Optics

SpringerF

Would anyone be so kind as to give me their opinion on the Leuopold range of scopes. I am particularly interested in the Leupold Mark 4 8.5-25x50mm LR/T M1 Illuminated Reticle Long Range Tactical Rifle Scope

dbar

I recently purchased the LEUPOLD VX III 8.5-25 X 50MM LONG RANGE TARGET VARMINT HUNTERS MATTE -30MM from a seller on ebay in the states. (DR sports).
Good solid piece of kit, with nice clear optics. The only observation I can make is that the eye relief can take a bit of getting used to, it varies from 3-5 inches depending on the zoom setting.
I havnt used it properly yet as I am getting it professionally mounted and am waiting for it to be returned.
Let you know as soon as I have fired a few shots

duckmusic

dbar wrote:

I recently purchased the LEUPOLD VX III 8.5-25 X 50MM LONG RANGE TARGET VARMINT HUNTERS MATTE -30MM from a seller on ebay in the states. QUOTE]


I am also thinking of buying a scope of ebay. I'm looking at
http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250063021933&ih=015&category=7307&ssPageName=STORE:PROMOBOX:ENDSOON
Anybody know if this is any good ? I know people on this encourage spending a lot of money on a scope but im only starting out and just want something basic to start off with. I can always upgrade later if I need but I would like it to last a few years anyway. Any opinions ?

.243

what are you putting it on and what's your budget

duckmusic

I am putting it on a CZ 452 LUX but am still waiting for the licence to come through. I think I should have it within a week or so.
My budget would be around €70. I know they can get a lot more expensive but as I said I only want something basic to start off with. I would also like something that would be strong enough to let me enter competitions

Umiq88

My advise is stretch your budget to around 100-120 and get a "decent" scope id stay well away from non-branded scopes or the likes some can be fine but i really wouldnt take the chance if your not in a hurry spend about 2 weeks looking through ebay and you should find a bargain i got a Hawke reflex about a year ago for a good price. I sold it to griffin hawe along with my rifle last week so you could try him he'd probably sell it to you for €70

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/simmons-air-rifle-scope_W0QQitemZ290065883049QQihZ019QQcategoryZ7307QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Hawke-Nite-eye-Telescopic-Sight-3-10x44-Illuminated-Ret_W0QQitemZ160066536230QQihZ006QQcategoryZ7307QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem (will go up a bit)
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Walther-3-9x40-illuminated-telescopic-sight-inc-mounts_W0QQitemZ230070220993QQihZ013QQcategoryZ7307QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/nikko-stirling-3-9x40-scopes-plus-mounts_W0QQitemZ290065247932QQihZ019QQcategoryZ7307QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BSA-DEERHUNTER-RIFLE-SCOPE-4X32_W0QQitemZ120068972080QQihZ002QQcategoryZ7307QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem#ebayphotohosting

I'd put this on it
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BSA-4X32-TELESCOPIC-SIGHT-MIL-DOT_W0QQitemZ270073916601QQihZ017QQcategoryZ7307QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
For one reason is that on the lux you'll have iron sights on it and you want a scope with a small objective that will clear the sight or you'll have to use high mount which isnt compfortable with the hogsback stock. Another thing might be to consider see through mounts if you want to use the irons

Rew

SpringerF wrote:

Would anyone be so kind as to give me their opinion on the Leuopold range of scopes. I am particularly interested in the Leupold Mark 4 8.5-25x50mm LR/T M1 Illuminated Reticle Long Range Tactical Rifle Scope

I have that exact scope with the ilum TMR reticle. Havent done any shooting with it yoet thoug as I have to change my mounts and havent had a chance to get new ones.

Not cheap wouldnt buy it here if I were you.

