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Posted: 9/19/2010 10:30:09 AM EDT
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I was watching a show last night on military snipers. I could have swore they stated using a fixed 10 x scope. That doesn't seem like much scope considering distances they were shooting.
What size scope does the military sniper use on a 7.62 x 51? |
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Thanks for the answers. Makes me feel like a wuss. I use a 8-25 at 200 yards  8 to 25 at 200 is nothing wrong with that. I have a Nikon 18X but i usually find myself dialing it back to 10 or 12 giving me more field of view. Just for to throw it out there some of us used doublers for our scopes to get that longer range scope I personally did not on my M40A3 but I knew some guys who did. I found 10X in urban CQB was for the most part plenty. One the field of view is much higher in a 10X you can see other things going on rather then just your mark. |
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If you're going to do nothing whatsoever besides punch tight little groups in paper targets off a bench or bag, absolutely––go get a fixed 20x or an 8-24x and have at it.
When things move, though, it's another story, even (especially?) for snipers. Hunting for several years now, my first 3-9x spent nearly all it's time on 4x; my newest hunting scope is a fixed 2x scout! In scenarios where things move, higher magnification just blocks out too much information. For "large critters" out between 100-600yds when things are getting "hairy," there's no reason you couldn't make center-mass hits all day long with a 10x, a good range card, and some practice, with the latter being most important. Figure out what you intend to do, and purchase accordingly. I personally recommend a good scope of low- to medium-power, and then a separate spotting scope that you can dial up to 35-40x and leave there next to you. Note, you can do that for $2,400, or you can also do it for $400; go from there! |
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Sure, I completely understand the field of view, especially moving targets which is usually the case. I was trained more for close quarters. Even scoped, my shots were always 200 and less.
I guess what I was getting at is these guys were making 1100-1300 yard shots. Even a 10 x seems like it would give a small target. But I can see center mass is obviously doable. Much respect for these guys. One Canadian Sniper holds the record at over 1.5 miles with a .50. Damn! |
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Sure, I completely understand the field of view, especially moving targets which is usually the case. I was trained more for close quarters. Even scoped, my shots were always 200 and less. I guess what I was getting at is these guys were making 1100-1300 yard shots. Even a 10 x seems like it would give a small target. But I can see center mass is obviously doable. Much respect for these guys. One Canadian Sniper holds the record at over 1.5 miles with a .50. Damn! Don't they use a 5.5-25x S&B on the .50? |
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The higher the magnification the worse the mirage appears. For years it was felt that adjustable magnification scopes were not up to the brutal use combat entails. They are much better made now and are common, especially on DMR's.
Anything between 7X and 12X works great for a general purpose scope. I use the highest power scopes I own for load development. Usually my 24X Leupold target scope or my 6.5X20 Leupold 30mm TMR. Working from a rest high magnification is easier to live with, on the battlefield it's not. Reduced fiedls of vision is a consideration too. The higher the power, the less you can see in that regard. |
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... One Canadian Sniper holds the record at over 1.5 miles with a .50. Damn! A British corporal broke that record (twice) several months ago, 2706 yards (just over 1.5 miles) from a .338 (i think) using a 25x scope. EDIT: http://www.gizmag.com/worlds-longest-sniper-kill-247km/14992/ |
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... One Canadian Sniper holds the record at over 1.5 miles with a .50. Damn! A British corporal broke that record (twice) several months ago, 2706 yards (just over 1.5 miles) from a .338 (i think) using a 25x scope. EDIT: http://www.gizmag.com/worlds-longest-sniper-kill-247km/14992/ The Canadian Furlong used a McMillan Tac50 with a 16x Leupold scope. (2400) The Brit Harrison used an AI L115A3 in .338 Lapua with an S&B 5-25x56 PMII. (2475) The most recent version of the M40A3-5 uses the S&B 3-12x50 PMII, prior to that they used Unertl MST-100 10x. I know of no standard issued S&B 10x or Leupold 10x, though there is an M3 turreted scope. I could be wrong. ETA - Furlong's scope was a 16x. |
| I have a fixed 10x on my AR Coyote gun, 1/7 barrel shooting Blackhill's 77gr 5.56 and it was more than enough to put a coyote down last weekend at 500+, and I'm just a coyote killer from Southeast Ohio. Besides Fixed 10x has less crap internally that can go wrong. It's the shooter not the gadgets that are hung on the rifle. |
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I was watching a show last night on military snipers. I could have swore they stated using a fixed 10 x scope. That doesn't seem like much scope considering distances they were shooting. I agree that doesn't sound like much, my BSA Sweet17 for my HMR .17 is a 6x18. Is it all in the scope or what, because 10x doesn't seem like much, especially shooting distances out past 200 yards. Will a high quality scope make a big difference, in reference to the 10x used on sniper rifles? |
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The scope is a tool that the specially trained sniper uses. As I said earlier, it's not the scope, it's the sniper that makes the shot.
