Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics 20MM obj question

Pretty simple question if you start with a decent quality scope say a Leupold os there any practical disadvantage to a 20mm obj for a hunting rifle?
Thanks Hank

Depends on if you like high magnification scopes or hunting late. Some guys pack it in as soon the sun hits the treetops in the evening, that's not me. Some guys are OK with low magnification, I want at least 10x on the high end and a 20mm objective won't work well with that.

Plus, 20mm objective scopes are ugly, they look goofy.

IMHO glass quality is much more important than glass size. A 20mm Leupold will do a lot better in low light than a 50mm POS scope will. I've used a bunch of Leupold 1.5-5x scopes and sat till way beyond shooting times and they always allowed me to shoot in low light.

The only thing they lack is ability to produce a 5mm exit pupil at any magnification above 4X.
On the other hand, they are alot better at holding zero than a comparable scope with a larger than 40mm objective.
So unless you are a night hunter, or somebody that needs to shoot beyond 150-200 yds. during twilight on a dark day, they have no drawbacks and some significant advantages. E

I am pretty sure reelman and I are on the same page I just want to be sure I am thinking right

In WI pro football is not just a game
Hank

Given the same level of design and manufacturing quality, a 20mm objective will have no disadvantage as long as the exit pupil (objective diameter in mm divided by power) is 7mm, witch is the maximum of the human eye. As the power increases, so must the objective diameter. However as we age, our eyes looses the ability to dilate to 7mm, so an exit pupil of 4mm to 5mm may be adequate for many people, even in low light.

No.


Travis

I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Nothing looks better on a Marlin or Savage levergun than a straight tube scope in my opinion.

I agree with you TnBigBore. I a 1.5-5x20 on a Winchester 88 and it just looks right on there.

I hunt coyotes so have no restrictions on starting and quitting time. If there was enough light for me to see a coyote coming to the call there is plenty of light to kill him with a 1x4x20mm scope.

V

+1. My 13 year old son had no issues with the 1.5-5X on his 7x57.

You won't mistake it for a starlight scope. A 1-4x should go on 3-gun rifles and defensive carbines that have lights on them. My next scope will be a Burris 1.5x6 XTR with a 40mm objective

For most of my hunting career I've used a Leupy 1.5. x 5 x 20 on a .270 bolt gun. There aren't enough words to extol the virtues of that glass for a hunter. It just killed and killed and ...

I gave the rifle to my son. But not the scope!

Exactamundo!

And it aint at all bad in low light, as long as you dont need a pile of magnification...I used one extensively.....

I can feel the love from here.

Did the apple fall far from the tree? Did he buy a scope of correct proportions?

This'll kinda give you a clue what I think of 20mm objectives...the big game guns...



.30-06
7x57
.22-250

My opinion, any practical limitations of a 20mm objective would be a result of your personal preference for magnification. My personal preference is for low power magnification when using such a scope. For medium and big game, I rarely use more than 2.5-3x out to several hundred yards. A 20mm objective provides an ample exit pupil for my satisfaction at low power. But, if you are someone who prefers higher powers, especially if you are someone who prefers higher power settings in low light, you may find a shortage of exit pupil at those higher magnifications compared to having a larger objective.

So for me, I don't feel shorted when hunting big game with a 20mm obj. For you or someone else, I cannot say.

Best

I like the 20mm objective scopes and have five. They are a heck of a lot easier to mount to get the proper eye relief, given that there's no objective bell.

Dan

Blue, for the time being the scope is still on the rifle. But when the rifle leaves my house, scope stays!

I used to compare my 6 x 42 Leupy with the 1.5 x 5 in low light all the time. The 20mm was no liability to my eyes. Every scope I've ever had did better in low light than my nekkid eyes, so it's all good as far as I'm concerned. Most places I hunt have shooting time restrictions anyway. If you want night vision, it can be bought.