what scope are you using

[camokid]

hi all im just curious on what scopes are being used on 223's im struggling a bit with my niko 6-24x56 i find its to much mag and a lot of messing with it when lamping so looking in the market.....

[AndyCM]

hi all im just curious on what scopes are being used on 223's im struggling a bit with my niko 6-24x56 i find its to much mag and a lot of messing with it when lamping so looking in the market.....

 

There are loads of people who go for high mag / parralax - which is ok during the day - then go lamping and have problems (I include myself in that)

 

8x56 for me for lamping & ideally a No. 4 reticle

 

cheers

Andy

[trxnav]

on my .222 mate is a swarovski 6-18x50 which is used for foxing out too 250 yards but the mag is set on 10 and never moves unless im zeroing on the .243 is a swarovski 2.5-15x56 but again the mag is set on 8 and only moves if i am zeroing in more mag is not all ways best i have found and i seem to find if the target is that far away you need to magnify it by a lot then the shot quite often is not worth taking.

[camokid]

there is so many around but some are stupid prices.. take a standard 3-9x50 i allways got on with it weather day time or lamping.. cheap and worked

[trxnav]

a 3-9x50 mate would be fine the only thing i can say is the more money you can spend on the optics the better but it is a fair hike in price some of the simmons range are good and not over priced look more at the optics though than any any gizmos like illuminated rets and things.

[Dead-Eyed Duck]

The last thing you want to do at night is to faff around with changing the mag, as too much is happening and you have to concentrate on getting the shot off right, in as short a time as possible.

 

I use a Swaro 2.5-10 x 56 and always leave it on 10 mag. Perhaps a 12 mag would be better at times, but having said that if the fox moves close in you have to find it fast in the scope, and a high mag would not help.

 

Never get a scope with fine cross hairs as you will struggle - I had a Leupold 6-18 x 40 (I think) and binned it after its first outing.

 

Obviously good light pick up is paramount, and get the best that you can.

 

Lots of very good reports of the S&B 8 x 56 as being excellent value for money

 

Don

[garyb]

Swaro 8x56

 

No messing about - plenty of dead charlies.

[Raja Clavata]

Different calibre but same gig as me; started off with a Nikko and it drove me nuts. Switched to an 8 x 56 S&B, just plain works - simples

 

I would expect the same from Swaro, Khales and perhaps Zeiss...

[camokid]

nice one lads think im gonna have to ask the dragon for more pocket money lol...

[rioulike]

hi mate i have got a doctor 8x25x50 on my .223 love it never go more than 12 mag thu

[harv]

look in the for sale section, there is the best scope advertised on here for months and the right money US OPTICS ST10

[Frenchieboy]

I'm with AndyCM on this one. Admitedly I use a .222 and not a .223 but I don't think there is that much difference.

I have tried these bigger magnification scopes and they are fine during the day time but when it comes to working on the lamp it's a totally different ball game. I found that target aquisition was difficult on larger mag and when lamping foxes and the different distances they came up at caused focusing problems so I now use a Sutter 8X56 Scope with just the centre dot illuminated on my .222 and get on fine with it for foxes out to 150 yards, any further than that and I just work a little harder at calling them in. I am so happy with that sort of magnification and object lens size that I now also have a Walther 3-9X56 IR on order to go on my 17HMR which I use a lot for lamping bunnies with!

Edited April 17, 2010 by Frenchieboy

[inthedark]

Schmidt 8 x 56 is the best I've had yet.

[Rem223]

If you do mostly night time lamping a high mag scope doesn't really give any benefit. Just to give yourself an idea try focusing a bright light source on a bit of card placed at the focal point of the scope. Do it at full magnification and then at minimum. Notice how tiny the spot is at full mag compared to the lowest setting. There is a reason people choose 8x56 or 7x50 magnification as the focal point is around 6-7mm. This matches the size of your pupil at maximum dilation. Lower magnifications say 4x mean a larger than 7mm spot so some light is wasted. More than 8x and the spot is smaller than your pupil so there is less light transmitted.

 

If I were you I would get a quality 3x9x50 like a Leupold or if you can stretch to it a good fixed power like the S&B or Swarovski 8x56

[Paul223]

Meopta 3-9x42, for the same reasons many have stated, there is no time to mess about with parallax and mag

[PAULT]

nightforce nxs 5.5x22x50 np2 dd but im thinking about changing it for a zeiss swaro or schmidt

[Mr_Logic]

I've tried lots!

 

I have a Schmidt 8x56 with a #8 ret, which is a big fat crosshair. The glass is fantastic, but the ret's too thick really. OK for just foxes, but rabbits tend to die too if I'm out at night with that. Ideally I'd just want a nice fine crosshair in that scope and job done, but Schmidt are a tad lacking there.

 

Right now I have a Leupold 6.5-20x50 with the varmint hunter ret, which is pretty good. I have a Leupold Mark 2 6-18x40 on my 243, which is mildot ret, and that's a great balance between fine enough to see the target and thick enough to see the crosshair, and the optics are surprisingly good as well.

 

My 223 scope is something I never decide on as I've not found the right one yet, will keep hunting!!

[SPARKIE]

on my .223 i had a s&b 8x56 30mm tube number 4 ret was brilliant for fox bashing just set it up once and never have to play again with it. i then transfered the scope to my .22-250 and its just as good on that......ive also got anouther sat in the cabinet ive aquired the same scope waiting for when i purchase my .17rem.

i allways use optiloc rings and bases.