How To Buy a Rifle Scope

Scoped rifles and scoped shotguns are used by many big game hunters for hunting deer, turkey and other game. This means there are a wide variety to choose from, therefore a need for hunters to learn more about what is available. The best riflescopes are rugged, precise and light in weight. There are several optics companies to choose from but in the riflescope industry, you get what you pay for. Top brands that specialize in making optics include Nikon, Aimpoint, Carl Zeiss, Leupold and many more!

Riflescopes are available in many configurations including size and power. The most common is the 3x-9x with a one inch tube, with the objective front lenses varying in size. Some scopes have a option of an adjustable objective which can help correct for parallax at various ranges.

Choosing a Rifle Scope

When choosing a riflescope you should first ask yourself a few questions such as What time of the day will it be used? What will it primarily be used for? What is the shooting distance? What magnification is needed? All of these questions will determine what riflescope is best for you.

• Magnification Power – The most popular magnification for hunting big game is the 3x-9x. The scope can magnify 3 times at the lowest range and up to 9 times at the highest. For close shots you wouldn't want to be higher than a 4x, anything higher than that will narrow your view. 9x is high enough to zoom in on far game at a reasonable range. Depending on the type of terrain your hunting, you may desire a higher magnification. Going above 12x will be rough. The higher you go, the more harder it will be to hit your target due to shaking.
• Fixed or Variable? – A variable power scope is usually lower in price and performance. The problem that usually arises is some variable scopes will allow the point of impact to change according to where the magnification is set. This is usually found in all cheaper scopes. Another problem is the eye relief often changes with the power setting too.
  A fixed power scope solves both of the problems by having a constant setting and therefore and constant eye relief. The point of impact won't change because the power doesn't change. All hunting situations vary but the fixed power scope outweighs the variable power scope.
• Tube Diameter – The most popular tube diameter is 30mm. The larger the tube diameter is, the more adjustment and sturdier it will be.
• Quality of Lens – The better quality of the lens will allow a clearer image, less distortion around the lens edge and less change in color. The larger the milliliters, the more light enters the scope. This makes the image brighter and produces a better resolution. High quality lens coating will reduce the glare and reflection. The most popular for deer hunting is a 40mm lens.
• Reticles – The pattern placed in the eyepiece of the scope that establishes the guns position on the target is called the reticle. Make sure you select a reticle that works for your type of shooting. For example, for +400 yards consider a reticle without a dot. For a deer hunting scope, the standard is the cross with lines that thicken at the outside and narrow at the point where they cross.
• Finish – Scopes are most of the time always black but they can have a gloss or matte finish. Usually you will pick a finish that goes with your rifle. Some like the shininess to the gloss finish while other prefer not to have the sun shining on the glossy finish while in the woods.

The Structure of a Rifle Scope

A riflescope contains two tubes which have one within the other. For magnification purposes, the inner tubes refracts light while the outer tube protects the inner tube and provides a mount for the three parts within a riflescope. Riflescopes usually consist of about ten or more parts which include the following:

• Eye Bell – Attaches to the tube and houses the eye piece.
• Eye Piece – Holds the ocular lens and attaches to the eye bell.
• Ocular Lens – The lens that is nearest to your eye.
• Eye Relief – When looking at the full field of view, its the distance between your eye and the ocular lens. The larger the eye relief is the better the scope is.
• Tube – Provides a mount for the eye bell, objective bell and eye piece.
• Objective Lens – It collects the light that enters the riflescope. The larger the diameter of the objective lens is the higher the magnification is.
• Adjustable Objective Lens – Fixes the parallax error when adjustments are made to the objective lens. The parallax error is caused when the scopes eye is not focused at the right distance.
• Power Ring – This allows you to change the magnification on the scope.
• Windage & Elevation Adjustment – Windage changes the aiming point of the scope on the horizontal plane and Elevation shifts your aiming point along the vertical plane.

riflescopes work by enlarging an image and by placing your eye on the same optic plane as your target. When magnification takes place, it bends the light rays via a number of lenses within the scope. The longer the scope is, the higher the power of magnification is. The shorter the riflescope is, the lower the power is and it contains smaller lenses.

All riflescopes include a reticular, a dot, a post marking to help align the device with the target. A reticle is in the shape of a plus sign,(+), on a target that will help with the alignment of the device. Some reticles use dots or post to help center the target of the image through the scope. For precise shooting, riflescopes will eliminate problems such as open sights.

Do Scopes Gather Light?

No they don't, they only transmit light through the lenses to your eye and always losing a little bit of light in the process. You can expect to get a light transmission of 98 percent with a expensive scope. Most average 90 percent light transmission. Less light reaches your eyepiece with a higher magnification.

Parallax is the movement of objects within the field of view in relation to the reticle. Best way to explain it is if you put a mark from a pencil on a table, then put a inch of water in a drinking glass. Hold the glass an inch over the mark and move it around in different directions. Look down into the glass, notice the dot move in directions other than where it should be. A scope with adjustable objectives will correct this. Most are found on scopes used at close distances that have a power more than 10.