Author Topic: What scopes are you using on heavy kickers? (Read 1785 times)

Ramrod · « **on:** November 21, 2004, 02:48:14 PM »

To the guys who own the bigger magnums, say .338, .340, or .375, what scopes are you using?

akpls · « **Reply #1 on:** November 22, 2004, 10:55:43 AM »

I have a Leupold VariX III 1.75-6 on a .450 Marlin bolt and a Weaver Grand Slam 1.5-5 on a Marlin 1895M (also .450 Marlin). My .338WM (Ruger 77) has an original Redfield Illuminator 3-9 on it. None have ever given me a problem and all get used frequently.

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #2 on:** November 22, 2004, 11:15:12 AM »

I have a Titta 300 Win Mag with a Leupold 3.5X10X50mm, another 300 Win Mag on my Encore with a IRO Valdada 3.5X10X56mm. My Sako 375 H&H has a Leupold 3X9X50, my 45-70 Ruger #1 has a Leupold M8- 4X32mm and a lot of my heave hand guns like my 444 Marlin contender, my BFR500 Mag and Ruger 44Mag all ware Leupold scopes. So I would have to say Leupold is my main choice.

victorcharlie · « **Reply #3 on:** November 22, 2004, 04:09:32 PM »

My Marlin 1895 45.70 wears a Leupold 1.75 X 6. No problems so far.!

Steelhead · « **Reply #4 on:** November 23, 2004, 02:36:23 AM »

I use a 2 1/2x Leupold on my 416 Taylor. About a mile of eye relief, and if 2 1/2 isn't enough for the game I will hunt with that cartridge they certainly are TOO BLOODY far away.

Ramrod · « **Reply #5 on:** November 25, 2004, 12:02:10 AM »

Thanks. I like the eye relief of the Leupold, and that 1.75X5 looks good. But so does the VX-II 2x7. This is for a .375 by the way. Then I have to decide on rings. Then I have to pay for all of it.

Graybeard · « **Reply #6 on:** November 25, 2004, 02:55:50 AM »

Quote

Thanks. I like the eye relief of the Leupold, and that 1.75X5 looks good

This is an oft repeated comment in regard to Leupold scopes. BUT have you actually looked at what the eye relief of that particular Leupold scope is? I did and it ain't much. Least of them really. Why I don't know but that's just the compromise Leupold chose on this scope. The 1.5-5 on the other hand has about the longest of all their scopes. The 2-7 is a very long eye relief scope on the other hand. Far more so than the 1.5-6 and in the same general power range with similar FOV.

I don't have a truly hard kicker in my house but the .35 Whelen is the heaviest. My shoulder just won't handle the recoil of the serious kickers. I chose the Leupold VX-III 2.5-8x36 for it because of the long eye relief and wide FOV it offers. Same scope as on my .30-06 which is my next hardest kicker. Most every thing else wears Bushnells.

Ramrod · « **Reply #7 on:** November 25, 2004, 03:20:26 AM »

Sorry, I did mean 1.75x6, mis-typed. But I do like the fact that the 1.5x5 can be mounted real low.
And by the way, in a 9 pound plus rifle, the recoil to me seems about like a 12 gauge magnum. I just don't see it as a gun I'll shoot much from a benchrest!

JoeBru · « **Reply #8 on:** November 26, 2004, 12:03:49 PM »

I've had and used the 1.5-5; 1.75-6; 2-7 and 2.5-8 Leupolds. I'm using a 1.75-6 Leupold at present, it doesn't have the eye relief of the 1.5-5, but it does give better light gathering ability.
All of them have enough eye relief for use with a 375 off the bench.
Stick with the 1.75-6 for hunting in the thick stuff or the 2.5-8 if the terrain is likely to be a bit more open.

Zachary · « **Reply #9 on:** November 28, 2004, 12:38:19 PM »

Let me share a real eye opener with all of you...

I own a .375H&H mag and let me tell you, that gun bucks like a mad mule! People say that it has more of a push than a kick - well, I can kinda understand that, but don't be fooled - it KICKS! Thing is this, I mounted a 1.5x-4.5x scope on it. Guess which one - an Elite 3200 with Firefly. Stated eye relief is a constant 3.6" and I thought that it wouldn't be enough. Well, as it turns out, the scope has not only held up perfectly, but eye relief was fine - never had a problem. Keep in mind that we are only talking about a $160 scope here, not a $400 or so Elite 4200, etc.

