What scope?

[gadwall]

My stepson wants to put together a mountain rifle, (you know the ones that shoot from mountain to mountain) and has the rifle and caliber well in hand.  What scope do you guys like for the 400-1000 yd shots??

Thanks

[EDT]

what rifle and caliber is he shooting?

[Crunchy]

Depends on his budget. That 1,000 yards is a good poke.  Will need a scope with a dial.  Hope he reloads to get any consistency out at that range.  My next scope will be a nightforce.  I have a Leupold VX3 4.5x14 that shoots out to 750yds.  It has the CDS dial for my load. 

[Fl0und3rz]

http://precisionrifleblog.com/2013/03/07/best-long-range-scopes-buyers-guide-and-features-to-look-for/

[CAMPMEAT]

I've got a Millett on my 308.

[MtnMuley]

Leupold CDS is a good choice.  Nightforce is the best. Best budget friendly, yet very good, is a Vortex. 

[b23]

Vortex makes some nice scopes but you can never go wrong with a Nightforce.

[EDT]

I have a Nikon Buckmasters 4.5x14, I sent in my ballistics data to Kenton Industries and they sent me a custom elevation turret.  That thing is dead on up to 850 yds.  Distance is only limited by the number of turns allowed in the elevation turret.   You can spend the money on Nightforce, if you have it (I would), but the set up I have is 80% less expensive and is accurate for effective shooting at those ranges, with a lot of practice of course.

[jackelope]

What's the budget?

[Blacklab]

Nightforce or Buris Eliminator lll if I had money to burn  If you already have a great scope. EDT has has a great idea. Just know your ballistics and their consistency send the info into who ever is building turrets. 

[Halo]

I like my Leupold VX6 3-18 CDS. I didn't want to give up the low end 3 power, I've shot elk as close as 3 yards. But I also wanted more magnification for the longer shots with my aging eyes  I'm also a Leupold fan and love the CDS dial so it was a natural choice.

[jay.sharkbait]

Why dial?

[Mulieman]

I have a Nightforce on my newest rifle. I don't regret one cent of the money I paid for it. It made a 734yd shot on this years buck for me.

[CAMPMEAT]

I think some of you on here need to be more realistic about scopes. Not many people can afford a NightForce for $2000 plus, then rings and mount for another, what, $500, plus another, say $800ish for a plain jane rifle. I can't.

[yorketransport]

I have a decent range of scopes on my long range guns right now and I definitely like some more than others. The list right now is:
Nikon Buckmaster 4.5-14x40
VX-3L 3.5-10x50
VX-3 4.5-14x50
VX 3 6.5-20x50 with M1 Turrets and a Premier Reticles Mil Dot conversion
Sightron S III 8-32x56
Mk 4 ERT 8.5-25x50
Nightforce 5.5-22x56

I'll go ahead and say it, Nightforce is over rated! I've had 3 (1 BR model and 2 NXS models) and they were good scopes, but not worth the price if you buy one new. I still have one 5.5-22x56 that I got for $1200 and it's only worth that price because of the significant elevation travel that it offers.

My personal favorites by price point:

Under $300: Nikon Buckmasters. That's pretty much it. I really think that these scopes are hard to beat for an all round scope at this price.

$3-500: Leupold VX-3 (usually used ones in this price range), Nikon anything in this range, Vortex scope at the upper end ($400+) of the price range.

$500-$750: Leupold VX-3, used Mk 4 (I've bought them for as little as $600 for a 4.5-14x50), Sightron S III (most likely used at this price point), Vortex, Weaver, and again Nikon.

$750 -$1000: Leupolds, Nikons, Vortex, Sightron. Pretty much any model in this price range is good to go.

$1000+: There are no bad options. I'm partial to the Mk 4 line just because of the TMR reticle and the fact that I've never had on fail on me. Nightforce scopes are good, but they're not perfect. My Sightron S III 8-32x56 is optically better to my eyes than any Nightforce I've looked through. My buddy's NF went back for repairs after 75 rounds through his 338 Edge.

If you plan to hang under 1000 yards, I'd find a good deal on a used VX-3 4.5-14x50 (probably around $400) and send it to Leupold to have the turrets switched out to the M1 dials. The thing holding anyone back with this scope would be the vertical adjustment much past 1000 yards. Throw an angled base or rings on the gun and you'd be good to go.

Andrew