Hi,
Does anyone know of a forum dedicated solely to rifle-scopes?
I'm thinking about getting my first scope but there seems to be a myriad of brands and price points. Heck, just the choice in reticles is overwhelming. I'm looking for a breakdown of commonly available features at various price points and what applications those features are particularly suited to. What features are "must have" vs marketing hype. Also, would like to find a way to tell the difference between a in-expensive good scope from a cheap piece of junk. Another nice guide would be how to tell if a used scope is any good or not. I saw a couple at a gunshow last weekend but had no idea how to tell if they were worth buying or not.
I know the first question is going to be "what are you using it for?".
I have a K-31 that I would like to put a good "all-round" scope on; it has not had any special work done with regard to accuracy. I already have the mount that clamps on to the right side of the receiver. Its primary purpose will be to learn the fundamentals of precision shooting out to 800 yds at the range. I don't necessarily want to compete or sink a ton of $$ into a super-specialized setup. It might also be used for the occasional deer hunt or whatever.
My current thoughts were something with a 35-40 mm objective, variable manification somewhere between 2 and 10x. Thats about as far as I got. When it comes to reticle choice I have no idea where to start. I think I want to spend somewhere between $300-$400. An example where I was getting hung up was the difference between a leupold vx-ii 3x9-40mm and a vx-iii 2.5-8-36mm. These two scopes seemed to be roughly the same price (again depending on reticle choice). Do the features on the vx-iii justify going with lower magnification and smaller objective over the vx-ii? I must confess that I have primarily been looking a leupolds because I've heard of the name. I'm not really familiar with other brands enough to know if they are good or not.
Generally, I do recognize that you do get what you pay for w.r.t. glass. Thats why I stayed away from the Leupold Mark4 "replica" that was selling at the gunshow for $264 last weekend.
Thanks for the help,
drc
Does anyone know of a forum dedicated solely to rifle-scopes?
I'm thinking about getting my first scope but there seems to be a myriad of brands and price points. Heck, just the choice in reticles is overwhelming. I'm looking for a breakdown of commonly available features at various price points and what applications those features are particularly suited to. What features are "must have" vs marketing hype. Also, would like to find a way to tell the difference between a in-expensive good scope from a cheap piece of junk. Another nice guide would be how to tell if a used scope is any good or not. I saw a couple at a gunshow last weekend but had no idea how to tell if they were worth buying or not.
I know the first question is going to be "what are you using it for?".
I have a K-31 that I would like to put a good "all-round" scope on; it has not had any special work done with regard to accuracy. I already have the mount that clamps on to the right side of the receiver. Its primary purpose will be to learn the fundamentals of precision shooting out to 800 yds at the range. I don't necessarily want to compete or sink a ton of $$ into a super-specialized setup. It might also be used for the occasional deer hunt or whatever.
My current thoughts were something with a 35-40 mm objective, variable manification somewhere between 2 and 10x. Thats about as far as I got. When it comes to reticle choice I have no idea where to start. I think I want to spend somewhere between $300-$400. An example where I was getting hung up was the difference between a leupold vx-ii 3x9-40mm and a vx-iii 2.5-8-36mm. These two scopes seemed to be roughly the same price (again depending on reticle choice). Do the features on the vx-iii justify going with lower magnification and smaller objective over the vx-ii? I must confess that I have primarily been looking a leupolds because I've heard of the name. I'm not really familiar with other brands enough to know if they are good or not.
Generally, I do recognize that you do get what you pay for w.r.t. glass. Thats why I stayed away from the Leupold Mark4 "replica" that was selling at the gunshow for $264 last weekend.
Thanks for the help,
drc
