can YOU read mirage through a fixed 12x power scope

[pitdog85]

As the title suggests is this possible with a 12x scope because I can see mirage there just but not enough to make anything useful from it. Feels like I need to zoom in a bit more to see it better?? This is a 12x fixed swfa and is all I have can/afford am I wasting my time and should focus on reading leaves etc. I cannot afford a spotting scope at this stage.

My next question is most people seem to use a spotting scope to see the mirage and then hop on there rifle to take the shots right? Why is it when I see frank on his videos he doesn't use a spotting scope at all is he reading mirage though his rifle scope because I don't see him adjusting parallax either how is he calling the wind way down range without a spotting scope?

 

[Deleted member 113831]

Reading mirage through a rifle scope is harder than through a spotter. That is a given.

It is not impossible, but the reduced power and field of view seriously hamper your efforts. You have to compensate by looking at any hard edges in the field of view where the mirage might be more distinct. Competition shooters often look along the tops of berms between them and the target, or the target frames themselves. Field shooters might look at fence lines, road beds, rocky ridges etc.

Look for indicators other than mirage to confirm what you think you are seeing.

 

[Rudy Gonsior]

10x to 15x is usually enough to see mirage on good days. I actually just shot a mid-range F-Class match last week using a NXS 3-15x and pulled off a 598 -27X, without ever bother setting up the spotting scope. Higher magnification of a spotting scope can make it easier but remember you never what to put all you eggs in one basket when it comes to reading wind, some days the lighting and weather are just not going to cooperate and you won't see any mirage.

 

[pitdog85]

Reading mirage through a rifle scope is harder than through a spotter. That is a given.

It is not impossible, but the reduced power and field of view seriously hamper your efforts. You have to compensate by looking at any hard edges in the field of view where the mirage might be more distinct. Competition shooters often look along the tops of berms between them and the target, or the target frames themselves. Field shooters might look at fence lines, road beds, rocky ridges etc.
Look for indicators other than mirage to confirm what you think you are seeing.

This is some great tips I didn't think to look against a different background to make it stick out more. Where I shoot is down a long narrow corridor of grass with sugar cane fields 10ft high each side so there is no objects to check this but maybe I will try on the target like you say. Or maybe I should take the rifle somewhere else without shooting with different backgrounds to see if I can see it better.

10x to 15x is usually enough to see mirage on good days. I actually just shot a mid-range F-Class match last week using a NXS 3-15x and pulled off a 598 -27X, without ever bother setting up the spotting scope. Higher magnification of a spotting scope can make it easier but remember you never what to put all you eggs in one basket when it comes to reading wind, some days the lighting and weather are just not going to cooperate and you won't see any mirage.

This is good to know, so were you reading the mirage through your 3-15x? Or were you using other signs to read the wind to shoot that score?

 

[Rudy Gonsior]

This is some great tips I didn't think to look against a different background to make it stick out more. Where I shoot is down a long narrow corridor of grass with sugar cane fields 10ft high each side so there is no objects to check this but maybe I will try on the target like you say. Or maybe I should take the rifle somewhere else without shooting with different backgrounds to see if I can see it better.



This is good to know, so were you reading the mirage through your 3-15x? Or were you using other signs to read the wind to shoot that score?

Yes the other day mirage could be read just using the 15x but again its not the only thing I relyed on. If your only focusing on what you see through the optic (especial a just a rifle scope) you lose your situational awareness of what the wind is about to do outside that narrow FOV and this gives you very little reaction time. You have to develop a multi-spectrum approach, as in reading from several different indicators.