hybridfiat
Well-Known Member
I've been asked a few times recently for advice/opinion on buying a scope by new shooters and came up with what I thought might be helpful. I stress that it isn't for long range shooting but general hunting.
One new shooter comprehensively ignored all advice and has bought (a very nice) Vortex PST 6-24 x 50 for a lightweight .223 that he is going to shoot rabbits with out of the back of a ute (pickup). He thinks that the bigger and more features it has = better to hunt with. But it is heavy and 1st focal plane and not at all suited to what he is going to use it for.
Anyway here's what I wrote if you find something that you disagree with please post.
1. 30mm tubes don't help light gathering they only give the ability to wind the elevation up more if you want to shoot out beyond 800m. 30mm scopes cost more, weigh more, require 30mm rings.
2. Zoom scopes are versatile but in practice the zoom is one more thing that can complicate and delay a shot. Never get snobbish about fixed power scopes. They are more durable. Cheaper than zoom scopes (so that expensive high end brand is easier to afford). They gather more light at the same magnification than a zoom scope, as there's less glass in the way. In practice most killing shots are made at the setting you see it first in, there simply isn't time to faff about. Zoom scope are dearer, good zoom scopes are expensive, the best zoom scopes are poisonously expensive.
3. 1st focal plane is helpful in Tactical equipment for ranging when using the milradian system because it works at any zoom setting. But the first focal plane feature is not helpful anywhere else like hunting. It cannot be used with a scope that has a Bullet Drop Compensator reticle, unless the rifle you use under it and the ammo is perfectly matched with the reticle, pretty unlikely. Most BDCs in 1st FP scopes are set for: 5.56x45 NATO, 7.62x51 NATO, .338 Lapua Magnum. FFP scopes cost more.
4. Parallax adjustment on a scope is important in Tactical and Target applications but a pain in the butt when hunting. Basically the scope has to be focused each and every time you raise it to your shoulder; as the game (very unfairly) will not appear at the range you last set, so it will be out of focus. Parallax adjustment is dear, side parallax is dearer still.
5. Tactical turrets get in the way and if you have stop to play with the elevation or windage when hunting deer you obviously weren't ready to go hunting in the first place. TT scopes cost more.
6. Huge objective lenses on cheaper scopes may help to overcome the poor coatings they used to compensate by gathering more light. Manufacturers can cover up the fuzzy edges (poorly ground lenses) by making the sight picture smaller. Good brands coat all their lenses properly both sides so improving light gathering and their sight picture is wide (field of view) and have good lens grinding so they can utilise the full sight picture without having the picture go fuzzy at the edges. A huge objective is helpful when hunting at twilight (German style). The bigger the objective the higher the cost and weight.
7. Illuminated crosshairs can be distracting and don't make up for poor optics, but do help at twilight.
8. Monstrous magnification is great for Tactical sniping shots or target shooting but of little use when hunting. First the sights at 15 - 20x will wobble around like an old lady on a pizpot. Acquiring a target at high magnification can take days. The light gathering at high mag is generally poor unless you have several thousands of moneys to spend on a top end scope. Unless the it is high end a high zoom rate is going to make the scope worse.ie A 3-9 has a rate of 3. A 3-15 has a rate of 5.
9. Tactical reticles are for Tactical use. Hunting reticles are for hunting.
10. BDCs
a) A bullet drop compensator reticle (BDC) is only as good as the person who uses it and requires practice. The ability to judge distance accurately is essential as is a good memory for which bar is which range when in times of stress, (like when you see that stag with all the exciting pointy bits for the first time). It only works properly in a '2nd Focal Plane scope' at one magnification.
b) It is better to set a limit on the maximum range you are going to shoot at, then use the 'Maximum Mid-Range' sighting technique. In short; sight the rifle so the impact will go no higher at the mid-way point and no lower at the maximum range than half the vital area of the animal you are gunning for. This is determined by the vital area size, so if it is a goat the vitals would be about 150mm ( 6"). Sight the rifle so the point of impact is never more than 75mm high or 75mm low from the muzzle to the maximum range set for your load.
There's is a little chart on a site that explains it all but is in imperial. (Chuck Hawkes, Maximum Mid-Range Trajectory')
Sighted like this your rifle will shoot into the vital area if you centre the crosshairs on the vital area and squeeze the trigger. The only range you have to judge is the maximum range for your load. That's just one range as opposed to hundreds of possibilities.
Eg: A 7mm Rem Mag using a 140gn BT at 3150fps should be sighted to be 2.5" high at 100yds which should mean it's 3" high at 200yds and 3" low at 310yds. So you can confidently shoot from 0-310yds by aiming at the centre of the vital area from point blank to 310yds.