I also own many other heavy kickers and, for comparison, I own a 7mm Ultra mag, and it strikes like a Cobra - VERY SHARP AND FAST RECOIL! It wears and Elite 4200 4x-16x-50mm AO. I think eye relief is 3.5" and, believe it or not, eye relief is also fine as I have never had a problem.

We all tend to think that we need a foot of eye relief (I used to), and of course the more the better, but if I can use 3.6" of eye relief on a .375H&H, and 3.5" on a 7mm Ultra Mag, then it should be fine for all of you too. Keep in mind, however, that shooting position and stock fit is just as important as eye relief.

Zachary

Graybeard · « **Reply #10 on:** November 28, 2004, 01:10:31 PM »

We're all individuals and how much eye relief we need varies even with same level of recoil. The positions we shoot from and whether one is a stock crawler or not all play into it. How we mount it to the shoulder even plays a big part.

It's true that 3.5" SHOULD be enough most of the time for most of us. BUT I've been hit ONCe in my shooting career. Don't want no more of that. Was using an old Savage O/U with 20 ga. 3" mag and .22 mag. Shooting at squirrels almost straight up. Was alternating the barrels on them as I was into a bunch. Once I fired the shotgun thinking it was the rifle. Laid me flat on the ground. When I was able to get up I decided I didn't ever wanna get hit like that again.

So I tend to go for seriously long eye relief if it's a pretty heavy kicker. I don't have many of those do it's not usually a concern for me. I came darn close to going for the Leupold 2-7 on my Whelen as it really is the longest eye relief of any I've found with more than a 20MM objective. But in the end I decided to go with the same scope my .30-06 wears which is my next heaviest kicker. The rest wear Bushnells.

GREYGHOSTt · « **Reply #11 on:** November 29, 2004, 04:55:48 AM »

Night force 338 rum
Leupold 300 wm
burris

Bad Bob · « **Reply #12 on:** January 12, 2005, 01:05:42 PM »

Quote from: Zachary

Let me share a real eye opener with all of you...

I own a .375H&H mag and let me tell you, that gun bucks like a mad mule! People say that it has more of a push than a kick - well, I can kinda understand that, but don't be fooled - it KICKS! Thing is this, I mounted a 1.5x-4.5x scope on it. Guess which one - an Elite 3200 with Firefly. Stated eye relief is a constant 3.6" and I thought that it wouldn't be enough. Well, as it turns out, the scope has not only held up perfectly, but eye relief was fine - never had a problem. Keep in mind that we are only talking about a $160 scope here, not a $400 or so Elite 4200, etc.

I also own many other heavy kickers and, for comparison, I own a 7mm Ultra mag, and it strikes like a Cobra - VERY SHARP AND FAST RECOIL! It wears and Elite 4200 4x-16x-50mm AO. I think eye relief is 3.5" and, believe it or not, eye relief is also fine as I have never had a problem.

We all tend to think that we need a foot of eye relief (I used to), and of course the more the better, but if I can use 3.6" of eye relief on a .375H&H, and 3.5" on a 7mm Ultra Mag, then it should be fine for all of you too. Keep in mind, however, that shooting position and stock fit is just as important as eye relief.

Zachary

Bushnell now claims the Bausch and Laumbe line and as I learned from the magnum airguns the Bushnell Trophy is almost unbreakable and the 3200 and 4200 Elites are a cut above. It doesn't get much better especialy for the money.

Zachary · « **Reply #13 on:** January 16, 2005, 05:51:33 AM »

The Trophy line, at least some of their magnifications models, are designed for airguns - meaning they can handle the recoil of both rearward and forward movement. As such, I guess you could say that they are "unbreakable" in that sense. The 3200 and 4200 also have magnification models designed for airguns too (although they can, and are, used for centerfire rifles.)

I am often asked how I can tell that a scope is also made for airguns. The answer is kinda simple - if it has a parallax adjustment down to about 30 feet (not 30 yards, but 30 feet - meaning only 10 yards) then it can be used for an airgun.

Zachary

SoftPoint · « **Reply #14 on:** January 16, 2005, 01:39:03 PM »

Marlin 444P wears a Simmons "8-Point" 1.5-5X32. It's a cheapy, but it helps me kill elk and deer.

sangleshot · « **Reply #15 on:** February 05, 2005, 03:46:26 PM »

My No. 1 45-70 has a Bushnell Buckhorn 4x32. It has been a good scope.

Bad Bob · « **Reply #16 on:** February 06, 2005, 07:57:26 AM »

One of the shooting times staffers told me this scope is unbreakable on any rifle including any air rifle made. It focus from 10 meters to inf. and only weighs 11oz. Any opinions before I order mine?