I have just started the search for another rifle scope, which I intend to put on a sporter 22lr rifle which will be used predominantly for close range low light vermin / pest controll, and a bit of informal 25/50 m target shooting plinking. I have a fairly extensive collection of scopes, some of which are well suited to either the task of close range and target work, others are better suited to the field 50m+ and in low light. I have compared all my current scopes , both for their abilities in low light,(definition in a shadowy hedgerow)and the ability to focus close in with both image and reticle in focus and my findings though subjective are as follows.,
Mtc mamba 3-12x44, clear and focused at any range, poor low light performance even on 3 power.
Schmidt 8x56 30mm, superb low light, won't focus close
Schmidt 8x56 1" same as above
Schmidt 6x42 good low light performance, just about useable focus 25m
Docter 6x42 as above
Meopta meostar r1 3-10x50 super low light, poor close focus
Night force Nsx 5-22 50 , not tried it close, clear in daylight, useable on low mag in low light ( not as clear as schmidt in daylight
Schmidt zenith 3-12 50 .fd 7 . Good low light, useable close up on low mag.
The mtc and the night force are predominantly used for target so low light performance is irrelevant , most of the other scopes are on stalking/ foxing/vermin rifles so the close range performance is rarely an issue,
I have had a number of budget scopes on 17s and 22s in the past and all of them have had their shortcomings with regard to either low light or close performance . I would be interested to hear other peoples opinions on low light close range scopes suitable for my given application ,
