Re: If you were just starting...
Mueller Tac II
That's the one scope that has stayed with me from the beginning. Decent glass, excellent tracking, crazy amounts of reticle travel for a 1" tube, compact, light, and consistent.
I now have Zeiss Victory, March, an incoming SS HD 5-20 and my old inexpensive trusty steed, the Mueller TacII. All the rest of my early days scopes have fallen by the wayside.