RIFLE SCOPES

[BARTFRNCS]

Whats your opinion of the most commoly avalible scopes. which one do you put on your PG rifle on your DG rifle?

 

[richteb]

Bart,
On my trip I had a Leupold VXIII 2.5 - 8 on my 416 for Cape Buff. On my 375 I had a Zeiss 1.8 - 5.5. Both rifles also had high quality detachable scope mount. I found the Zeiss to low in magnification on the smaller PG (Impala, bushbuck). I also thick the type of scope you pick will depend on where you are hunting. You should try and get an idea from your PH at what sort of distances you will need to shoot. For the next trip I will leave the Leupold on the 416 and have now fitted 3-9 scope on the 375. And should Elephant be on the list I will simply remove the scope from what ever rifle I am carrying at the time. This is also one of the things to think about, in that if you are only going to take one rifle then it needs to be flexible enough to use on DG at 25 yards or a Kudu at 200. If are going to take two guns then is the tracker going to carry your spare rifle? You may also not get time to swap rifles should you come across say a nice Kudu while looking for Buffalo and the Kudu is out there beyond 150 yards in some thorn bush. My approach now that I have a little experience to take two guns and make both as flexible as possible.

 

[teenhunter]

the shmidt and bender Zenith 1.1? x 24 is gr8 for PG and BG .i went on a hunting trip in zimbabwe and it went pefectly.

 

[Bert the Turtle]

I have a Swarovski Z6i 1.7-10 on my PG rifle and I absolutely love it. My PH was very impressed with it as well. It works extremely well in low light (which is good because it seems I got half my shots at about the same time the sun touched the horizon) and is as clear as can be. The wide range of magnification makes it very versatile. Just remember to keep it on low power: if the animal is far enough away that you need high power, you will have time to turn it up. I'm having a 404 built for DG and that will wear a Z6i 1-6 EE.

Some people complain about the price, but you have to pay to play. I feel the same about optics as you do about rifles. I simply can't understand why anyone would choose handicap himself with less than the best. Now, I'm not going to argue with someone who chooses a good Zeiss or an S&B, but for the love of God, I can't understand cheaping out on a scope. A safari costs a fortune and a scope is a one-time purchase. Buy the best and amortize the cost over a lifetime. Any scope will do at high noon, when the animals are having their afternoon siesta. Animals move at dawn and dusk and that is when premium optics come into their own.

 

[Diamondhitch]

Some people complain about the price, but you have to pay to play. I simply can't understand why anyone would choose handicap himself with less than the best. I can't understand cheaping out on a scope. A safari costs a fortune and a scope is a one-time purchase. Buy the best and amortize the cost over a lifetime. Any scope will do at high noon, when the animals are having their afternoon siesta. Animals move at dawn and dusk and that is when premium optics come into their own.

My thoughts exactly. Buy a good scope then use whatever money you have left in your budget to buy whatever gun you can afford. A cheap Savage rifle may have poor fit and finish but topped with quality optics it will remain on sight and usable under all conditions. Top a $5000 custom rifle with a Bushnell trophy and well... not so much.

After guiding on horseback which is arguably the tougest test you can give a scope the 3 that tenaciously held their zero were Swarovski, Leupold and Burris. The Swarovski by far has the best light gathering but the other 2 hold their own until the end of legal hunting light here in NA. In africa of course you can shoot later which puts the ball in Swarovskis court. Of course there are many who cannot afford a Swarovski and as nice as they are I do not personally find enough advantage to pay the difference.

All my rifles are topped with Leupold VX II 4-12x40 scopes, at 12x from the crosshair to duplex measures 3" @ 100yds and that familiarity is handy on long shots. I do not have a DG rifle and if I did it would probably be iron sighted. If I did choose a scope for DG it would be a fixed power low magnification Leupold maybe 1.5 but definitely no more than 3 (this comes from my zero DG experience LOL). The fact is the lower power the scope (or absense there of) the quicker handling the rifle is and the better the feild of view.

 

[JamieD]

I use a 375 RUM and 416 Rigby both with 2-12 Swarovski the rest of the guns I hunt in the US with wear 4.5-14 leupolds. I agree with Diamondhitch the Swarovski does a better job of light gathering but they are heaver and cost a bunch.

