Target scope? - need bigger power

[sebastian]

Hi there!...
I'm looking for scope for target shooting purpose. Mine now is Leupold VXIII 6.5-20x50AO in fine crosshair reticle.
Since i like benchrest shooting recently, i also want to buy another scope for this purpose.
What do you think about Leupold-36 and Weaver T-36? Which is better?
My concerns is dependable/repeatable clicks and of course sharp and bright image.
Do you think i can also use a variable power scope for benchrest shooting?
Many Thanks for the help!.

Best Regards,
sebastian.

[Jose Grande]

Leupold is the best of the two you mention. Weaver used to make good medium to low price scopes. I do not have recent experiance with them. Benchresting a rifle at the same range a fixed power will serve you well.

However, the only reason not to use a variable nowadays is cost. Fixed power is usually cheaper than variable.

But scopes are much better now than even 20-25 years ago. The bad scopes (medium &up priced) have been weeded out. It is the variables I'm referring to here.They used to leak & therefore fog up. They don't do that any more.


Sorry it took so long for me to answer. My modem died while I was typing the answer above,so I saved it & just pasted it in.I'm running a jury-rigged set-up now til my new modem gets here Thursday or Friday.

If you want to, post the ranges & sruff that you shoot,& maybe we can narrow it down a little,as to the very best for your set-up.

[sebastian]

It's Okay, Jose! You're wellcome...
My range ussualy 100, 200 and 300m, but i will also try to shoot out to 600m or even more.
I've never tried to shoot with a fix-big power, lol. Sometimes mirage is crazy here, don't mention for the wind. After rain is my best (calm) condition.
If i look at the internets, seems to me that Night Force is the best one. Both of the NXS and Benchrest series. I know this scope is expensive, but i guess i love this scope. Meanwhile NF is on top of my list. (8-32x56 is adequate power i need). The disadvantage to me is the weight (very heavy).
I have two Simmons (6-24x50 and 8-32x44) i've receieved some time ago, and imo they're junks!. (made in China - under licence?).
That's why i look for "a better" scope...
I also look at EBay and benchrest central yesterday, and found some choices...still not decide, yet.
I don't know for "boosted" Leo from Premier, they said that a Leo can be "change" to bigger power...say 18-40x. What i'm affraid is the sharpness/brightness is not okay (smaller exit pupil).
Some confess that Weaver and Sightron are "in a par" with Leo while the prices are around half?....
 
I think a variable power is more fit to me. Power range around 8 to 32 or at least 25x, crosshair type reticle (or mil dot).

I don't know exactly...do you think i can use a variable one both for benchrest and position shooting??...(my "benchrest rifle" can also be used for position shooting or metal silhoutte, lol...the weight is 13,5lbs...no spesific rules here for the weight and scope's power).
In 100m range position shooting (score system) and 300m metal silhoutte, i like around 16-20xpower (so i ussualy set the power at "hi" magnification).
In 300m benchrest shooting, i set my Leo (the reticle) at "infinity" and not around 338yards (=300m) or so, to have "no parralax" effect...i don't know why?...yes it is "sharp" at around 340yards,...but the parralax is not okay...that's why i set my AO to infinity for a 300m range. (btw, my right eye is "minus" and "cilindris"...i don't know in english, lol...).
I want a bigger power scope (but still maintain its sharpness/brightness in biggest power) to achieve better groupings (more detail and bigger target  image), and i hope i'm right on this.....

[Jose Grande]

Weaver must have improved a great deal to be anywhere near Leupold in quality. Weaver used to be a decent cheap scope. With the power factors you want so high, & clearness of view so important, I would look to German optics.
They cost twice as much as Leupold, but are the very best IMHO.
Swarvoski,Doktor are two that come to mind,that are very good. I don't remember where you are,but can you look at some German optics & see what you think before you buy ??

[sebastian]

Thanks Jose!
I have two Zeiss (3-12x56 and 6x42) , Swarosky (3-12x50) and Dr. Jenna (3-9x50) for my hunting rifles. I've ever had a Schmidt&Bender (3-9x50) before. They're all European made (Germany & Austria). I love the brighness/sharpness, especially for night hunting. They're very clear scopes.
What i don't like the European is the "first focal" reticle. European scopes are ussualy come in "medium power range" too, say max 16x....
I think American "second focal" scopes is Better for target shooting purpose. (the reticle still remain "thin" in bigger power...while the european become "thicker" at bigger power). I don't know if european scopes now make second focal system??....
I'm still looking another American scope for my target rifles.

Best Regards,
Sebastian in Indonesia.

[Jose Grande]

I understand what you are dealing with now. Get the Leupold with the high magnification. They have the sharpest image of any made here,& are better than Simmons,Weaver,or any of those others.
The lower priced scopes are not as sharp at high power as the Leupold. You will be disappointed in the long run with a cheaper model,I believe.

[sebastian]

Thanks for the inputs...

I'm in a deal with Leo VXIII 8.5-25x50. Side focus, Target turrets.

[Carl l.]

Sebastion, you might want to go to this web site and chech out these scopes htt://www.unertloptics.com I used one of these's scope's for 43 yrs and had no trouble with them. Just my .02 cents worth. But you will have to make up your mind, have fun. Carl l.

[sebastian]

I guess i can not afford that much for the Unertl...also for the US Optics.
Sure they're very good! Btw, the Unertl you mentioned just has a 10X fix power? I need at least 20X and variable for due to my circumtances here in my country...usually i can shoot more sharp with a big power scope, too.
Thanks for the info!. :-)

[Carl l.]

Kenmc 77777, Thanks for putting the p that I left out on the web site. Sorry I left it out. Thanks again, Carl L.

[dobbo]

Best 36x by far B&L clear dialing repeats each time& good value...try D&R I think he has them on closeout.....Dobbo

[coopershooter]

when you compair two scopes, dont wast your time looking through them at the sporting goods store. any brand name scope is going to have usable clarity! even newly manufactured cheap scopes are very bright compaired to those made fifteen years ago. the best way, is to look through them both on rifles at your bench, and look to the ranges you want to shoot at, 100, 200, ect. this summer i bought a sightron 6-24 mil dot scope. i put it next to my dad,s leo, 6-20.br scope. it was almost imposible to tell the diffrence in clarity. more importantly, (to me) is how repeatable the adjustments are, and the field of view, more for field use than target shooting. i like variables when mirage becomes an issue. you can bump down the power. here again this might be more important in field shooting. for me the sightron is the best scope for the money. if i had thought the leo was better i would have bought it.
   somthing to think about, i had used a few bsa scopes in the past. they were bright enough, and the price was great! the first thing i didn,t like were the mushy click adjustments, then i started doing some long range shooting from a bench and proper bags. i noticed at 300 and 400 yds my groups would move back and forth almost five inches from one group to the next. i checked the mounts, all were tight. (not exceptable!!!)at 100 i couldn,t tell the diffrence. then on a 50 yard bench gun that was a one holer ,started double grouping. both were returned for replacment. but who has time for these games. i have had good luck with cheap scopes on other types of guns but for long range, buy the best you can afford.
 bobby olson