Hi all, I’m new to stalking and just about to get my first rifle. I’m looking for advice on the best scope for a mixture of woodland and hill stalking. I’ve looked at Leica, Swarovski and ZEISS so far but know there are other good males out there. I would like to keep it simple as ballistic turrets and reticule may complicate things for me. BDC I’m not sure about. I can probably go up to £2000. Any help is appreciated.
Which optic
- Thread starter blaserf3
- Start date
I. Farticus
Well-Known Member
Swaro Z6i 3-18×50 BR-I will do the job nicely
Andy-shooter
Well-Known Member
No need to go too crazy. £2k is a lot of money and while the wide zoom ratio scopes (z6, z8, v6, v8 etc) by the German/Austrian brands are lovely, most of the time you’ll be in the 4x - 8x range in my experience.
For woodland and I do always like an illuminated dot reticle of some kind.
I just picked up a Karl Kaps 2.5-10x56 from optics warehouse on sale for £700 and it’s an absolute corker. Optical and build quality are up there with my much more expensive scopes and it has one of the nicest illuminated No4 type reticles I’ve seen.
I also have (and more frequently use) a Kahles HELIA 1.6-6x42. Again, wonderful optics and build quality with illuminated ret, its a bit lighter and more compact for the woods. You may feel like you need more mag than 6x but the brand is worth looking at.
Andrew
For woodland and I do always like an illuminated dot reticle of some kind.
I just picked up a Karl Kaps 2.5-10x56 from optics warehouse on sale for £700 and it’s an absolute corker. Optical and build quality are up there with my much more expensive scopes and it has one of the nicest illuminated No4 type reticles I’ve seen.
I also have (and more frequently use) a Kahles HELIA 1.6-6x42. Again, wonderful optics and build quality with illuminated ret, its a bit lighter and more compact for the woods. You may feel like you need more mag than 6x but the brand is worth looking at.
Andrew
S&B 3-12x50 Zenith with FD7 reticle. The illumination is one of the best out there, doubles as a day dot, very simple to use. The other adjustment is the Magnification, 3 for close up woodland which can be cranked up to 12 mag for the hill. 8x56 is a bullet proof solution but just too little field of view for the woods and too little mag for precision shots.
edi
edi
nun_hunter
Well-Known Member
Second this and spend the remaining £1300 on whatever else takes your fancy.
Plus one on this, bullet proof and top quality
Delta has huge FOV on low power, central illum is on par with my Diavari 60 reticule. Optically as near as dam it as good to the Zeiss. 10 yr warranty and coatings compatible with NV add ons. Ticks every box and you get to spend £1400 on other items.
No brainer. Mines on my .243, Zeiss is on .204.
D
No brainer. Mines on my .243, Zeiss is on .204.
D
CPShines
Well-Known Member
I'm in a similar position to you, but a bit further down the road. TBH I found the array of scope options completely bewildering so rather than take a punt I have bought a bargain s/h S&B 6x42 with no bells and whistles. I am using it with a view to figuring out what features I feel I am missing, so I can then go and get something more complex in a few months time. So far, I'm happy with it and don't feel bereft of anything whilst stalking, so I might keep this one for stalking and get something specialized for target, and swap between them.
Everyone has their own approach so it might not work for you, just thought I'd chip in.
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I have one of these. Excellent low light performance. Probably a little too much magnification for close shooting in woodland but a good compromise.
My view was that I would rather spend the money saved on stalking. If you have your own ground and don't mind splashing the cash on a new toy then go for it.
My view was that I would rather spend the money saved on stalking. If you have your own ground and don't mind splashing the cash on a new toy then go for it.
caorach
Well-Known Member
This is the right answer with the one qualification that some might prefer a 6X42 over the 8X56, I use the 8X56 myself and have done so since I started out. Also, if you can, buy a decent second hand one and it will always be worth what you paid for it, so the total cost of ownership will be zero, plus it will save you enough cash for a day at red hinds. Best scope for the job, quality construction, first class glass and a total cost of zero, where would you get a better deal?
In the end the one thing that will shoot you more deer is going stalking, spending your hard earned cash on some marketing campaign will not. A lot of people say they don't have the time to go stalking as they are too busy and so they spend thousands every year on gadgets that they don't need. That money would buy them a lot of time, some companies might even allow you to take unpaid leave for example, or a lot of stalking. The money you'd save buying a sensible, adequate, top notch, well designed, time proven S&B 8X56 compared to buying some gadget sold by a company that markets glass ornaments would pay for a week in Scotland at red hinds. You'd remember the week at hinds long after you've sold the gadget and replaced it with an 8X56 S&B because it is the best tool for the job.
Delta Titanium 2.5-15 x 56 or Zeiss V6 2.5-15x56. I used to laugh off the need for an illuminated dot as a marketing gimmick but I wouldn't be without one now on a woodland scope. My personal preference really is the V6 and that is what I have on my favourite rifle but the Delta is very good value for money as others have said. Swaro Z6i is a great scope but quite a bit more cash.
Z.
Z.
I'm quite sure that Gregor @ McLeods of Tain will serve you well with advice , along with a stunning deal on a fine scope to suit your needs.
Another vote for the Delta, I had a schmidt 8x56 before, cant tell any low light difference (both allow shooting well past legal shooting light in the right conditions) and the huge mag range field of view and illumination for the money is great. My only 2 gripes, albeit minor ones are
1. the battery compartment for illumination has a habbit of undoing as you wind the knob round (bit of loctite solves this)
2. the turrets are plastic and a bit cheap to feel, however they dial true and no issues with them
cheers
KS
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