weight, compactness and the ability to power down when you are in tight cover, plus the long shots are no problem. The clarity is more important than magnification IME.
 
This is a 300 yard group at 5x and a cow from last year shot at 227 yards with a 1-4 set on 4x, both .308.
 

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Over a period of about three years in the 1980s i had several deer and elk suddenly appear at less that 25 yards. Of course my scope was always set on 9X and it was impossible to find the animal in the scope.

At the time i was starting to collect WWII sniper rifles and this got me to thinking. With the exception of some US Marine rifles; all of the sniper weapons used by the countries involved in WWII were of 4X or less.

Now many of my scopes are fixed 2.5X, 4X and 6X models. My variable power scopes are set on 3X, 4X or 6X and that setting is never changed. Earlier this year i killed a 130 pound sow at over 525 yards with my .300 magnum scope set on 6X.
 
Since I haven't been able to go shopping I bought a 1-4x Bushnell dusk to dawn online just to see how I like the idea. I try it out then put it on a .22 later and get a better one for my deer rifle. Anyway I was able to get out to a place with about 40 yards between snow banks and sight it in. 2 groups were under 1/2 inch and it is right on at that distance. So far it's fast to mount and easy to find the target fast. It seems to work ok, has held it's zero and is clear. The zero hasn't moved when changing power. Not as sharp an image as a higher priced scope like my Leopold but useable. The plan is next get a 2-7x for another rifle, then see what works best.
 
My rules for proficient riflescope usage:

1.) Practice. Like was pointed out earlier in the thread, practice mounting the gun and finding a particular stump or rock. Do it on mulitple powers and at different objects and it will become second nature. Multiple different rifles & scopes will hurt you here, K.I.S.S.

2.) Keep your scope set low. Even when standing still. I keep my scopes at 4x. Because if something pops up close you're going to need it set low, and if something appears far away you will have the time to crank it up.

3.) Keep it clean. Make sure nothing is building up on the lenses when you're out, and when you put it away and take it out. I use a little lens pen.
 
Two of the best things in a low powered variable are their ability to perform in low light conditions and their wide field of view. I find 3x9's to be less effective.
 
Try a 2-7(or 2-8)x scope, it'll work fine at 2x or 3x in the brush. You can still go up to 7 for sighting-in and the longer shots.

I have thought about using a sight with electronic reticle in the brush before, something like a dot or triangle....
 
this thread has been a good read, and especially since I'm looking for something similar. I was using a 3-9x32 for hunting hogs in brush, but have decided to go with a lower power optic for this reason in particular.

I go it narrowed down to one of the following scopes.
http://swfa.com/Leupold-1-4x20-VX-I-Shotgun-Muzzleloader-Scope-P3255.aspx
http://swfa.com/Weaver-1-3x20-Classic-V-Rifle-Scope-P2864.aspx

My hog dumpin rifle is an M14S Tanker with an ARMS #18 split rail mount, and I will most likely go with the Leupold over the Weaver, because it sports more eye relief, and paralex is at 75yds. They are virtually the same in legth and weight, with the Leupold running about $50.00 more. (200 is my upper limit to spend for this optic)
I'm also wanting a decent set of quick detach rings for this set up. Anyone care to point me in the right direction concerning rings?

Anyone using the Weaver or Leupold mentioned above? If so....likes and dislikes?

Ref pics of what I want to mount it on ....

SANY1253.gif
SANY1254.gif

The rifle at bottom....
SANY1252.gif
 
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