Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Express Rifles and Big Bores Only Scopes For Medium Bore Rifle

if limited to just one, it would probably be the 1.5-5 MK4 because it can do defensive or hunting. for pure hunting the 6x is the favorite, and for defensive use, the 2.5x is nice. i seldom carry a pistol in the woods.

my .350 WSM wears a fixed 4x, and it's hard to find fault with it.

Thanks toad! For pure hunting 6x, but why the M1 turrets?

I think it depends on the application, what you are hunting and where. I put the 1.25-8x scope on my .375 Wby for my alaskan brown bear hunt because I certainly didn't want more than 2x magnification when hunting those things. Witht he 1.25-power it's very natural to shoot and aim quickly with two eyes open at something pretty close with big sharp claws. I also had a wolf tag. Though I didn't get to shoot at one, my guide has taken and overseen successful shots on them at around 400yds. I would rather have a a lot more than 4-power for that. So, a single magnification didn't really seem that ideal for my particular hunt that was a rare guided hunt opportunity for me. And since many modern adjustable scopes are just about as durable as any scope IMO, I decided to get the variable.

We stalked the boar I ended up getting until he was 100 yards away (97yds to be exact) and while I was getting ready to shoot , I almost subconsciously twisted the scope to about 3.5 power until it looked right to me. I suppose that, subconsciously, iit looked good to me because any more magnification would have left less of a field of view that I would have liked if he had darted off somewhere. Awhile after I took the shot, which rendered him completely lifeless in about 1.5 seconds, and while the guide was going up to make sure while I backed him up, I noticed that my scope had been reset by me from 2-power to about 3.5-power. I'm not sure that I even realized I was doing it. And if I hadn't had time to do it, I'm sure I would have just fired it at 2-power. that's why I like variable in some situations.

.................W/Bill 375....This isn`t rocket science here. What is good for one goose isn`t always the best for another gander. Go with your gutt feel. There are many scope choices to better accomplish what you want to do.

The more opinions or assurances from others you get, the more confused you may become.

You want to try and avoid that,,,,paralysis from too much analysis syndrome.

for extended range. the .375 Ultra has the trajectory of the .270 Win (but with twice the bullet weight). Dotz would work too, but i like to dial.

but it has M1 knob on elevation only.

I dig stories and that's a good one! Thanks! I'm pretty much set on a variable and keep trying to talk myself out of a fixed 6x. But I am still leaning hard towards a 3-9x40 with an illuminated dot if I need it for real dark animals. Some times elk get muddied up and I can lose the cross hairs not to forget bears. The other argument for Variable scopes is you can also use them to see the branches you did not see at the lower power setting...that is if I have time to do so.

Hell, bigsqueeze, I'm already confused without input from others. Trust me when I say this battle has been going on in my head for approx 6 months. I need to settle on something before the summers practice sessions start. I'm a hunter and practice in hunting positions not a lot on the bench the old 375 loads have been developed a long time ago. I just keep on getting buggered up with the 1-4x. I shoot it and shoot it well. But sometimes the lack of power makes it more challenging.

2x7 Kahles on my 375 Ruger. Perfect combo IMO

............We`ve all gone through times of buying confusion; some more than others asking;,,,,,,What scope? Fixed? Variable? Best rifle for this? Best cartridge for that? Best bullet for this or that? What reloading equipment? On, and on, and on some more with even more hunting/shooting subject matter. Never ends. But that is what forums are for. To get a general consensus about this or that whether we agree with them or not.

I get a kick out of some of those who state,,,get this one or that one followed by,,,"enough said",,,and just leave it at that without explaining themselves. Kinda like what they have should be the final word on the subject...........Yeah right!

Put alot of small pieces of paper in a big bowl with all of your scope choices written equally in number on them,then mix `em up real good and draw one. That`s the scope you go with.

My problem is I want what I can't get at least right now. Leupold don't make it..Not that I'm stuck on Leupold but they have served me well for many years. So it looks like I'm stuck with this & it will have to do. LOL Now I know how my customers feel when I say sorry I don't or can't do that for what ever reason.
See if I could get a 2.5-8x42 with a Post Duplex Reticle opened up to the wide duplex dimensions with a firedot I think that would make the perfect hunting scope. So I think I know what would be perfect for me but I can't get it. So for now I've got to be satisfied with a XVR 3-9x40 with the firedot duplex. I'm sure it will do everything I ask of it but it's not what I really want. So to talk about it with guys that know does help. Funny thing is Nobody recommended a 3-9x40 LOL!

