Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Nightforce on a hunting rifle?

AIC,



I am glad to read this info. But then one pays about three grand for something that is marginally better. Remember Ford used to make a Falcom and a Fairlane and a Galaxie. Swarovski makes the z3, z5 and the z6 to appeal to people who want to pay a lot more for a tiny bit, if any, better performance.

When someone pays more for a z5 Swarovski than they do for a Nightforce they expect the Swaro to be better in every respect. It isn't. It isn't even as good as my Bushnell 6500 during normal day light, but it is lighter.

I don't want a z6. They are going the wrong direction for me as far as weight goes. I sold the Nightforce. The Bushnell 6500 came off my .257 Weatherby and went on a heavy varmint barrel rifle cause it is just too heavy. The z5 Swarovski is the best compromise between light weight, low light performance, and quality of image and magnification range. Sometimes we have to pay more for what we want.

Stick knows some things, and Rick tried to let him back. But did you see what happened? Stick was EVERYWHERE, trying to start fights with everyone. Every thread became all about him. It was impossible to try and have a conversation.

There's a lot of us here who aren't Stick-lickers (lol) but don't hate the guy. If he'd make even the slightest effort to be a good campfire citizen, he'd be here, and I agree with you, it'd be a stronger forum for it. But Rick had no choice. Stick was wrecking things.

A bar owner has to toss a guy wrecking it for everyone else, or nobody will come to the bar. Regardless of how much that guy knows.

Just my take. I hope Stick gets his posting privileges back and I hope he doesn't abuse the privilege this time.

That changes the physics involved in no way at all.

I hope he never get his posting privileges back. He hasn't changed in the least. He's abusive and full of schit. I have him on ignore, and have had him on ignore since Rick let him back on the site. After his 2-day grieving period he ramped the abuse up and hit the ground running in his size 4 PF Flyers.

And why do you care what someone uses?

Windowlicker.... grin...

"When someone pays more for a z5 Swarovski than they do for a Nightforce they expect the Swaro to be better in every respect. It isn't. It isn't even as good as my Bushnell 6500 during normal day light, but it is lighter."

Uhhhh... The Swarovski and Nightforce are about the same price. On is more of a target scope at 34 oz. and the other a hunting scope at 17.5 oz. You cant tell much about a scopes ability on game by looking at "pump house" through the scope. Why dont you get back with us on your comparisons after a year of actually hunting with them before you give your arm chair opinions?

This is funny stuff... I can see you now in tight shorts and colorful sweatband.

Uh...No...Under Armour Cool Gear and Nike Cross trainers.

Manic_Hunter,

Check the prices of the Nightforce 12-42X56 on google. You will discover they run about $1,400 to $1,450. On the other hand the Swarovski z5 5-25X52 plex runs about $1,600 to $1,675. At my wages that is a significant differnce

This thread is about a Nightforce on a hunting rifle. When I was young, I could easily carry a typical hunting rifle with something the weight of a Nightforce and not given it a second thought.

Do you think a scope that does not do as well as another scope in an image test will do better looking at game? I am very happy for you. This very day I learn that for many shooters good enough is. I want the best I can afford. That does not include the luxury of using one for a year and then putting it in the safe if I don't like it.

At my age, I need to get to whatever I'm gonna get to.

Old coach I have an 8x32x56 Nightforce on my 300 win mag. It is a reasonably light weight rifle at 9.8 lbs. I spot with binoculars and use the scope for details such as rack quality or to see any obstructions such as small limbs in the way.
By having a high power scope it becomes more than just a sight, it allows you to place you shot more precisely. Most of the time it is not necessary but it can make the difference between a really nice trophy and no shot opportunity.
The large scope allows me to leave the spotting scope home. I use a set of Vortex Kiababs binoculars for finding the animals and the Nightforce for assessing what I have found. Most of our shots are 300 to 500 yards in brushy canyons at blacktail deer that are pretty small so precision shooting is critical. Typical deer is only about 100 pounds on the hoof. 50 to 70 pounds dressed.

The Nightforce Benchrest models are target scopes; their NXS line are tactical scopes and are built about as ruggedly as any scope on the market.

Old Coach,I have a 5.5-22x56 on a heavy barrel 300 WSM.I use it like you said,as a stand rifle for long range.Its just too heavy to carry all day.The only drawback that I have with it is that it is too much scope if you get an unexpected close shot or close moving shot.I have the 56mm,because the 50mm was not in stock when I ordered it.It's ok,and I was able to use the same rings with either.The thing is heavy,and it looks huge,but it is a great scope. Lightman

Perhaps I should have been more forthcoming with my answer. I don't give a [bleep] what you think. I'm going to hunt with that rifle because that's the rifle I want to hunt with; physics and your opinion be damned.

Clear?

Well? Magnumdoof, show us that Stick was wrong and post some of the slain animals with that gun of yours...

I am not saying Big Stick is perfect. None of us are. Sure he can be abrasive and opinionated. But he only gets out of hand when you guys let him. You want to make it all about Big Stick and it is not. It takes two to tango. Fall in his lap and of course he is going to unlease on you.

