Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Long range hunting scope, around $3500 or less?

Looking for a long range scope that is under 32 ounces. Ideally, that isn't too big that it looks terrible on a Model 70 hunting rifle and lighter, as in 20-28 oz better but not required. Reliability, repeatability preferred. FFP preferred, but not required. Either has turrets or a ballistic reticle that I can use with my Leica Geovid HD binos.

The choices I am considering are night force ATACR, S&B Polar or Klassic or PMII with turrets, Swaro z8, Leica Magnus BDC scope, Zeiss.

I'd prefer to be at 1.8-4x on low power range and Max 16-20x on high.

Max distance I will be shooting at the range will be 800 yards; Max distance in the field, less than 650 yards.

300 win mag cartridge.

Look no further than the Bushnell LRHS.

It's simply awesome if the weight isn't too much.

Dave

I’ve had excellent results from the Bushnell LRHS. They have recently been discontinued, but can still be found.

I have also had the same great results from the Bushnell LRTSi. Mine retains zero, tracks accurately and returns to zero perfectly. The glass is far better than its price point suggest it should be. Weight is around 27 oz.

Bushnell 3-12 LRTSi

Bushnell 4.5-18 LRTSi

John

With that kind of money to spend you might take a look at Tangent Theta.

In my opinion S&B PMll or Hensholdt.

nightforce NXS 3.5-15x50 MOAR reticle.

To make the weight that you want the Zies Conquest V6 needs to be considered

What about the March Tactical 3-24x42 ? Only 22 ounces.

Have you shot at long range yet? The lack of conviction on certain features like FFP/SFP and turrets/BDC makes me think that perhaps you should buy a less expensive but reliable scope to figure out what exactly you want before dropping over three grand on one. I am by no means an accomplished long range shooter but it took me very little time to figure out that I want FFP, mils, a reliable elevation turret, and hashes on the horizontal crosshair for windage holds. Ballistic reticles are ok but absolutely not what I would want on a high price long range setup. The reticle on many tactical scopes is a deal breaker for me to use as a hunting scope. So many are useless in low light without illumination. I'm not against illumination, but I want to be able to see the reticle whether or not the electronics in my scope are working.

3 grand for 1 scope is insane. buy 2 NXS scopes for 3500 and outfit 2 different rigs. glass good enough to shoot well beyond legal light. dead nuts reliable tracking. spend money on other guns, ammo, gun parts or, high maintenance wives.

LRHSi 4.5x18 is my recommendation. Doug can hook you up for <1/3 if your budget. I’d the take the savings and put together a second rifle.

+1 on the LRHS/LRTS

Or go huntin...

If you can go to 36 ounces, we have a demo of the #8704 Steiner M5Xi Military 5-25x56 - Horus H59 coming in at $2399.99 if this is of interest

For the spec's listed above, I'd choose the Z8. It'll do everything you are asking better than your other choices. Right fit, 7 mils of adjustment, and i doubt you could find better glass on the market.

Typo? 7 mils is a little light for long range.

7 mild is 24 MOA which will get the opening poster well past the range he wants to get to.

The bushnell LRHS I am sure is a great scope (no direct experience) but to assume its in the same class as a Hensoldt, Tangent, S&B, and to refer it over these three is not the best advise IMHO. Are these three 2k better - maybe not, but not everyone that gets on this forum has to penny pinch. If the orignial poster can afford 3k for a scope, then great for him - get the best money can buy! I think the S&B PM II 3-12X would do him quite well. Usually, if someone can afford 3k for a scope, money is not the biggest issue, so he that person can probably still afford to build more rifles or buy tons of bullets to shoot.

I personally am not in that financial class as 1k optics are my ceiling, but if I had the money and could afford a 3k scope that fit my needs for the rifle it was going on, I would buy it over a bushnell in a heartbeat.

Sure, if a bases or rings are used to give the full use of that 7 mils. Anyone that buys a scope with 7 mils of travel and intends to shoot 800 yards is nuts. I'd be willing to bet the Z8 actually has more than that, probably double.

I think that was well said. We sometimes forget that $3K to some folks isn't any more than $300,or even $30 to most of us. With resources there's no need to go cheaper to afford a hunt or anything else.

One caveat however is that such a person usually isn't putting a $3K scope on a model 70.