Old scopes... that work

[Irrelevant]

I lost a bear last year shooting my 270. Felt like there was no reason. So I'm pulled a dusty relic out of the safe, my grandfathers 300wm, 80's interarms Mark X, topped with a Bushnell Sportsview 3-9x40. I've mentioned this scope previously.

I can't actually remember the last time I shot it, maybe 10 years ago. Flopped it on the bench at the range at lunch today. Nuts on. Still. Without any adjustments.

 

[Jbotto]

While not old, it’s certainly not new, I have a lighter weight .30-06 with a Redfield Revolution 3-9x40 on it. I have 100% faith in it that it doesn’t move year to year. I still verify it every year but if I haven’t changed my load, I don’t touch the scope. Mounted to the rifle with steel Warne bases and rings. I had family growing up with older scopes on their deer rifles, mostly Bushnell if I remember correctly. Every year it would be a circus at the shooting range getting them back to zero. The rifles never traveled far and load was always the same. I blame that on mounting issues but they wouldn’t ever let me pull the scopes off and re-mount them.

 

[TN2shot07]

I honestly don’t know that my dad has bought a new scope in my lifetime for either rifle he uses.

He has a 30-30 with an old tasco on it and a 270 with a Redfield, both mounted in see through rings. He would swear they’re both better than any of the new fangled stuff I have. I’ve tried my best to get him to let me upgrade at least the 30-30 and rings on both, ain’t having it. I have one of the Redfield revolutions in the box I bought when we thought he had busted the tasco but it just keeps kicking

 

[Boarmaster]

I have a old bushnell trophy 3-9x40 I bought for $100 back in roughly 1988. It was an upgrade from the basically unusable Tasco that was on the like new Ruger m77 tanger
in 3006 I purchased for $100 the year before.

I shot that set up in Florida, South Carolina and Alabama as my only rifle for 15 years bouncing around on a swamp buggy and later on an atv every weekend from October thru April hunting hogs. Over that time period I only adjusted the scope twice that i can recall. It was always right on.
Eventually I replaced the Bushnell with a VX3. Moved the Bushnell to my marlin 3030 Lever gun. zero’d it. Hunted with it a few times the last 10 years. Its always right on.
My guess is I can pull it out today and will not need any adjusting.

Its not optically as nice as my newer swaros and Leupolds but it certainly works. That $200 Ruger rifle and Bushnell scope setup took a lot a lot of game over the years.

 

[noharleyyet]

the first cool quality scope I purchased was a K6 Weaver Dual X reticle for a Remington 30-06 pump. It finally shat the bed after a long career. Clear, held zero, and popular in the 70's. Replaced it with a vari-X II. Still shoots minute of critter.

 

[MTTW]

I still hunt with a straight 6x Burris that I have had for 30 some years. It is on a wood stocked 300 RUM. Never a problem, I would trust it with my life. I shot it last week at 300 yards. 3 shots in 2 inches, first 2 touched the bottom of a 1-inch bullseye. I have had new much more expensive scopes that moved for no reason.

 

[mtmuley]

I still hunt with a straight 6x Burris that I have had for 30 some years. It is on a wood stocked 300 RUM. Never a problem, I would trust it with my life. I shot it last week at 300 yards. 3 shots in 2 inches, first 2 touched the bottom of a 1-inch bullseye. I have had new much more expensive scopes that moved for no reason.

A RUM will shake out a bad scope pretty quick. mtmuley

 

[OntarioHunter]

A few years back I retired my 1972 Weaver K3 (3x) after picking up a Nikon 3x9x40 on sale. Brought it out of retirement this summer to sit on top of the 404 Jeffery I finished building on a standard 98 Mauser action. It's holding up fine ... even after knocking loose a piece of my skull. That scope has taken a beating over the years. It survived a horse wreck in 1981 that totaled my Springfield's stock. I don't think the 404 can dish out any punishment this K3 hasn't already survived. My 404 is being blued as I write this. Sticking a beat up scope back on a nice shiny gun might not look right. Maybe I'll move it onto my old bolt action Marlin .22. The ancient Weaver small rifle scope on it now is incredibly delicate. Sneeze on it and I have to sight in again.