This is addressed to Big Stick. There are a lot of people that like to read your post that are informative and that aren't abrasive. You have a lot of knowledge over a wide range of topics. Because of this you do intimidate some guys on here. I hope that you will continue to post on a positive note. Though I find a lot of your negitive post funny, its not you that makes them funny. It is the guy that fell for your bait. So Big Stick I ask you one thing, please tone it down a couple of notches. I want to be able to read your good post.

Your clarity may be the problem here rather than mine. It doesn't matter to me what rifle you elect to use for a hunt and I never indicated that I did. Initially I pointed out that there are ways (and I detailed one of them) that you might train with lower oxygen air. I also noted that regardless of your level of conditioning, carrying a lighter rifle is less work than a heavier one, which is simple fact. Your reply to that was less commentary on what I actually wrote than an indication you took it as some kind of personal attack. You might as well have said you'd only tote the rifle while the sun was up, it has about as much relation to the work required to carry it as it being your favorite.

It might be you don't care how much work you do and that is all right with me. As above, despite what the voices tell you I'm not trying to talk you out of it or anything. But if you don't expect any commentary of what you write you might want to avoid putting it on a web forum where people comment on what others write.

I'd be more concerned if a hunter can shoot straight rather than what setup he's got. If Magnum can shoot that rig, he'd be more than welcome to hunt with me anytime. I don't care if it weighs 25 lbs. I've seen plenty of clowns show up with so called "mainstream" rifles and scopes, proclaiming how great a shot they are, and miss 23 times at 180" muleys.

Magnum Douche P.I.(Poosy Itches),is a delusuional Day Dreamer,grasping feverishly at Imagination. Her Imagination simply pads her from Reality and it's hilarious "results". She'll blather about much in contrived Theory,but can never bear fruit in any Reality...which is all too constant anymore. A single Critter ain't much,but yet far too much for her to summons,which is of course too [bleep] funny and upon countless levels!

Her cluelessness extends to all things and runs commensurate with her Imagination. She can't even keep up with her dumbphucktitude and I'm groovin' on how she's supposedly had me on "Ignore". There's no stoppin' that gal's Imagination! Bless her heart.

It is an amalgamation of Arm Chair Quarterbacks,"educated" farrrrrr beyond their "intelligence" and waxing eloquently about schit they can't do,though never on purpose. Ringman has charts to peer,fancies his scopes as observation devices...but just can't ever seem to hang crosshairs on anything but Rats and Dinks. Were she scripting Comedy,it'd be spot on,but as a Theorum on how to reliably connect dots,she's woefully dismal in her connect percentages. The oldest adage of all is that if someone can't do it for themself,they sure as schit aren't going to be able to "inform" another on how to.

Jeff-O wishes to wax poetic and tug at semantic heartstrings,to mask her dumbphucktitude. Poor stupid sonofabitch hasn't the smarts requisite,to factor concisely just how [bleep] stupid she is. Too bad she can't concoct a chart to graph that. Laffin'!

The Do-Nothing Gang is a colossal culmination of Flat Landing boobs running amuck,walking around with their heads in their asses,patting eachother on the back and trying feverishly to cajole excuses outta one another to justify their inherent sucktitude,dumbphucktitude,paltry results and contrived nonsense as a viable means of "effectiveness". Not one of the [bleep] idiots can remove head from ass and hang pics of B&C Critters...but all whine wonderfully!

You'd think,that given their "incredible" fitness regimens,"incredible" optics,"incredible" passion to Hunt,"incredible" amount of time spent Outdoors,"incredible" ballistics comprehension and "Incredible" rifle builds,one of the poor dumb bastards woulda killed an "incredible" specimen of some sort?!!? Not no,but [bleep] no...it ain't in the cards,which is purty incredible in itself when weighed in overview.(grin)

There ain't one of the poor bastards with the true know how to answer a question about anything other than the proper application of Vagisil,Midol or Mascara. But in fairness,all have the inherent "knowledge","results" and "experience" to stampede to the front of the line by default to ask questions,which cain't be slighted in it's gravity or poignant oversight.

The Do-Nothing Gang is a concise blueprint of the results garnered,when Fantasy collides with Reality and I reckon the pot sweetened in that the gals think it's "something",to do nothing. Undoubtedly they gotta try to tell themselves sumptin' and attempt to pawn off their blundering hilarity and ineptitude,under the guise of having a clue and under their Secret Squirrel umbrella. I'm personally thankful that they opt to do it aloud...as it is some SERIOUSLY funny schit!

Conversely,it is very easy for them who reliably connect dots on a grand scale,to denote plainly the methodology/tools used and to touch base on the particulars associated,as well as the end results.

Never ain't not easy,to cypher who Do and who Dreams...............

Thanks, that makes sense now. I've never been into the long range thing, so I honestly didn't know.

I'm not into big and heavy scopes, but I do have a Nightforce 2.5-10x32 that I've used on a couple of guns and is going on a 6.5x55 Blaser R8. I got it for the illuminated reticle and velocity reticle, both of which work very well.