Optics advise?

[Fatback]

I appreciate all the input, keep ‘em coming. Thanks.

 

[Inline6]

I miss the days when rifle scopes had caps over the elevation and windage adjustments. Not exposed turrets as tall as a Miami condo. Marked for adjusting out to 20000 MOA. Just caps. Zero the scope at 100-200 yards, screw the caps back on, and go hunt. Maybe they have a place in mountain hunting. But I can just imagine stalking in on a once-in-a-lifetime Kudu, and the PH looks back to see the client spinning the adjustment dials so the can hold dead on…..at 75 yards! Who needs ‘em? Looking at optics catalogs lately I think I saw just a couple of the old style scopes. Everything else was outfitted with those dreadful complications. I will not mention the scopes that talk to ones cellphone via Bluetooth. It’s getting to be my bedtime and I don’t want to lay awake thinking of the rapid pace we are heading to hades.

As long as they lock, I'm happy to have them. It really depends on how you shoot/train/style. Was about to make hits out to 300 yards with my 375h&h, just dial it in. Like everything else, the market does what the masses want. Right, wrong, or indifferent. Scope technology has come a long ways, just like bullet technology. We are all reaping the benefits, better glass, better QC, better pricing.

 

[shootist~]

Trijicon Accupoint 1x6 is another, although I haven't hunted with it yet.
I love my NIghtforce 2.5x10s but at under 50 yards, 1x just makes a lot of sense.

Do some speed drills on a full size buff target at ten yards, then decide.

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

If you can afford better glass, do it, you will never regret it. An African safari is not only expensive, it is special, get the best. For the range of animals you have listed a Swarovski Z8i red dot will do it all, and you will smile.

 

[MRBlack]

I’ve got a Leica Amplus 1-6x24i and am very pleased. Great field of view and illuminated dot in the middle of the crosshairs to boot. Not the lightest scope but worth the weight.

 

[Piet Brood]

Schmidt & Bender Exos 1-8x24 has worked well for me on buffalo and the smaller plains game in the Karoo.

 

[BeeMaa]

One thing I didn’t mention but others have…true 1x for both eyes open shooting at close range.

Lastly is having that quality piece of glass mounted in QD mounts. Talley, Warne and Alaska Arms are good starting points. Having the ability to quickly remove the scope for instinctive, up-close follow up shots in the thick brush is a good idea.

 

[Brandon.Gleason]

My 375 wears a Swaro Z6i 1-6 with the CDI reticle. It replaced a Leupold Euro30 1.25-4 with a German 4. The difference in glass was incredible. I find the magnification range to be just about perfect for the cartridge and I've found it adaptable to ranges between 10 and 300 yards on animals ranging in size from bushbuck to cape buffalo.

 

[Nevada Mike]

Remember that you're going to be carrying that rifle. Scope weight and bulk will make the rifle heavier and can effect handling. You do not need a variable that goes up to 8X or 10X for the shooting you plan to do.

I have two Leupold scopes - a VX6 1-6X illuminated, and a VX3 1-5 - 5X) on Talley QD rings for my 404J and used the VX3 on my recent hunt to shoot a bull eland at estimated 225 yards. No problem.

On my .375 H&H Model 70 I have a Leupold VX2 2-7X shotgun scope - excellent eye relief and FOV. It's also in Talley QD mounts. The QD mounts allow me to swap scopes without issues beyond re-sighting the scopes.

 

[Flewis]

I was asking about a month ago for some direction on a rifle, 375 H&H or 375 Ruger. Well I was able to procure a Winchester M70 Safari Classic in 375 H&H that will be delivered this week. I have also been able to get 3 different brands of what I hope are quality cartridges for the rifle. Now I am down to choosing a scope. I hope to primarily use this rifle to hunt buffalo with the possibility of hippo as well. However, I want to be able to shoot PG as well with this rifle, which makes choosing the best optics for both jobs important. I understand the difference in the quality of the various companies, ie.. Swarovski, Zeus’s, Leupold etc.. I am more asking for recommended magnifications, eye relief and objective size. I am considering between 1-6x24, 1-8x24, 1.7-10x42 and 2-10x42. I want to be able to quickly find a buffalo at close range but also want to feel comfortable shooting a plains game animal at 175-200 yards. I know that there has to be some compromises and nothing will be great for both applications but I am trying to get the best of both worlds so to speak. I’d be grateful for y’all’s input based on your experiences. Thanks

Vx3 2.5x8 has very good eye relief, over 4 inches. Saying that i use 1.5x5 vx3s, it has a little less.

 

[RETD16]

So I’m shopping for a scope for my Dakota in 416 Rem. I have been looking at the Zeiss V4 1-4 w/ illuminated MIB, Swarovski Z6 and Z8 (1-6, and 1-8) illuminated reticle, Leupold VHD6 1-6 with Fire Dot. Any recommendations??? Any scopes that I’m missing? Any advice is appreciated!!!

 

[ldmay375]

So I’m shopping for a scope for my Dakota in 416 Rem. I have been looking at the Zeiss V4 1-4 w/ illuminated MIB, Swarovski Z6 and Z8 (1-6, and 1-8) illuminated reticle, Leupold VHD6 1-6 with Fire Dot. Any recommendations??? Any scopes that I’m missing? Any advice is appreciated!!!

I would also add the Schmidt & Bender line of straight tubes. The S&B Zenith, 1.1-4x24, FD7 is another favorite of mine.

