New scope for a western hunt?

J

jaybr

Private
Minuteman
Sep 2, 2025
3
0
VA
#1
Hey folks, new guy here from VA.

I've hunted most of my life here in VA (and I'm old) with a few hog hunts in the south. I've taken a lot of whitetail with bow, muzzleloader, and mostly shotgun, only a few with rifle. Never shot game past 200 yds.
I just picked up a Browning X-Bolt 2 Speed in 7mm PRC and planning an elk hunt out west next year. I'm trying to decide on a scope for this rifle and could use some advice.
I'm flexible on criteria as I have no experience out west, but here's where I'm at.
Max magnification 15-20
compact and light weight
zero lock exposed elevation turrets
Open to FFP or SFP
max range 600yds (with lots of practice)
Budget < $1500 but I will most likely purchase through Expertvoice where I get some really good discounts.

I currently have several Burris (including a first gen eliminator), and a few really old Nikon's, the last scope I purchased was a Vortex Viper I have on a T3x 6.5 creed. While I've had good luck with all of these, I'm not brand loyal so open to suggestions.

Right now I'm looking at:
Leica Amplus 6 3x18x44
Steiner H6Xi 3x18x50
Burris Veracity PH, and a couple of the XTRs (the HUD in the Veracity is interesting)
Trijicon Tenmile 3-18x44

Some of these don't list the weight, but I'd like to keep that as low as feasible.

Nightforce, Vortex, and Zeiss are also available

Appreciate the help

​

 
#2
Over the years have had nearly every major manufacturer's scopes mounted on some type of rifle both hunting and precision. Been living and hunting in the Southwest for my whole adult life and if I was planning on mounting scope on a new rifle today would probably go with Swaro. Excellent glass with good color rendition and light gathering properties which are critical because many times the opportunity to harvest is either at dawn or dusk. I would recommend SFP that has a minimum magnification of no greater than five and my personal preference would be a 3-15X. FFP reticles are too difficult to see in low power especially in low light conditions and generally keep my magnification at the lowest power and dial up when necessary. Best of luck.
 
#5
My quick thoughts:

600 yards is a bit of a jump from never shooting game past 200 yards. Unless you're an active competitor, I'd say pull yourself back to maybe 350-400 yards max, which will cover almost all opportunities anyways. Depending on where/how you hunt, 100 - 300 yards might be pretty realistic for most opportunities.

7 PRC is completely doable, but you should be honest with yourself regarding how you are able to manage recoil, spot shots, and how well you do or don't shoot that rifle, particularly when shooting positionally (not from a bench).

Compact scopes don't matter for a daytime bolt gun optic, I wouldn't consider length or size at all. Don't save weight on the optic - if the difference of 8-20 ounces matters, you're in no shape to go hunting anyways. Sorry, but that's real.

For specific scope options, I'd work a few more hours and look to get a used Minox ZP5 3-15, used NF ATACR 4-16x42, or a used MK5 3.6-18. All of which can be found in the PX for sub $2000.
 
  • Like
Reactions: WB300
#6
I'm taking a ZCO 4-20 and a Leupold MK4HD 6-24 on my Mule deer hunt this year. One on a 6.5cm and the other on a 6arc gg.

I like the reticles better in the MK4HD than the MK5.

Out of the choices listed, the Steiner T6X would probably be the best option. I have a 2-15 on a gas gun, neat little optic. Illumination might come in handy.

A NF NX8 should also be in the conversation. The NF 4-16x42 is the perfect hunting scope under $2500, but i wouldn't expect to find one with a Mil-C for under 2k.
 
#7
You should be able to get a NF NX8 4-32x50 F1 with MIL-C reticle on EV for about your budget max. But of your choices, the Trijicon Tenmile would be my pick given that it's built to be rugged. Don't be like this guy who made a video 3 months ago about how zero shift is an exaggerated issue and then this week he's got a 12+ MOA zero shift that caused him to completely miss a pronghorn.

 
Last edited:
#9
Thanks for the suggestions!