The power selector ring on the 3-9 leupolds can be kinda slickery in wet conditions or with frozen numb fingers. LOL

You may consider the Minox ZA-5 in 2-10x40, a very clear glass with 5"s of continuous eye relief, I have one on a custom M-70 in 300 Ultra and love it.

Gunner

I looked them up, and that looks like a great scope Gunner. But are you sure about the 5" of eye relief? Minox says it's 4": http://www.minox.com/index.php?id=6143&L=1

I'm not saying they are correct, but if they are cutting 20% off the eye relief of their scopes in their technical specs, they need a new marketing plan.

EDIT: Whoops, I see it says >4.0"

Still, if they are acheiving 5" of eye relief, they should say that for the sake of their own sales.

I have tried just about every style and manufacturer of low power variables - even used an ancient all-steel Weaver 1 1/2 - 4.5 on my .458 - then .375. I finbally setteled on another old timer - a 3 - 9 Redfield on the .375 and ireons only on the .458.

In 9 African hunts the .375 has never failed to deliver the goods with perfect satisfaction. Long shots are usually 80 yards, but when a 200 + yard shot for our dinner needed to be made the scope at 9x did the job. As always keep the scope at 3x unless you need more power and have plenty of time to make the shot. I don't use sticks so the scope stays at 3x unless I can find a handy bush or tree as a rest!

Terry

Here's a decent article written by John Barsness
http://www.americanhunter.org/articles/minox-za3-riflescope/

Note at the bottom; Eye Relief: 4" (advertised); 4" @ 3x, 3.7" @ 9x (tested)

And here's the thing that makes me think more about a fixed 6X :"Reticle shift was checked by looking through the scope at the collimator screen, then turning the magnification ring from 9x down to 3x and back up again, several times. In this particular scope the reticle remained centered from 9x down to 5x, but below that the reticle shifted about an inch high and left."

That's why I struggle with this stuff. I guess sometimes not knowing stuff like this makes it easy for guy to just throw what ever on there rifle and make it work. Reticle shift drives me crazy!

Scope selection should depend on what you plan on hunting as well as how and where. The chambering is secondary.

I put a 1.5x5 on my 375. Moose are generally shot at closer range and the 5x high end is plenty for longer shots. I would be just as happy with a 2.5x8.

I have now owned several .375s and used a variety of scopes on them, my first one being the ubiquitous Leupy VariX-III 1.5x5 "DGR" model. I soon found that, for me, this was a rather poor choice and more useful alternatives exist.

I have tried several and my current favourite on my minty P-64 .375 "ouch and ouch" is the Leupy VX-3, 1.75x6 MHD, as fine a "general purpose" big game hunting scope as I have ever used for BC conditions. I pair this fine rifle, in it's Borden-Rimrock stock, with a .300 H&H exactly the same and in a matching handle.

The .300 wears a Leupy Vari-X-III 3.5x10x50, MHD and these two rifles will pretty much do anything anywhere, IMHO, at least at my small level of ability.

My other, custom .375 P-64, "shorty" now wears a Leupy 2.5xCMHD and I have considered changing it for a 1.75x6 as above. I also use this scope on a few of my .338WM rifles and with complete confidence, while another minty P-64, a Fwt. also in a Rimrock stock, in .30-06, wears one as well.

For about ANY "medium", I like this scope better than any other, excepting the discontinued Zeiss Conquest 4x I have on three of my Brno and CZ rifles in 9.3x62. I would choose it first for a .375 H&H.

Wild_Bill,

This may be out of the range of budget, but have you looked at the Swarovski Z6 in either 1.7-10 or 2-15? For the coin, they are truly amazing optics and offer the type of "adjust-ability" that fully exercises the range and power capabilities of the venerable .375. Also of note is the new Leupold VX-6 in 2-12 or even 3-18 if you're feeling a bit saucy! Good luck and let us know how it goes!

-John

4"s may be the absolute minimum they will quote, but I promise ya look through one and 5" is easy all day every day.

Gunner

I'm not doubting you at all. I'm just saying that they should say that.

My 9.3x62 wears a fixed leupold 4x. If I planned to run it more often and at longer range it might wear a 6x36 with dots. I'm plenty happy with the 4x inside 300.