Scope Suggestion for a 22-250

[herb]

I am trying to decide on a scope for a light weight 22-250 with a 20 inch barrel. As 22-250 can reach out to 350+ yards, wondering if 3-9x40 is enough or should I consider something like a 4-12x or 16-18x.

[indian]

hi herb a 3-9 would be perfect.r u staying in canada?im from toronto

[herb]

Hi Indian - I am in London, Ont.

[HSharief]

Hi Guys,

I recently bought a Nikon ProStaff 3-9x40 for my 30-06, I have not shot over 100 yards with it yet but when I "look" farther thru the scope with the max setting, things still look clear and the cross hairs are crisp. Check out the Nikon line, the ProStaff and Omega line are really cool and at a good price.


Sharief

[indian]

nice herb...will be coming to london sometime in next few months.a nikon will bee a good choice

[herb]

thanks folks, will take a serious look at Nikon.

[sat]

herb,

you could get in touch with john at the optic zone - link He is very knowledgeable & offers good advice.

Sat

[Grumpy]

Nice rifle Herb, what is it ?
The 22-250 is THE .22 long range varminter and makes plenty enough muzzle flash with a 22"/24" barrel..........Yours must make a heck of a flash ! 20" is unusually short for a 22-250.
As regards scope power, I`ve used a 3-9x50 with a 22-250 and soon found it was inadequate for long-range on the size of animals one takes with the calibre. If you think about the size of a Woodchucks ( for example ) head at 44 yards - which is equivalent to using a 9x power scope at 400 yards - you`ll appreciate why a higher power scope is required. A 12x power scope will bring that down to the equivalent of 33 yards, a 16x power scope to 25 yards.
The make of scope you buy depends entirely upon your budget. There`s no point in recommending a S&B, Zeiss, Docter, etc ( for example ) if you are limited to US£300. Think carefully about how much you want to spend and it will be much easier to recommend a scope. My experience is that the current range of top quality Chinese and Korean made scopes have optics and coatings equivalent to those used in good quality American made scopes like Leupold about three years ago - and at a fraction of the price. Cheap Chinese made scopes are utter junk. Just remember that the cheaper ranges of certain scope manufacturers are Chinese made even though the brand name is American. Bushnells `Banner` range just cannot be recommended but their `Trophy` range is excellent value for money for example. Both are made in China.
Remember also that the higher magnification you use, the more any movement of the rifle/scope is magnified which means that you HAVE to be shooting from prone with a bipod or using a rest of some de.scription when shooting with high magnification.
Although the 22-250 will easily take animals up to Cotote size at 400 yards it is not suitable for use on small deer at that range as, even with the use of 60 gr bullets, it only retains a little over 600 ft lbs energy. If using 40 gr bullets the retained energy is getting on for 200 ft lbs less than that. Around 200 yards is the max range for Whitetail - 60 gr bullets and excellent shot placement are essential.

[Hunter]

Hi Herb,
Nice Browing A-Bolt you have there pal! But like Grumpy mentioned ,20inches for a 22-250 will get u plenty of muzzle flash!
BTW the Bushnell trophy is a good optic sight!I have a trophy made in the Phillipines!

Happy shooting !

[Mack The Knife]

herb,

you could get in touch with john at the optic zone - link He is very knowledgeable & offers good advice.

Sat

Sat,

His name is Jon Jackoviak.

Mack The Knife

[herb]

thanks Grumpy/Hunter, I was trying to get opinions on the magnification. In the past I had good experiences wih the Bushnell elite 4200 on a 375 h&h & a leupold vx2 on a 30-06 (both 3-9) but when firing those guns at 200 yards I wished that I had little more magnification. Any opinions on the Bushnell legend 5-15x AO. I don't need the rainguard feature.

The gun is A-Bolt Micro Medallion which Browning stopped making arpund 1994. Now there is a Micro Hunter but with a 22 inch barrel I think. I like the wood on this gun more than the newer gloss finished stocks.

[Mack The Knife]

Any opinions on the Bushnell legend 5-15x AO. I don't need the rainguard feature.

It's a good scope. Good clarity and image definition and almost on par with the 3200 Elite range. It has true mil-dots at 10x.

Don't overtighten the the screws on the turret adjustment knobs as they are prone to crack. Otherwise it's a pretty good value for money scope.

I would suggest you try before you buy, especially the eye-relief at 15x.

[Grumpy]

Yes, the Legends are good scopes. Not quite as good as the 3200s ( as Mack The Knife says ) which are excellent.....and absolute bargains if you can find one second-hand. I`ve never been able to see the point of the 4200s as they offer no improvement in quality over the 3200 series that I`ve been able to find.
Bushnells latest len coatings - over approximately the last two years - are very good and allow for the transmission of a lot of light.

[Mack The Knife]

I`ve never been able to see the point of the 4200s as they offer no improvement in quality over the 3200 series that I`ve been able to find.

In theory there are two differences. The 4200 Series have fully muti-coated lenses, where as the 3200 series scopes have only fully coated lenses.

The second difference is the magnification factor. The 3200 scopes have a magnification factor of 3 or there abouts (1.5-4.5x or 2-6x, etc.), whilst the 4200 series scopes have a magnification factor of 4 (1.5-6x or 2.5-10x, etc.).

Image wise, there is not that much difference, that I could tell, between the 3200 and Legend. However, the 3200 is definitely a better made scope.

BTW, the 4200 and 3200 were originally Bausch & Lomb scopes but were known as 4000 and 3000 series scopes, if I recall correctly.

If I were Herb, I would take a good look through the Weavers. Image wise, I rate my friend's Weaver Rimfire 2-7x28 higher than my Bushnell Elite 3200 2-7x32. My friend also has a spanking new Leupold VX-I 2-7X32 which I consider to be absolute bloody junk. Not only do my eyes have a problem with the optics but that magnification ring needs a lot of force to turn. Only thing in Leupold's favour is its well known, no quibbles customer service. Cannot say the same for Bushnell.

[Grumpy]

3200s have `multi or fully multi-coated optics` - depending on the model.
The 3-10x40 and 3-10x50 have a magnification of x3.333 by the way...............
( Yes, I am being pedantically picky ! )
Weaver are owned by Meade - who also own Simmons and Redfield. As such there are certain similarities across the ranges........................... All make some pretty good scopes but they don`t `do it for me`.
Leupold make some very nice scopes but they are too expensive by the time they get to the UK. A shame because if their prices compared with the US prices they`d be much more popular here.
I still reckon that the Deben Hawkes offer the best value for money around.