 

[Flewis]

I was asking about a month ago for some direction on a rifle, 375 H&H or 375 Ruger. Well I was able to procure a Winchester M70 Safari Classic in 375 H&H that will be delivered this week. I have also been able to get 3 different brands of what I hope are quality cartridges for the rifle. Now I am down to choosing a scope. I hope to primarily use this rifle to hunt buffalo with the possibility of hippo as well. However, I want to be able to shoot PG as well with this rifle, which makes choosing the best optics for both jobs important. I understand the difference in the quality of the various companies, ie.. Swarovski, Zeus’s, Leupold etc.. I am more asking for recommended magnifications, eye relief and objective size. I am considering between 1-6x24, 1-8x24, 1.7-10x42 and 2-10x42. I want to be able to quickly find a buffalo at close range but also want to feel comfortable shooting a plains game animal at 175-200 yards. I know that there has to be some compromises and nothing will be great for both applications but I am trying to get the best of both worlds so to speak. I’d be grateful for y’all’s input based on your experiences. Thanks

Vx3 2.5x8 has very good eye relief, over 4 inches. Saying that i use 1.5x5 vx3s, it has a little less.

A Leupold VX5 in 2-10x42 will need medium Tally QD. Smaller than 42 and lows might work. For me I use medium on them all for Stock fit to face to scope alignment that what’s work best for me personally

the problem with low rings is sometime the bolt won’t clear.

 

[BeeMaa]

So I’m shopping for a scope for my Dakota in 416 Rem. I have been looking at the Zeiss V4 1-4 w/ illuminated MIB, Swarovski Z6 and Z8 (1-6, and 1-8) illuminated reticle, Leupold VHD6 1-6 with Fire Dot. Any recommendations??? Any scopes that I’m missing? Any advice is appreciated!!!

I was using a Z8i 1-8x24 on my 416RM and really liked it. I sold the 416RM and now the scope is on my 375H&H, still works perfectly.

If you are considering Swaro, the only other brands I'd suggest are Leica and Zeiss with their top of the line items. Nearly everything else will pale in comparison when it comes to optical quality.

 

[Mtn_Infantry]

My M70 in .375 wears a Leupold VX5 3-15x44 illuminated. It's been on 4 total hunts with ZERO issues. I was going to use QD Rings so I could swap to a VX6 1-6 but traded the scope in the middle of my first hunt to the PH since the 3-15 was doing fine. I've gone back and forth about putting a S&B 1-4 on it, but once I acquired a .500NE double, I felt I'd keep that .375 as is and use the .500 on buffalo or elephant up close or go with another M70 I have in .375 with irons.

 

[Nhoro]

1-6 with the max eye relief that you can find. If a scope hits you on the eye brow, it has more impact ( pun intended) on your accuracy than the quality of the glass. Higher magnification is nice on the range but off sticks or a makeshift rest in the bush, high mag just makes aiming difficult.

As for brands, just go with what you want and can afford. Cheaper brands are pretty darn close in quality at a fraction of the price.

 

[BeeMaa]

As for brands, just go with what you want and can afford. Cheaper brands are pretty darn close in quality at a fraction of the price.

Could you provide an example of this please? Calling something "cheap" and "quality" at the same time rarely go together.

 

[The Engineer]

The criteria I apply for heavy recoiling/dangerous game/plains gave rifles are:

• Must be quick to pick up the target.
  • To me this means low power at the bottom end for both eyes open target acquisition.
  • An illuminated reticle to pick a spot in a dark mass when the dark cross hairs blend in.
• Top quality optics. With high end optics not only is the brightness better but you can be a precise shooter with less scope power as the image is much sharper.
• Low mounting to pick up a good cheek weld that is directly behind the scope. I love the Swaro Z6i scopes for my single shots but their large ocular housing means they must be mounted high on bolt action rifles. For me, I do not get a good cheek weld with a Z6i. The Zeiss Victory HT I have on rifle monts over an eighth of an in lower than the Z6i did. The Zeiss gives a good cheek weld and less perceived recoil as the stock does not slap the face as hard when the rifle has less of a running start (Dynamic overshoot) at your cheek.
• Not only should the ocular be as small as possible for mounting but it should not form a wide ring of blocked vision area between the scope image and the outside world. IE: The vision portion of the ocular housing should be both optically and physically small.

For the above reasons the scope i have on my 416 Rigby is a Zeiss Victory HT 1.5-6. With the clarity of the optics 6x is more than adequate for a 300 yard shot and the scope is mounted very low.

As we say in Engineering design, good design is a study in compromises and no two individuals will chose the same compromises. Those compromises are what make scope selection interesting.

 

[Safari Dave]

Could you provide an example of this please? Calling something "cheap" and "quality" at the same time rarely go together.

Yeah, I've been searching for the "diamond-in-the-rough" on optics for over 30 years, and I've bought many cheaper scopes because someone has told me that a certain brand is "just as good as" as a more expensive brand.


I have NEVER found this to be the case.

In my (pretty extensive) experience, I have yet to find it.

 

[Safari Dave]

It seems like every shooter in America thinks Vortex is IT right now.

They thought the same thing about Burris 10-15 years ago.

Maven is "on-deck" right now.


When the dust settles, I'm pretty sure that:

1. Leupold will still be the best US-made optic.
2. Nightforce will be the best US-branded optic
3. European-made optics, will still be the best optics