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Posted: 8/31/2011 11:18:34 AM EDT
Background: I have a FIL that has a Ruger M77 in 300 WM that he uses for hunting (Big games). He has on it a Simons 3-9x?? scope that he got when he bought the rifle from a store 20+ years ago. Now he is considering whether he needs a new scope or not (I think so, I looked through the scope and though it looked like a dirty fish bowl with two thin lines in a cross)  . Now he his looking at 4-16, 3.5-10, 6.5-20, 8.5-......etc... magnification (but under $400.00) and thinking the higher magnification is the way to go because it will help on the longer shots and older eyes (Note: last year he dropped and Elk at about 300 yrds)
My question to you guys in the know is: Wouldn't he be better served with an optic that had better glass and less magnification than one with more magnification and lesser quality of glass? I was thinking maybe as high as quality of 2-7 or 3-9 as he could afford (just because I think the highest quality of glass for his price range is found in those power magnifications). If he found a screaming deal on something like a 1.5-5 scope that had better quality of glass than the 3-9 would that be better or should he stick with the higher magnification? Basically what I am asking is - is there a point where magnification trumps optic quality? Thanks in advance for you thoughts |
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This opinion is worth what you paid for it.......
There seems to be a sweet spot in the scope world for 2-7, 3-9, even 4-12 variables at the $300-$400 mark. You can get very good glass for that kind of money, and while you can get better glass at $800, it won't be twice the glass, if that makes sense. From my research, I would be wary of going above a 3-12 or 4-12 if he's trying to stay under $400. You can certainly get more magnification for that amount, but the reviews start trending towards "eh, it's ok". Bushnell, Nikon and Vortex have some nice offerings in that price range. Others may as well; those are just the ones that seemed to get the most mentions and that I kept coming back to. If I were hunting at 300 yards, I personally wouldn't go less than a 3-9, but there are plenty of people who do. Keep in mind that for any scope, the clarity typically drops at the high end, so a 7X on a 3-9 will look better than 7X on a 2-7, all things being equal. |
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Quoted:
This opinion is worth what you paid for it....... There seems to be a sweet spot in the scope world for 2-7, 3-9, even 4-12 variables at the $300-$400 mark. You can get very good glass for that kind of money, and while you can get better glass at $800, it won't be twice the glass, if that makes sense. From my research, I would be wary of going above a 3-12 or 4-12 if he's trying to stay under $400. You can certainly get more magnification for that amount, but the reviews start trending towards "eh, it's ok". Bushnell, Nikon and Vortex have some nice offerings in that price range. Others may as well; those are just the ones that seemed to get the most mentions and that I kept coming back to. If I were hunting at 300 yards, I personally wouldn't go less than a 3-9, but there are plenty of people who do. Keep in mind that for any scope, the clarity typically drops at the high end, so a 7X on a 3-9 will look better than 7X on a 2-7, all things being equal. I agree with this, more or less. I will most likely never pay over $400 for an optic unless I really find a good deal on something I feel I really need. This cancels me out on some of the really nice high end optics that I think are really cool and are very good quality, but at what cost? If I were in a line of work where my rifle and optic were lifesaving tools on a regular basis, I would put no price on it, but until then I’m pretty good with the optics in the range described above. For a hunting rifle, the advantage for me in better glass is being able to see better in lower light. I grew up on $50 scopes (albeit $50 scopes back then were much better than they are now) and never knew how much difference it made at dusk and dawn having better glass. Opinions vary to the end of the earth, but something like a Nikon Buckmaster in good mounts will kill every every game animal he puts his crosshairs on. For the guys that can afford it, high end glass makes more sense to me than hookers and blow, but for me $2k scopes aren’t an option. |
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