Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics New Scope for an Ultralight Rifle

Looking to put together a super light backpack hunting rifle. The rifle will most likely be a Tikka T3 superlite at 5.8 pounds. I will be shooting out to 600 yards so I really want a turret. Right now I am looking at the 2-7x32 Vortex Viper or the Leupold VX-2 Ultralight with CDS. Any opinions, I don't really want to spend much more than 400 bucks.

Leupold FXII 6x36 with CDS or M1.

+1!

VX3 2.5x8x36

Thats what my NULA is going to wear when it gets here...

Thanks. I don't know how I overlooked that one.

I have an FX-3 6x42 with LR-reticle on my T3 Super Lite in 300 Win Mag. A 200 yard zero with 200gr NAB at 2900 fps matches the reticle pretty good for my uses.

My regular T3 Lite Stainless in 270 has the Viper 2-7x with ballistic reticle. I like this scope but the FX-3 has more eye relief (may or may not matter to you), Viper has more tunnel vision, and Viper isn't quite as bright. Resolution is tough to call between the two but I think the FX-3 is better after comparing my Swaro LRF 8x, ED-2 7x binos, Viper 2-7x, and Fx-3 6x. FYI, I'm not really much of a Leupold fan as I usually like 4200 or Monarch glass for the money.

For $400, I'd recommend the FX-3 6x42 with LR reticle. Its just a nice scope to get behind. If you want to save money, the Viper 2-7x is a good scope but I like the image of the FX better. The Viper gives you one extra elevation dot plus windage dotz though. I just don't like the "looking thru a tube" affect that many scopes have. I'm willing to overlook certain things to avoid tunnel vision.

Thanks for the info. How bad are your bruises after shooting that superlite 300 mag?

That's what my ULA wears now!

I had it on my previous ULA, great scope...

Anybody else make a lightweight 6X with LR reticle?

I would definately not do a Leupold Ultralight. Not enough eye relief or eye box for me.
BTW, Leupold makes three 6X scopes. The FX2, 6X36, the FX3 6X42, and the Custom Shop 6X33 Compact. E

..........On a lite 300 Mag rifle?,,,Agreed. No 3x9 Leupy Ultralite. Eye relief too short and the eye box isn`t that great either.

If a variable choice......2.5-8x36 VX3
If a fixed choice.........6x FX2 or FX3.

Reasonably light in weight and have good eye relief.

The new VX-2 3-9X40 w/CDS are under 12 oz now and to my very untechnical eye the VX-3 2.5-8X36 I have is not any better so why not save the coin.

That said I also have a new VX-2 3-9X33 UL scope as well and they are MUCH better in all aspects than their predecessor versions and they can be had for 9 oz even.

I know everyone hates the UL scopes from Leupold and I was in the camp too after a sour taste from the first one I had, but I gave these new ones another try and they have improved them a lot IMO.

............Improved on their eye relief too?

SWFA still lists eye relief from 3.1" to 3.4"...The older versions were at 3" on 9x and 4" on 3x.

If Leupold did not improved much the eye relief on this particular newer version 3x9 UL, then imo, it is not a good scope choice going on the OP`s sub 6 lb 300 Mag rifle.

For most that might be asking for a good scope whacking.

I have a blued fluted "superlite" in 30-06 that I mounted a Leupold FXII 6x36 with LR recticle on but after putting a VX-3 with CDS on my Finnlight I am hooked. I am calling Leupold today to schedule adding a CDS dial to my FX-II.

I have shot steel targets out to 600 yards with the 6x so it should work on deer sized big game.

IMHO..had a ultralight 3-9x33mm and really could not deal with that short eye relief. would take the extra two ounces any day and have the 4.1-3.7 eye relief..

.......Me too.

I will weigh in on the 6x36 FXII Its light, has good eye relief, its plenty of scope to kill things to 500yds at least, has fewer parts than the variables and doesn't have the varying eye releif of the variables.

Me I would likely do the LR duplex

No bruises with the Limbsaver, but the rifle is rather lively under recoil! It comes back hard, fast, and far. On the bench it comes back so far on me that I can't use my offhand behind the pistol grip. I sometimes put the offhand on the rear sandbag but with this rifle the pistol grip comes back and whacks that offhand something fierce.

The Limbsaver keeps it from being painful on the shoulder though. I can actually shoot it quite a bit before it starts to bother me. Last year I shot about 100+ rounds over one weekend doing load development and that was too much. I started to flinch and had to spend time getting over that. There's no pain for 20-40 rounds, but after that the recoil starts to get to me.

Eye relief is real important for this particular rifle and the 6x42 has the most eye relief of any scope that I could find. With the Viper, it brushed against my brow a couple of times.