 

[antelopedundee]

A Wyoming tattoo. I've had a couple over the years mostly due to shooting from awkward positions. Once told a game warden that it was a birthmark that just got darker at that time of the year.

 

[Caseknife]

Boy you guys have a lot better luck with your $150 scopes than the guys over on Rokslide Seems scopes are useless unless you can take it off your rifle on the quick release mounts and pound in the tent stakes and then split firewood for the week then remount it and hit a 2" target at 400 yds with a minimum of 10 shots without changing any settings

 

[elkfanatic]

Back when I got into shooting I had an uncle that shot long range competition( before it was cool). Asked him what optics I should buy as my budget was limited .His response was cheaper optics will generally perform just fine if you mount them correctly and learn how to use holdover instead of cranking dials.Degrease bases and screw threads/ Blue loctite on all screws/ lapping the rings / and using proper torque on the screws worked well for a variety of budget scopes over the years when money was tight. Never had zero problems unless I royally abused my rifle, like clubbing a wounded coyote instead of making another hole in the fur.( It's a long story). Granted the optical quality suffered but was plenty good enough for hunting distances. Still follow his advice on scope mounting but I'm now cranking dials.

 

[Don Fischer]

Have had a 3-9x Bushnell Banner on my 25-06 for close to 30yrs now. It works fine! My 1903 Springfield Has a Redfield wide view 2 3/4x 4 plex CCH on it is got new about 1972. It;s beem on a 338 win mag first, then on a Rem 660 in 308 for a lot of years and now on the 1903 30-06. Works great! Both of them ddo! In fact I have an old K4 Weaver on my 22 mag and haven't a clue when or where I got it but it woirks as good as anything. had a Mossberg Patriot, wood stock, I gave to one of my brother's wanting a rifle that has an old Redfield 1-4x on it. Got it new many years ago and still works fine. My favorite for big game hunting for a lot of years ia that 2 3/4 Redfield.

 

[Ben Lamb]

Had a Bausch & Lomb Balvar 8 variable. It was solid on both the 06 & 35 Whelen. Really good glass for a 50 year old scope.

 

[mtmuley]

I have two old Weavers. A K4 and a 3-9 Variable. K9 maybe? The variable isn't used but the K4 is on a Marlin 60. It holds minute of grouse head out past 50 yards easily. Has for years. In and out of the truck and bounced around. The variable actually lived on my RUM the first year I had it while I decided what to top it with. mtmuley

 

[huntnpack]

Just gave up a mid 80's 2-7x burris I'd inherited (part of a package deal on a rifle i sold). That one hurt a bit. Didn't we decide this was kind of survivorship bias the last time it was discussed?

 

[Wally Dog]

Had a Bausch & Lomb Balvar 8 variable. It was solid on both the 06 & 35 Whelen. Really good glass for a 50 year old scope.

Ben, I too have a couple of Balvar 8's. One on a Pre 64 Model 70 chambered 300 H&H. Kuharsky Bros mounts..........I really like those tapered crosshairs too. I really don't why the notion of the adjustable mounts and a fixed scope didn't stick. The concept is so simple and I have tested many times by removing the scope and replacing it and it never has changed the POI. Great old glass!

 

[dpettina]

I have a Weaver K2.5 that my dad mounted on a 30-06 back in 1969. I took it off the 06 and replaced it with a 3x9 Leopold several years back. A few years ago I mounted it on a 45/70. It's still crystal clear and holds zero even with the abuse from the 45/70

 

[popeyoung12]

I still have 11 1960s leupolds mounted on pre 64 model 70s, never had 1 fail yet.

 

[44hunter45]

the first cool quality scope I purchased was a K6 Weaver Dual X reticle for a Remington 30-06 pump. It finally shat the bed after a long career. Clear, held zero, and popular in the 70's. Replaced it with a vari-X II. Still shoots minute of critter.

My original K2.5 thin crosshair now sits on a 10/22.

 

[BrentD]

I'm partial to Feckers, Lyman, Winchester, and even Unertl scopes. When I needed something modern for a .30-40, I went with a K-3 Weaver.