Rifle Scopes Which SWFA 10x42 ss?

[snatiep]

Hello Everyone!

First post here and am pretty excited!

I just ordered my first "long range" rifle, a Remington 700 5R milspec in .308

My only plans for the rifle are bench rest shooting out to 400 or 500 yards.

I'm going to buy a Harris bipod and think I have narrowed my choice of scope down.

I have read many good reviews on the SWFA 10x42 ss scope. I've never used a fixed power scope before but I think I would like the simplicity of them. I think I'll get the rear focus model.

My question is, should I get the 10x42 SWFA SS MOA scope or the 10x42 SWFA MRAD scope?

I don't know what the difference between MOA or MRAD is. Looking at the two on the SWFA website it looks like the reticles are different.

What is the difference between 1/4moa and .10Mrad?

Also, is 10x enough magnification for 500 yards? Or should I get one of the SWFA 12x or 16x scopes?

I thank you all very much for your thoughts and comments!

Once the rifle arrives and I pick it up, I'm sure I'll have many more questions to post.

Nate

 

[Crosshair]

You'll want the Mrad rear focus model. The mil-quad reticle is very nice. You can read up on moa and Mrad (both angular measurements) here on this site for literally thousands of hours. In short, you'll want the reticle unit of measurement (mil dots are spaced 1 mil apart) to match the turret adjustment units (one tenth of a milradian per click). Moa clicks are best paired with moa based reticles (which aren't all that common on lower priced optics). 10x is fine for shooting steel out past the effective range of a .308. For shooting small groups on paper at long range, you'll want more. The SS is still the standard for entry level serious duty optics, I'll be awhile before you need to upgrade, you'll dig it.

 

[Doc68]

I have the fixed 16 power. Absolutely love it. I shoot to 600 for now. And I can see pretty clear out of it. The glass is very clear for a cheaper scope. I have the MOA version and I find it suits my needs right now. Just my .02 worth

 

[redneckbmxer24]

MRAD rear focus. 10x is plenty for 500 yards and twice that.

 

[DeadeyeDesign]

Watch episodes 14-20, and beyond if you like..

SNIPER 101 Part 14 - Scopes for Extreme Long Range Shooting - Rex Reviews - YouTube

 

[kmose73]

Mil-dots and Minutes-of-angle - From a Technical Perspective

A good tutorial on MOA and MIL.

 

[snatiep]

Thanks for the help and comments everyone!

Saturday I placed an order for the SWFA SS 10x42 Mil scope.

Unfortunately I logged in today to check the status of the order and it says its backordered. Hopefully it'll come sooner rather then later!

Now I just have to decide on some rings and a base.

 

[SquarePizza]

I also throw in a vote for the MRAD version. I have owned both MOA and MIL swfa fixed power scopes. I liked the plainness of the mil-dot, until I purchased a mil-quad scope.

The Mil-quad is thinner and seems brighter than the mil-dot so it is much easier to identify against the target, and the harder lines of the diamond provide a very clear ranging reference vs the round circle.


At first MOA may seem more intuitive to the new shooter, since it is easy for us to think of moving things in .25 or .5 inch increments at 100 yards. However, like the others have said the reticles are not matched, so it is harder to see that you are 1 dot (or 1 MIL) off when looking through the scope and translate that into MOA clicks.

With a MIL/MIL setup you know right away that you are 10 clicks off.

After switching to MIL, I ditched my MOA scopes.

 

[thesheepdog]

Simply put, a MIL reticle and MOA clicks gets confusing, especially at distances beyond 1000 yards. If you get an MOA/MOA scope or MIL/MIL, those are perfectly fine. I prefer mil/mil because it's more standardized.

1 MRAD = 3.6MOA

1 MRAD click (0.1 MRAD) = 0.36 MOA (roughly 1/3 minute instead of 1/4)

Most military ranging equipment is MRAD.

 

[ipsick]

OK, so why the rear focus and not the side focus model?

 

[thesheepdog]

I have never owned a side-focus model (rear focus only), but I did read a few places where there was an issue with the side-focus (non-HD) models?

 

[projectpat0]

I went with the MOA as I was just starting out into long range shooting. I just wanted my reticles and turrets to match. your mileage may vary. Either one wont disappoint.

 

[emdeucee]

Was going to see if you wanted a used one as im selling my 10x42 moa/mil, but you're better off with the mil/mil. Enjoy, learn alot, and then eventually move up to higher end optics!