So....I have posted in other forums here at this site my beginning foray into 7.62x39 as a SHTF / possible secondary hunting cartridge. i was having that very discussion at lunch, and a contractor overheard,a nd vounteered that he had a Ruger Compact in that caliber on order, and that got us talking....what is the lightest possible scope you could on it? I mean fixed power would be fine.

I asked the guy if he was hip on istalling irons/peep sight or a dot sight and he said no, he wanted a scope of some type. So tht begs the question....what is the LIGHTEST scope, variable or fixed, 1" tube diameter, max about 4 power (less would be Ok too)on the market today?

Leupold 2.5x20 FX-II Ultralight at 8oz?

I just weighed my M8 2.5x20 Compact w/Weaver low steel strap rings and BC caps. 10oz on the button. So that FX-II should go less than 8oz. Seems I read somewhere that 458Win weighed one at 6.5oz?

NEAT!

The 2.5X Leupold Ultralight runs about 6.5 ozs. Their current 4X runs about 9 ozs. E

If you are truly preparing for a SHTF situation, I would recommend adding a front sight and getting the NECG Ruger peep site on standby. You could even remove the front sight blade or even the whole front ramp and keep it in your pack just in-case.

Warranties and CS and all that wont mean much if the schit truly has hit the fan. I simply cannot imagine a SHTF set up that should not have iron's....just my way of thinking.

Josh

Agree that the Leupold 2.5x Leupold UL is probably the lightest 1" scope around and is also super tough - Phil Shoemaker, aka 458Win, reports that when he carries his back-up rifle while guiding, with 2.5x scope attached, he regularly throws/drops it on the ground when he stops to rest, with no problems after many years of use. Which sounds perfect for a SHTF rifle.

+1...sound advice there.

As anyone who has hunted with me in the past twenty-seven years can attest, I usually drop my rifle in the tundra every time I sit down to glass or take a break. The tundra is not all that hard and the fall is certainly more gentle than the recoil of a 8 1/2 lb 458. In all those years I have never had a problem with the little Leupold on my rifle and never seen one on any of the other half dozen I have on loaner rifles - and my guides and packer are a lot rougher on my rifles than I am.

Love that picture. That rifle looks like a real user, with its own unique beauty. Kinda like the twisted, nicked-up hands of a carpenter, or the wind-weathered face of a tested, grizzled hunter. Most people try to keep their rifles looking like the hands and face of a GQ model. Any duct tape or gorilla tape on it?

Might be even more interesting to see the rifles of those guides and packers.

Great photo.

Steve.

Dag nabbit - where the hell did I put down that 458 anyway?

As far as I know, the 2.5x Leupold is indeed the lightest currently made scope--and while I don't use mine as much as Phil uses his, I've yet to see one malfunction in any way.

The lightest scope I've ever found is a 2.5x Noske in my collection. It has a 7/8" aluminum tube, a big post reticle, and despite being 60+ years old has worked fine on several rifles. It weighs right around 5-3/4 ounces, and like the 2.5x Leupold also has long and very flexible eye relief.

That made me smile - and for all the wrong reasons.

Mule Deer, what rifle is the Noske currently mounted on? I remember seeing a photo once of a Savage model 20 in .250-3000 with a 2-1/2x Noske scope. What a nice little rig that was!

I don't have the Noske on a rifle right now.

Had it on a few over the years, but hunted with it mostly on a 99EG in .300 Savage, where it worked real well. Also tried it on a .270 with moderate 150-grain loads, as the elevation turret is marked out to 800 yards for that bullet at 2780 fps--believe it or not. It worked pretty well on rocks out to about 500 yards, but that was about as far as I could aim reasonably accurately with the reticle!

Little off topic but how far would you guys w/a 2.5x20 scope could be used on deer ?

It would depend on light conditions. Lower-magnification scopes aren't as bright, but if light is sufficient to see the deer, then I'd feel comfortable at 300 yards or more.

thats a MKIV in the back ground for long range work.
real "top shelf" scopes.
100% light transmission and color. No blurring around the edges.
wide FOV.
lifetime replacment warrenty.

Thank you Mule Deer -we have a lot of thick growth here in florida -so i guess the 2.5x would be fine but a good light gathering scope is handy under the thick canopy on grey dark days.

My eyes just won't let me use a 20mm objective lens any more. Just too dim.