I Need a Scope--Explain it to me like I'm 5.

What scope are you running? How do the hash marks work? Sight in at 200? What do the others become?
Correction. I am zeroed at 100yds. To answer your question you need to figure out the "dope "for your rifle and ammo using a simple ballistic calculator application. My rifle is cut to "20 and has a suppressor. I am shooting 180 ELDX at 2,850fps (chrono'd w a Garmin).

At 200yds I would hold half an MRAD which is the smallest tic below the center.
300 is 1.3 MRAD so the small tic between the 1st and second.
400 is 2 MRAD so the second hash mark.
500 is 3 MRAD
600 and beyond I wouldn't ever consider a shot if I didn't have time to dial.
 
The 300 WM was a gift and has sentimental value. It does have a muzzle break, but I will be using a suppressor. I've read that either one will reduce recoil.
I have a .300WM and a Tikka 6.5C. My .300WM has spent a lot of time in the truck as my backup rifle while I've killed a pile of elk and mule deer with my Tikka 6.5C. If I were in your shoes I'd call UM and buy a $100 6.5 PRC or 6.5C barrel and have it cut to 18 or 20 and threaded for your suppressor. Find a local smith to spin it on and check the headspace etc. Then buy one of the scopes mentioned here that have been proven to hold zero when dropped. You won't like shooting that Tikka in .300WM so you won't likely get in enough practice to reliably make 300+ yard shots on game under stressful situations.
 
The 300 WM was a gift and has sentimental value. It does have a muzzle break, but I will be using a suppressor. I've read that either one will reduce recoil.
Does the barrel have sentimental value specifically? Cause another barrel on that same gun is gonna look the same if you don't look at the numbers stamped on it. ;)

Yes they both reduce recoil but not the same amount, a suppressor is less so.
 
I hunt the eastern U.S. and grew up using whatever scope was on sale at Walmart. Cheap scope and rings on the gun. Sighted it in at 100 yards and killed many whitetail over the years.

For the past 10 years I have pretty much exclusively used a bow and crossbow.

The world of optics/scopes is absolutely overwhelming. I look up previous posts and I get so lost that I just stopped looking for a scope.

I have a Tikka 300 WM that desperately needs a great scope. I will be using a suppressor on the rifle as well.

I feel like I have gravitated towards a NightForce, but still open to anything.

From what I have gathered, I do want something with turrets and Zero Stop.

This weapon will hopefully be used on western hunts.


Guidance is greatly appreciated!

Honestly, I don't really know.

I want something that is durable and from a good manufacturer that stands behind their product.

I would imagine 500 yards is plenty far enough. I'm not into the guesstimate the hold over and kentucky windage stuff. I want to adjust the dials and hold dead on.

Lots of good advice already given above. You need to decide which of the following are priorities for you: (i) cost, (ii) weight, (iii) FFP vs SFP, (iv) MOA vs MIL. Answering those questions, along with the items you've already identified, will narrow it down. If you want it to pass the "Rokslide drop test," the list is pretty short. (See post #4).

For hunting out to 500 yards, I don't need magnification over 15x. I probably don't really need magnification over 10x though I like having it for load development if nothing else. I'm trying to convert all my scopes MILs but I still have some MOA stuff. I also have a mix of SFP and FFP. I also like hunting scopes to be about 20 ounces, and I don't like having > 44mm objective bells or larger than 30mm tubes. The factors/features I listed above are often at cross-purposes: FFP, more magnification, and passing drop test tend to add weight, for example. Decide what you want to prioritize, then be prepared to compromise on the other points.
 
Honestly, I don't really know.

I want something that is durable and from a good manufacturer that stands behind their product.

I would imagine 500 yards is plenty far enough. I'm not into the guesstimate the hold over and kentucky windage stuff. I want to adjust the dials and hold dead on.

Sounds like an SWFA 10x Gen 2 or 3-15 Gen 2 would work great for you.

Buy the mil-quad version as shown above, figure out quick drop values for your rifle and if you have time, dial; if not the reticle will be the same as your dials.


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Honestly, I don't really know.

I want something that is durable and from a good manufacturer that stands behind their product.

I would imagine 500 yards is plenty far enough. I'm not into the guesstimate the hold over and kentucky windage stuff. I want to adjust the dials and hold dead on.
People will hate on it but I would go with a Vortex Diamondback or Leupold VX-3.

3-9x or 4-12x, 40mm or 50mm objective.

It'll do what you require. Or you can spend 3 to 10x more for better.
 
