Witch long range scope and why..

[BigBullDreamer11]

I am looking at long range scopes with turrets. I have a 7 mag i am working on and would like to put a nice good scope on it. So what is your opinion on a good long range scope and why.. Thanks for the information.

[BULLBLASTER]

What is your budget? And how far are you looking to go with it. Both have a very big impact.

[BigBullDreamer11]

Like 2 grand or less And more then likely it will never see further then 750  to 800 yards.. I have looked at the huskews and night forces but I was just looking for maybe other out their to..

[trophyhunt]

I have had a huskimaw since they came out, I've made kills at 350, 550, 500 and 650. I haven't had any issues with my scope, dial it and if no wind, shoot.  Haven't had to adjust for wind but the wind dots are in the eye piece.  Only problem I had was finding a place to sight in at 650 yards, if I had to do it over, I would drive my gun to Wyoming and have those guys set it up for me.  I went through enough ammo to pay for them to set it up.  If not huskimaw, I would consider night force out of Idaho.

[Magnum_Willys]

What turrets do you want? for over 600 yards consider a true ballistic range rangefinder like the leica 1600B.   It corrects for altitude, temp, angle then dial the yards or moa and shoot.

Without it you need some type of charts or calculator / phone to make adjustments based on measured conditions.  I would rather have an $800 rangefinder and a $1200 scope if my budget was $2000.

Out to 500 yards anything works.

[huntandjeep]

 
Out to 800 a Leopold mark 4 will work. I use that and a leica 1600b and have no problems out to 1200.

[MtnMuley]

If you decide to go Huskemaw,  let me know. I have a couple I'd sell.

[jrebel]

Looked at a Quigley Ford scope the other day that was pretty darn nice for the price.  You should check them out.....  http://quigleyford.com/

[Magnum_Willys]

I have a number of holdover reticle scopes - Shepherd Scope, Boone & Crocket Reticle, Leupolds Varmit Reticle but  its just easier for me to remember to dial then it is to use a specific line when the action heats up.  Your eyes are pulled to that center cross hair.     Plus when you get out past 700 yards you need to start ranging +/- ten yards or so and that just isnt that feasible for me with holdover reticles.  The horus ultimate holdover reticle is gaining traction with the military but they have a lot of time to practice with it.    The scopes I have that have both holdover reticles and turrets I never use the holdover but personal taste. 

[CAMPMEAT]

Nobody has mentioned VORTEX. I have a Millet on my 308. Shots out to 825 yards with no problem.

[MtnMuley]

Nobody has mentioned VORTEX. I have a Millet on my 308. Shots out to 825 yards with no problem.

Vortex makes some great scopes, but I always thought you preached Pentax?

[CAMPMEAT]

Nobody has mentioned VORTEX. I have a Millet on my 308. Shots out to 825 yards with no problem.

Vortex makes some great scopes, but I always thought you preached Pentax?

Oh no. I'm a man with many tastes. Pentax are good all around scopes. I do own a few of the cool guy scopes too.

[jay.sharkbait]

Nobody has mentioned VORTEX. I have a Millet on my 308. Shots out to 825 yards with no problem.

I had a Mullet, but none of my friends would shoot with me...........

[MtnMuley]

I personally think Vortex is the best bang for your buck for the guy who doesn't want to spend the bucks to have top end.

[huntandjeep]

I personally think Vortex is the best bang for your buck for the guy who doesn't want to spend the bucks to have top end.

I had a vortex viper hslr on my rifle before I switched it out for the mark 4. Had a Kenton turret made for it and i could hit 100-1200 yards . Mtnmuley PM sent

[CAMPMEAT]

Nobody has mentioned VORTEX. I have a Millet on my 308. Shots out to 825 yards with no problem.

I had a Mullet, but none of my friends would shoot with me...........

That's why I don't have friends now, the dang mullet.

[2labs]

Bought a 4.5 x14x50 leuy long rang with turrets on line, thinking I would have too send it in. It is perfect at one third the new price! Buy a used luepold.

[BULLBLASTER]

My long range rifle had a viper pst for 4 years until I upgraded to a razor hd a month or so ago. I personally like front focal plane reticals in long range scopes. With a matching turret. I use moa/moa but mil is popular also.
As said above a quatplity range finder is a must. One with a built in ballistic program is really good also. I use an older Leica and a kestrel along with a phone app.

[Alan K]

Can't go wrong with the Viper PST.  I have a PST in 6-24x, and an HST in 4-16x.  Both good scopes.  I now run a Razor Gen II, 4.5-27x.  All quality with an amazing warranty service.  You can pick up Razor Gen I's (5-20x's) for a pretty reasonable price now.