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I was watching a show last night on military snipers. I could have swore they stated using a fixed 10 x scope. That doesn't seem like much scope considering distances they were shooting. I agree that doesn't sound like much, my BSA Sweet17 for my HMR .17 is a 6x18. Is it all in the scope or what, because 10x doesn't seem like much, especially shooting distances out past 200 yards. Will a high quality scope make a big difference, in reference to the 10x used on sniper rifles? |
I heard somewhere  (you know how much this post will be worth) on the internet that they want a 10x or less scope on the 7.62s because it works the best with the night vision scope that is mounted ahead of it. Actually, I read that over on optics talk in a discussion about the 3-9 super sniper by SWFA. The supposedly made it 3-9 specifically to work with was the military guys were using for night vision.
I am sure someone with more knowledge will come along and confirm or refute this, and add details. |
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The scope is a tool that the specially trained sniper uses. As I said earlier, it's not the scope, it's the sniper that makes the shot.
Quoted:
I was watching a show last night on military snipers. I could have swore they stated using a fixed 10 x scope. That doesn't seem like much scope considering distances they were shooting. I agree that doesn't sound like much, my BSA Sweet17 for my HMR .17 is a 6x18. Is it all in the scope or what, because 10x doesn't seem like much, especially shooting distances out past 200 yards. Will a high quality scope make a big difference, in reference to the 10x used on sniper rifles? It's obviously true that the sniper is the skill and the optics just the tool, however, to answer the question clearly, a strong yes. The Hensoldt and Kahles 6x scopes of the 70s & 80s were generally considered the pinnacle of military optics even over the 10x optics the US was using at the time. Today's premium optics are better in many ways, allowing for greater magnification and even variable power adjustments. There is no such thing as spending too much money on a scope for a marksman's rifle. It's better to have lower power or fixed power premium optics than higher magnification and variability and sacrifice optical quality. I used to use my Docter Optic 8x56 Aespherical as a spotter for my Leupold Mk IV 10x40. The optical quality was that much better. |
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You know where I learned about mirage and scope magnification???
Prairie dog hunting years ago... When I first went, I bought a rig and got the biggest scope I could fine. variable magnification B & L that cranked up to 32X. and when I dialed it up... I could not see shit.... until I started dialing the magnification down.... and you know.. every time I dialed it down, guess where the Magnification ended up at.... right around 16X. I later found out from some veteran dog killers that 32X was way overkill and they could have told me that before I bought... Experience is what you get when you don't get want you want. I run a fixed 10x Leupold M-1 MK 4 on my 308 bolt gun and it works great. The quality of good glass in 10x is not the same as in cheaper 10x optics... 10X in a Schmidt and Bender or Swarovski or the higher end Leupolds,Nikons,etc are going to yield better results then a 10X tasco or Gander Mountain special.... 
With optics, you really do get what you pay for...But so few people know the difference, and when cash is involved, they can always talk them selves into the "Just as good" category. |
| A friend of mine has a m40a3 clone with one of these puppies on it. He is very pleased. |
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