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Rifle Scopes I have 8-900 to spend on a capped turret hunting scope

sanman28

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Minuteman
Sep 22, 2013
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My budget is 8-900 on a scope for a 308 bolt action hunting rifle. Something 3-9, 2-12, or 3-10 will work fine. Is a swarovski z3 going to be worth the extra $400 over a vx-3? What would you get?
 
In that price range you cannot beat the Z3, and yes it's worth every penny over a VXIII. I'd get the BRH since it doesn't really cost any more and will give you the option of going longer, or zero at 100 and hold to 300 instead of a longer zero. Give euro optic a call, that's who I've bought all my swaros from. They will cut you a deal and narrow that price difference by a good bit.
 
In that price range you cannot beat the Z3, and yes it's worth every penny over a VXIII. I'd get the BRH since it doesn't really cost any more and will give you the option of going longer, or zero at 100 and hold to 300 instead of a longer zero. Give euro optic a call, that's who I've bought all my swaros from. They will cut you a deal and narrow that price difference by a good bit.

Awesome. Thx
 
I would go with the Z3 as well. BRH is a great reticle that, if i remember correctly, is spaced in mil/half mil increments. I really like the BT system and use it in the off chance I get to take my rifle and stretch it out.

Give us a call at the store and we'll set you up. Number is in the sig line. Don't forget to mention you are on the hide. I'm out of the shop today but Jay and Trey are in.
 
I would go with the Z3 as well. BRH is a great reticle that, if i remember correctly, is spaced in mil/half mil increments. I really like the BT system and use it in the off chance I get to take my rifle and stretch it out.

Give us a call at the store and we'll set you up. Number is in the sig line. Don't forget to mention you are on the hide. I'm out of the shop today but Jay and Trey are in.

It will be next week but ill call. Thx
 
I'm sure the Z3 is nice, but for the money the Leupold is hard to beat, especially with only shooting 200-300 yards. I've shot a few animals at 500+ with my old 3-10 VX3's, one with an M1 knob, one with standard scope knobs. The 3-10 Leupold's have an $80 rebate right now, if hunting in low light you could go up to the 50mm obj, but 40mm works just fine too.

You could call up a couple hide sponsors like the Chris above, I know he will treat you fair, can probably get free shipping and scope caps thrown in and be into it $400 when you're done. I'd spend a few bucks more and get the CDS, not needed for 200-300, but leaves your options open for a longer range hunt in the future.
 
I know you asked about specific power range scopes , but for those ranges a 1-4x would be awesome. Something like a Trijicon accupoint would provide amazing light gathering and ability to shoot at running game if need be.

I only mention this because I started hunting with a .25-06 with a 4-12x scope and it almost never leaves the safe now in favor of a Marlin guide gun with a 1-4x scope.
 
I'd recommend you also look at the Leupold VX-6 2-12x42. Awesome scope in your $900 price range.
 
I have a 3.5-10x40 VXIII on my main deer rifle but I just sold a rifle with a Kahles Helia C 3-12x56 that I could realistically hunt 10 minutes earlier or later with. You can look through scopes all day long but to me the extra light near dark is what makes a hunting scope, that is where the Kahles and I would assume Swaro really shine hearing their reputation.
 
I'd recommend you also look at the Leupold VX-6 2-12x42. Awesome scope in your $900 price range.

Already have one on my encore. :D And yes......awesome scope.

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All this being said, i think im going to lower the budget to VX-3 levels so I can afford another AR10 also.
 
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I'm sure the Z3 is nice, but for the money the Leupold is hard to beat, especially with only shooting 200-300 yards. I've shot a few animals at 500+ with my old 3-10 VX3's, one with an M1 knob, one with standard scope knobs. The 3-10 Leupold's have an $80 rebate right now, if hunting in low light you could go up to the 50mm obj, but 40mm works just fine too.

You could call up a couple hide sponsors like the Chris above, I know he will treat you fair, can probably get free shipping and scope caps thrown in and be into it $400 when you're done. I'd spend a few bucks more and get the CDS, not needed for 200-300, but leaves your options open for a longer range hunt in the future.

This reply is FULL of win! For what you want to do this is an excellent idea. I've had a few dozen Leupolds over the years and have never had to send one back. I'd snag one with a CDS turret and don't look back...
 
I'm in the same boat. I need a 3-9 scope for a custom 270 I'm building. I've had great luck with my Mark 4 scopes. But one thing I'm noticing when hunting is the subpar eye relief on my leupolds. I've bought a few zeiss conquests for my hunting rigs and they definitely have more forgiving eye relief and allow me to get on target faster. I'm really thinking about another zeiss, or trying a Swarovski.
 
The vx3s have some of the worst in class low light performance, which I put a high premium on in a hunting scope. New coatings may have changed this recently (my last leupold was over 5 years old) and to be fair, that weakness never cost me a shot, but it did make a few more difficult. I won't say it is bad product, because it is a very good option, but I would spend my $4-500 differently. I wouldn't spend my money on higher magnification than 6x, because I won't use it anyhow. I also wouldn't spend my money on dials I won't use (which you don't plan to obviously).

For that type of hunting I would look at an older Zeiss fixed 4x Diavari or 1-6 variable with excellent light gathering, a generous eyebox, and proven ability to hold zero (this will be a point blank system). I have never used a Trijicon as the previous poster mentioned, but the qualities they emphasize seem ideal for this application. The dollar goes a long way in this class, so that's great.

Have fun with your choice and I'm sure whatever you pick will be vastly superior to optics used to fill the B&C record books in your state. Great choices and products today.
 
I've had most major brands of scopes. In a hunting scope, where I think light gathering is a major factor in decision making, the Leupolds have been the worst by far, a notice able 10+ minutes, these were the vx3 with 50mm obj. I really like my Swarovski z3 and think it is worth every penny, I also really like the zeiss conquest 3x10x44 or the newer conquest HD5 is a great value.
 
My budget is 8-900 on a scope for a 308 bolt action hunting rifle. Something 3-9, 2-12, or 3-10 will work fine. Is a swarovski z3 going to be worth the extra $400 over a vx-3? What would you get?

Meopta Meostar R1 3-10X50 30mm. Fantastic scope equal to any European made optics only hundreds less. Do a little research and you'l find that most scope makers like Leopold don't grind or polish their own glass, in the case of Leopold they have publicly stated they have been outsourcing their glass for years (possibly China) in contrast Meopta uses German made glass and they do grind and polish their glass in-house like Swarovski, SB, Zeiss to name a few. What those that mean to you? well all these high end scopes offer sharper image and superior clarity. I'm not an expert on any of this but I can tell the difference when I look threw say a high end Swarovski as opposed to a Leupold.

In my opinion most guy's don't trust what they don't know, "Meopta what the hell is that", that's what I thought until I tried one, It is an awesome scope built like a tank with super sharp image. I did a little reading and discovered that Meopta as a company has been around for some 80 years, based in the Czech Republic, I also found out that their optics are widely known through out Europe for their quality and value. Here in the U.S. Meopta is not very well known hence that's why you don't hear very many people talking about them.

You mentioned a budget of $800-$900? well the Meopta Meostar 30mm tube lists for $849, the Swarovski Z3 1" tube is $899. I'll take the Meopta over the Swarovski any day. Check them out you just might be surprised.....