These posts got me thinking.
A SWFA is an expensive scope.
On Rokslide we tend to think of SWFA as a cheap optic but for most (maybe 90%?) of hunters the cost is out of reach or has no perceived value.
We split hairs here, but when you meet people in the field, they usually have random $100-250 scopes from a retail counter.
Does anyone have stats on average dollars spent per rifle on optics?
High end optic encounters are so infrequent here in my AO that I can remember them:
- dude with a huge S&B, couldn't stop talking about it...not optics in general, just his.
- dude with a high-end Leica scope with a random family connection to that brand thru a sales rep.
Form struck a chord in me with his belief that the scope is merely a sighting device. We're not bird watching.
I couldn't listen to or read accounts of "blue glass, purple hue, warm/cool, great color fidelity, etc." seriously after I began to think about scopes that way. List a scope on the classifieds here and you get to meet all the dudes that value these things.
Another random thought is I believe many folks seeking higher end, high magnification optics are using them to glass in lieu of binos. Makes me cringe.
100% on all of this.
I listen to the Vortex podcast quite a bit, just because the topics are so varied. They have sight in days before deer season at Vortex Edge. He said the Crossfire is the scope they sell the most of during those days. I'm sure the Crossfire line is their #1 selling line, by far.
Another interesting take from one of their podcasts was a hunt Ryan was on in Idaho. He's glassing with Razor UHD's..... His guide was using Diamondback's and Ryan NEVER spotted game first.
I also think the same thing about people using high mag scopes as glassing devices in lieu of binoculars and spotting scopes. Except it's not random. Back in the 90's, the Walmart that I worked at, we were almost like a mini sportsmans's warehouse in the gun area. We sold more guns than all of the other Walmart's in the area combined. We were right on the edge of the rural area. We could order anything someone wanted from the distributors. We sold some very nice factory rifles and handguns over the years, but the #1 selling "nice" scope we had was the Bushnell Banner 6-18 for $119. #2 was the Simmons ATV 4.5-14x40 for $149. We had several Leupold and Burris scopes in the case too, but people said it was too much money for a scope. Lots of people who bought those mentioned not needing binoculars anymore. My good friend runs a private 200 yd range at this house. You can buy time in 3-hour slots. I spend a lot of time down there, even just hanging out. I hear people saying all the time about using their riflescope as a spotter.
Over the last 32 years of hunting and shooting, I've run into WAY more folks with big box package rifles/scopes in the field and at the range than I have with people having semi-custom, custom, or even just high-end factory rifles. Don't even mention high end scopes. I mean it's 100 to 1. Or like stated above, nice rifles with lower priced scopes. 25 year old Winchester Featherweights or Remington BDL's with Bushnell Sportview or Tasco World Class scopes.
Honestly, the only people I personally know that spend more than $150 on a scope is the little group of 6 or 8 of us that all hang out at that private range, and a few other guys that shoot on the range. So maybe 12 guys? Then folks in the forums.
If all you're doing is hunting the back 40 for 4 or 5 days once a year and box of 20 rounds lasts 3 or 4 years.... you don't NEED more than a $150 scope. And that's what the majority of hunters are doing.
