Re: Optic Recommendation
At those ranges with that cartridge you are talking about a point blank optic. If you found something with a holdover reticle you probably would never have to touch it after your initial zero. In any case you won't be dialing much, that's good because you can get a lot more glass for your buck.
I would look at some used Zeiss, Swarovski, Kahles, et al off ebay, I think you could pick up one of those older premium scopes for that type of money. There are some great options in Weaver's grandslam, euroslam, and superslam lines as well. The Weavers have glass one or two notches above their price point which makes them a great value in a hunting scope. The euroslam and superslam lines are robust and some are illuminated, but heavy. Weight would be a significant consideration for me. The grandslam line is light and bright, and let you see well enough to shoot for a half hour longer than any Leupold vx III I've seen. You can pick up a used 4.5-14x40 grandslam for 200-250 I have personally purchased them for 150 at pawn shops. All of my hunting buddies who have a tight budget have these on their rifles. Weaver also has their newly redesigned grandslam options. I would look at their new 3-12x42 with side focus and ebx reticle, model number 800624. Bushnell and Zeiss Conquest are probably good options, but I'm not familiar with their products. Vortex is another good choice, but their line is inconsistent from model to model so make sure you research the model you might buy.
