Best $250-400 scope?

[gerry]

What do you think? I like the Burris FF II and Leupold fixed powers what are some other choices when you consider brightness, durability etc. Not everyone can afford the expensive euro scopes but would like something better than the typical scope that goes for $200 or less.

 

[JD338]

gerry,

You didn't mention what you are using the scope for or what rifle, caliber, range etc but I think the VX-3 2.5-8x36mm is tough to beat.
It is a little smaller but big on performance. It works very well in low light and on 8x, the standard Duplex reticle fits nicely into a 6" black bullseye at 500 yds.
For big game hunting, it is all the scope you need for $399.

JD338

 

[gerry]

Sorry, big game hunting in normal big game calibers from 25 cal to 35 cal.

 

[Guest]

Until they're gone, just about the best deal out there is the open box Minox scopes at CameralandNY.com. For under $300 you can get a 3-9x40, and for under $500 you can get higher power stuff. Or shop for a demo Zeiss Conquest, or one of the Bushnell Elite scopes. There are a lot of great deals in scopes out there these days.

 

[JD338]

That is what I was assuming. The VX-3 series is very bright in low light, check them out.
FWIW, my M700 Classic 35 Whelen wears an older Vari-X III 2.5-8x36mm scope and it has served me well for years.

JD338

 

[SJB358]

Until they're gone, just about the best deal out there is the open box Minox scopes at CameralandNY.com. For under $300 you can get a 3-9x40, and for under $500 you can get higher power stuff. Or shop for a demo Zeiss Conquest, or one of the Bushnell Elite scopes. There are a lot of great deals in scopes out there these days.

I am with Dubyam, the Minox ZA3 and ZA5 smokes the VX3 series in color/clarity. At least they smoke mine. If you can buy from Cameraland, the Z3 3x9 with a #4 or standard plex is able to be had for 230.00 when they are on sale and 299.99 when there not.

 

[300WSM]

$250 to $400 is easy.

Save some money and grab a Redfield 4-12

I have or had scopes of almost every brand out there and this new generation of Redfield I have nothing but positives to say for it. Made in the USA and that carries some weight with me.

Burris FFII is a good scope but it is no longer made here. Burris used to make everything in America but the lower level stuff is now made by Asia optic (or similar company). This company also makes a ton of other brands as well. So you know it isn't junk, but it isn't made here.
I think I have one of the last Fullfield II scopes made in the USA.

Back to the Redfield. The fact that you are capping this at $400 makes me recommend Redfield. You can put that $200 Redfield up against any $400 scope and it will win or atleast be close enough to call it a draw. Plus you get the Made in USA stamp and I hope that would mean something.

In the end though...and as I mentioned several times to people...the most important thing is you need to go and look at several scopes in rapid succession in the same setting and on the same power.

 

[Titleist]

For a general hunting scope the 2.5x8 Leupold is a great scope for $400. They have long eye relief and are tough and dependable.

There may be better options in scopes that are just used on pretty days at the range, seeing pretty colors, or for very low light viewing - but for hunting...

 

[DrMike]

One serious knock against the Burris is service when you need it. The B&L 3200 may be the low cost scope you are looking for, though I prefer Leupold to the B&L. Service on either here in Canada is excellent to good for either of these options.

 

[alaska100]

Until they're gone, just about the best deal out there is the open box Minox scopes at CameralandNY.com. For under $300 you can get a 3-9x40, and for under $500 you can get higher power stuff. Or shop for a demo Zeiss Conquest, or one of the Bushnell Elite scopes. There are a lot of great deals in scopes out there these days.

+ 1 I think the Minox at camera land may be the best deal out there today. After that I tend to always look for sales on Leupold scopes. I also look for used guns with good scopes on them, sometimes I can find a deal that allows me to keep the scope and resell the gun for what I paid for it, making the scope free. good ;luck in your search

 

[300WSM]

One serious knock against the Burris is service when you need it. The B&L 3200 may be the low cost scope you are looking for, though I prefer Leupold to the B&L. Service on either here in Canada is excellent to good for either of these options.

I had great service with Burris the one time I needed it.
The major players are going to stand behind the scopes they make.

This is all thanks to Tasco circa late 1980's. :lol:

 

[ROVERT]

$250 to $400 is easy.

Save some money and grab a Redfield 4-12

I have or had scopes of almost every brand out there and this new generation of Redfield I have nothing but positives to say for it. Made in the USA and that carries some weight with me.

Burris FFII is a good scope but it is no longer made here. Burris used to make everything in America but the lower level stuff is now made by Asia optic (or similar company). This company also makes a ton of other brands as well. So you know it isn't junk, but it isn't made here.
I think I have one of the last Fullfield II scopes made in the USA.

Back to the Redfield. The fact that you are capping this at $400 makes me recommend Redfield. You can put that $200 Redfield up against any $400 scope and it will win or atleast be close enough to call it a draw. Plus you get the Made in USA stamp and I hope that would mean something.

In the end though...and as I mentioned several times to people...the most important thing is you need to go and look at several scopes in rapid succession in the same setting and on the same power.

I'll respectfully disagree with that. I had a Revolution and it didn't come anywhere close to competing with my Elite 4200, let alone my Conquests. It was reasonably bright but the clarity wasn't there and the contrast left a lot to be desired. I'd take an Elite 3200 over a Revolution.

I think the scopes to look at in the $200 to $400 bracket are the Minox, Meopta Meopro/Cabela's Euro, VX3s, Bushnell Elites, Vortex Viper, and Sightron Big Sky. I've probably missed a few, but those are the first that come to mind. Sadly, the Conquest is no longer in this bracket.

Here's a question for the VX3 owners out there. Doesn't the large swing in eye relief bother you? I was interested in a 2.5-8, but the eye relief varies by an inch across the magnification range. I don't think I'd like that.

 

[WYcoyote]

Until they're gone, just about the best deal out there is the open box Minox scopes at CameralandNY.com. For under $300 you can get a 3-9x40, and for under $500 you can get higher power stuff. Or shop for a demo Zeiss Conquest, or one of the Bushnell Elite scopes. There are a lot of great deals in scopes out there these days.

+1
Just in the past year, I found a NIB ZA3 3-9 and ZA5 3-15 Minox at a gunshow and paid $500 for both.
And at Cabelas they had a 4 day sale on Bushnell Elite 4200 3-9s for $149.99, had a coupon for $25 off, plus some club points and paid $117 with free shipping for in store pick-up.

 

[gerry]

One serious knock against the Burris is service when you need it. The B&L 3200 may be the low cost scope you are looking for, though I prefer Leupold to the B&L. Service on either here in Canada is excellent to good for either of these options.

I do have one of my Burris scopes that needs to go back to be fixed so we will see how their service is. Oddly enough my one experience with Busnell's warranty was awful and I would prefer not to deal with them again. I agree that some of Leupolds scopes are hard to beat in this price range and the Minox scopes sound interesting don't know much about them except what some of the guys on here are reporting from the scopes they own.

There are some good ideas here thanks to all for your input.

 

[300WSM]

$250 to $400 is easy.

Save some money and grab a Redfield 4-12

I have or had scopes of almost every brand out there and this new generation of Redfield I have nothing but positives to say for it. Made in the USA and that carries some weight with me.

Burris FFII is a good scope but it is no longer made here. Burris used to make everything in America but the lower level stuff is now made by Asia optic (or similar company). This company also makes a ton of other brands as well. So you know it isn't junk, but it isn't made here.
I think I have one of the last Fullfield II scopes made in the USA.

Back to the Redfield. The fact that you are capping this at $400 makes me recommend Redfield. You can put that $200 Redfield up against any $400 scope and it will win or atleast be close enough to call it a draw. Plus you get the Made in USA stamp and I hope that would mean something.

In the end though...and as I mentioned several times to people...the most important thing is you need to go and look at several scopes in rapid succession in the same setting and on the same power.

I'll respectfully disagree with that. I had a Revolution and it didn't come anywhere close to competing with my Elite 4200, let alone my Conquests. It was reasonably bright but the clarity wasn't there and the contrast left a lot to be desired. I'd take an Elite 3200 over a Revolution.

I think the scopes to look at in the $200 to $400 bracket are the Minox, Meopta Meopro/Cabela's Euro, VX3s, Bushnell Elites, Vortex Viper, and Sightron Big Sky. I've probably missed a few, but those are the first that come to mind. Sadly, the Conquest is no longer in this bracket.

Here's a question for the VX3 owners out there. Doesn't the large swing in eye relief bother you? I was interested in a 2.5-8, but the eye relief varies by an inch across the magnification range. I don't think I'd like that.

That is exactly why I say one needs to look at the scopes in the same settings on the same setting.
I own a few elite 4200's. Some are the 30mm tube variety and some are 1". To me they do not look better than a modern comparable Redfield. You could think the opposite and you wouldn't be wrong because with scopes it isn't what someone says is the best...it is what is the best to your own eyes. Again this is why it reverts back to picking several up rapidly and comparing for one self. That is the only true "best" scope deciding factor. (Given they are all on equal terms with service and warranty and of course fall into someones price window.)

 

[300WSM]

One serious knock against the Burris is service when you need it. The B&L 3200 may be the low cost scope you are looking for, though I prefer Leupold to the B&L. Service on either here in Canada is excellent to good for either of these options.

I do have one of my Burris scopes that needs to go back to be fixed so we will see how their service is. Oddly enough my one experience with Busnell's warranty was awful and I would prefer not to deal with them again. I agree that some of Leupolds scopes are hard to beat in this price range and the Minox scopes sound interesting don't know much about them except what some of the guys on here are reporting from the scopes they own.

