Scope Magnification Question

[BrowningBoy]

If you were going to be shooting whitetail deer from 10 - 600 yards what would be the ideal magnification for a rifle scope, 2.5-10x 3-12x or 4-16x. Also would a paralax adjustment turrent be necessary for this distance.

Thanks in Advance

 

[outofayr]

I've gone with 4.5-14, 4-12, and 6.5-20 scopes. I've got 4.5-14 on both my "long range" rifles right now, and a 4-12 on my varmint rifle. My everyday hunters tend to wear 4x or 3-9s. I do have one 2.5-10X Bushnell Elite 4200 that I like really well - it lives on my .25-06.

Anything above about 12 power makes mirage difficult on warm days, (but does help dope wind that way), and I prefer AO or SF on anything above 10X. Side focus is much easier for me to use since I can more easily reach the knob than reach up to a ring on the objective.

Have fun,
Brian

 

[Gene]

The further out your target, the less important is parallax focus, but it should be considered. By all means buy a scope with parallax adjustment. I like a variable scope which gives me the option to adjust from low end to high end or in between for various conditions. High magnification is great for identifying the animal, but the field of view is reduced and sometimes its hard to find the target quickly. My suggestion would be something like 6-24 and while hunting, keep it set about 6x. This will give you more time to increase the scope power for a longer shot.