A few comments for some background to clarify a few things:
Recoil won't be a problem, I've shot harder recoiling calibers, just not owned or hunted with them. 12 guage magnum buckshot or slugs has considerably more recoil energy (although different) and I've hunted with that since I was 12 (nearly 50 years). Rifle also has a muzzle break which I plan to replace with a suppressor.

I've shot targets past 200 yds, just never had the opportunity or need to hunt any further out. I wouldn't take a 600 yd shot unless I've practiced sufficiently and was confident in my shot; if I don't have to even better. I have a dog I trained to track wounded game, after 100+ tracks over the past 8 years, I know what a bad shot looks like.

I have a dozen other rifles from .17 mach2 to 308, I'm not new to shooting.

I've been in all of the lower 48 states and lived in Colorado and Nevada, so I am familiar with the terrain and the effects of altitude. I just didn't get the opportunity to hunt out there.

I'm in decent enough shape and will train/prepare for the trip. I'm not looking for the lightest scope available, but I also don't think I need to be packing a 12lb rifle on a hunt. Bare rifle is ~7lbs and I'd like to keep it around 9lbs with scope. A few ounces isn't going to kill me, but I just don't see the need for a heavy scope.

This will be a hotel/lodge hunt, I won't be backpacking in. I've done plenty of the tent thing when I was young and these days I want a hot shower and comfy bed at night.

I don't need to work overtime to up the budget, I just don't see the need to spend more on the optic than the rifle. I think 6x zoom is overkill for my needs so 8x is extreme to me. A simple MOA reticle is also my preference, and if FFP, I prefer illuminated. I actually like the illuminated dot on the Leica better that fully illuminated reticle.

So good quality glass, rugged and reliable, not too heavy, decent adjustment range, and exposed elevation turret with zero lock are my criteria.

Curious what makes the NF and Swaroski better than the others and worth the extra $?

And the NX8 is in budget, I'd probably go with 2.5x20 rather than 4x32, but I do think it's overkill.
 
#10
You are going to want something light if you're going to be trapsing through the mountains. Extra weight on a rifle will wear on you, I don't care how good of shape you are in. Going from sea level to 5k+ feet is going to wear on you also. Elk aren't hard to shoot or kill, they can be a lot of work to find/get to, and pack out once they're dead.

Do you know the terrain you'll be in? Elk aren't usually in open country.
 
  • Like
Reactions: flogxal
#12
mrmarklin said:
Elk are big animals. Anything like 12-15 X is way over scoped. 6X is more than adequate. I use a S&B 1.5-6x42 scope on my .300 Wby for this.
I seriously doubt any western guide will let you shoot more than 400 yards. I seriously don’t see the situation arising.
Click to expand...

This cracked me up.

Calling Overkill on having decent mag at 12-15x all while saying you use a 300 Wby for elk just hit me as ironic when many SA calibers work just fine.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Vandoogle13, tacoman69, Aftermath and 4 others
#13
Most hunters today are overscoped.
I think you have a pretty good list, though I would add the two of the MK4HD scopes, the 2.5-10 and the 4.5-18.
I have an Leica Aimplus 2.5-15x56 SFP, it is a fine scope, but I dislike the windage. It is not a deal breaker as the only time I touch it, is sighting in.
I also have a Trijicon Credo 2.5-15x56 SFP. They are very similar in execution. The reticle in the trijicon is superior. To my eyes, the glass in the trijicon edges out the Leica, but just barely. The elevation adjustment on the Leica is better (both are 8 mil), the windage on the Trijicon is better. If I had to pick only one, it would be the Trijicon solely for the reticle.
I chose both of those scopes for the wide field of view, they do make the trijicon with a smaller objective. Both scopes have an illuminated reticle, both work well.
One of my favorite scopes is the Bushnell LRTSi 4.5-18x44, no longer available. It does suffer in low light though.
I would consider adding the PST II 3-15 to your list as well.
 
