My Tasco Scope is Junk

[shooting.al]

I had a Tasco buck sight 3-9 by 40mm scope on my .223 and a few days ago it started to shoot 1 foot groups. So then I tried to sight it in and sometimes the clicks didn't work but sometimes they were worth 2 inches. So I just took off the scope and decided it was junk. Also every time I took the gun out it needed to be sighted in. So I guess I'll never by another Tasco scope again. Hows your luck been with Tasco?

[quickdtoo]

No surprise, there, Tasco didn't aquire the name Trashco for no reason. But they aren't all bad scopes, depends when it was made, the middle years after they were made in Japan and their current ownership by Bushnell Performance Optics is when you need to be cautious. Current production are likely worth what you pay for them. Tasco's warranty page pretty much explains what they'll cover and what they won't as far as getting it replaced.

Tim

http://www.tasco.com/support.cfm

http://www.charm.net/~kmarsh/brand.html#tasco

[Graybeard]

Current Tasco scopes are not all bad. What you need to remember is they have a LOT of different product lines and price ranges. All of them are on the lower end of the price spectrum and their very lowest priced ones are really not for use on centerfire rifles. BUT all Tasco scopes are NOT JUNK even if yours was in your view.

[shooting.al]

My scope was on sale for $20 but it retails for $59.99. I guess I'll try the BSA platinum target scope for Christmas and see I can shoot an actual group. I'll just stay away from Tasco if at all possible.

[LaOtto222]

You are going to pay around $100 or so for a BSA Platinum target scope. May I suggest a Simmons Whitetail Classic 6.5X20X50mm. They are $100 when you can find them on sale. I have two of them and I have found they are a pretty good scope for the money. The faults are they have a course cross hair; although, I have shot sub .5 MOA groups with both of them. They have a wrinkle finish (could be good or bad, depends on your preference), that can chip off and they do have a large 50MM objective bell so you will have to use high mounts. The positives are the optics are fairly clear (for a $100 scope). Both of mine hold their zeros, but I have not dropped them or have they seen any harsh conditions, like bouncing around on a 4 wheeler. They seem to be fairly rugged though. They have been reviewed several times by different people and they have all said basically the same things I did about them. I have heard good about BSA scopes and I have heard bad about them. I think they are like the Tasco scopes, If you get the correct models they will be OK, but not some others. I have stayed away from BSA for that reason, I do not know enough about them to pick a good one. I have one modern Tasco, it is a Varmint 2.5X10X42mm with mildots. I have it mounted on a customized 10-22; I have had no problems with it and I can shoot some pretty impressive groups with it. Of course there is not much recoil and again I have not dropped it. If I were to do it over, I would have got a Mueller APV for it. I have a Mueller APV 4.5X14X40mm on a 22 Hornet and it is a great scope for the money ($115 + free 3" sun shade+free shipping). I am not sure how it would hold up under heavy recoil.  Both times I dropped a gun with a scope mounted, the zero shifted to one side or the other. Both times I was able to rezero and every thing was fine. Both scopes were cheaper ones. One was a 3X9X32 Simmons 22 Mag and the other one was a Bushnell Banner. Good luck to you, no matter which one you choose.

[Swampman]

I recently let an older 2.5 Tasco go on a NEF .45-70 barrel.  I sure wish I would have kept it.  It was a great scope.  I've heard bad things about BSA.

I need a good cheap 1" scope for a Glenfield 25.  Does anyone have any suggestions?

Walmart has some Simmons and some Tascos in the $30.00 range.  Do you think any of them are worth a try?

[379 Peterbilt]

I could not fathom buying a $30 riflescope and mounting it on a gun that I intended to hunt with. $30?? Come on!! I think you start getting into quality glass at a minimum of $200, but better yet about $400.

As with most anything these day, and especially optics, you get what you pay for.

$30 optics

[Swampman]

I'm not going to put $200.00 glass on a $70.00 rifle.  I've owned many excellent cheap scopes.  In fact the best scopes I've ever owned were cheap.  I have high dollar Leupolds and high dollar Bushnells but sometimes a Simmons makes sense.

For the me, Bushnells make the most sense.

[379 Peterbilt]

Hows your luck been with Tasco?

I will never be able to answer that, glad to say, as I have never owned one, nor will I in the future.

If guys are absolutely strapped for cash, maybe save up for a leupold rifleman at $179. At least it is under warrantee forever.

[Graybeard]

I've actually never owned a really bad Tasco scope. There for awhile after they stopped being made in Japan I've heard pretty much only bad about the scopes of that era but I've never owned one of them. The World Class scopes made in Japan were really first rate scopes that worked great. I'd never recommend passing on one of them at a decent price.

The current Tasco scopes for the most part other than maybe the very cheapest of them are made by the same folks and baiscally to the same standards as the lower priced Bushnell scopes. I've tested ALL the various product lines of Busnell scopes and all are really good bargains that deliver value for price paid. While I've not tested the new Tasco scopes I am confident they will perform as the lower priced Bushnell product lines do.

[Swampman]

I've owned (and still own) several Leupold Rifleman scopes.  I'm not very impressed with them because they seem very dark under all conditions.  The adjustments work fine, and they hold their zero.  I greatly prefer the Bushnell Banner series.  The Bushnell Elite series are the best scopes you can buy IMO.

[LaOtto222]

Swampman - I have a Glenfield model 20. I gave $25 for it brand new off of the rack (on sale). I spent some big bucks on a scope $30 (well over the price of the rifle) for a Simmons 22 Mag 4X. It has no parallax setting (preset at 50 yds) or power ring to move, simple but works. Once I zeroed it in at 35 yards, I have not moved the zero and it has not moved. I can clearly see any target within 50 yards. Beyond that, and I will probably miss those small targets, because I am not that good without a steady rest. If I want to start shooting at longer distances, I have plenty of other rifles to choose from. The $25 Glenfield was to be a trunk gun, but it shot so well that it now stands at the back door for the pests that make it into my yard and an occasional squirrel hunt. It is the lightest rifle I own, a pure joy to tote and can count on it to put a 22 High Velocity where I aim. if you want to spend a little more, a Tasco Varmint 2.5X10X40 is nice for not much money, they cost around $60 mail order. It has parallax setting from 10 yards to infinity and of course the power settings. For the 22 rim fire, I have found that a straight 4X to just about be perfect. I suspect that a cheap Bushnell in 4X would work as well as the Simmons.

[shooting.al]

I like the BSA because of the mil-dot reticle and the 8-32 zoom. Also almost all the reviews were good except like 2. The scope has to be in the $100-150 range. Does Mueller make a good reasonably priced varmint scope?

[LaOtto222]

Mueller Tactical... 8.5-25X44AO mildot. I just bought 1 for $160 + free shipping and a free 3" sunshade I also bought a Mueller APV 4.5-14X40AO for $115 + free shipping + free 3" sunshade. Limited Lifetime Warranty.

BTW What I have found is the high power is nice for bench work, but in the field I usually turn it down to the 10X to 16X range. I shoot a lot more varmints at 12X than any other power setting. I just seems to me that when I get up into the higher power settings I get the jitters and just can not hold the rifle still enough for a steady shot. The lower powers allow me to hold steadier with more confidence. I have an old Bushnell Banner in 10X40mm AO with BDC (not a variable) that set on a Remington 700 BDL VS in 222 and was able to hit black birds @ 250 yards with it. I still have that scope, it now resides on my Handi Ultra 223.