Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa Scopes for Dangerous Game Rifles

What kind of low-powered scope and mounts would you recommend for the following: 375H&H to be used for Alaska bear and African game in general, including Cape Buffalo, and (b) 458 Winchester Magnum.

Indy

I allways recommend a 3x fixed Leupold, a 1x4 Leupold, or a 1.5x5 Leupold on calibers up to the 458 Lott then I would use a 2x compact Leupold as it is the toughest scope on the market.

I like the 20 MM objective as it is very hard to knock out of zero where the belled scopes are easy to knock off zero and get easier as the bells get bigger and the scopes get longer...reliability is the main criteria in a hunting rifle...

I don`t think I would mount a scope on the 458, because of the recoil.

On the 375 I would mount a EAW mount. That way you can change between different scopes to different types of hunting. If you want one scope, I would go for a 1-4x20 from a well known quality factory like Schmidt & Bender, Zeiss, Swarowski and leupold. 3X magnification might be a little to much in tight bush.

Indy,

For your .458 Win Mag I would consider the use and the close range you are apt to use it, and then use an aperture ghost ring sight.

On .375s I have used 1.5-4.5X20, 1.5-5X20, 1.75-6X42 and 3-9X40 depending on the application. If you are going to use this rifle for leopard, I recommend a scope with 32 mm to 36mm objective at the minimum -- unless you have everything go just right.

Now that Beretta has acquired Burris, I would like to try the new Burris Signature Safari scope.

jim

My suggestion would be; a 1.5-5 Leupold on the .458 ( I'am using 2.5-8 on a .375 AI). It's pretty hard to beat "good glass" in a low-light situation. And if you feel you must have irons available, use some good QD bases and rings on your scope. This is the method I've used since '89 and still haven't used the irons but they're there "just in case"! -memtb

Indy
I have had excellant service out of my 1.25 x 4 Schmidt & Bender on a
375 H&H . They have great optics and a wide FOV and pretty decent low light performance for such a small scope. The EAW mounts are tops on this kind of setup.

dave

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I would choose a reddot sight over iron sights and another good alternative is the leupold 1.5-5 illuminated circle dot retical scope.

Check out these links:

Reddot
Leupold scope

I've held back from posting on this becasue everyone has to get what they feel good with. Some with iron sights and some with Scopes. Nobody should use a red dot sight on a DG rifle. Way to many things can go wrong with them. Batteries die, looking into the bright sunshine is a difficult problem with them at times, and and I have not seen one yet that will hold up to the pounding of a big bore rifle. Nope,... not now or ever gonna risk my life with all that fluff on a true DG rifle!

In 458 irons are the best option for dependability and true backup use no foolin around! By Iron sights thats peep sights or good iron sights. I prefer my hunters use a scope so any low power scope mentioned by others is a good option.

As far as scoping a 375HH I have used and tried about every kind of scope made on mine. I still cannot find a better scope for a 375HH then the 2.5-8 leupold VariXIII. That scope will let you use the rifle at point blank and still make a 300 yard shot on that distant Kudu or Vaal Reabok. I really like that scope when Premier reticles swaps out the standard duplex and installs the German 4A reticle. You wanna talk about low light use? This is the best I have ever used on a hunting rifle. Plenty of optics are bright but few will let you see the crosshairs in the fading twilight like the 4A reticle. Leupolds also have the crosshairs in the correct plane of focus unlike those silly European scopes which seem to appear as if your looking through a tunnel to see the crosshairs. That system is fine if it's all you have ever used but it's a weird thing to get used to when you have used a leupold for a whole lifetime.

I like the 2.5-8 with the 4A and every person has has used my rifle has made the statement that that was about the best setup for a big game rifle they have ever seen. I think the europeans hunting at night more frequently then Americans do has helped to make this reticle design a great option.

Indyca35
You may want to look at a Leupold Vari-X lll in 1.75 x 6. Clear optics and good eye relief. What I recommend to my customers is to go to a store that has several brands of scopes and look outside through all of them then decide what is best for you. Dont look inside the store, go outside for a more realistic picture. I think you will find the 1.75 x 6 or the 2.5 x 8 will work fine.
Charlie

What about the Weaver K2.5 series scopes on a DGR? I put one of those on my 375 H&H a few weeks ago, but haven't gotten round to shooting the gun yet. I'll do that tomorrow, though . . .