SpringerF

Yes the TMR reticle seems to be that bit better or so the sales pitch reads

duckmusic

Thanks psittacosis,
Very helpful. I will spend a bit of time looking around. I don't plan on buying until I get the gun so have a week or two to spare. Just a quick question. When you say "brand names" I'm not sure what are the brand names for scopes being new to the sport. Is Tasco a respected brand ???
Also how powerful a scope will I need to get involved in competitions ?

Rew

SpringerF wrote:

Yes the TMR reticle seems to be that bit better or so the sales pitch reads

Yeah its nice, alot of thought gone in to it. Must try take a picture through the scope. leaving the very center clear is cool.

bullets

Whats the story legal wise about bidding on scopes through ebay?
can anyone just buy a scope without needing any permit etc?
do you need to provide the seller with anything else other than
cold hard cash?

to clarify my query......
Is it legal to order a scope into the country if you dont have a
rifle and licence yet?

~B

civdef

Yes

maglite

its a monocular with a line on the lense you can get it no prob

bullets

sweet! that opens up my options a bit.


~B

Umiq88

Tasco is a bit of a strange one theres so many cheap copies its hard to know whats good and what isnt id stay away really.

Brand names stuff like
simmons
bushnell
nikon
burris
bsa
hawke

all those if your in doubt pm me or msn or ask on the forums if you want a couple of opinions.

for a rimfire shooting in comps eh... not to much experience with that but basically a good scope low mag is better than a cheap one anyway id dont think you can go far wrong with the old 3-9x40.

Kramer

Isn't there a restriction on mildot scopes though, being of a military nature :rolleyes: .

civdef

No.

.243

psittacosis wrote:

Tasco is a bit of a strange one theres so many cheap copies its hard to know whats good and what isnt id stay away really.

Brand names stuff like
simmons
bushnell
nikon
burris
bsa
hawke

all those if your in doubt pm me or msn or ask on the forums if you want a couple of opinions.

for a rimfire shooting in comps eh... not to much experience with that but basically a good scope low mag is better than a cheap one anyway id dont think you can go far wrong with the old 3-9x40.

it really depends on what calibre you are using,some in that list will suit some calibres and others wont,btw people be careful on where you buy the leupolds ebay,mailorder etc as they are also made in japan as well and boxed and shipped in genuine boxes and certs

iremex

Rew wrote:

I have that exact scope with the ilum TMR reticle. Havent done any shooting with it yoet thoug as I have to change my mounts and havent had a chance to get new ones.

Not cheap wouldnt buy it here if I were you.

bought the exact same scope and its just an incredible piece of glass. the initial cost hurt at the start until i brought it out to the field. i'll never get rid of it. even the ilum TMR doesnt glare the edges which i was pleasantly surprised by.

have you brought yours out yet rew?

Rew

iremex wrote:

bought the exact same scope and its just an incredible piece of glass. the initial cost hurt at the start until i brought it out to the field. i'll never get rid of it. even the ilum TMR doesnt glare the edges which i was pleasantly surprised by.

have you brought yours out yet rew?

No I was away over crimbo/new year only back since monday and im catching up on work. I still need mounts and iI have been lazy about ordering them.

Anyone kone if Ardee Sports will sell you them direct? I go by their door all the time on the way to my girlfriends house.

iremex

i enquired about getting some gear from ardee but he just fobbed me off to a retailer he supplied.. tbh he is a nice guy.

try paul walsh in east coast gun and dog in gorey. must say i was happy with his service and the mounts were the cheapest around at the time and he'll post them

Rafer

Quote "Anyone kone if Ardee Sports will sell you them direct? I go by their door all the time on the way to my girlfriends house."
As they are distributors they are unabale to retail,however I have always found them helpful with any queries

