Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Pro's and Con's of a AO for Hunting

I have always used scopes with fixed objectives but I have been looking at the Nikon Monarch 3.3-10x44 with the AO. What are the pro's and con's of a AO on a hunting rifle.
Thanks

I'm sure you'll get a lot of replies from the more educated, but I have always shyed away from AO for hunting scopes. I'm about to mount up my first AO on a 25-284, which will be used for coyote and deer. I believe most of the fixed parallax hunting scopes are set at 150 yards, so I don't know why you couldn't pre-adjust the parallax for 150 yards - or whatever distance you believe your most-likely shot will come at.

This is what I'm planning on doing, but I too want to hear others' thoughts.

Their biggest drawback is they are dimmer than the same scope w/o an A/0. That's because they are built with an extra lense, or lenses.
On a big game rifle, they aren't really necessary. However, if the best groups beyond 300 yds. are a requirement, then they pay for themselves.
They are also popular with .22 rimfire shooters who like to shoot between 50-200 yds. E

It's useful for long range or small targets. You won't miss not having it on a deer rifle.

PDS nailed it.

It is also useful for close range and small targets

Miked2104,

A few years ago while walking to a different rock chuck area, I heard something which sounded vagely familiar. Then I realized I had ear plugs in and what I heard was a rattler! Normally snakes are safe from me. But I was planing to sleep on the ground there and continue hunting rock chucks the next day. I could not adjust the A/O down beyond 50 yards on the Burris. I couldn't see the snake in the scope. It was too blurry. My new SightronII adjusts clear down to 10 feet! To me A/Os are good.

Rossi 720s are seldom worth a damn, but for shooting snakes with birdshot, they are my standard recommendation. No need for an A/O on a 3" 44 Special, just point and click, er I mean shoot.

Jeff