I am wanting to put a decent, but not too high dollar 4-12 NON-AO scope on a Browning .300 Win Mag. Considering the Pentax 4-12 Gameseeker package deal from Doug at CameraLand. Pro's or Con's to this set up? Have heard the Pentax has a short eye relief, but not much else. Have a cheapy 4.5-14 Simmons on it now.
FWIW, I have 8 4-12x40 Pentex Gameseekers and would NEVER put 1 on a rifle that recoiled more than a 22-250 or, maybe, a 243. The eye relief is too short for me to want to use that scope on a rifle with much recoil.
The 4-12x40 Nikon ProStaff has more eye relief, which I proved to myself in a side-by-side comparison. Natchez Shooter Supply had new, not refurbed, 4-12x40 Nikon ProStaffs on sale for $140 awhile back. I have 4 of them on Remington 700s in 22-250, 243, 257 Roberts, and 260. So far, so good.
FWIW, I have bought several Philipines-made Simmons Whitetail Classic 3.5-10x40s for $60 from Natchez for myself, my kids, and frields who were on a budget. The Japanese and Philipines built Simmons scopes seem pretty clear and rugged to me. Not Zeiss clear and crisp, but not Tasco clam-pack either.
JEff
Nikon Prostaff or Vortex Crossfire/Viper
I'd do the Leupold VX1 4-12X40. Lots of eye relief and lots of eye box at the lower magnifications. E
I recently bought a Vortex Diamondback 4-12x40 from CameraLand. It pleasantly surprised me in a quick first outing to the range. Clarity was good enough to place and call sight in shots at 100 yards in fading daylight with misting rain. Adjustments were precise though the clicks were somewhat soft. Headed for home with a smile from first impressions. Seems like a good value and I'm thinking about another...
I bought one of these.
http://www.opticsplanet.net/kruger-...scope-w-hunter-duplex-reticle-63307.htmlHaven't mounted it yet, but it's in your price range and supposedly assembled in Sisters,Oregon from Chinese parts. At least they're up front about where the parts come from. 3.75 inches eye relief and the glass looks very good. Nice overall build quality for the price. Also non AO.
Don't know if this link is against forum rules as I know the owner sells Leupold products, if so just delete this post. But Leopold doesn't unfortunately have anything in this price range.
I have several 4-12x40 Leupolds, but none of them cost under $250 NIB. The $140 Nikon ProStaffs and Redfied Revolutions are closer, pptically, than the $100 difference in price would suggest. But I'm not, and will never claim to be, an optics expert.
JEff
Not going to get into this forums version of "Swampy vs The World", but I run a 4-12x40 Redfield on a Weatherby .300, and the lady hasn't kissed me yet.
Hate to agree with swampy but redfield.
I have put a couple of Redfield Revolution 4-12x40s on rifles for friends and in a side-by-side with the Nikon ProStaff, I prefer the Nikon. Not a scientific test, just actual user feedback from a sample of 2 Redfields and 4 Nikons.
JEff
Redfield Revolution, but I run the Leupie VXI myself.
Chumleyhunts: I much prefer my 4x12 scopes to have the A/O feature but I do have two Leupold 4x12's without the A/O.
I would recommend the Leupold 4x12 to you for your 300 Winchester Magnum useage.
Over the decades I have found that trying to save to many dollars on a scope for a heavy recoiling Rifle simply leads directly to problems.
Best of luck with whichever scope you choose.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy