10-40X50 scope--HELP ! !

**ImAfossil** · September 10th, 2014, 04:08 PM

With a birthday in October, I am looking for info, to help my grandkids in surprising pop-pop (that's me), with a new Varmint / Target scope.

I basically just hunt groundhogs with a NEF (single shot) .204 Ruger. Don't sell that lil' single short. My average hit is probably very close to + or - 200 yards. I am zeroed at 200 yards, with some kills out to 300 plus yards.

At this time I have a 6-24X40 mounted on the NEF. Rarely do I turn the scope down past 12X. Below is a picture of my rig with a 4-12 mounted, replaced by the 6-24. The 6-24, can't put my finger on it, BUT, BUT---It's just not, whatever ! ! !

The investment in a high dollar scope is not do-able. What is out there to fill my needs. My wants are on the side lines for this adventure.

I want the kids to max out at $150 range. This number probably gets me into foreign manufacturers, but it is what it is. Any and all info would be appreciated.

HELP ! ! ! and thanks,
fossil

**theunrulychef** · September 10th, 2014, 04:18 PM

I've seen some of your work in your other threads & you seem to be doing pretty darn good with what you have!

I know there's a lot out there for cheap & the glass in the cheap ones is supposed to be better than it was years ago, BUT... If you can try to put your finger on what you are missing or don't like about your current scope, that would help you narrow down the field. Do you need mil ranging or anything like that? I guess varmint shooting, you guys really want to have super fine crosshairs so you can see the little buggers.

**aubie515** · September 10th, 2014, 05:54 PM

I say the best bang for the buck for $100 is the Simmons Whitetail at MidwayUSA. It also comes with free shipping.

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/115...ProductFinding

A lot of guys on RFC use that same optic. It's not high end, but it's a good quality optic for under $150 price point.

**ImAfossil** · September 10th, 2014, 08:50 PM

2A---The Chef

Having the extra power would be a bonus.

Maybe I can best describe what goes on, is an annoyance. As I jack up the 40MM in power, I start losing light and I wind up doing an eyelid dance by blinking. Do I gather more light---a tad bit, but it is annoying.

I kinda' call it, cobweb eyes (looking through a cobweb). Recent cataract surgery and age probably contribute to this annoyance.

I have a few 50mm variable power scopes and I do not go through the eyelid dance, but they stop at 9 to 14 power.

I am thinking that a 50mm would smooth things out. If nothing changes, I will pick up the extra power.

I know, I know----The answer is 'your problem is all between your ears.

fossil

**theunrulychef** · September 11th, 2014, 09:47 AM

With 40 or 50 mm objectives at super high magnification, I think that cobweb feeling is just going to be a fact of life. Your exit pupil (objective / magnification = exit pupil) on your current scope at 24x is 1.66mm. A 50mm objective at 24x only bumps that up to 2.08mm. If you take your current scope and put it at 19.2x power, you will have about the same exit pupil as you would on the 50mm at 24x. Essentially, you'd need to bump up your objective way up to get that nice light-flooded feeling you have at 12 or 9x. For example, you'd need a 96mm objective to have the same exit pupil at 24x as you do on a 40mm at 10x.

The pupil diameter of a 25 year old is 5-9mm & slowly gets smaller as you get older. You want to fill as much of that as possible. Now you're not old, you're just more experienced. But all that experience makes your pupils smaller for some strange reason.

Higher quality optics will give better light transmission & image clarity etc, but even they aren't perfect at the super high magnifications. If you're near a Cabelas or some place with a bunch of nice scopes, it's worth your time to stand there looking through a bunch of them & see even what the really expensive ones look like at 20x, 30x. I warn you that it might ruin you on the cheapies though if you look through too many Swarovskis & NightForce. Even my Leupolds seem low class in comparison.

**ImAfossil** · September 11th, 2014, 12:36 PM

2A---CHEF:

Your analysis was excellent. I could follow every detail and it was comprehensive.-----Thanks.

I live about 1/2 way between Bass Pro and Cabela's----Maybe me and MOM will scoot down to Cabela's and follow your tip, try a few.

At 73 11/12 years of age, I mentioned MOM in the last paragraph----MOM is not my mother, but my bride of close to 50 years. She has always been MOM to me, not Shirley. WHY ?????-----Probably a zillion reasons.

fossil

**Tomcat088** · September 17th, 2014, 01:54 AM

Chef is hitting on exactly what you're going to run into. The problem is that this is a physical phenomenon that happens to everyone when you crank up the power of the scope. It has a bit more of an effect on aging eyes, but it happens to the younger guys as well. As chef also pointed out, 50mm objectives aren't really the answer to the problem that you're having because you just won't find a large enough objective to remedy this problem, it's partially inherent with higher magnification. So this means that larger objective and higher magnification will NOT be the answer for you. In my experience, especially with some of the cheaper scopes, you'll never be able to harness the 40x; so there's really no point in going that high. When you start getting that high of a magnification, the exit pupil will get even smaller than what you have at 24x, and the lower quality of the glass will be even more obvious. Pretty much, you'll get very low contrast, dark/hazy images where you're not really going to get much benefit, and it'll show a lot of shake/movement, and what you call "cobwebs".

People don't realize this, but glass quality and the coatings on the lenses are something that makes a big difference in what you see. On some high end scopes, you will see them have 40mm objectives or sometimes smaller, and they still may have a brighter appearance than a cheaper 50mm objective scope. Coatings, scope design, glass quality, and all sorts of other factors will have an impact on how the scope "looks". I really just don't see you getting what you want out of a $150 scope that will go above 24x, and some won't even give you what you want at 24x. I know it's a bit disheartening to hear, but you might be much better served to look at a different magnification range, or to look at some other things that would helpful for your kit within that $150 range.

**ImAfossil** · September 19th, 2014, 09:25 AM

Chef & Tomcat:

Time to re-tool my thinking with the input from you guys.

When you have a game plan it comes down to trading. I want this, but I have to give up that. Or if I want that, I give up this.

I will let you know where I finally wind up. Nothing may change. I did have a pretty good year on chucks, and maybe, just maybe, leave well enough alone.

Thanks, fossil