Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Fixed 4X for new hunters

Maybe new hunters should restrict themselves to fixed 4X power scopes for deer and other large game. If they feel they need more magnification, then they know they really need to get closer to the game.

Umpteen years ago iron sights accomplished this.

A 4 power scope is not restrictive for general hunting, it's pretty much perfect. Where I do find it restrictive is at the range were you are trying to do some load development or shooting small targets at longer ranges.

I use 1.5x5s, 2x7s, and 2.5x8s. I use the low end for hunting and the higher end for range work. That's good for a new hunter or old.

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A 4X is a good place to start....and a good place to finish.

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So two fixed power scopes cover load development and general game use.

Use a 20X fixed power on detachable rings for load development, or maybe a 16X.

Use a 4X fixed power on detachable rings for hunting.


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What BobinNH said.. +1

If the glass is good - and even inexpensive Weaver glass is good enough- load development/range work can easily be accomplished by simply using aiming points one can see well at the chosen magnification and distance. I have had no trouble shooting 1 MOA or less with 4X and 6X power scopes at 100 and 200 yards if the rifle and load were capable and I used aiming points I could see well. Trying to use a little 1/2" dot which works with a 12X scope to aim a 4X scope is a bit of an exercise in futility however.

I started out deer hunting with a 2.5-4X B&L. By the time I actually got one, my rifle was equipped with a 2.5-8X B&L. It wasn't until I bought a new Ruger in 7X57 in 1972 that I went to a simple 4X. For my other rifles, I used all sorts of variables, including a big 6.5-20X40. Little by little, I discovered the 4X worked far better than I ever thought. When I finally started using Leupolds 6X42 a few years ago, I realized that a fixed magnification scope really does, or can, have some very priactical advantages over any variable.
The only thing they really lack is much low light performance. A decent 6X takes care of anything almost anyone needs for that. E

Agree 100% with everything just stated.

Damned tough to beat a top-shelf 6x42 for 99.9% of hunting usage. For those other pursuits, (i.e. LONG range varminting; CLOSE range dangerous stuff), it's a specialized pursuit and rig anyway.

I learned to shoot deer with a 308 Win and a steel tube 4x Weaver with a plain crosshair. Like it was said a couple of posts ago 4x is a good point to start and end. Just about all of my rifles have 3-9x variables, but I almost never use them set at anything but 4x. After learning to shoot with this setup, it is almost as good as a rangefinder. If it looks too small in 4x it is very probably too far away to shoot at. Even with the newest Whiz Bang Magnum and Optical Wonderscope. Most guys I see with this stuff, despite the marvelous equipment wind up shooting too far for their skill level. Rangefinders are a different deal, they are very useful, provided you don't addict yourself to the things. I'm not anti magnum, I use both 300 Win and 7mm Rem. My go to deer rifle is a Ruger 6.5x55.

I've shot hundred of coyotes with a 250 Savage with a variable 3-9 Weaver that my dad put on it years ago. I usually just turn it all the way to 9 and leave it there. It seems to me that over half of these coyotes are on the move. If you call them in, or just come across them somewhere, there are almost always more than one. I can't claim to hit them all, but I can get more of them running at 500 or 600 yrds than anybody I know. I think a fixed power scope has a big advantage in that the animal in the field of view appears a certain size consistantly, and this is your range finder. If the scope I have ever fails, I will replace it with a fixed power scope.

E and Jacque: +2 to all that. I hate to admit this, but although I own and use some variables (split about 50-50 between fixed an variable these days), I have never shot a big game animal with a scope set above 4X, including those taken at or over 400 yards. I know this will brand me as a Neanderthal throwback, but generally, i just aim and shoot and the last thing to enter my mind is whether i have enough scope power for big game.

Jaque is right; sticking with a single power setting builds a subconscious awareness of distance that you acquire through experience.You know when stuff is, or is not, in range.

that being said.....is it a 6X or a 4X ??? I am planning on having a 6X customised by Leupold and Kenton Industries, but not the 42mm, rather the FXII-36mm.

If you can't shoot a deer or elk with a 4x or 6x scope, you can't shoot. When you throw in Antelope or Coyote you may need more magnification, or crawl closer.

3x9 has become the standard but it is hard to snap shoot at 9x despite what some youngsters are able to do...

How 'bout a poll, how many have left the scope magnification cranked up from sight in and forgot to check it when hunting? I have a few times...

Some will disagree, but my pick as a general purpose big game scope would be a 4X. There could be times when 6X would be more useful, but I have gotten along nicely for years with a 4X.Not that I dislike variables because I've come to trust certain ones; it's just that I never seem to use the variable feature except at the range.

I did recently buy a Leup 6x36 with the "long range" reticle. Looks cool but have had no chance to try it.

i just started doing the switch from 3x9s to lower power scopes so much so that 4 of my heavy guns wear leupold 4x s,most animals i shot , except for 1 deer were set at the lower power ranges depends i beleive the situation and where you hunt,the areas i hunt here in ontario are pretty thick and once in a while you get a long shot,i used to use my scopes at 3 most the time so i settled in the fixed 4 x dont worry about trying to decide what power i left the scope on when a deer screams by me,did i accidently leave the scope on 9x oops gone deer.

My 4.5-14 hasn't left 4.5X in almost 10 years. I'm gonna try the 2-7 next. I imagine it will stay at 2X most of the time.

Then why spend the extra money?

I'm a fan of the current simple, light and durable LEU fixed 2.5X, 4X, and 6X scopes. New, old, experienced or not could all do very well w/ nothing more than the 4X.

If LEU ever comes out w/ the new 3X, I'd be content w/ nothing more than that and the 6X.

GVA

Variable power scopes are pretty much a security blanket for those who feel they simply must have the perfect power for any conceivable circumstance. But I think that a new shooter should not have to worry his head over subtle nuances like that, and should just concentrate on rifle shooting basics, and mastering field positions. High power in scopes is nice over sandbags, or "locked-in" positions with bi-pods, etc., but are a hindrance to a kid (or anyone else) looking to be a good off-hand shot,or from the sit, etc., etc. High power also slows you down as you struggle to steady bouncing crosshairs from less than rock solid positions.Maybe it's just the way I see things through scopes, but a 4X has always given me adequate definition at any reasonable range, and anything within 400 yards has never been safe.

I've found I like a bit more power in a rifle for use on Canadian whitetails, because the animals are sometimes hunted along huge fields, where a rangefinder and more scope power has been theoretically useful, but my last two whitetail bucks taken up there were both killed at about 75 yards, on fields that I could glass and laze to about 800 yards. They both appeared so suddenly, and on the move, that a 2.5 power would have done the job.Once again, the "theory" of big game shooting that sells so many high-end variables, failed to mesh with the reality.