Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Returning to the 4x scope

That would actually be an interesting test: an Athlon and Hawke against an older Leupold or Burris.

Leupold passed the 60+ year test with flying colors.

Leupold deserves more respect than some bozo testing it against some Asian made toy that has as much chance as a fart in a whirl wind of making it to the 60 year test.

I don't see much point in the comparison, most 4X Leupolds are friction adjustments and I have yet to see anyone dialing with a fixed 4X. All I ask of the fixed 4 or 6 is that it hold zero, I could care less about how much it wiggled on the way getting there.

On my hunting rifle I used a 4X Weaver for over 3 decades, then a few years ago I moved to a 6x36 Leupold and am still using it. For a hunting rifle at normal ranges (50 - 300 yds) I have never felt the need for anything more. And as someone mentioned earlier - when you are used to seeing animals at the same magnification all of the time the range estimation becomes more of an automatic thought rather than having to sort out how large the animal should look like a various distances.

For punching paper I want all of the magnification I can get - 24X is ok but I really like 36X.

drover

Just won a nice M8 4x last nite on flea bay . It’s going on my M70 Featherweight in 7x57 in a set of Talley QD’s. Beauty in simplicity.
Most of my hunting situations don’t allow for fiddlin’ with gadgetry.

Started w/ 4x Burris as well.

Went to 3-9x, and 2-7x, and then 2.5-8x.

Have to say that they will be stayin'.

The rifles are left on the lowest, 2-3x setting, and then cranked up to 6x if/when more magnification is needed.

But 4x also works fine.




GR

I use fixed 4 and 6 Leupolds on almost all of my hunting rifles and don’t feel handicapped at all.

I've got lots of scopes. Some of which aren't mounted on any rifles. My current "go to" rifles wear either a 4X FXII or a 3X Big Game scope. Others have 6X42's or even a 2X Scout. Most of variables are sitting in a box. Except for the 3.5-10X40 on my .22-250.
As far as 500 rd. or some sort of box test, how about a "drop test." The 3X Big Game scope past one this year. Lost my footing side hilling out in the desert. Tossed the rifle on the rocks and used my left forearm to break my fall. Took over 20 Butterfly Bandages to close the torn skin, but the rifle, in spite of some nice dings on the side of the scope, did not loose zero..... My 4X Leupolds, both the latest FXII's and my old M8, never did either. My old 3-9X33 Compact, and both my 6X42 Leupold held up as well. E

Well no, not exactly. Older scopes were designed to be sighted-in, then left that way, and were highly regarded if they retained zero. Accurate adjustments were pretty much irrelevant, whether defined by a box test, or today a "tall target test."

Have owned plenty of older Leupolds (especially fixed-powers) that held zero year after year after year. But they often required most of a box of ammo to get zeroed in the first place. In fact, still own one, the 4x33 M8 that's been on my 9.3x62 for 20 years. Have killed a bunch of big game with it, from North America to two lengthy safaris in Africa, and when I decide it's on the list for possible use "this year" take it to the range and shoot it once--and the bullet always lands within less than half an inch of two inches high at 100 yards.

But it's not a rifle meant for shooting at long range--and the longest shot I've ever taken was 300 yards, in Africa on a blesbok, about the size of a whitetail--which dropped. But would never dream of "dialing" it for longer shots.

Thanks, John. I guess when I said it would be an interesting test I wasn't really thinking about dialing or shooting long range. What I was thinking was "How does this $80 Hawke compare to a $300 Leupold when it comes to things like clarity, low-light resolution, zero retention, reliability and repeatability when making adjustments (limited, I know, but we still sometimes need to make adjustments when changing ammunition or swapping between rifles), mounting dimensions, eye relief, etc.? How does an Athlon or Hawke stack up against a Leupold or Burris when it comes to the normal way a fixed power scope is used?" That's sort of what I had in mind.

Last place I had a shot over 150 yards was Nam. I do have a 4x scope collecting dust, but all of my active duty glass is 2.5X. Old Weavers and a couple of Leupolds.

If you need to ask buy the Hawke.

I have the older 4x Leupold's and Swarovski's. They are bullet proof and easily refreshed at the repair centers. They are exceptionally clear and the bullet hits where I aim....if I do my part. The fact remains....how optically perfect do you need or/and is it a matter of being able to tell your buddies that your scope cost more than theirs? Maybe I'm too practical but, why fix what ain't broken.

Darrel Wick

The Asia scope will also last 60 years if it's mounted up, sighted in, shot a few times on a light to medium recoiler every few years, hauled up into an enclosed stand to sit a few times, and otherwise spends the majority of its life taking up space in a safe or closet. This is what's expected out of many, many scopes. Further, a lot of guys might not even realize that their scope is failing them; they shoot a couple downrange, and if it's off a few inches from the last time they shot it, they re-adjust and go sit in their blind.

I wouldn't have put a fixed 4 on my custom 700 6CM, but I think it works well on an old M721.

You ever saw a old Tasco or an old Bushnell scope that has been used ?.....They been around a long time all the old ones look like warmed over crap.

No way I'd ever trust an Asian scope on a shot that could be the buck of a lifetime....they do make good range toys.

You ever saw an old Leupold scope that has been used ?....most still look and function flawlessly.

I would trust a Leupold 100% to make that shot of a lifetime.

Nice set up.

I saw a neat trick on Youtube about getting those old style Weaver rings on and off without scratching the scope tube....slip a piece of paper under the side with the hook when you and put them on and take them off.....

I wish I had known that years ago.

One good thing about those M8s is that they are long enough to fit on a long action without any special R&B set-ups.

Didn't you say that people paid you to test scopes....

Hope they give you free ammo too.

That's a good idea. Weaver makes another ring that has screws on both sides with no hook. The rings on a 721 are those rings.

I really should swap out those rings to the original Weavers with the big thumb screw and hook.

I tried the paper trick it works.