budget scope

[scott597]

easy question right? yeah right!! best deal on a scope for $200 and down. i would like something in the 4-12x40ao or side focus. it's for a coyote rifle so it's gonna get slightly abused. i'm looking at the redfeild 4-12 or the simmons prohunter. i like the redfeild but the nonadjustable objective concerns me. is it an issue or not? i don't know. some of the feilds i yote hunt are about 350-400yds across. is a non adjustable obj. ok for that kind of range? thanks for any input

[thirty06]

I don't care for AO on my hunting scopes. Just something else to mess you up when you don't have time.
Look at the Vortex Crossfire's, good scopes for the money.

[scott597]

i just looked at cameraland and seen the vortex diamondback 4-12x40ao for $199 and the crossfire 4-16x50ao for 199. i see allot of people here speak good of vortex. are their lower line of scopes better than what i mentioned in original post? i guess i would like to know if the AO is needed for the longer shots or not. also this is target gun when not shootin yotes as it is the only rifle i currently own.

[thirty06]

I won't say their better, but just as good. There warranty and customer service can't be beat.
My opinion is Simmons are the bottom of the line for what your looking for. I never could get over 3 yrs.
use out of one. I know some people have good luck with them but not me.

[lal357]

to me simmons are under the bottom had to friends who used them they would not hold zero for long and thats a major concern for me .as for crossfires i have one on a mod 12 lrpv .223 and love it but if you read the post under this one some have had problems with them. i have a tasco 6x24x40 mm target varmint i threw on my mod 110 200 mag and so far it has held fine (i'm seeing just how much it will take before it breaks.

[helotaxi]

I'd have no problem taking shots out to 400yds on a coyote with a 10x and at that magnification parallax adjustment isn't needed. With good glass, high magnification isn't necessary.

I'd get a higher quality scope with lower magnification. I'm not a fan of Leupold, but of the scopes mentioned to this point the Redfield would be my choice; but I would try to scrape together some more money and buy a better scope. $300 gets you to the next level in quality with something like a Nikon Buckmaster.

[seanhagerty]

I have a 10X Bushnell Tactical Elite I picked up used from the SampleList website for $130. Once I got it I sent it back to Bushnell and they went over it for free. Cleaned it up, adjusted the parallax and sent it back. I can shoot a fair sized group at 600 yds with this, but feel I need more magnification at that range. Out to 3 - 400 yds I am happy with this scope and can shoot moa sized groups from prone.

[sniper15545]

The vortex crossfire's are hard to beat,But I also have 2 Osprey International's in 10 x 40 x 50 with side focus and they are very good scopes for around $150.00. I'm sure they come in the power range your interested in.

[SMK Shoe]

+1 with what helotaxi posted about the Nikon Buckmaster. Midway has them on sale for about 9 months out of the year for 309$. You may also want to look at

Nikon Prostaff Rifle Scope 4-12x 40mm Mil-Dot Reticle Matte. Not as fancy as the buckmaster but good reviews and same warranty.

[jimbo88mm]

I have been very happy with my Nitrex (aka weaver) TR 1. Natchez still has some on close-out:

http://www.natchezss.com/optics.cfm?contentID=opticsType&opticsType=9&opticsClass=3&powerCategory=0&powerRange=0&objective=0&reticle=0&tubeDiameter=0&finish=0&mfg=WE&mfgName=Weaver&category=20&startRow=51


Edited to add some thoughts..

When I was looking for a scope I had just missed the excellent close out deals for the vortex vipers at ~$249. While there are still deals out there on some of the non-AO models I wanted to AO to correct parallax when shooting targets from a bench. I looked long and hard at the crossfire scopes. The one thing that held me back is the constant reports that I see online about the scopes not holding zero. Apparently there was an issue where the tension on the turrets were not tight enough and the issue was supposed to be resolved (dec 2010) but I still see people report the same problem with purchases made in 2011.

While Vortex is still on my radar for a Viper I decided to pass on the Crossfire line.

I looked very closely are the Nikons and almost went for the midway special for $300 but it was just a little bit too far outside my budget at the time. I also considered the Bushnell 3200 for ~$300 but I had the same problem (just over budget).

I then found these nitrex scopes that were being dumped due to the line being eliminated. Nitrex is owned by ATK (Parent company of Federal, CCI, and countless others) and this was their foray into optics. They then bought out weaver and decided to stick with the weaver name due to name recognition. The Nitrex TR Ones are Japanese scopes at Chinese prices (thanks to the closeout). I went with the 6-20x50 model for $199. It is a simple, no frills basic scope with good optics and nice target style turrets. The only major drawback that I have found is the limited internal travel. It's only 30 moa which will present a problem if you want to shoot beyond 500 yards. Inside 500 its fine and you can stretch it out with a 20 moa rail.. although I think it will still come up short for 1000 yards.

