scope power

[Sigmar]

finally found a nib DPMS LR 308. Now time for optics and more ignorant questions. I want to go with a variable low end mag no more than 4, with that in mind how high is the top end, only 12 ?

[JReed]

You can get 4-16 power scopes. What are you using it for that you need higher then 10?

[AJMD429]

Many scope makers do three-fold zoomers, but I've seen some four-fold ones. One of my favorite all-around rifle scopes is 5-20x, because 20 can really help you reach out there, but 5x in a good scope is fast and easy to shoot standing.

If I have a gun capable of shooting under 1 MOA and want to actually use it to DO that, there's no way I can do it without seeing a 1" target at 100 yards (I can 'visualize' the center of that pie-plate or paper target as an aiming-point, but if I wanted to hit a feral cat in the head (3 MOA) there's no way I'd even SEE it without a 20x scope unless it was a black cat out in the snow). Some guys just have better vision than me, I guess, because I see them shoot well with low-magnification scopes.

[Mescalero]

The unspeakable in pursuit of the inedible.

[6pt-sika]

My favourite all time scope for a bolt action or Ruger #1 deer type rifle is the Leupold Vari XIII 4.5-14AO . Also was big on the Leupold Vari XIII 3.5-10AO before they brought out the larger magnification scope !

Now with that being said I've had pretty decent results with the old Leupold Vari XII 4-12AO and to a lesser degree with the Leupold VX1 4-12 . Also might add for about $200 the relatively new Redfield Revolution 4-12 ain't to bad either !

[Sigmar]

thanks, as usual y'all come through. any problems with these scopes on AR platform rifles holding zero? ie 308

[olyinaz]

I have run a Nikon Monarch and Bushnell Elite scope on my LR308 without issue. As usual, the more you spend the better scope you'll get, but I will say that the Bushnell Elite 4200 series of scopes are very nice scopes for the money. As are Nikon Monarchs, but they can get pretty pricey. Most range warriors seem to like to put mega-buck optics on their ARs. Always amazes me the money I see in optics on ARs. That said, other than rolling around on the ground in combat (real or play time) which obviously puts incredible stresses on an optic, "intended use" stress in other words, the AR platform itself is not terribly hard on scopes in my experience.

Check Optics Planet and B&H Photo Video for online prices before you buy.

[El Chivo]

if I were you I'd get one with an adjustable objective so you can focus on something other than 100 yards away. Recently I was offered my friend's Contender with a scope racked up to 9x and at 200m the rams were blurry. If zooming up the power, it will be nice be able to focus in sharply, and it will help accuracy too.

I just bought the Swift 4x-12x with adjustable objective, it's very nice. I got it for close work. Very nice quality.

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/819218 ... c=wishList


Midway has an exclusive Simmons "Whitetail Classic" 6.5x-20x for only $109.00. Sounds like what you need when you want to take whitetails in a neighboring state. Also I checked out the Mueller 4.5x-14x.

They're all big though. One I want to try on my .22 is a 4x fixed power, with adjustable objective by Hawke (only at SWFA). That looks like a normal sized scope. Only $45.00, might be worth a try.

http://swfa.com/Hawke-4x32-Sport-HD-Rif ... 48460.aspx

[MrMurphy]

You get what you pay for in optics, and in AR's.

DPMS is far from my favorite brand of ARs but for your purposes, will likely do just fine.

I've shot thousands of rounds in .308 through ARs (working for a manufacturer) with dozens of scopes. Mostly what you would consider high end, ranging from $1,000-4,000. For their intended purpose, they're not, but we won't get into that argument.


Any decently built scope will hold up to range/light hunting use on an AR. A .308 AR kicks less than a .308 bolt action, or any similar round.

Get an AR-specific mount, not high rings. A Burris PEPR is a cheap Chinese mount, but will work. ADM or LaRue are far superior, but you may be spending as much on the mount as the scope depending on your budget.

I'd recommend a Leupold Mark AR, or the VX-II series. The AR was made for AR's, the VX-II has a long track record of excellent performance and you can pick them up for around $200-300.

I've had good experience with the Burris Fullfield II 3-9X on bolt actions and AR's for about $200.

Depending on what you're planning on doing, a 4-14X is more than enough scope to get out to 500m or further depending on your skill, the rifle and the size of the target.

I've shot Nightforce's entire riflescope line on a .308 OBR (1-4, 2.5-10, 4-14, 5.5-20X), most of Leupold's common offerings (3-9, 2-7, 3.5-10, 4-14, etc) and several US Optics in the same range, as well as just about every model Trijicon's ever made on the combat scope side (the ACOGs).

If you're primarily shooting at under 300m at man/deer/hog sized targets a 3-9 or 4-14 is more than enough. A 2.5-10 from a company with good glass (Leupold, Nikon's higher end scopes, etc) is one of my personal favorites if I'm not getting out to serious distances.

When it comes to glass, all those fancy coatings and grinding does matter. At dusk, with the first four rounds fired from that rifle for me, I scored two hits at 500m with a Trijicon TA11F 3.5X scope on a green human chest sized target. Only reason I didn't get four for four was it was just dark enough for the reticle to be hard to see on target, and not quite dark enough for the tritium to show up. Not bad considering the rifle was not zeroed to me and I hadn't shot one before. It was an FN SCAR-H in 7.62 Nato.

