Do I need a spotting scope?

[RogueHk]

I broke the bank when I bought my nightforce F1 milspec. Do I need a spotting scope or can I use my scope to see the bullet holes/impact?

 

[cega]

Re: Do I need a spotting scope?

That will greatly depend on the distance you are shooting at as well as the caliber of round. In addition it will depend on what you are shooting at/through and to an extent the degree of resolution or accuracy you are expecting.

For example if you are blasting away at rocks and all you want to see is the puff of the impact on the rock then you should be good to go with your scope alone. If on the other hand you are shooting a paper at distance and you want to really see your shot placement then your scope may come up short on magnification.

Long and short of it is you will probably end up with a spotting scope at some point and like many use it for more than just spotting impacts, i.e ranging for one.

 

[Joe L]

Re: Do I need a spotting scope?

I can use an 8x scope just fine at 100 yards shooting .223 through light colored paper. At 200 yards, I use a Kowa scope and can just barely make out the holes with it, again on light colored paper. I can't see holes with the Kowa on dark targets. I use my spotting scope more with 25-50 yard paper targets at the pistol range than with the AR on the short rifle range.

I'd try your new scope on some light colored index cards before considering a spotting scope.

Joe