Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Recoil affects variable scope internals

I have noticed my variables sometimes going south when shooting .300 magnums and larger.
Even on muzzle braked rifles they have gone haywire.
Consequently I have moved to fixed power Leupolds for all my shooting.
I really do not need a variable.

I used Leupold, Swarowski and Zeiss variables.

My question: why would a muzzle braked magnum affect my variable ?

Because most rifle scopes internals are designed to handle recoil directed to the rear (back);and a muzzle brake works by the gas actually shoving the rifle forward, slightly,and violently. 300 magnums just make all these forces worse.

Plus variables are loaded with a bunch of little fragile parts as it is...this is why they suck in the first place.

The combo of a mid priced variable, a MB, and 300 magnums is a perfect recipe for scope failure.

And often without the MB

I figure if you need a MB, you need a smaller rifle...except for varmint rifles and stuff like that

Need?! What does need have to do with what we do?

The last 30-378 Weatherby I saw at the range was fitted with a big, heavy Nightforce in windage adjustable mounts. How long is that going to hold up?

Betting on the Nightforce holding up better than the mounts!

I dunno....if it's never shot it may last forever.

Oh yes!

I guess I must just be very lucky that all the "fragile pieces" in my ancient VariX-III's have held up for me on the 10 or so rifles I've used for the past 20+ years.

May have to go to a reduced load in the .300wm in order to get a few more years out of that scope!

The old ones are better built.

Buckster, it ain't the age, it's the round count...and yes I have had Leupold variables last a long time,too. I have 3-4 mounted right now.

I have also had them crap out after less than 200 rounds, something I have never seen happen to a fixed power.

So, while I use them,my expectations of durability with mid priced variables is not very high....because I have broken more than a couple.


It's a well known fact that MB's just make them that more likely to quit.....which was the subject of the OP's post.

Never had a Nightforce, but I've seen heavy scopes shear off plenty of screws in the bases on hard kickers.

I have sent a few scopes back for repair, but I've owned far more than a few. I have had a 1.5-6x Leupold on a .416 Rigby for about 400 rounds, and it's never even needed the sights adjusted. I have sent back one Burris, two Nikon, no Leupolds, no Zeiss Conquest, and they are all mounted on my hard-use hunting rifles. This isn't much of a failure rate out of a couple hundred, and I shoot a lot.

get a nightforce OR quit shooting 30 cal magnums, or quit shooting 30 cal magnums AND get a nightforce. if you need the added range a 30 cal magnum has then you also need the fool proof tracking of a nightforce scope. if the gun needs a brake its too much gun anyways. check out what guys are doing with 6.5's these days. quite a big better ballistics than the big 30's without all the blast and pissing off your buddies at the shooting benches.

One more reason to love my 30-06!? Thanks, guys! You're awesome! Round count for my VX 3 4.5-14x50 is around 800, in run-of-mill mounts. Not the first scope I bought for that gun, but the one I use when it matters.

I haven't seen the kind of shifting that is being discussed here, but the biggest kickers I'm around anymore are not much beyond the '06 in recoil.

I busted 2 Leupold 1.75-6X32 Heavy Duplex on my ULW 30-06.
It happens sometimes
AMRA

A few years ago my wife had a 3.5-10x40 VX-3 go tits-up, after less than 100 rounds on a .257 Roberts. Now, it was a very light .257 (a NULA Model 20), but still....

Generally the older Leupold variables did hold up very well. In fact I used to reserve them for use on my harder-kicking rifles, and reserve variables of other brands for lighter-kicking rifles. I still find that if a new Leupold variable holds up for at least 100 rounds then it tends to hold up very well, but that first 100 rounds has gotten iffier.

from the Precision Rifle blog, a tactical warranty overview. The two year electronic warranty has to give one pause....sometimes it takes me six months to get around to something...:)

warranty comparison

am wondering if the demand for precise repeatability is part of the dependability issue? (aside from the reliance on electronics)

My well drilling pard was lamenting the same over pumps yesterday and his advice to me was "don't switch out the 20yr old pump--it may outlast any of the new ones..."