SpringerF

Two things to help to ensure that a scope offers the brightest image possible to the shooter's eye: Improvement of light transmission and glare reduction. Of the two, reduction of glare is perhaps more important, as glare can negate all the efforts taken to enhance light transmission. Of course, before we can understand how it is reduced, we must understand what it is. The light that enters the scope is focused into a small beam so that it can easily pass as undisturbed as possible through each lens of the scope and out the eyepiece lens to the shooter's eye. Any light not focused into this beam within the scope will reflect off of the interior surface of the scope or a lens and become glare. Glare disturbs the focused light beam passing through the scope from the image to the eye "But light is just light, isn't it? Won't it just add the light back into the beam?" Although this would make sense, it does not work that way. Think of it this way: suppose you were showing a movie from a projector in a dark room. While the room lights are turned off, the movie projected onto the screen will be clear and the picture crisp. Now imagine someone turns on the lights; what happens to the image on the screen? It becomes faint and difficult to see. That's because the light in the room is now disturbing the light beam from the projector, just the way glare in a scope disturbs the light beam within the scope. In both cases, the stray light washes out both the brightness and the color of the image. Without glare, your eye gets the picture projected through the scope undisturbed. With glare, the beam is disturbed and the image is hard to see. So it's easy to see why glare reduction is so important to the production of a good image in a scope. Now here's how it is done. Glare can be reduced in a scope by eliminating all reflective surfaces inside the scope, by the use of light baffles within the scope, and by applying anti-reflective coatings to the lenses of the scope. The first thing to do to prevent glare is to ensure that there are no reflective surfaces in the interior of the scope. This is done by the use of flat, matte black finishes on all interior surfaces of the scope. Light baffles are rows of grooves that are placed in crucial areas of the scope to further prevent any stray light from reflecting off a surface. However, we are still left with the fact that within a scope there are a dozen or so surfaces that must be highly polished and perfectly smooth; the lenses. That's where the anti-reflective coatings come into use. Anti-reflective coatings are chemical compounds, such as Multicoat 4, that, when applied to a lens, prevent light from reflecting off the surface of the lens and enhance the amount of light focused through the lens. All these things combine to offer an image that is clear with vivid color and strong contrast to the eye. Let's review: glare is stray light within a scope that disturbs the light beam carrying the image as it passes through the scope. Glare can be reduced by the use of non-reflective surfaces and light baffles inside the scope, and the use of anti-reflective coatings on the lenses of the scope. A glare free image is crisp, the colors are vivid and the contrast is strong. The important thing to remember is that glare can ruin a scope's image so always choose a scope that uses these glare reduction techniques in its design.

Umiq88

Another important factor is your mag setting.

To get the best light gathering from your scope you need to match the exit pupil of your eye and in dusk dawn conditions this will be near 7mm. TO find the exit pupil of a scope divide the objective lens diametre in mm by the magnification.

i.e. for a 8x56 scope its 7mm same for a 6x42 or a 2.5x20

Thats why those scopes are very common just something to think about if using your scope lamping to get best benifits not sure if terminology is correct but basic idea is.

Also in direct sunlight your exit pupil will be much smaller maybe as small as 2mm so this is why it doesnt effect larger mags so something like 24x on a 50mm scope still is fine but when it gets dark it gets hard to see things.

Gerri

civdef wrote:

No.

Unfortunately you are incorrect, there are indeed some restrictions in the US relating to Mil Dot and other rangefinding reticles (Duplex). It depends on the company but almost all will ship just a plain crosshair type i.e. just horizontal and vertical wires of the same diameter (no Duplex).

civdef

Except that's not what the question was. You can import them freely here from Europe, or indeed any dealer in the US who doesn't seem to apply what by most accounts seems to be a fairly self-imposed restriction by some US dealers.

Gerri

civdef wrote:

Except that's not what the question was. You can import them freely here from Europe, or indeed any dealer in the US who doesn't seem to apply what by most accounts seems to be a fairly self-imposed restriction by some US dealers.

Question was,
Isn't there a restriction on mildot scopes though, being of a military nature

civdef

I hate quotefests, but the original question (in which context the supplemental mildot question should be seen) was:

to clarify my query......
Is it legal to order a scope into the country if you dont have a
rifle and licence yet?