One new shooter comprehensively ignored all advice and has bought (a very nice) Vortex PST 6-24 x 50 for a lightweight .223 that he is going to shoot rabbits with out of the back of a ute (pickup). He thinks that the bigger and more features it has = better to hunt with. But it is heavy and 1st focal plane and not at all suited to what he is going to use it for.
Anyway here's what I wrote if you find something that you disagree with please post.
Busting The Bulldust About Scopes
1. 30mm tubes don't help light gathering they only give the ability to wind the elevation up more if you want to shoot out beyond 800m. 30mm scopes cost more, weigh more, require 30mm rings.
2. Zoom scopes are versatile but in practice the zoom is one more thing that can complicate and delay a shot. Never get snobbish about fixed power scopes. They are more durable. Cheaper than zoom scopes (so that expensive high end brand is easier to afford). They gather more light at the same magnification than a zoom scope, as there's less glass in the way. In practice most killing shots are made at the setting you see it first in, there simply isn't time to faff about. Zoom scope are dearer, good zoom scopes are expensive, the best zoom scopes are poisonously expensive.
3. 1st focal plane is helpful in Tactical equipment for ranging when using the milradian system because it works at any zoom setting. But the first focal plane feature is not helpful anywhere else like hunting. It cannot be used with a scope that has a Bullet Drop Compensator reticle, unless the rifle you use under it and the ammo is perfectly matched with the reticle, pretty unlikely. Most BDCs in 1st FP scopes are set for: 5.56x45 NATO, 7.62x51 NATO, .338 Lapua Magnum. FFP scopes cost more.
4. Parallax adjustment on a scope is important in Tactical and Target applications but a pain in the butt when hunting. Basically the scope has to be focused each and every time you raise it to your shoulder; as the game (very unfairly) will not appear at the range you last set, so it will be out of focus. Parallax adjustment is dear, side parallax is dearer still.
5. Tactical turrets get in the way and if you have stop to play with the elevation or windage when hunting deer you obviously weren't ready to go hunting in the first place. TT scopes cost more.
6. Huge objective lenses on cheaper scopes may help to overcome the poor coatings they used to compensate by gathering more light. Manufacturers can cover up the fuzzy edges (poorly ground lenses) by making the sight picture smaller. Good brands coat all their lenses properly both sides so improving light gathering and their sight picture is wide (field of view) and have good lens grinding so they can utilise the full sight picture without having the picture go fuzzy at the edges. A huge objective is helpful when hunting at twilight (German style). The bigger the objective the higher the cost and weight.
7. Illuminated crosshairs can be distracting and don't make up for poor optics, but do help at twilight.
8. Monstrous magnification is great for Tactical sniping shots or target shooting but of little use when hunting. First the sights at 15 - 20x will wobble around like an old lady on a pizpot. Acquiring a target at high magnification can take days. The light gathering at high mag is generally poor unless you have several thousands of moneys to spend on a top end scope. Unless the it is high end a high zoom rate is going to make the scope worse.ie A 3-9 has a rate of 3. A 3-15 has a rate of 5.
9. Tactical reticles are for Tactical use. Hunting reticles are for hunting.
10. BDCs
a) A bullet drop compensator reticle (BDC) is only as good as the person who uses it and requires practice. The ability to judge distance accurately is essential as is a good memory for which bar is which range when in times of stress, (like when you see that stag with all the exciting pointy bits for the first time). It only works properly in a '2nd Focal Plane scope' at one magnification.
b) It is better to set a limit on the maximum range you are going to shoot at, then use the 'Maximum Mid-Range' sighting technique. In short; sight the rifle so the impact will go no higher at the mid-way point and no lower at the maximum range than half the vital area of the animal you are gunning for. This is determined by the vital area size, so if it is a goat the vitals would be about 150mm ( 6"). Sight the rifle so the point of impact is never more than 75mm high or 75mm low from the muzzle to the maximum range set for your load.
There's is a little chart on a site that explains it all but is in imperial. (Chuck Hawkes, Maximum Mid-Range Trajectory')
Sighted like this your rifle will shoot into the vital area if you centre the crosshairs on the vital area and squeeze the trigger. The only range you have to judge is the maximum range for your load. That's just one range as opposed to hundreds of possibilities.
Eg: A 7mm Rem Mag using a 140gn BT at 3150fps should be sighted to be 2.5" high at 100yds which should mean it's 3" high at 200yds and 3" low at 310yds. So you can confidently shoot from 0-310yds by aiming at the centre of the vital area from point blank to 310yds.
