One really good scope...or several ‘decent’ ones

[Xbowsniper]

Nation, 

I have found this.........

Most scopes, even the cheaper ones, have a place in everyone's arsenal.....depending upon HOW you use it.......I'll explain. 

I first got into Field Target competition, my first really high end rig, after my trusty Marauder, was a Steyr LG110 FT. Everyone told me to put a decent quality scope on it......you don't want to put a $100 scope on a $3300 gun. And, to this day, for MY purposes, this is true. I placed a "cheaper " Nikko Stirling 10-50×60 on it, somewhere in the $600+ range. It was not click repeatable, which is a requirement in my class. Got rid of it, and, tried other medium end scopes. All did not do what I needed. I then got the "Big Nikko", the higher quality brother of the $600 one that i had, and got rid of. This was minimal quality for what I needed, and served me well.

Now I own a pair of Sightron 10-50, similar scopes to each other, and have worked well. My favorite scopes, hands down, are my Kahles 10-50 FT, which I have 2.

I also have a slew of scopes that are not the quality of what I have listed above, generally under the $300 realm. They are not click repeatable, the glass quality isn't what my above scopes are, BUT, using them in a different application and decent quality guns, are just as good as anything out there. I have them on pistols, as well as rifles. I use all holdover for all of them, and they all serve their purpose. 

Would I put a $300 scope on my $4000 Thomas FT? Probably not. Wouldn't serve my purpose, competitively. If I was a pinker, never going into competition, with a $4000 Thomas, would i put a $300 scope on it? SURE I would!!! Sitting at home, using holdover, and enjoying a cold beverage enjoying retirement. 

It's all relative on HOW you are going to use it...

I do like my high end scopes for FT competition. 

I also like grabbing one of my cheaper scopes, and having a blast with them as well.

It's all in the application. 

Tom Holland 

Field Target Tech 

 

[bigHUN]

My next high-mid quality long range scope will be from EU,

I cannot rely anymore on rebrands from US, also ITAR is a roadblock, both for purchase and shipping across the border, also for warranty/service.

I had one of those scopes 10-40x50 for five years and now I need to send it for a service/repair but regulations making it too much hassle.

What EU made glass you can recommend for considering, in a price range 700 to 1000 € ? or better some forums I can find a second hand high-end quality?

 

[ctshooter]

I've been using $1-300 scopes for years because I didn't know any better. I didn't know what to look for in a higher end scope. I didn't understand the levels of clarity which can be gained using clearer glass. For a long time I thought more magnification was always the answer to see that target better.

Fast forward to spring of this year. I purchased an Evol to get through covid home time and treated myself to a 4-32 NX8 at the same time. This really opened my eyes to how much the quality of glass makes a difference. Following this I proceeded to purchase a used March 1-10x and have been blown away with what I can do with just 10x because of how clear the glass is. 

Would I put one of these scopes on a $500 pcp - most likely not. But if you have a very capable airgun you might as well have a very capable scope. 

I'm also finding you can find $1000-$1500 made in Japan glass for $500 if you don't mind new old stock products. I recently got a Bushnell TAC made in Japan 6-24x50 for $500 and man is it clear, only downside is 25yard parallax. The point is that good glass is good glass, but you don't always have to spend $2K.

I'll paraphrase the person who sold me the March: 'the March was my nicest scope and I found myself always grabbing that pcp just because of the scope'. After I got it and mounted it, I found myself tending to grab the gun with that scope as well. Aside from the tangible benefits, there is the intangible - those things that just make shooting 'feel' better. 

 

[Guest]

This may be a repeat because I didn't read every response. Used high end scopes generally work as well as a new one. The classifieds can be your friend in this area if you are patient. I've wanted another Sightron SIII 10-50×60 for some time but couldn't justify the cost. So I always keep an eye out for them on the classifieds. I missed the fire sale earlier this year and have been kicking myself since. A few days ago my diligence paid off and I got a screaming deal on a used SIII.

I guess what I'm getting at is if you can be patient with your money and realistic with your wants most "high end" products can be had for a fraction of the cost.

 

[Haganaga]

I was just contemplating this a while ago. I was in the camp of 300-500$ scopes for a while and some were great considering the price. Considering the price. Once I moved away from that and went no holds barred, I finally saw what I’d been missing. I went to snipers hide forum looking for a used tier one scope. I settled on a March FX 5-40. It parallaxes down to 10 yards and the glass, reticle, and FFP magnification is amazing. If I could go back to when I started, I would have gotten this scope first. I only have two pcp’s so switching them up is not a pain since I always sight in before each hunt and to verify StrelokPro is spot on anyway. You are only shooting one rifle at a time so why not have the scope that is the best you have on top of it? Plus you really get used to the focus, turrets etc when you’re constantly using one scope. Only trouble is I have to keep one of those lower prices scopes on the 2nd air rifle in case I need to lend it out to a hunting partner. I think it would make even more sense if I had more pcp’s to have the use of the March between them. Now this is because I’m shooting constantly at around 100+ yards on ground squirrels and this is when the top tiers really shine. If you’re lucky enough to get closer targets/game then you don’t really need it. But I find the fact that I can occasionally make a close shot with this scope a plus, but a rarity.