[JB]

I agree with Mr. Murphy that you won't have problems with any quality scope.

With some AR's and some scopes I've used high rings without using AR specific mounts with zero problems. The offset AR type mounts due generally make it easier, but you can make things work without the high $200 and up AR mounts for sure.

[FWiedner]

I have a DPMS LR-308 that I've been using to hunt hogs for about 2 years, and it's been a good and dependable firearm for me

I have 2 scopes that I use on it depending on what time of day I'm hunting. The daytime scope is an SWFA 10x42, and the nightime scope is a Yukon Gen2+.

Both on quick-release mounts, and they hold their zeros pretty well.

Kills hogs dead out to 200yds.

[AJMD429]

thanks, as usual y'all come through. any problems with these scopes on AR platform rifles holding zero? ie 308

I know it isn't proper to actually like any scopes that aren't Leupold, or some more expensive brand, but in terms of "can variables hold zero", I have five high-power variables that have done well:

• One 5-20x is on a 308 (Savage bolt action) and has been through some 500 rounds without ill-effect, and I switch powers from max to min quite a bit.
  
  One 5-20x is on a 223 (AR) and has been through over 1,000 rounds, I also switch this one from max power to minimum a lot.
  
  One 10-40x resides on a 6mm Rem (Ruger M77V) and has been through probably 1,500 rounds during a 30 year period, and functions perfectly. It usually stays on 20x but I drop it to 10x if I'm shooting 'standing' and bump it to 40x sometimes.
  
  The other 10-40x is also on a 223 (Savage bolt action) and probably only has about 500 rounds through that gun, plus is pretty much left on 40x. Again, functions well.
  
  My 4-16x one has been on a Marlin 45-70, a couple 308's, 223, 30-30, and even a 32-20 (now that one really kicks ), but has held up just fine. I tend to like it on guns shooting cartridges with lots of 'drop' since it has a 'trajectory compensating' turret.

As far as needing a high-priced brand to 'hold zero' - the 4-16x is a Bushnell; both 5-20x ones are Tasco's, and the 10-40x's are Weavers. I've also had good luck with Nikons, Redfields, and Millet's, but they are all more recent purchases and don't have the track-record for me that the others have had. If I wanted to settle for fewer firearms I could afford higher-end optics, but when you get into the 20-40x magnification range, price shoots through the roof (now if you're talking 3-9x, Leupolds are still 'twice as expensive' as the others, but $250 vs. $125 isn't as big a hit as $2,000 vs. $250 like happens if you're talking 10-40x).

If I were heading to the Alaskan out-back, or into combat, I'd want a guaranteed-never-fail one, but in truth I've had friends with Leupold's that failed. The difference is it is supposedly less common (one in 10,000 per year vs. one in 1,000 per year is a 10-fold difference, but 999 years out of 1,000 I still won't have a scope failure), and if it happens, you have an American product with a toll-free number and return-authorization a phone-call away. You'll have a new replacement in a couple weeks. With the 'imports' or faux-American ones like I'm using, you MAY be able to take advantage of their lifetime warranties, if you can find out where to call that is a working number, etc., but more likely if one fails, you'll just replace it, and figure that until you've had to replace it a fourth or fifth time, you've still saved money.

Since I've not had to ever replace any of mine, I haven't lost much sleep over it; most of my shooting is 'hobby' shooting - no military missions, no frontier hunts, and no formal competition, so the worst that would happen if a scope 'failed' is that I'd have to walk 300 yards back to the house and grab another firearm or swap out scopes. As far as quality, there is definitely more clarity out at the edge of the field with the more expensive scopes, but in terms of get-it-done basic quality the ones I've used have ALL held-zero and put up with a modest amount of neglect and abuse, so no complaints.

If your eyes and style of shooting don't demand over 12x, you should be able to get an awesome-quality scope for not much money. Sometimes I want to be able to shoot a feral cat out a hundred yards or so, or a coyote way out there, or just set an old dirt-colored baseball on the 100 yard berm to shoot, and NONE of those will be visible to me without 20x or more magnification (guess my eyes are weird), so I've gotten into higher-powered optics for guns I'm going to shoot off a bench or bipod or rest of some sort. For those powers, you'll have to decide on a trade-off between name-brand and magnification, unfortunately. So far I've not been disappointed in the 'cheapie' scopes, and my Weaver and Tasco and Bushnell ones I've been using thirty years or so.

[Blaine]

I must be way behind the times... I've "scoped" stuff way out beyond the range of my 45-70 with the Leupold 2.5X Scout Scope, and the sight picture I get would be more than sufficient to take that animal. I'm putting another scope just like it on the Ruger GunSite .308, and I don't anticipate being handicapped with it as long as I can find a good supported position. My bad shoulder is making my shooting horrible

[nemhed]

I just put a Redfield Revolution in a 2-7x on my new Ruger American and am very pleased with it. Its a compact scope made in the USA (Redfield is owned by Leupold) and does everything I want on what is essentially a compact, light weight, sporting rifle.

P.S. I'm cheap and have never spent more than $300 on a scope. I'm also more of a fan of fixed power scopes, I've got a 6x Weaver on my .223 coyote rifle.