Leupold came out with a 2-12 this winter I talked to a teck they say they may have a lighted rectical by spring. I think that this would help some with shooting in poor light.

 

[35bore]

Leupold VXIII's on both. 1.5x5x20 on 458wm and 3.5x10x40 on 35Whelen.

 

[Code4]

9.3x62 1-4x20 Leupold. Now wears a 4x32 Conquest Plex.
.308 6x42 Zeiss Diavari #4
7x57 Zeiss Victory FFP 2.5-10x42T #8 (was on the .243)
.243 Leupold 4.5-14x50LR B&C

For PG you need a (?) 3-10x scope with the absolute best lenses and coatings you can afford and know when to turn it down.

 

[Norwegianwoods]

I have a Leupold VX-II 3-9x40 on my 375Ruger.
A Zeiss 6-24x56 on my 6.5-06 (I consider this to be a good PG cartridge)
And I used a Zeiss 5-15x42 on the 30-06 I used on PG last year. I have sold the gun, but kept the scope to put on another gun when I decide what to buy and have the money for it

 

[M. Egan]

I am considering replacing the glass on my DG rifle with the Leupold VX-R in 1.5-4 power. I would appreciate any thoughts on this idea. I like the short light scope and the red dot seems like it would be easy to find quickly.
Thnx. Mike

 

[KMG Hunting Safaris]

I am considering replacing the glass on my DG rifle with the Leupold VX-R in 1.5-4 power. I would appreciate any thoughts on this idea. I like the short light scope and the red dot seems like it would be easy to find quickly.
Thnx. Mike

Mike,
Last year I bought the VX-R range for the .308 Win, which is used by most of my clients. You will not go wrong. Great value for money and very robust.

Best Regards
Marius Goosen

 

[enysse]

Plains game rifle Leupold VIII 3.5-10x 40mm. Dangerous Game Leupold VIII 2.5-8x 36mm

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

I am considering replacing the glass on my DG rifle with the Leupold VX-R in 1.5-4 power. I would appreciate any thoughts on this idea. I like the short light scope and the red dot seems like it would be easy to find quickly.
Thnx. Mike

Have one and for the money it gets the job done well. The red dot is easily turned on with a quick push of the button. There is some sort of motion sensor which will keep it on unless you turn it off. That's a good thing as it won't suddenly turn off when a timer runs out. It's a bad thing if you forget to turn it off and resume a long walk after a busted setup as you're using up the battery. Just something to keep in mind.

Again for the money I like it and probably will keep it. But the new VX-6 in 1-6 power has some distinct advantages. Obviously the 6x power is nice to have over 4x. It also has roughly 50% more field of view at the 1x end. It also can be had with the CDS dial if you want to make that 200 yard shot a bit more precisely, where of course again the 6x power comes into play.

Is that all worth twice the cost of the VX-R? Not so sure about that.

 

[6MM]

I just picked up a VR in 3 x 9 x 40 a month ago. Real good scope! Currently have it sitting on a varmint rig but it could go on a lot of different rigs.

 

[TerryR]

most of my rifles wear schmidt & Benders although I have used kahles and the occasional leupold. I believe that the last place to economize is on your scope. A cheap rifle with a trigger job will easily shoot minute of critter but if you can't see it, it doesn't matter what rifle you have. A top quality scope will gather enough light to give you added shooting time and, at least in my experience, stand up to the recoil and abuse of hunting better than a cheap scope. Buy a cheap gun, put your money into the scope.

 

[Mr. 16 gauge]

I have a Leupold VxII on all my rifles: a 3x9 on my .338 & .30-06, and a 2x7 on my 6.5x55 Swede. I went out west on an antelope/mule deer hunt, and had trouble seeing a nice mule deer buck at last light. The scope was a higher end Bushnell that worked well deer hunting in the past. I asked all the guides in camp what they had on their guns, and to a man they all had Leupold glass. When I compared them to mine at dusk then next night, it was like night and day. I also looked at Nikon, and they were pretty good as well, but I felt the Leupold was better.
Just my 2 cents.....after Obama redistributes my wealth!

 

[huntingbigun]

Remington Sendro 300Rum Leopold VXIII 4X14, 30mm tube 50 mm Obj, side focus, target turret for Plains
Remington 375 H&H Leopold VX-R 1X4 Warne QD for DG

We see how they work in May lol,