Knife (and other experts) find me a scope
Mike,
Here’s the gun:
That’s a Barnes Woodsman .62/.32. With the current scope and .32 insert, it’s a half MOA gun at 100 yards.
So why change the scope? Good question, makes no sense at first blush. The fact is, I can shoot the gun with both .62 slugs and .32 slugs over a far greater range than I ever anticipated. The current scope is fine but it has a simple duplex reticle that makes it hard to guestimate holdover for various ranges. I can dial the thing in dead on at 100 but then everything closer is a estimate. I can dial it in with the .62 slugs at 50 but then everything out to 130 is a guess….
I’d like to have a scope with either mildots or some sort of marked reticle that gives me multiple aim points I can assign ranges to. That way, I can set the gun up to be dead on at say 50 yards with slugs but have a repeatable and easy to remember when it counts, reference point when the damn deer shows up at 90 yards!
I’m not in any rush and may not make any change this season. But, I’d like to start watching the sales and auctions and know what to get when “it” is available at a good price!
Because this is a custom gun and the scope mount is a custom piece, there are some limitations as to what I can hang on the gun. The mount was made to move the scope forward over the loading port and is made for a 1″ tube. I don’t plan on changing this mount. You can see (hopefully) that the scope can’t have a huge protrusion under the turrets, there’s about a 1/4″ clearance there…so a forward/bell focus design is fine. Besides the physical constraints, the scope needs to have excellent optics and solid, repeatable adjustments. Oh, it can’t cost as much as a S&B either! Find the one I want with a gloss black finish and there’s a donut in it for you!
Here’s some pics of the scope and mount to give a visual on what I’m yapping about…
Got a spare Zeiss to fit??!! 😆
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SWFA makes these scopes that have received very good reviews. Look at the link below and then below that for some of the reviews. This is supposed to be the same scope that Tasco used to make (sniper) that was kick ass (before Tasco went downhill). One of the reviews put it through some serious trauma and it survived. They come in fixed mags, I think 10, 16, 20, though I may be off. They also offer a 3×9. I don’t know about the clearance issues you are concerned with.
Also, this scope came highly recommend by a guy at our local range (retired Marine corp sniper) he has one on his blueprinted civi version of an M40A1 (20″ barrel) and he puts hole in hole all day long @ 200 yards with it.
I’ve been looking at these scopes and I will be adding one in the future to my collection.
Yep it’s availble chambered in .338 lapua 🙂 things have come so dang far from 1985-1988 jeez our stuff is fossilized now lol. Then my reserve time 1988-1991 we were still getting hand-me downs.
Oh, and the Zeiss having the etched reticle is nice, too.
I actually love that about mine. Lets you lean into it a bit more when prone or on a bench, and you stay back when offhand at lower magnifications.
Freddy, I didn’t even know the 24 was available in 338 lapua. I thought it was strictly 308 and 300 win mag. That’s pretty cool. I would have a hard time with a 338 lapua and a 10x scope. That round will reach out sooo far, I would want a bit more magnification on it.
I want a 338 lapua blaser tac2, but that’s another story. 🙂
I had completely forgotten about nightforce. Those are awesome as well.
Hold over, you are right reading that S&B, nightforce, and USO are better than leupold, but there is a pretty large price difference there. As far as I know, the varix3 glass is as good as leupold gets, and as knife said the gizmos get better. So some of their 2000 dollar scopes are definitely overpriced. But I don’t know of anyone else that offers that cool ultra low profile thing so I guess they can charge what they want.
There are still some 24s with 7s on them and I email with a couple buddies that are still in the game and how it works is until someone from command says that something is no longer allowed the military gives the teams some lattitude on what they prefer.
There are guys using the 24 chambered in .338 lapua with Leupold Ultra M3 10x40mm fixed-power scopes on them.
I don’t know about the S&Bs to be honest and I get my information second hand from buddies that are still living the dream lol.
When I trained we used a M21 with bausch&lomb 10×40 lol. Some MK4s were coming through when I left in 1991 but I was a reservist by then and we got the shit that rolled off regular armys back.
Just like the dragonskin body armor was allowed until the order came down that it was forbidden to be worn by troops and troops were having them sent from home but that was squashed. They use the interceptor with trauma plates in them.
As far as Leupy’s go, the fact that eye relief changes with magnification just killed the thought of getting one of their variables. My Zeiss has a constant 4 inches of eye relief throughout the whole magnification range.
Oh, and the Zeiss having the etched reticle is nice, too.
Freddy, is that really what sits on the m24? Didn’t they switch to S&B scopes?
I had completely forgotten about nightforce. Those are awesome as well.
Hold over, you are right reading that S&B, nightforce, and USO are better than leupold, but there is a pretty large price difference there. As far as I know, the varix3 glass is as good as leupold gets, and as knife said the gizmos get better. So some of their 2000 dollar scopes are definitely overpriced. But I don’t know of anyone else that offers that cool ultra low profile thing so I guess they can charge what they want.
This is one that is being used on the M-24 sniper rifle 🙂 if price is no object.
http://www.ableammo.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=100421
On edit: I just caught where you said you’re sticking with the 1″ rings so this one won’t work, I sure would like to have it though and I should have saved up and got this one.
