Scope savage 243

Tommyaya4

Lads what scopes should I be looking at putting on a 243 will be used for deer but looking for something of good value as I wouldn't be doing a lot of hunting with it just take a few for our own table on our own land have shot uncles 22-250 for years with him but scope on that is a old as I am 😉

cookimonster

How much do you want to spend? Guys will come on advising you to spend double / treble what the rife is worth, but let's be realistic the heady days of the Celtic Tiger are long gone. If you have €700 - €1,000 then there are serveral makes either new or second hand.
I bought a Bushnell Banner XLT 3-12 X 56 about 5 years ago and if serves me well. I still get as many deer with it as the other lads I stalk with and to be honest I couldn't justify double or treble the cash sum to stay a minute or two longer on the field at last light.

What ever you chose I would opt for a classic 8x50 or 8x56 fixed power or if you fancy a bit of zoom a 3-9 or 3-12 either in 50mm or 56mm . Also try and go for 30 / 35 mm tubes. I prefer the simple A4 retecile and do use the illumination if shooting on a dark background. With an 1 inch high zero at 100 yards I have a 200 yard zero which is plenty for me for both hill and forest stalking so I don't need hash marks or mildots or target turrets

Tommyaya4

cookimonster wrote: »

How much do you want to spend? Guys will come on advising you to spend double / treble what the rife is worth, but let's be realistic the heady days of the Celtic Tiger are long gone. If you have €700 - €1,000 then there are serveral makes either new or second hand.
I bought a Bushnell Banner XLT 3-12 X 56 about 5 years ago and if serves me well. I still get as many deer with it as the other lads I stalk with and to be honest I couldn't justify double or treble the cash sum to stay a minute or two longer on the field at last light.

What ever you chose I would opt for a classic 8x50 or 8x56 fixed power or if you fancy a bit of zoom a 3-9 or 3-12 either in 50mm or 56mm . Also try and go for 30 / 35 mm tubes. I prefer the simple A4 retecile and do use the illumination if shooting on a dark background. With an 1 inch high zero at 100 yards I have a 200 yard zero which is plenty for me for both hill and forest stalking so I don't need hash marks or mildots or target turrets

Thanks lad yeah I was looking at a bushnell banner myself really only looking to spend 200/300 new or second hand really wouldn't have much interest in shooting past 150/200 yards

cookimonster

Have a look at a Hawke Endurance 30 8x56 LR Dot Scope, brand new in your price range and from what I hear have a good back up service in UK.

Cass

Hawke Sidewinder second hand for between €250 - €300. New for €425 or so.

If you can push your budget a little look at the Sightron S-Tac in 4-20. Basic scope, but excellent glass and robust quality.

With the pound so weak against the Euro now is the time to look for the good quality scope.

FISMA.

Tommyaya4,
How important is dusk and dawn shooting? Money is the name of the game there.

Deer are large targets, that need little magnification. Most deer I have taken have been with a Burris 3-9x40mm scope with a Ballistic plex, on 6x.

I would recommend a Burris, Bushnell, Redfield, Leupold, Vortex, or the like.

Get a 50mm bell - gathering more light will help make up for the cheaper glass and coatings.

1" or 30mm, either is fine.

Try and get a bit more mag, if you can. 4-12 or 5-20 would be nice. Just don't go to high, as you don't want to lose the field of view on the low end.

I shoot a ballistic plex reticle as hold-over is important. However, nowadays, I find myself going to a fine reticle.

You should go look at a few reticles and see if one clicks with you.

You need to be accurate, not precise, so don't go crazy with scopes like the benchrest-boys.

Asking a modern scope to hit an 8" pie plate inside of 300 is not much.

tonytoc11

What are peoples opinions on the Burris 4x 3-12x56 ir? I'm looking at buying a secondhand one for €300 for a Tikka .243. They could be an option for the OP.

Cass

Never used that Burris. I had a bad experience with Burris a few years back. Brand new scope that was broken and when i tried to get it replaced i spent 4 months and a lot of crap to eventually just end up with my money back. One of the worse customer services ever even though they spout on about their international customer care.

For up to €600 or so i'd look at:

1. Hawke Frontier
2. Vortex Viper
3. Zeiss Terra
4. Bushnell Elite 4500

If you want to stretch your budget to say €1,000 then look at:

1. Sightron S-Tac
2. Sightron SIII
3. Nightforce SHV

After €1,000 you really have a huge choice and it's then up to what you want rather than what you can afford.