Leupold CDS or BC

[BigRyan]

I am planning to buy a new Winchester Extreme Weather SS Model 70 chambered in 300WM next month but am having a hard time deciding on what scope to put on it. I have been looking at Leupold but am not sure if the BC or the CDS would be better for me. I'm thinking of a VX-3 in 4.5-14 x 40 in the long range package. Now, my idea of long range 500-600 yards on the long end and most of my shots would be 400 and under.

I really like the idea of the CDS but I think it would be a little limiting because it is only calibrated for one bullet, temp., elevation, ect. I would rather have an adjustable turret which I could calibrate for different conditions. Would the M1 turret do that for me which they offer in their custom shop? How important would it be to have that type of adjustment on the windage of the ranges I am thinking of?

If I go with the BC reticle things would seem simpler, but I don't like the idea of possibly not being able to utilize the full power of the scope in order to fine tune the reticle.

If anyone has any suggestions please let me know.

Thanks in advance,
Ryan

 

[DZelenka]

You don't have to get yoru CDS dial laser engraved for one caliber. I kept mine with 1/4 MOA markings.

 

[winmag]

Why not both?
I send mine into the custom shop for B&C Varmint hunters reticle, & have target turrets. Any VX-III or better has TONS of custom shop options. VX-II's have quite a few, but not as many options.
For $109.99 from the custom shop, the VH reticle has 10mph, & 20mph windage marks in the reticle & is quick, & simple to get you out to 600+. I don't bother to dial unless its past 600. Your not "off" by enough to miss a Bear, Deer, or Elk, & I shoot to confirm my drops, & zero before I hunt anyway. A couple inches ain't much if you know to compensate for it. Now if you go from Louisiana, to the top of Colorado, then Ya, but check, & re-0 & confirm drops, & run with it.

Best thing is you can send Leupolds in any time. Heck I've even bought Lupeys off of Craigslist, & sent em into the custom shop for the reticle or turrets etc. that I wanted. They really do mean forever warranty. Weather your the first or 50th owner.
So if $ is tight, wait, & send it in for turrets, or reticle or whatever you want later. I love my Leupey's!

 

[Longbullet]

You can't go wrong with leupold. I don't have any of the CDS dials, but have a vari-x 2 3-9x40 that I sent in to have an elevation turret installed and yardage engraved. They sent 1 that was engraved with the range and moa, and 1 with just moa engraving on it.

The vx3 6.5-20x50 that I ordered from them just came with 1 that had the yardage and moa engarved on it.

If you decide to go with the BDC reticle, I beleive they can tell you how many MOA it is inbetween each dot or line and then you could recalibrate your yardage if you change your load drastically. So for example, instead of being 200, 300, 400, etc. it would be 200, 290, 360, etc.. Leupold Tech support is usually only about a 2 min. wait. 1-800-leupold

 

[jakes10mm]

I picked up a VX2 3-9x CDS scope while Leupold was offering their second "free" CDS dial. I'm still working on the two loads for the engraving. I've done a lot of ballistic calculations and looks like I'll set one for Elk Country and the second for my normal PA hunting areas/load.

 

[bruce_ventura]

...I have been looking at Leupold but am not sure if the BC or the CDS would be better for me. I'm thinking of a VX-3 in 4.5-14 x 40 in the long range package. Now, my idea of long range 500-600 yards on the long end and most of my shots would be 400 and under.

Assuming this rig is for big game hunting, I recommend you go with a 50 mm objective to give yourself more magnification at dawn & dusk. 14X is more than enough for 600 yds. You could drop down to 3-12X to get better glare performance.

I agree with previous posts. Your max range is outside what a simple BDC reticle can reach accurately. BTW, there are better BDC reticles than the B&C. I'm comfortable up to 400-500 yds with a good BDC reticle, and then only if I adjust for altitude and temp. I can do that by adjusting the elevation and/or mag setting to make the 500 yd POA coincide with POI. That's the beauty of a BDC reticle in the second focal plane.

If you go CDS or any other BC turret, you can reach out further, but in this case you need multiple custom turrets to cover different altitude and temp conditions. Each turret requires some effort to measure bullet drops at long range.

Either way, you'll need to shoot a lot with your scope to reliably hit targets at 400-500 yds, so the effort needed for a custom turret is not wasted by any means.

Bruce