I’d go with a Leupold- great scopes for the money, I’d also drop “Premier Reticles”? a line to see if they can set up the scope for both .62/.32 with known loads and velocities.
Ive been shopping around for scopes lately,and for around 500 the the bushnell elite 4200 looks great for the price, and from what Ive read its just as good as a 1000 Leupold. Ive looked through them both and I really cant see any difference.
the most important thing to me is repeatable clicks, As far as glass goes, theyre all pretty close in the 5-600 700 range. I did look through a Nikon Monarch for about 400 and the glass was excellent, cant say anything else about it though.
I picked up a small Leupold MArk AR 3×9 for around 250 because I need a reliable scope ASAP. Havent got it to the range yet , but it seems pretty good for the money .
Ive been reading that a lot of sniper guys say the Leupolds are over rated and over priced and that the nightforce and the schimitt and Bender and US optics are all better.
I wouldnt know, just relaying that back to you guys.
for the money , I would go with the bushy 4200 elite
You guys are a trip! Not that I don’t love that US Optics scope made for 1700+ yard competitions but it might be just a tad of overkill for a .62 caliber smoothbore slug gun. 🙄 Hell, it might possibly be a bit more than I care to spend to take sub-half MOA groups with the .32 insert down to more often sub half MOA! I thought about trading in a kid for an S&B to but you know he’d just find his way home…
None of the uber high dollar scopes will work anyhow as I need a 1″ tube and the saddle can’t have a deep housing for the guts. I looked at the Leupy but something is odd. Is that a top view? It can’t have something hanging down like a turret, can it? I need to be sure that the scope will fit in the mount.
Speaking of Leupy scopes, while my experience with them is limited, they never seem to deliver on their price point. I’ve looked through them side by side with cheaper scopes and seen no better picture but reduced features and higher price. I suppose the really high dollar one might be good values but the sub-$5-800 versions appear to be made for someone who wants to buy the name. A friend has a Leupy that cost 4 times what a similar Simmons costs and I swear you (well, I) can’t see any difference in the glass. The Leupy has no clicks and you need a coin to adjust it but it costs 4 times what the Simmons costs. That’s not a good basis for me to claim to know about Leupys but it’s not a good one to discard either. Having looked through other Leupy scopes that were turning milky when my Nikko was bright and clear (yes, the same one Freddy is having trouble with), I’m less impressed with the whole idea of expecting a Leupy to be good because it’s a Leupy…
Honestly, I wonder if I can get Bushnell to replace the reticle in the current scope? The scope is bright enough, very crisp adjusts well and looks good. All it needs is a better reticle.
Oh sure, zeiss top of the line are better, but you forgot to mention how much more they cost. 😉
I mean, S&B’s worst kill the other two hands down. And top of the line isn’t even worth comparing. Granted, the bottom line cost more than anything you can get from the other two, but their worst are better!
I maintain that the varix3 and conquest zeiss are right at the same. 😀
Scopes are one of the best products that are truly get what you pay for types.
Here’s one if you want a good field target scope. 😀 😀 Us optics makes some good stuff, it’ll rival S&B, and that’s saying a lot. This is my favorite scope they offer, just because it looks insane. 😆
Don’t go to Cabals or Bass Pro and put them side beside. You’ll in for a shock!
Not to mention the Lupy’s at this price level are about their best. They have more expensive scopes. But the glass doesn’t’ really get any better. Just more neat gadgets.
On the other hand the 800 dollar Zeiss is only their poor boy entry level Scopes. They get a LOT Better. It’s just that the Lupy’s top scopes are almost as good as a entry level Zeiss!!! 😆 😆 😆 😉
Twitch, Twitch, Twitch, I feel Much Better Now! 😀
I think the varix3 lupys are right up there with the zeiss stuff. They stay pretty darn close to the same price as well. I mean, those good zeiss scopes are 800+ bucks, a 6.5-20 varix3 like mine is under 1000. I honestly would consider them to be about even in quality and price when you start getting higher up in the quality level.
Both are great scopes, and I wouldn’t be ashamed of putting either on any of my guns. But I’ll probably keep the lupys on ’em. 😀 If nothing else just to watch Knife twitch. 😆
Oh, another AWESOME scope company is us optics. They have extremely nice scopes. And S&B is always a good choice. But those are on a completely different playing field than zeiss and lupy. 😀 😀 😀
Zeiss or Bushy 4200 or 6200. You have to pay a lot more for a Lupy to get glass CLOSE to a Zeiss.
Yep. I’m just a broken record. I’ve owned a lot of lupy’s. Competent scopes. Good warranty. But the good glass from them starts at the Ouch level of wallet digging. And still doesn’t get to the entry level of the excellent optics of Zeiss. Save your self 400-500 and get a us assembled Zeiss Victor series scope. Still has the German Optics ant half the German price! 😀 😉
http://www.opticsplanet.net/zeiss-45-14x44mm-conquest-rifle-scope1.html
The Nikons are really good also, but the warranty sucks!
Mike
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Sorry Jerry, I just saw that they are only 30mm.