Hi all,

thank you so much for all the info you both have an share.  I love shooting...at long distance...on a budget.  It's gone fairly well for me so far and now i'm ready to move into big boy fields and try my hand at some real distance.  aside from long range calibers, reloading issues, ranges, rifles, and misc here and there's; the biggest issue i keep asking myself is the following.

why should i spend 3000 hard earned blood sweat and tear (post tax...that means net not gross income) dollars on glass.  I ask out of ignorance i know but serisously....wow.  I get that the general rule "should be" to spend as much if not more on optics as you do on your rifle.  cool.  why?  I've had my share of crappy cheap-o scopes don't get me wrong.  but there seem to be some fine optics out there to be at for under 500...and i'm wondering if i'm just completely in left field when i ask why...or am i just so uneducated that i don't know what a faux pas i'm asking when i ask why pay so much for a scope.....

my understanding of optics is limited but i do know that the high quality pieces out there have EXTREME quality of materials, precision mechanics, scientific clockworks for components, and an almost magical ability to give you x ray bullet time vison at the range....glass polishing, precision inner workings, sturdy housings, and warrenties, and such and so on doesn't come cheap...but is there something a 2500 dollar scope can do that a 500 dollar scope cant or can it just do it a bit better and the price is a gauge of preference for the utmost in perfection in clarity vs a bit of imperfection that honestly unless i'm exposed to what perfection is i wouldn't know was wrong in the first place...does that make sense?

i guess i've never looked through a nightforce...so...how do i know what i'm missing and is it just having the best of the best that matters or is there something i need and don't have in something of lesser price and potentially quality.  granted alot of factors go into the need category...what is the distance, magnification, environment, use/durability factors...all that counts and i get that...but i just need some help setting up a quality rifle and i am afraid it may be years and years before i can make the shot i want to if there is a true need for multiple thousands of dollar optics rather than what i already can afford now....

so before you ask i want to get an armalite ar 30 in 338 lapua...and really test it's range...i've done alot with my trusty rem 700 up to 900+ yards...and i love the mechanics and physics of long range shooting reloading and so on...now i want to try 1500 yards...used a fixed power swfa until now...and gosh for the price it seems great.  don't think 10 power will cut it for 1500 yards though...it's alot of work and trial and error i'm sure...but hey learning is all the fun of it in the first place...i just want a good direction to start out in and want to pick your brains...so...now your turn.  

again thanks so much guys and i cant' wait to see what you think

There is no rigid rule about how much one must spend on a scope.  If a cheaper scope holds zero, tracks true, doesn't break, and allows you to see well enough to hit your target that's all you need.   There are a lot of good scopes in the <$700 price range.  

The best argument I've heard for an expensive scope (and rifle) is to look at the up front costs of the scope and rifle over the lifetime of the gun.  A couple of years of regular practice, a few training classes (with airfare and hotel), thousands of rounds downrange, and a couple of re-barrels later, the one-time costs of your equipment (scope included) start to look insignificant as compared to the cost of ammo and training.  This is where aggressive cost cutting on the scope starts to not make sense.  See Demigod LLC Article

OTOH, if you only shoot a little, it would seem a shame to spend too much on optics, instead you should invest more in practice and ammo.

Features
Toughness.
Low cost

^Choose any two

tracking ability, glass clarity, adjustment mechanisms, zero-stops, parallax adjustments, first focal plane, overall durability, adjustment range...

All those things cost money.

You don't need a $3000 scope, but there are some that are far better than their <$1000 counterparts. Whether or not you are willing to pay for the difference is your call.