#17
I think you have a pretty good list, though I would add the two of the MK4HD scopes, the 2.5-10 and the 4.5-18.
Click to expand...
I'll second this, I have the 4.5-18 with the illuminated Pr-1 Mill reticle and really like it, glass is good, weight is light and tracks great. The only complaint I have is personal preference, wish the illumination had a dial instead of the button so you could change the settings quickly, but on the same note I like the level alert when the gun is canted.
 
#18
supercorndogs said:
You are going to want something light if you're going to be trapsing through the mountains. Extra weight on a rifle will wear on you, I don't care how good of shape you are in. Going from sea level to 5k+ feet is going to wear on you also. Elk aren't hard to shoot or kill, they can be a lot of work to find/get to, and pack out once they're dead.

Do you know the terrain you'll be in? Elk aren't usually in open country.
Click to expand...
This, right here. Often it is said that after the shot breaks and the beast is down and has expired, the real work begins. Even if the decision is to de-bone in the field, that is still a lot of heavy meat to pack out.

@jaybr

I don't really have any input on the scopes. I like some Vortex but the NF could be good. I have heard good things about Leica, as well. I was going to ask if you wanted illumination and you have just said that you did. That does add an ounce or so.

I have seen Rob at deermeatfordinner kill animals really dead with his Burris Eliminator. His last big one was a truck on on a canola bean farm in Canada. 2 shots with a 6.5 CM and he brought down a moose, though it was probably less than 300 yards.

I definitely believe in closing the range. Heck, guys have gotten elk with archery.

I live in Texas. The TPWD has a mule deer hunt every year. Any other time of the year, the Caprock Canyon is just for hiking and rugged camping. But they close it down to offer compartment style hunting and you enter a lotto to win a ticket. It is south and east of Amarillo, near Quitaque and Turkey, Texas.

In the hunt description, it usually points out how rugged the terrain is and you can get freezing weather (high plains desert.) And that you should be able to shoot at least 200 yards. There are only rocks and scrub brush, no trees and Mule Deer can see movement for quite a distance.

So, yeah, I can see a western hunt possibly going past 200 yards. My own limit would be 400 yards.

Anyway, of the choices you listed, it seems like, to me, the Burris Veracity PH is right up your alley for what you need.
 
#21
Ronws said:
This, right here. Often it is said that after the shot breaks and the beast is down and has expired, the real work begins. Even if the decision is to de-bone in the field, that is still a lot of heavy meat to pack out.

@jaybr

I don't really have any input on the scopes. I like some Vortex but the NF could be good. I have heard good things about Leica, as well. I was going to ask if you wanted illumination and you have just said that you did. That does add an ounce or so.

I have seen Rob at deermeatfordinner kill animals really dead with his Burris Eliminator. His last big one was a truck on on a canola bean farm in Canada. 2 shots with a 6.5 CM and he brought down a moose, though it was probably less than 300 yards.

I definitely believe in closing the range. Heck, guys have gotten elk with archery.

I live in Texas. The TPWD has a mule deer hunt every year. Any other time of the year, the Caprock Canyon is just for hiking and rugged camping. But they close it down to offer compartment style hunting and you enter a lotto to win a ticket. It is south and east of Amarillo, near Quitaque and Turkey, Texas.

In the hunt description, it usually points out how rugged the terrain is and you can get freezing weather (high plains desert.) And that you should be able to shoot at least 200 yards. There are only rocks and scrub brush, no trees and Mule Deer can see movement for quite a distance.

So, yeah, I can see a western hunt possibly going past 200 yards. My own limit would be 400 yards.

Anyway, of the choices you listed, it seems like, to me, the Burris Veracity PH is right up your alley for what you need.
Click to expand...
The mule deer around here are kind of dumb for lack of a better word in my experice. They usually seem to let you get within 200-300y even if they see you. Unlike pronghorn which might decide to run if they see you wiggle your pinky wrong from a mile away. Whitetails seem more spooky, much like elk, and you better watch your wind for both, like calling coyotes.
 
  • Like
Reactions: powdahound76
#22
supercorndogs said:
The mule deer around here are kind of dumb for lack of a better word in my experice. They usually seem to let you get within 200-300y even if they see you. Unlike pronghorn which might decide to run if they see you wiggle your pinky wrong from a mile away. Whitetails seem more spooky, much like elk, and you better watch your wind for both, like calling coyotes.
Click to expand...

