How much to spend on 1st scope?

[Dangermouse]

Short answer is Yes, a different scope on each rifle.

Every time you take a scope off a rifle you will need to re zero it after re mounting it on another or even the same. A culminator can save you valuable time and ammunition but it is still time consuming and can not give you a true zero.

As already mentioned, you will need a different scope for short range shooting to long range shooting. As the short range stuff tends to be lighter recoil you can often get away with cheaper scopes. You may well find for a gallery rifle that you find one distance that works well for you at all distances and once you zero your scope you leave it there and aim off for all the other distances. I aim approx 1" high at 50 yards with a 25 yard zero. With the target at 10 yards I have to aim high again - approximately the same hight as the scope above the barrel.

For long range shooting heavier calibres and thus more recoil is encountered. As a consequence cheap scopes tend not to be able to handle the recoil. At Bisley you can shoot from 100 to 1200 yards, so it is not possible (advisable) to have just one zero and aim off for the other distances. As a result your rifle scope is likely to see the adjustment turrets used much more and any weakness in the design will soon show through with the turrets failing - not something you want at any time never mind in a competition or on a day that you have been looking forward to.
You will often see that the more expensive scopes make an issue of detailing how good their internals are for this reason.

Unless diabolical, optics at gallery rifle ranges tend to be OK for the job but once you move out to anything over a couple of hundred yards, you will soon suffer from poor glass. I recently moved from a £300 scope to a £900 scope and the difference is staggering. I can now place the shot in the V Bull rather than just about seeing the whole of the V Bull covered with my cross hairs, Although I will accept that magnification comes in to that, it would be no good without the glass.

Keep warranties and guarantees in mind when choosing a scope, when paying out this kind of money it is nice to get a lifetime guarantee.

Don't forget to look at good rings as well, no point paying loads on the scope then letting it down with poorly built mounts. I personally recommend the Burris Z rings, a good product at a fair price,

DM

[kennyc]

Best you can afford, but talk to a good dealer who will give you the best advice based on your need not his bottom line.

And can you get me a bag of unicorn do-do while you're there! Where are these mythical creatures John?! :lol:

Seriously though for a .22 at indoor ranges you really don't need anything too fancy and you should be able to get something sub £100. It's a very, very big ledge to step off when you go outside at outdoor range distances though, and as suggested you really need to spend as much as you can afford (and probably a little more :roll: ) on quality glass.

Having friends or going on holiday in the US can really pay dividends for this sort of thing. I got a Leupold 3-9x50 European 30 for $250 that i've seen over here for £450+

Hope you get sorted

ATB

We are planning a trip to Vermont/New England area next year so that could be ideal.

So do you guys with multiple guns have a scope on each or move 1 between them all?

Thanks for the advice so far :cheers:

for indoor 20-25m shooting you can actually do a lot worse than one of these :G a guy I know has actually been using one on a .308! I used one for a couple of seasons of HFT and they do the job, you can then save your pennies for better glass once you know what type of shooting suits you.


I have more scopes than rifles, the problem is I am never happy and so spend more time swapping and zeroing than anything else :cool2: the only one I never touch is my Schmidt Bender 6x42 on my .308, it is so good at what it was designed I don't want to move it......the trouble is, I keep trying to make it do other things



PS really try giving Steve Beaty a call , he is the real deal, and he can probably get you the Unicorn droppings as well, as long as you give him notice :lol: :lol:

[ovenpaa]

I use a one piece AI mount on two AI's. I can remove/replace the scope in it's mount and not loose my zero, careful tightening and a good rail to start with helps. This applies to a S&B 4-16PMII and a Kaps.

The S&L uses Apel rings with a recoil lug built into the rings where they fit the base so in theory they always go back in the same place,a gain careful tightening to a predetermined torque is important. Apel rings are very nice with zero adjustment screws built in so you can set your windage drum to zero and then dial in with the screws so you have matched windage left and right. Apel are also desperately expensive and I would be hard pushed to recommend them to anyone other than a Hunter as they are a very dedicated design.

My F Open rifle, well it uses a 42X Nightforce which I detest, with rings I am not a fan of, no way could I remove it and return it and expect to be within 3 minutes of my original zero.

The 4(T) has a scope that is designed to go on and off, uses thumb screws to lock up and if I tighten it by feel I can be within a minute of zero on a good day.

Christel uses 35mm rings on hers, I have never removed it for fear of breaking my toes should I drop it.

[Christel]

Christel uses 35mm rings on hers, I have never removed it for fear of breaking my toes should I drop it.

This is what jealousy sounds/looks like

[ovenpaa]

This is what jealousy sounds/looks like

Reasonable glass in a tube you could club bay seals with Dear? I bet you wish you had one when you were in Greenland, it would have saved shooting the things. :lol: :lol: :lol:

[John25]

Two guns, two scopes.