Bobin,
I failed to mention my Bro's gun is a Tikka 308 and he was using IIRC 168 amax this hunt....plenty gun, fairly flat, plenty flat rather for the 'guestimated' 300 yds, but found out after the shot, under 300 yds, but yes, you put it succinctly.
Thanks.
JB, as you know there is good reason hunters have kept those old K-4's on for all these years since mounted/mfg. They work. Granted newer ones have brighter optics, perhaps bolder reticles, esp. vs. the plain CH on some K4s, and you might worry about seals being good, yet they continue bringing home the venison.
I do have to say, many lesser experienced hunters have perhaps bought into either the Marketing by mfg. and/or the infomercials you read in articles raving about the 'theoretical' features and benefits of 'Hubble Scopes' and I am sure some writers feel compelled to write what the industry is promoting. Obviously higher mag variables are more expensive, they DO fill a need for certain situations, but when my bro told me about the story about what happened I can only imagine had he used a simple 4x or 6x zeroed at 200, he simply could have held high and had a better outcome on that buck he lost....shame as I hate seeing ANY animal, esp. a big game animal like a deer get away, much less run aways.
It WILL happen whether bullet 'failure' or shot placement issues (usually the problem) but I like to get DRTs when possible, knowing it's not always going to happen, but icing on the cake.
The day I dropped a hog around 240 yds, using a 6x on a #1 Ruger 243, RSI carbine, I believe it was my fastest shot cycle..SPOT game, aim rifle, and squeeze. Happened in seconds and the Barnes 85x did a DRT and that day taught me more about the value of K.I.S.S. and no wasted time to conclude shot cycle, once you get a good sight pic, which is not predicated upon how much the animal is 'zoomed' in. Once the sight pic is obtained w/a steady hold, one merely needs to break the trigger w/o pulling the shot, not worrying about minimizing increased wobbles in a high powered scope as if shooting a 1/2moa group at the range off a benchrest. That is not needed to hit vitals usually in my experience.
Sometimes the longer you hold and 'over think' what you are doing during the shot, the more the wobbles increase (often making shooters panic jerking the trigger at what looks good-and pulling the gun off the vital zone or entire animal before the bullet leaves the muzzle) and more chance the game will move or the opportunity will be lost entirely.
I am sorry to admit, this happened to me using a muzzle light model 7 260 on a Texas hunt at a walking buck around 150-200 yuds. HIGH winds throwing my gun around and having my scope on 14x (using a 4-14 that day). Broadside unalerted buck, but I was sitting in front of a Mesquite tree in camo in a chair and had NO rest, guess I could have tried getting behind the chair and using the top/back for a rest, but NEVER thought about it then. Missed the first shot clean as the wind was at least 20-30mph gusting sideways, and after that my buddy said it sounded like I was shooting an auto (once deer was on run-never touched it...first shot ALWAYS one's best opportunity IMHO), and I was catching my brass in my hand!!!! Go Figure, re-barreled later to a heavier contour bbl and lower powered scope, increased my hit ration dramatically. Used that in 7mmBR last year to drop a running deer at 200 yds,,,,scope-4x32 Nikon ProStaff. Worked fine. Had I had a variable cranked to max (the common temptation when you have time to crank)...i.e. that 14x I doubt that deer would have fallen.
So I have learned first hand how a high mag scope CAN be couterproductive in certain situations, when 95% of the shots I have had offered could have been taken/WERE taken using 4x and 6x's as a good 2/3 or 3/4 of deer I have shot were using said fixed scopes, if not more.
BOGC2, you could do ALOT worse than that combo. For deer, being a handloader, I'd prefer a 6.5x55, 260 or 7/08 really liking the short actions but the Rugers handle fast and are not overly heavy, and the 280 will run right with the best of them, and have factory ammo, if that is important.
A trigger job and perhaps floating the bbl if range test indicate would be the only things you might consider. If an FX-II, shorter tube, you may want a reverse ring, but not sure if needed, depends on gun fit, but the scopes have lots of eye relief so odds are you will be fine w/o.
