Long Range scope options

There are several good options out there, are you going to use a custom dial on the scope?

I personally like the Zeiss 4.5-14 or the 6.5-20 conquest model.

Leupold also makes several great options

You can get custom dials made for the load and caliber you are going to use.

No experience yet but my next scope, very soon, will be a Vortex Viper HS in 4X16X44. As soon as my rifle I have on order ships I'll be ordering the scope.

Many, many choices out there and just as many opinions on which is the best. My advice, look through as much glass as you can and make up you own mind rather that listen to someone who dropped a few bucks on a scope so it has to be good to them.

I have been looking hard at the Trijicon scopes, Vortex and Nightforce...I just dont want to have to go back to college and learn calculus again to figure out how to use the scopes. haha.

I don't have much experience but I know my buddy owns three of the Vortex Vipers. Two he just has the simple turrets and a load sheet and on the one he has the custom etched turrets. He likes them both the custom turrets just run a little extra $. Another buddy has a Night Force and really likes it.

If you don't want to spend crazy money look at the Nikons with the BDC reticle.I have 4 and have been really pleased with the results,
You have to have access to a chronograph.But after the load development it's light out at some pretty
good distances.
As things go today they are a poor mans option.I have 4 for the price of one NightForce

good point Digger. I appreciate the input.

I have a couple of Nikons with BDC reticles and I love them. Of course, I can't afford to spend big money on optics so I'm sure there are others out there I'd love more. The great thing about Nikon is they have a website called Nikon Spot On where you can select the scope you bought, select the caliber you're shooting, select the brand and actual type of bullet you're shooting (Ex: Federal Premium Nosler Ballistic Tip) and they have a ballistic calculator that will do the math for you and tell you the ranges for your BDC reticle. You can also select the yardage you want your crosshairs zeroed as well as a target distacne. For example: I have my .308 zeroed at 200 yards and the figure will show me the ranges of each bullet drop circle below my crosshairs. If I wanted to zero my scope at 200 yards, but only wanted to shoot at a 100 yard target, it will tell me exactly how high I must hit at 100 yards to be dead on at 200. It's a really cool website. You can also print out small 3x2 inch cards with the picture of your reticle and the yardage each circle represents to keep with you in the field. I've seen some people tape them to the stock of the gun and once they range their target, they'll look at their card to see which cirlce they need to use.

Leupold works good for me.

Good luck with whatever you choose.

"9er" wrote:Leupold works good for me.

Good luck with whatever you choose.

+1. I have shot all types of scopes including Nightforce, Vortex, and Swarovski and I always return to the guys from Oregon. Service is top notch, scopes are field tough, eye relief is generous, and they just plain work good. There are many, many good scope options, but Leupold is my personal fav.----SS

"9er" wrote:Leupold works good for me.

Good luck with whatever you choose.

What I have noticed between Leupold and Nikon is that the Leupolds seem to have a wider field of view even with the same mm objective. When you look through a Nikon you still have a good sight picture and a good field of view, but the picture doesn't take up the entire eyepiece. You can see the "edges of black" around your picture. The Leupold's picture takes up the entire eyepiece; which is definitely a plus. I love Leupolds, just like the Nikon price. I guess I'm a cheap-skate. lol

"TexasHunter83" wrote:

9er wrote: I love Leupolds, just like the Nikon price. I guess I'm a cheap-skate. lol

You can find a vx1 for around $250. Hard to get much cheaper these days. Another $200 to have turrets made and your set.

I would like to try a nikon on a 22-250 though :)

"9er" wrote:

TexasHunter83 wrote:

9er wrote: I love Leupolds, just like the Nikon price. I guess I'm a cheap-skate. lol

You can find a vx1 for around $250. Hard to get much cheaper these days. Another $200 to have turrets made and your set.

I would like to try a nikon on a 22-250 though :)

My uncle won't buy anything but Leupold. I put my last scope on a .308 and wanted something with bullet drop hashes, dots, or circles. I couldn't find anything cheaper than $300 in the Leupold so that's why I kind of ruled them out. I found a 3-9x50 Nikon with a BDC for $200. Since they have a Lifetime Warranty also I figured I'd go with it. Plus I was saving money for an EOTech for another "toy" I have...

nightforce or premier.
S&B arent what they use to be.
zeiss is ok, along with swaro.

anything else, dont bother. IMO

I own Leupold's, Nikon's, Burris, Zeiss, Swarovski, Vortex and a few other odds and ends. Without a doubt the Nightforce and Schmidt and Benders of the world are tremendous optics for serious long range work but everything I own are under the $1000.00 range and for most practical hunting situations for me are shots out to 600 yards.

I like all the scopes I have and the rifle I use more than any which is my win model 70 300 wsm happens to have a Nikon Monarch on it with a ballistic turret and it has served me well. I have a few Zeiss Consquest in the 3x9 and 4x14's I really like, and my leupy's as well but the scope I am really enjoying right now is a Swarovski Z3 4x12 my wife gave me for Christmas and I put it on top of my Win model 70 270 wsm it is really a super scope. I have a votex viper hs lr on a 7mm mag rem 700 and like it too but the bdc reticle is a little too fine for my liking. I have heard the new models are bolder.

Anyway, we enjoy a lot of good choices with a lot of options.

Just saw you (op) are from Independance, I'm in Howard almost every weekend.

do you really want to shoot long range with high quality optics? US optics or Schmidt and Bender, you will have the finest optics for long range shooting.

Here is the problem it cost 2-4 times what your rifle cost, but i will assure you will have a clear view of what you are shooting with a very dependable turrets that will go back to zero every-time.

best of luck

My .270 WSM wears a Vortex Viper HS 2.5-10x44. It's been a great addition to my rifle and is plenty of magnification. My 7mm RM Sendero wears a Vortex Viper HS LR 4-16x44. It's still pretty new, but I've enjoyed it so far. It has the exposed turret and tracks very well. I'm hoping to play around with it more this summer. I highly recommend it.

I've got a Nikon Buckmaster 6-18X40 scope on my 22-250 and it's been great for shooting rock chucks and the like. I think the 4.5-14x would have worked just as good, but I got a better deal on the 6-18. It has the BDC reticle and works pretty well for general shooting. It's a little harder if you're using it to shoot for groups though as the circles are a bit large on targets at 200 and further.

It all just depends on what you're really wanting to do with your rifle. Long range big game hunting, I don't know if I'd really go past 16x on the upper end. Sure it's nice on the long shots, but it also can be very hard for follow up shots.