Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Let's Talk $100-$200 Scopes

Kevin Petrzilka, the guy in Nebraska who shot the 203 4/8" typical whitetail in 2010 killed it with a 788 in 22-250 using a Tasco 3.5-10x50 scope and 55 grain BTs.

My sister drive from NY to CA in a '66 VW Karmann Ghia.

Sometimes you've got to make due with what you've got at the time, even it isn't what you wish you had for the job.

That’s amazing 260.

I bought the girls a Savage Axis XP in 243 a few years back.
It came with a weaver 3x9x40. I found it to be a poor scope and quickly removed it. My oldest daughter scoped herself (Just hit her shooting glasses) with it. I spent right around $200 cdn and put a Bushnell Banner2 in 4x12x40 and its much better scope in my opinion. The 3x9 weaver got put on the boys 22LR where its a much better fit.

Just being where you had the opportunity to see and shoot that deer is amazing. Until that day, nobody in the Petrzilka family had even seen it. The luck of being at the right place at the right time.

Ha! I thought mentioning the old Japan made Tasco's was going low. I didn't even bring up the Simmons. I got the exact same scope that was on my FIL's M70 30-06. He never shot it a lot, but normal shooting before season. I put well over 500 rounds through that rifle with that scope on. One of the better shooting rifles I've ever owned and it always wore that scope. It currently sits on a M98 30-06. Not quite as clear as the new Fullfield II, but clear enough and still works like it always did.

Those Jap Weavers and Elites are all I’ve ever needed…

There was a time when all my scopes were $100.

K2.5, K3, K4, K6 and K8. I didn't know that they were bad scopes because they worked.

My brother uses and swears by the newer Bushnells made in South Korea.

I bought a Bushnell Trophy back in the late 80s for around $100 to put atop my ruger tanger 30-06. It was a heck of an upgrade from the tasco that was on it when I bought it. I killed hogs and deer with it for 15 years banging around on a swamp buggy and 4 wheelers.

In 2003 I discovered the internet where much to my surprise I found out my scope was inferior and needed replaced immediately.

Now I will admit my VX3s were an upgrade but the old Bushnell held zero for years at a time under very rough use during long seasons. It works just fine all those years.

Those Trophies were/are good tough scopes. I'd take one of those over a Banner any day of the week, and twice on Sunday. I put one on my dad's 300 win mag back in the 90's, and that scope is still alive. It's a silver finished one, that he thought would look good on his Ruger boat paddle stock model. That scope never skipped a beat and worked great for him. After I got the rifle back (in 2019), I pulled the scope and put a better one on, only because I wanted more magnification.

For cheap scopes I only use the Burris FF2 anymore mostly the 4.5-14 model now $159 at Amazon.

I’ve owned & used your cheap scopes banner until the reticle literally fell apart. The Swift lost zero on a tv quality buck in CO at 300 yards. Still have a Sightron S2!- it’s solid as a rock always works. The VX2 just OK but for me the Zeiss conquests are now on elk rifles with mixed bag of others. Son & grandson got FF2’s on their 300 mags no problems.

If you walk a 100 yards to your deer stand & skip bad weather most scopes work. 10+ miles through oak brus sage & steep slopes better scopes have better results.

That trophy 3-9 is now mounted on a marlin 3030. It fit pretty good on it. I dont use the 3030 these days but the scope is still in use. Sort of…

^ lol, same. I've had one on one of my slug guns since the early 90's and its still doing fine. not sure how i ever killed anything with it, as "bad" as it is.

I personally think most of this comes down to solid mounting in good rings, degreasing threads and thread locking it all down tight.

I have an inexpensive Simmons 3x9 that I bought at walmart 10-13 years ago. Its mounted in weaver grand slam steel rings from walmart also, it was all degreased and thread locker applied. It sits on top of a Savage 110 in .270 Winchester.
That rifle has bounced around in trucks, kubotas, kawasaki mules and such for 4 years going and still puts my handloads into a 1"1/2 at 100 yards.
I have SWFA's on several rifles and they are great but even that Simmons was mounted the same and so were the burris, and bushnell trophy.....and they are all still doing great.

Best
HeavyDove

This is an interesting conversation, and one that's long
overdue in my humble opinion. The consensus on about every forum is any scope under a weeks wages will fail within it's first hunt, and an easy one at that. I'm not a wealthy guy, but have owned fairly nice rifle for several decades. Brownings, Kimbers, Christensens, Weatherbys etc and have never spent more than 300 dollars on my scopes. Usually vx1 and 2's, Freedoms, and a few Crossfire ll's and have never had a failure of any kind. Good mounts and rings, torqued properly, and 0 issues. All on 30.06 and up. 338's, 300 wm and wby and so on. Snow, rain, freezing cold. I would love to own Nightforce, high Mavens etc but I just justify it when I had perfectly reliable scopes for much less money. Cheers to those that shared their experiences. Im going to duck now, I'm sure mud slinging is coming my way. Regards

Just bought a Bushnell 3-9x40 last week at a yard sale for $20. Clear as a bell to my eyes. Not sure what model it is......old enough that it has aluminum turret caps, not plastic. I'm going to mount it on a M70 30-06 that for whatever reason is my hardest kicking 30-06. If it tracks and holds zero which I suspect it will, I'll put it to good use. I'll buy those kind of scopes all day every day at that money and never question it.