Spotting scope for range shooting

[PhillipM]

This is a very important point.

If you intend to do any position shooting you're going to want a proper scope stand.

There are plenty of designs available. Which one is "best" is mostly personal preference. I like my Ray-Vin; I didn't like my Freelands.

Bottom line is, if you have to buy new, plan to add another $150-300 to your eventual "scope system" budget

Maury

... and that's where the Konus' rings get broken, falling over from the standing position. Make sure you get one with a firm foundation.

Chaz never said he was using it to compete in highpower, just range shooting.

[madsenshooter]

My club has these Russian scopes, the yukon 21031. They seem to be surprisingly good. I can see .243 holes at 200yds no problem, and it isn't even at full magnification at that range. Shop around and I think they can be found for around $300. Even Wally-world carries them.

[dave]

Bigger is better as far as light gathering with the objective lense, however there is a limit as far as your eyes are concerned. Once had a B&L booklet on scopes and I forget the size but with your pupil wide open, an objective lense can actually get "bigger" then your eye can take in or use. The larger size can after that point, therefore, is a waste of money! Some of these rifle scopes I see ar rediculas! Do some research on this.

[gwp]

From: http://www.singularsci.com/Accessories2.htm


“The exit pupil of an eyepiece on a particular telescope equals the diameter of the telescope’s objective divided by the magnification.”

“It would be very useful to know what is the maximum size exit pupil that you as an individual can use. This size varies from one individual to another, though it is possible to make an educated guess as to what your maximum allowable exit pupil will be. The pupils of teenagers and young adults can typically dilate to at least 7 mm. As a person gets older this maximum dilation diameter becomes gradually smaller until it reaches a lower limit. For most people this lower limit is about 5 mm. There you have it, shy away from eyepieces which will yield an exit pupil greater than 5 mm if you are age 30 or older. Everyone should avoid oculars yielding exit pupils greater than 7mm.”

Here is the published exit pupil size for several of the spotting scopes recommended.

Konus 100 Exit Pupil (mm): 5 - 1.67
Konus 80 Exit Pupil (mm): 2.9 - 1.2
Yukon Exit Pupil (mm): 4 - 1

[Chaz]

Thank you to all for your comments. Perhaps my Bushnell isn't so bad except an angled eyepiece would have been a nice feature. I definately will try using a reflective surface behind the target stand. Phillip's correct as I'm a recreational shooter and my range is 500 yards down field between two rows of almond trees behind my house. Light conditions can be poor but I can see flies clearly at 100 yards and, more than once when shooting 200 yards, I've had "guest spotters" tell me that my bullet holes were "moving." With no reflective background and good shooting in the black, they only saw the "hole" on white paper. Thanks again!
Bruce

[Johnny in Texas]

I find very nice scopes for good prices on ebay. Bausch & Lomb and Kowa these are older but great quality tripods Freeland stuff used but exell. cond. 25X to 30X is all you need 20X will work but 25X is better. My favorite old scope is a 27.5X 95MM Bausch & Lomb I bought on ebay for 125.00 with a tripod.

[Greg Ficklin]

I have been using a great scope for HP for 3 seasons now with no complaints. It is a Champions Choice ED Deluxe 60 (something) mm fixed 25X with two speed focus. When compared side by side with a Kowa 821 out to 600 yards the CC scope's brightness, and resolution were comparable to the more expensive Kowa. The only thing my CC scope gives away to the Kowa is in eye relief. This makes Kowa the best, but similar performance can be had for much less in the CC scopes at around $450. The real bang for the buck is with the Konus, but they are fragile, and not water resistant.
I believe the best all around scope for HP is the Kowa 66 with 27 LER eye piece. The light gathering of the huge objective lenses just isn't needed for shooting in broad daylight at the expense of size and weight. Life is too short to live with dark murky optics. Get a good scope and good three legged stand.

[ratter]

Konus scopes are quite good. Optics are excellent for such a low priced scope. 80mm is most popular. Kowa is an excellent high priced scope. I don't think the optics on the Kowa warrant the price difference. I own both scopes and both scopes do an excellent job. Seeing 223 holes will not pop out using a Kowa over a Konus Itialian made scope. I like my Kowa but use both scopes. The 100mm Konus is heavy and bulky and many scopeheads won't fit the 100mm Konus...Ray-vin head now sold by Creedmoor...will work. I can't see much difference between the two scopes side by side comparison at 200 or 300 yards. Kowas seem to have priced themselves out of the market for many but if you find one at a good price grab it anyway. It comes down to ..Konus is an excellent low to mid priced scope and Kowa is an excellent higher priced scope. Konus comes with zoom eye piece and Kowa you have to purchase the eye piece and the Kowa zoom is almost $300. Hi power shooters favor around 25 to 30 power.