What to spend on Scope?
- Thread starter our_natural_habitat
- Start date
nun_hunter
Well-Known Member
I think the majority of stalkers advocating the expensive European (and specifically German) brands started buying scopes 30+ years ago when they were the best because quality control and technology wasn't really applied to other scopes manufacturers. Now that's not just the case. Even cheaper brands like Hawke have come on massively in the 15 years or so I've been shooting and there are plenty of newer companies like Delta who have outsourced quality workmanship and great quality control to rival the top names but at a fraction of the cost.
My view would be buy a good German scope with pedigree and will stand you in good stead for so many reasons, new or used for all stalking needs as you do get what you pay for at the end of the day, they are serious bits of kit.
Nothing wrong with scopes costing less but built to a price and will still perform but not in same league for build quality and longevity in the long haul.
Nothing wrong with scopes costing less but built to a price and will still perform but not in same league for build quality and longevity in the long haul.
Scott Meredith
Active Member
My advice as someone who has just been through the getting your first rifle stage a few years ago is to buy the expensive quality German glass. Don’t be afraid to buy second hand; the first Swarovski x5i I bought was brand new and cost a fortune the second was preowned and was £1000 less; they both preform exactly the same (as you’d expect).
Buy second hand quality European glass, look after it and if it stops meeting your requirements then sell it for 95% what you paid. Not bashing cheaper scopes; they’re probably great but they’re a false economy. Preowned quality European glass is built to last and has the lowest cost of ownership if you decide that it’s not for you, or if you just fancy something else.
Buy second hand quality European glass, look after it and if it stops meeting your requirements then sell it for 95% what you paid. Not bashing cheaper scopes; they’re probably great but they’re a false economy. Preowned quality European glass is built to last and has the lowest cost of ownership if you decide that it’s not for you, or if you just fancy something else.
What is it going to be used for
Fixed mag or zoom
1st or 2nd focal plane
Objective lense size
Weight
Warranty
Brand new or 2nd hand
Tactical turrets or not
Moa or mils turret/reticule
Illuminated or not
Tube size
To be used with nv add on or not
If you answer these then it might help you get what you want for your needs and not what other people think you should have. I am sure there will be other questions too
Fixed mag or zoom
1st or 2nd focal plane
Objective lense size
Weight
Warranty
Brand new or 2nd hand
Tactical turrets or not
Moa or mils turret/reticule
Illuminated or not
Tube size
To be used with nv add on or not
If you answer these then it might help you get what you want for your needs and not what other people think you should have. I am sure there will be other questions too
Muntybuck5803
Well-Known Member
For Sale: - S&B 3-12x50 german ffp
Nice scope crystal clear first focal plain it’s got a tiny bit of paint loss on the underside. Ready to go £800
www.thestalkingdirectory.co.uk
No connection to the seller but you could do a lot worse than this. It’ll cover pretty much all bases and they’re built like a tank.
Also FFP so can mitigate the fact it’s not illuminated etc.
Now, now
purdey24
Well-Known Member
And made by Swarovski !!
This, can be had for about £15-1600 used with the BT and magnetic covers. The 3-18 in the classifieds would not be a bad buy either.
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As someone who has got back into stalking after a long break I would say, keep it simple, go for quality, don't be afraid of second-hand. I currently have 3 scopes - Schmidt and Bender 6x42 and 8x56 Klassiks and a Meopta Artemis 6x42. All three scopes second-hand and added all together came to less than £700
How much have you got to spend?
What do you want from it?
Value-as with everything-is in the eye of the beholder. I got a PMII which I thought was very reasonable, but I’m sure a lot of folks would balk at the price.
However it seems a variable Schmidt klassic would be excellent for the application described-an all round stalking glass, they are also very cheap second hand as they are not super trendy. They seem to be up between £6-800 for 2.5-10/3-12 models.
If you want to ping steel or whack vermin at range a slightly higher mag and finer reticle might be useful.
What do you want from it?
Value-as with everything-is in the eye of the beholder. I got a PMII which I thought was very reasonable, but I’m sure a lot of folks would balk at the price.
However it seems a variable Schmidt klassic would be excellent for the application described-an all round stalking glass, they are also very cheap second hand as they are not super trendy. They seem to be up between £6-800 for 2.5-10/3-12 models.
If you want to ping steel or whack vermin at range a slightly higher mag and finer reticle might be useful.
Won't go wrong with these specs:
1 inch or 30mm tube
Mil dot or duplex reticle
3-12 or 4-16x
Side focus/parallax
40-50mm objective lens
Japanese or German made
Capped windage, externally adjustable elevation
No need for illuminated reticle, when it's that dark you turn the torch on
1 inch or 30mm tube
Mil dot or duplex reticle
3-12 or 4-16x
Side focus/parallax
40-50mm objective lens
Japanese or German made
Capped windage, externally adjustable elevation
No need for illuminated reticle, when it's that dark you turn the torch on
paulbshooting
Well-Known Member
I would spend as much as you can afford. The best optics get you deer. Otherwise you do what a lot of us have and waste time upgrading and selling on kit, when quicker and cheaper overall to buy right once. I have always bought premium end German optics - zeiss for scopes and swaro for bins. Then went the same route with rifles. Again you get what you pay for there too.
Bavarianbrit
Well-Known Member
Real world experience here. I bought a new 3-12x56 Zeiss illuminated 17 years ago 2k euros + on my drilling and have shot lots with it seemingly always on 6x never once used the illumination and I have usually sat out late 3-4 evenings per week for roe or boar. Make of that what you will.
strange , i could sell all my scopes for more than i paid for them, quite easily though the money will buy less than it did when i bought them . when sold they would all be " secondhand " even though i bought two of them secondhand . Why knock off 5% ? if you paid it someone else will , that's the beautiful thing about buying secondhand
palmer_mike
Well-Known Member
They do, I have owned optics that would be considered among the best.
In my experience (for deerstalking) some much lower pricepoint scopes work just as well.
I cannot think of a single occasion over the last couple of years since i ‘downgraded’ my optics, when i missed an opportunity of a deer as a result a f the scope on my rifle.
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