LIGHT WEIGHT SCOPE

[festus45]

I am looking for a light weight scope. It could be a 2-7 variable, 3-9 variable, or a fixed 4 or 6 power. I  would like to keep the price under 350.00. I will be mounting it on a Kimber Montana.

[kyelkhunter3006]

Get a Sightron 4x32 compact for around $200 NIB, on gunbroker.com or ebay.    9" long, 8.5oz, I think.    There's not another scope under $400 that can touch it, IMO.  It's got 4.5" of eye relief too.  I love it.  Another good one is a Weaver Grand Slam 4.75x40, if you can find one.  11" long, and 10oz weight, 3.25" eye relief.  I think that it's probably the best all around scope I've used, but I mostly use muzzleloaders and like more eye relief on my scopes.  I've got one that I might part with if you are interested.  The Nikon Buckmaster 4x40 is nice too, but it's as big or bigger than the 3-9x40 scopes at 13" long.

As for variables, just about an 2-7x32 scope will be in your size and price range.  The Bushnell Elite 3200's are nice, as are the old Nikon Monarch 2-7's.  Leupold has several scopes in that range as well.  You won't go wrong with any of them.  Of course, Sightron (can you tell I like them?) makes a 2.5-10x32 compact for about $250.  Not much bigger than the 4x above, it's still got 4" eye relief too.  Weaver makes a 2-7x32 in their Classic line that goes for about $175 that's great too.

[festus45]

I don't know much about the Sightrons, but I read somewheres they have Leupold glass. Any truth to that?

[kyelkhunter3006]

Naw, I don't think that's true.  Sightrons are made in Japan.  With all of the good glass coming out of Japan, I don't see why they'd import american glass just to send it back to the US.  I think that the Sightrons have better glass than the Leupolds, at least until you get to the really high dollar Leupy's, like the VX-7.

[Zachary]

Hold on now, because I think that festus is partly right.  To my understanding, while Leupolds are "made" in America, Leupold's glass is actually imported from Japan, and the same place where leupold glass is made, so to is Sightrons.  I also understand that Sightron was created after a former Leupold person left and started Sightron, so it would make sense that Sightron would use the same factory (and perhaps the same glass).  However, keep in mind that Leupold has different levels of quality in their models.  I think that the Sightron IIs have the same glass as the VX-IIs (i.e. former Vari-X IIIs).

Zachary

[Dave in WV]

Here's Sightron's page for the 4x: http://sightron.com/index.php?action=view_category&cat_id=1047415711

When checking out scopes you need to measure the distance from the front edge of the front ring to the rear edge of the rear ring. The Sightron 4x has only 4.4" mounting length. My M70 Winchester 30-06 with Dual Dovetail rings needs 5.25" of tube length between the fron and rear bell and my Ruger M77 .243 needs 4.75" of tube length. I think you can use Talley Lightweight rings (rings have base milled on them) and turn at least one in toward the magazine IF the ring is to one end of the base. (Look at the left picture on the page I listed above.) The rings are reversable for most rifles.

[Will_C]

Spend some more money ($400) and get a Leupold VX III 1.75-6x. It will be right at home on that Kimber, especially if you go with a .338 fed.
Will

[kyelkhunter3006]

Huh, I never heard that about Sightron before.  I know that Leupold imports some Japanese glass, but I also thought that they made most of their own glass in house?   I think that the two biggest Japanese glass houses are Hakko and Light Optical.  Wonder which one makes the glass?  I know that Light Optical makes the Bushnell Elites, or used to anyway.  Wouldn't it be too funny if the glass for Leupold and Bushnell come out of the same factory?  As much as I see written about how the Elite is optically superior to Leupold and vice versa.  Of course, both companies have proprietary coatings that they use on the glass too.

[Zachary]

Of course, both companies have proprietary coatings that they use on the glass too.

Very true.  Just because glass comes from the same company doesn't mean that it's the same quality of glass.

Zachary