Scope suggestion?

[Redmt]

Sorry If I jacked your thread with my posts but I was under the 10 post minimum to start another.
To the OP,,, At 200-250 almost any scope not in the chinese junk category will be sufficient. Not great but sufficient. At those ranges, look into "maximum point blank range" if you haven't already. At close in ranges you won't have to fool with BDC or dialing in an elevation. It becomes a much easier point, shoot and kill.

 

[VAspeedgoat]

Scope question=ask schmaltz

The end

 

[ccc23454]

Scope question=ask schmaltz

The end

No actually: scope question=USE SEARCH! Schmaltz is great but think we have talked about every scope at every price point twice by now! Is 10mm a good bear pistol? What about 6.5 creedmore for long range elk...lol

 

[Farmerj]

Most high power rifles would be well under their MPBR at 250 yards so a simple 1-4 is all you’d really need.

 

[Don Fischer]

If I understand OP correctly he's looking for something to kill big game out to 250 yards. A 3x9x40 with BDC reticle or even simple dual taper crosshair would do fine for that work. I shot my muley buck this fall at around 200 yards offhand with a Nikon BDC turned all the way up to 9x. It was a quick shot but there was no doubt in my mind that deer was going down. It was easy. Two other factors were/are more important: adding a GREAT new Timney trigger and shooting a 9 lb 30-06 that's balanced perfectly just ahead of the magazine box. However, if I'd been using a scope cranked up to even 12x it would have been too jumpy.

If he is looking for that, he simply doesn't need anywhere near a 3-9x scope. My first rifle scope was a 4x Tasco in junk Tasco rings. Scope worked more than well enough but rings were an eye sore, that just happened to work! Imagine that. If in fact 250yds is the limit of his shooting, then a fixed 2 3/4x or 4x scope would be more than adequate. Difference will be over something up to 9x is the aiming point you'll need to sight in the scope. Take what ever your using now and go shoot at it at 100 yds and then cut out a 15" aiming point and see if you can do the same group's! Probably not. I have used my old 2 3/4x scope for about 50 yrs hunting and it has never failed me. But, I seldom shoot past a couple hundred yards, 250yds is a long shot for me and I limit my shooting right at 300yds.

You will find that there is a huge difference between shooting a an aiming point at say 250 yds that is even 2" and one that might be 15". What I believe is more important than scope power in sighting in method. I use a very simple method, MPBR, max point blank range. Generally shoot MPBR at an 8" target and most my rifles at about 3" high at 100, actually a bit less but I forget how much, will zero out about 4" low around 275 yds. What that means is that if you confine yourself to 250yd shooting, the bullet trajectory will take care of drop for you, you have no need to dial in drop at all! And just for benefit of doubt a 4x scope is more than adequate out to 300yds easily.

The only reason you might need more scope is to shoot at a small aiming point way out there. Ust a 1" aiming point at 100yds and see how you do. Now move that same aiming point to 300 yds and compare the group sizes! 100yds will be smaller. It's not so much the power of the scope that does that as it is the abilith of your eye to define an aiming point farther away.

So a guy shooting 250yds max really has no need of more than about 4x and max 6x at that range but by goung to more will get a larger scope that is somewhat heavier and actually doesn't balance on the rifle as well. Closer to the barrel the line of sight get's, the better the rifle balances. For a hunting rifle that a guy limits his shooting to 250 yds, 2 3/4 would work fine, 4x IMO optimum and 6x would work but might give a bit of trouble on slose shot's and a gathering light morning and evening.

I do have a few 3-9x scopes, one on a 243, one on a 25-06 and one on my 6.5x06. My 243 is my plinking and varmint rifle, sage rat at 200 yds is not much of an aiming point! My 25-06 I have used moistly for deer and did shoot an antelope with it. Longest shot ever with it might be about 265 yds and zero at MPBR at 8" target means I never have had to worry about hold over. Got that 3-9x from a friend. Very old Bushnell Banner does more than I require. My 6.5x06 has a Nikon 3-9x on it. Put a 4 1/2-14 on for a while shooting targets at 500yds and never use it at over 8X! Go figure!

 

[OntarioHunter]

If he is looking for that, he simply doesn't need anywhere near a 3-9x scope. My first rifle scope was a 4x Tasco in junk Tasco rings. Scope worked more than well enough but rings were an eye sore, that just happened to work! Imagine that. If in fact 250yds is the limit of his shooting, then a fixed 2 3/4x or 4x scope would be more than adequate. Difference will be over something up to 9x is the aiming point you'll need to sight in the scope. Take what ever your using now and go shoot at it at 100 yds and then cut out a 15" aiming point and see if you can do the same group's! Probably not. I have used my old 2 3/4x scope for about 50 yrs hunting and it has never failed me. But, I seldom shoot past a couple hundred yards, 250yds is a long shot for me and I limit my shooting right at 300yds.

You will find that there is a huge difference between shooting a an aiming point at say 250 yds that is even 2" and one that might be 15". What I believe is more important than scope power in sighting in method. I use a very simple method, MPBR, max point blank range. Generally shoot MPBR at an 8" target and most my rifles at about 3" high at 100, actually a bit less but I forget how much, will zero out about 4" low around 275 yds. What that means is that if you confine yourself to 250yd shooting, the bullet trajectory will take care of drop for you, you have no need to dial in drop at all! And just for benefit of doubt a 4x scope is more than adequate out to 300yds easily.

The only reason you might need more scope is to shoot at a small aiming point way out there. Ust a 1" aiming point at 100yds and see how you do. Now move that same aiming point to 300 yds and compare the group sizes! 100yds will be smaller. It's not so much the power of the scope that does that as it is the abilith of your eye to define an aiuming foint farther away.

So a guy shooting 250yds max really has no need of more than about 4x and max 6x at that rande but by goung to more will get a larger scope that is somewhat heavier and actually doesn't balance on the rifle as well. Closer to the barrel the line of sight get's, the better the rifle balances. For a hunting rifle that a guy limits his shooting to 250 yds, 2 3/4 would work fine, 4x IMO optimion and 6x would work but might give a bit of trouble on slose shot's and a gathering light morning and evening.

I do have a few 3-9x scopes, one on a 243, one on a 25-06 and one on my 6.5x06. My 243 is my plinking and varmint rifle, sage rat at 200 yds is not much of an aiming point! My 25-06 I have used moistly for deer and did shoot an anrelope with it. Longest shot ever with it might be about 265 yds and zero at MPBR at 8" target meaans I never have had to worry about hold over. Got that 3-9x from a friend. Very old Bushnell Banner does more than I require. My 6.5x06 has a Nikon 3-9x on it. Put a 4 1/2-14 on for a while shooting targets at 500yds and never use it at over 8X! Go figure!

For fifty-four years I got by just fine with a 3x Weaver on my old Springfield. Shot one spike bull at about 320 yards ... but not well. Everything else was 100 yards or less. I switched to 3x9 for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, it gathers more light and the coatings are way better on newer scopes. Second, in the open country I primarily hunt these days with shots that may have some distance it is nice to have a better look at the animal ... as efficiently as possible. If the critter stands around long enough for hunter to drop his gun and dig out binocs, well that might work better. But often that's not the case. 9x will give him a better quick look at that rack. Sometimes it matters. I don't see how less magnification improves longer range shots. Having trouble wrapping my head around that one.