[GaCop]

I just picked up a Bushnell 4X12X40AO on ebay for $40 shipped. Just for S&G's, I'm trying it on a Savage 110 in 7mm mag just to see how long it lasts before going down in flames. The clarity is good for a cheap scope which really surprised me.

[Walt T]

I think you'll find the Bushy to work well, if it doesn't shake to pieces on that rifle. I have one on my Marlin XT22-it sighted in at 50 yards with just a couple of clicks after bore sighting. It holds zero and tracks perfectly-Maybe I got lucky.
http://i999.photobucket.com/albums/af120/Radar-1/007-12.jpg
I put a Bushnell Banner 6-18X50 on my modified MKII G with the same results.
http://i999.photobucket.com/albums/af120/Radar-1/006-16.jpg
My favorite is the Nikon 4.5-14X40 on the MKII BV, but more $$$.
http://i999.photobucket.com/albums/af120/Radar-1/003-19.jpg
Good luck!

[godale]

bought a bushy banner 6x18x50 used on another forum what a piece of junk. maybe cause it was used. i have other banners and for the money they work like champs

[GaCop]

So far, the Bushnell is holding up to 7mm mag recoil. We'll see how long that lasts (and my shoulder) :D

[Creeping Death]

You said slightly abused? I hear ya. All my varmint guns take a little bit of abuse. Hard not to if your hunting hard. In that case I would go with a manufacturer who has a lifetime warranty*. All my varmint rifles wear nikon buckmasters. I've heard nikon stands by their warranty. I don't know for sure due to the fact that none of the five I own have failed.

You can get a 4.5-14x40 in various reticles a tad over $200 on ebay. One thing I learned the hard way years ago is not to buy cheap glass!

I to have a 4-12x40 Bushnell Sportsman similar to the one pictured in a previous post. It's been on 4-5 different rifles(some large calibers), painted twice, beat to s**t, and still holds zero. Crazy thing about it is it even says China on it. LOL!

What ever you go with I hope it works out for you.

[GaCop]

You said slightly abused? I hear ya. All my varmint guns take a little bit of abuse. Hard not to if your hunting hard. In that case I would go with a manufacturer who has a lifetime warranty*. All my varmint rifles wear nikon buckmasters. I've heard nikon stands by their warranty. I don't know for sure due to the fact that none of the five I own have failed.

You can get a 4.5-14x40 in various reticles a tad over $200 on ebay. One thing I learned the hard way years ago is not to buy cheap glass!

I to have a 4-12x40 Bushnell Sportsman similar to the one pictured in a previous post. It's been on 4-5 different rifles(some large calibers), painted twice, beat to s**t, and still holds zero. Crazy thing about it is it even says China on it. LOL!

What ever you go with I hope it works out for you.


That's the exact same one I got on ebay for $40 used. So far, 15 rounds of 7mm mag hasn't caused it to crash and burn.

[lal357]

i ran a bushnell banner on my 300mag for years with no problem just moved it to my 30-06 this year and put a tasco 5-24 tactical varmint on the 300 just to see how much abuse i can put it thru so far 30 rnds of 300 no problems.

[bluealtered]

I have five bushnell banner 4-12x40ao's on my hunting rifles. Yep cheap glass, about $99 here in the land of high prices. Their made in korea and work for MY eyes very well and that is the key to scopes, they might be the best in the world but still may not work for your eye sight.

The reason i have the same scope on all those rifles is simple, when i pick up a rifle i know what scope is on it and how it will work, i don't have to think about which scope is on it and how it wants to work. And yes i have broken two of them, but that happens when you drop them on rocks and beat the snot out of them. And yes they were fixed without any charge other than shipping.

The diamondbacks i had were good scopes as well, the crossfires not so good. Vortex customer service was great, once again dropped on rocks. blue

[pdog06]

The Vortex Diamondback is a better scope than the Crossfire. Believe the Crossfire is made in China, and the Diamondbacks are made in Phillipenes I think. I have the 3.5-10x50 on my 308 and it is very nice.

Theres a TON of scopes available in that price range though. I have heard good things about the Redfields, but would also look at the Leupold VX1 or the Nikon Pro Staff. I have had a few Pro Staffs over the years and have never had an issue with them, and the glass is pretty good. Even had them on shotguns and a 300wsm.

Had a Bushnell Banner on a 22-250 for a season or two, but the glass was horrible. Very blurry around the edges.

[scott597]

thanks much for all the replies! All are helpfull and much appreciated.