There are some good ideas here thanks to all for your input.

Gerry,
May I ask what is wrong with the Burris? The problem I had with one was the reticle had turned making it appear the scope was not lined up properly.

They fixed it no worries or problems and it was back to me very quickly.

 

[gerry]

On this one when you move the power ring the crosshairs wiggle up and down.

 

[Titleist]

Here's a question for the VX3 owners out there. Doesn't the large swing in eye relief bother you? I was interested in a 2.5-8, but the eye relief varies by an inch across the magnification range. I don't think I'd like that.

The difference in eye relief does not bother me at all. I mount my scopes so that my eye is neither at the closest or furthest point from the scope to give a full view. I always carry a rifle with the scope at the lowest setting, and have not noticed any large repositioning issues when a longer shot is presented and the scope power is increased. I think the only folks that have trouble with this are internet fans of other brands that are looking to slight Leupold.

I do worry about some of the scope importers (SWFA, Vortex, etc.) that do not make any of their own products. Some of these products are very good, some are excellent, but it makes me wonder how long the importers will be around provide support support. I do not mean to imply that these brands are bad, but I do wonder about the strength of their retailers.

 

[ROVERT]

$250 to $400 is easy.

Save some money and grab a Redfield 4-12

I have or had scopes of almost every brand out there and this new generation of Redfield I have nothing but positives to say for it. Made in the USA and that carries some weight with me.

Burris FFII is a good scope but it is no longer made here. Burris used to make everything in America but the lower level stuff is now made by Asia optic (or similar company). This company also makes a ton of other brands as well. So you know it isn't junk, but it isn't made here.
I think I have one of the last Fullfield II scopes made in the USA.

Back to the Redfield. The fact that you are capping this at $400 makes me recommend Redfield. You can put that $200 Redfield up against any $400 scope and it will win or atleast be close enough to call it a draw. Plus you get the Made in USA stamp and I hope that would mean something.

In the end though...and as I mentioned several times to people...the most important thing is you need to go and look at several scopes in rapid succession in the same setting and on the same power.

I'll respectfully disagree with that. I had a Revolution and it didn't come anywhere close to competing with my Elite 4200, let alone my Conquests. It was reasonably bright but the clarity wasn't there and the contrast left a lot to be desired. I'd take an Elite 3200 over a Revolution.

I think the scopes to look at in the $200 to $400 bracket are the Minox, Meopta Meopro/Cabela's Euro, VX3s, Bushnell Elites, Vortex Viper, and Sightron Big Sky. I've probably missed a few, but those are the first that come to mind. Sadly, the Conquest is no longer in this bracket.

Here's a question for the VX3 owners out there. Doesn't the large swing in eye relief bother you? I was interested in a 2.5-8, but the eye relief varies by an inch across the magnification range. I don't think I'd like that.

That is exactly why I say one needs to look at the scopes in the same settings on the same setting.
I own a few elite 4200's. Some are the 30mm tube variety and some are 1". To me they do not look better than a modern comparable Redfield. You could think the opposite and you wouldn't be wrong because with scopes it isn't what someone says is the best...it is what is the best to your own eyes. Again this is why it reverts back to picking several up rapidly and comparing for one self. That is the only true "best" scope deciding factor. (Given they are all on equal terms with service and warranty and of course fall into someones price window.)

It is true, we all see things a little differently. I can see that it might be possible for someone to compare a Revolution to an Elite 4200 and walk away saying they were pretty similar. It certainly wasn't the case for me, but I could see it happening. I think it's a real stretch saying that someone could compare a Minox/Conquest/Meopro to a Revolution and call it a draw, but maybe.

In the end you're correct, each person just needs to decide for themselves.

 

[ROVERT]

Here's a question for the VX3 owners out there. Doesn't the large swing in eye relief bother you? I was interested in a 2.5-8, but the eye relief varies by an inch across the magnification range. I don't think I'd like that.

The difference in eye relief does not bother me at all. I mount my scopes so that my eye is neither at the closest or furthest point from the scope to give a full view. I always carry a rifle with the scope at the lowest setting, and have not noticed any large repositioning issues when a longer shot is presented and the scope power is increased. I think the only folks that have trouble with this are internet fans of other brands that are looking to slight Leupold.

I do worry about some of the scope importers (SWFA, Vortex, etc.) that do not make any of their own products. Some of these products are very good, some are excellent, but it makes me wonder how long the importers will be around provide support support. I do not mean to imply that these brands are bad, but I do wonder about the strength of their retailers.

I'm not trying to slight Leupold, it just doesn't seem to promote consistency. I suppose if you mount the scope with it set in the center of the range, that you will only have to move a half inch from that point. I also suppose that generous non critical eye relief could largely negate any problems. I'm just interested in hearing whether or not it has been an issue for anyone.