Go to the long range hunting sub forum on this site. Look at forms drop tests on riflescopes and pick one off the list that passed his test. The short of it is pretty much any night force, any SWFA, trijicons, or the maven rs1.2 specifically. Use good rings like sports match or UM tikka rings and use paint pen as a thread locker and torque to forms specs. And just like that, you have a solid hunting setup.
That! I have found that the trijicons are at my price point with all of the features I want to use. I don’t have a Maven rifle scope but I do have a Maven spotter. Maven’s optics are excellent! Maven only sells direct.
 
People will hate on it but I would go with a Vortex Diamondback or Leupold VX-3.

3-9x or 4-12x, 40mm or 50mm objective.

It'll do what you require. Or you can spend 3 to 10x more for better.
What's your reasoning?
 
People will hate on it but I would go with a Vortex Diamondback or Leupold VX-3.

3-9x or 4-12x, 40mm or 50mm objective.

It'll do what you require. Or you can spend 3 to 10x more for better.
My first rifle came with a free Vortex Diamondback. It was worth every penny I paid for it. It's on my grandsons bb gun now and my rifle has a SWFA 6X. I'm not waiting 6 or 7 years for a bull tag in WY and then risking my shot with a $99 scope when a $300 SWFA 6x is a known reliable aiming device. In the grand scheme of big game hunting the scope is one of the least expensive things you'll spend money on. My SWFA 6x was $300 and I've used it for 5 years on more than 15 hunts. I'll spend over $1,000 on fuel alone for my Wyoming hunt this fall.
 
What's your reasoning?
I think the 200-300$ range is the sweet spot for scope value. That's just me, I am cheap, but not throw away cheap. I need a scope to hold zero, have decent zoom if needed, let me see at dawn and dusk and not let water in and fog it up. I can find that in my price range. I rarely but new stuff, I don't buy toys and I use my stuff until it breaks.
 
Elk hunting is hard on scopes. You will drop the rifle off a slope just a matter of when not if. 30 years ago you could get a good scope that would hold together for about 350-400. These days the price point seems to be about $1,200 on sale. You could probably get a good deal on a used scope on the classifieds. Also maybe look around and find an outrageous sale on discontinued models. The 50mm bells gather more light for early and late. The 42mm with ultralight rings keeps the weight down. I have both. The lightweight rifles get the 42s. I went with 34mm tubes on the 50mm bells. The 42s have the 30mm tube. Rings are common for both. I have MOA and Mil. Either one is easy to use once you figure out the system. But I am a casual shooter not a purist. Ya know, 300WM and Elk hunting seem to go together like peas and carrots!.
 
A VX3 is good enough if you don't get shots past 200 and live where the elk are. If you are spending $$$ on an OOS trip, and know you'll sling it at 500, nah.
 
I think the 200-300$ range is the sweet spot for scope value. That's just me, I am cheap, but not throw away cheap. I need a scope to hold zero, have decent zoom if needed, let me see at dawn and dusk and not let water in and fog it up. I can find that in my price range. I rarely but new stuff, I don't buy toys and I use my stuff until it breaks.
I just picked up a Swfa 10x42 mil quad gen 2 on this site for $275. That scope will be my end all /be all riflescope for western hunting. I’ve tested it at close range in low light conditions, it’s fine. I will feel way more confident with that riflescope when I’m 10 miles deep into the backcountry than I would with a $1000 vortex. Like I said earlier, just read forms drop test thread. A lot of these scopes that passed the drop eval. Are not expensive. Matter of fact, there is no relation between cost vs. passing the drop tests
 
What scope are you running? How do the hash marks work? Sight in at 200? What do the others become?
I don’t know what scope he’s running, but his point is valid. A good FFP scope with a good reticle, and anything from sight in distance (100-200 yards) and you can easily shoot off the reticle hash marks. No need to dial. Hell, I’m a less than average shot and shot the 1000 yard target at the Cameo complex in Colorado very successfully without dialing, just used the ret.

That is the “magic” of FFP vs SFP reticle. The FFP ret is “true” at any power setting, the SFP is only “true” at max magnification. Having to be on max magnification reduces your Field of View significantly. On an SFP scope, anything less than max power and you have to do the math on the reticle subtensions (hashes) because they’re not true. They are only accurate at max magnification. That’s why folks above me in this thread are promoting FFP glass.
 
Have them and love them! This truly is an incredibly good reticle in an FFP scope. As I get older, illumination would be nice, but with this reticle and my site in distance, I do not have to dial out to 500 yards. Quick and accurate.

While I know there are “better” scopes for more money, I can’t afford a lot of them. The SWFA scopes are still the best value out there. And I totally love their reticle. Easy to see and clean. No clutter. But I would love it more with some illumination. I’m 62 with a macular dystrophy that will become degeneration at some point.

They’re great scopes. If you want to shoot the .300 at distance you feel good at, the 3-9x42 will easily take you to 600 yards. It’s light, good glass and bulletproof.
 
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