While the all in one range finders are nice, I wouldn't consider them critical. You can get most all of the input information from apps on your smart phone these days, and a calculator like Strelok works great. Just make sure the rangefinder model you get gives you horizontal distance, or at least an angle along with the line of sight distance.  Another thing I don't care for with most of the rangefinders that provide solutions is that most don't actually give you solutions for your load, you have to choose one of their curves that fits the best.  Around 400-500 yards there is probably not much difference, but I wouldn't count on it when you get way out there.

[Alan K]

Pretty decent deal on a Razor Gen I: http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f40/fs-vortex-razor-ebr-3-burris-xtr-ii-mdr-zeiss-conq-varmint-156243/

PST 6-24x: http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f40/fs-brand-new-vortex-pst-6-24x50-ebr-1-moa-reticle-156349/

The only problem IMO with the Razor is that it's MRAD.  I prefer MOA, and I think that's what most people use.

[The scout]

if 2000 was my budget I would get a leupold 3-18 cds and a leica 1600

[MtnMuley]

if 2000 was my budget I would get a leupold 3-18 cds and a leica 1600

Well, if the OP wants, I have one of each in mint shape that I'd happily let go as a pair for $2K

[xXLojackXx]

I have owned and shot Vortex PST's/Razors, Leupold Mk 4's, Nightforce NXS/ATACR, and a Steiner T5Xi. Hands down the best is the Steiner, I'll get to that in a minute. Here's my honest opinion since you don't really have a budget ( a good thing  )

Vortex PST's and Gen 1 Razors have decent glass, but they milk out and lose clarity at their top of the magnification range. I'm not a fan of the PST and Gen 1 Razor turrets, but that's all personal preference. The Gen 2 Razor is a GREAT scope, but it comes with a 3lb weight penalty. If you're building a match rifle, its irrelevant but too heavy for a hunting rifle IMO. They come with a good warranty, but they're made in China and I've seen several need to go back in and/or replaced. Last thing I want before I pull the trigger is the thought of "is my scope tracking right?"

Leupold Mk 4 30mm scopes have better glass than the Vortex (except Gen 2 Razors). The reticle thickness is too bold for my liking, but if you have bad eyes that might be a plus. The biggest problem with the Mk4 scopes is the turrets. They track well and have crisp audible clicks, but they aren't MIL turrets to match the MIL reticles they put in the scopes. They offer the MK4's with M5 turrets, which are MIL turrets. Not having matching turrets and reticle subtensions in long rang shooting is a crime. Unless you're really good at converting MILs to MOA, or like to get easily confused.

Nightforce NXS is an all around good 30mm scope. Several options on how to conform the turrets (high speed/non HS, zero stop/non ZS) and PLENTY of reticle options. For an MOA reticle the best IMO is the MOAR or NPR1. I also like the MIL-R reticle. Good clarity and track perfectly. Known for being durable, I've dropped my rifle before onto the scope on a rocky surface. Picked it up and got a first round hit on a target at 1380 yards. If you want better glass and a 34mm tube the ATACR is a clear upgrade form the NXS. Noticeably better clarity, brightness, and more internal elevation adjustment. Can be had new for $1900-2000.

Lastly, and my favorite scope for under $2000 (I paid $1600) is the Steiner T5Xi. I run a 5-25x56 on my rifles. 34mm tube and only weighs 2 lbs. Glass is on par with the NF ATACR for $400 less (German made scope). Very generous eye relief for shooting odd postitons and not getting scoped, as well as easy parallax focus. Very low profile turrets with clear adjustment clicks and great fit/finish. Eleven illumination settings with off positions between settings. Zerostop on the turrets is solid and the easier to set than any I've done before. One of the best features is the turrets "roll over" at 12 mils so you never have to guess what revolution of the turret youre one. Your turrets read 1-23 MILS, even past the first revolution. Then it rolls back over when you turn down below 12 mils again. VERY useful in high stress situations. A bonus with the Steiner as well, is the free magnification throw lever and Tenebraex flip up scope covers after filling out an online review through the Steiner website, mine took about 2 weeks to show up in the mail. I have been trying to find something I don't like about the scope because I like to switch gear a lot  but I can't.

Hope that helps a bit. I'm in no way affiliated with any scope manufacturer. Now if you want to spend $3000, the doors open up to a whole new world of elite scopes.

[BigBullDreamer11]

Thanks for all the information i am looking at all these options now.. Their are so many ways to go with this. I do appreciate all the information.. This forum is awesome.