Pronghorn Antelope are damn strange that way. Opening day you can get within a couple hundred yards. After the shooting starts I have had days where they would spot me 1200 yards away and bolt.

A little snowfall and back to getting within a few hundred yards. Sometimes they see your truck and bolt other times they just think you are a rancher or windmill tech.

One thing I have learned is that early morning with the sun at your back, you are damn near invisible standing tall on open ground.
 
#23
Things I'd rather have;

If FFP a reticle thick enough to actually see on low magnification. If not then I'd want daylight bright illumination as a feature. Or at minimum have illume vs no illume. I always want to have daylight bright illume on every scope I own but.... When it's needed it can make or break a shot. This year I experimented a lot with FFP scopes and illume intensities and learned some things.....

If SFP a reticle that isn't thin and more medium in thickness. I shot a yote 2 months ago, the first one static at 190Y and the other ran off fast but I couldn't get a shot because the FOV was too small at 15x to get a bead on it so I dialed down to 10x for next time, which came yesterday. Same rifle and scope, more FOV, and this one was trotting along and nailed it with a slight edge of chest leade at 120Y. Edit "seeing reticle full sized on 10x is awesome!"

Locking elevation knob and 'capped or locking' windage knob. Or at minimum turrets that are harder to turn.

The closest I could find to what I want out of a hunting scope, or an "allarounder" MPVO, is a March DFP(both FFP and SFP) 1.5-15x42 which has everything on my list so I ordered it but haven't received it yet. The only downside I think is at 15x the IQ might be compromised on the periphery so worse comes to worse I'll use it on 13x-14x.
I don't mind thicker reticles either so there's that.

I'm going to come out and say the mid range priced big name brands scope IQ is much the same as the high end chinese IQ scopes. Take a Athlon Ares ETR 3-18x50 which is a very nice scope and from what a friend told me has a thicker reticle this year though not advertised as such, and it's a very good scope. Also take the Ares BTR G3 2.5-15x50 which has even nicer turrets and both have good IQ right up there with a bunch of jap scopes and it has a thicker reticle too. Both are FFP.

I have that Ares BTR G3 and it's really a great scope which is currently my choice for hunting if I'm going FFP, well pretty much tied with my Helos G2 2-12 in that regard because it's about impossible to beat the reticle in this HG2 if you have to see it on low magnification being it's FFP. I'd be torn which one to pick for a elk hunt.
 
Last edited:
#24
I can say that while the NF NX8 4-32 is a good scope, low light is not its forte. I’ve had issues with it shooting pdogs at 6-7pm during the summer when thick overhead clouds rolled in. ~9pm was sunset, btw.

@koshkin has some great recommendations here:

In the $3k+ category, he links to a FFP S&B Polar, which is one of the kings of low light optics, I guess. They make that scope in a dizzying number of variations…SFP, FFP, with or without parallax, etc etc.

I think this particular ballistic turret is pretty neato.

Schmidt Bender 4-16x56mm Polar T96 P 1.BE P4FL 1cm ccw BDC II-B LT / BDC II LT 755-911-972-P6-G7​


Here’s a list of all of EO’s Polar scopes. Some are quite reasonably priced. Might be with a gander.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

A
Rifle Scopes 2x-3x minimum mag western hunting scope
Replies
3
Views
328
adill84
A
S
Rifle Scopes New hunting scope
Replies
23
Views
1K
secondofangle2
secondofangle2
T
Rifle Scopes Help me choose a light(er) FFP hunting/target scope
Replies
2
Views
450
koshkin
koshkin
Nathan11B
Rimfire Scope
Replies
8
Views
615
Old Man with Gun
Old Man with Gun
ccasanova
Hunting & Fishing First Western Elk Hunt…Essential Gear/Clothing Advice Needed
Replies
40
Views
1K
GeoDude
G
Top Bottom
Back
Home
Forums
Merch
Alerts