Greetings, everyone. First post from me. I've recently acquired two rifles that are in need of scopes:
Rifle 1 is a FN military bolt action .308 with a very heavy barrel (rifle weighs right around 12 pounds). The rifle has a nice dark blue job and very dark wood. I'd prefer something that didn't clash with that, but also don't want something shiny. My scope budget is under $500. The rifle itself only cost me $550.
The intended use for this rifle is developing my skills at longer range shooting (600-800m, possibly up to 1k, but it is a .308). I'll be shooting in daylight. It's possible that I would even try to take a white tail with it, once I felt comfortable taking ethical shots at longer range. I've been shooting since I was four years old, hunting since I was six, and recently medically retired from the Marines. I know how to shoot, but never had a need to shoot at anything more than 500m away. This rifle is for getting into that.
Rifle 2 is a FN commercial bolt action .22-250 with a very heavy barrel. The rifle has a very nice, bright thumbhole stock, deep Belgian blue on the receiver, and an unfired stainless steel barrel. The rifle is beautiful, not tactical. As with the other rifle, my scope budget is under $500, since this rifle only cost me $450. This rifle wasn't finished when I bought it (my understanding is that the gentleman who was building it died before finishing it), so I had to do a bit more work on it. This rifle is currently at the gunsmith getting the blue job done on the receiver.
The intended use for this rifle is varmint/target shooting at 200-600m. I'll be shooting in daylight.
For both these rifles, I am heavily inclined towards a fixed power scope and have almost pressed "buy" on the SWFA 10x42 SS - Mil-Quad Reticle, 30mm, .1 MIL Clicks, Rear Focus at $299.95. I have never used an SWFA scope, but I hear great things about their customer service and quality at that price point. I would love some advice on whether there are better alternatives at my price point, as well as whether there are options (variable/fixed, power, reticle, clicks, etc.) that I should choose differently. Again, this is a start for this sort of scope for me. I don't mind upgrading down the road, but I am not able to drop $1000+ on scopes at this time. My current plan is to buy one of these scopes and try it out. Then buy another if I like it. But, before I do that, I would like to hear some thoughts, advice, and opinions.
Related question to that, I would also like advice on mounting the scope to Rifle 1. I've mounted many scopes to many rifles in my time, but I am unsure which ring height is best for this rifle (for example, SWFA offers high, medium, and low). I'll try to post a picture of Rifle 1, but suffice to say that it already has bases that appear to be rock solid.
Thank you.
Rifle 1 is a FN military bolt action .308 with a very heavy barrel (rifle weighs right around 12 pounds). The rifle has a nice dark blue job and very dark wood. I'd prefer something that didn't clash with that, but also don't want something shiny. My scope budget is under $500. The rifle itself only cost me $550.
The intended use for this rifle is developing my skills at longer range shooting (600-800m, possibly up to 1k, but it is a .308). I'll be shooting in daylight. It's possible that I would even try to take a white tail with it, once I felt comfortable taking ethical shots at longer range. I've been shooting since I was four years old, hunting since I was six, and recently medically retired from the Marines. I know how to shoot, but never had a need to shoot at anything more than 500m away. This rifle is for getting into that.
Rifle 2 is a FN commercial bolt action .22-250 with a very heavy barrel. The rifle has a very nice, bright thumbhole stock, deep Belgian blue on the receiver, and an unfired stainless steel barrel. The rifle is beautiful, not tactical. As with the other rifle, my scope budget is under $500, since this rifle only cost me $450. This rifle wasn't finished when I bought it (my understanding is that the gentleman who was building it died before finishing it), so I had to do a bit more work on it. This rifle is currently at the gunsmith getting the blue job done on the receiver.
The intended use for this rifle is varmint/target shooting at 200-600m. I'll be shooting in daylight.
For both these rifles, I am heavily inclined towards a fixed power scope and have almost pressed "buy" on the SWFA 10x42 SS - Mil-Quad Reticle, 30mm, .1 MIL Clicks, Rear Focus at $299.95. I have never used an SWFA scope, but I hear great things about their customer service and quality at that price point. I would love some advice on whether there are better alternatives at my price point, as well as whether there are options (variable/fixed, power, reticle, clicks, etc.) that I should choose differently. Again, this is a start for this sort of scope for me. I don't mind upgrading down the road, but I am not able to drop $1000+ on scopes at this time. My current plan is to buy one of these scopes and try it out. Then buy another if I like it. But, before I do that, I would like to hear some thoughts, advice, and opinions.
Related question to that, I would also like advice on mounting the scope to Rifle 1. I've mounted many scopes to many rifles in my time, but I am unsure which ring height is best for this rifle (for example, SWFA offers high, medium, and low). I'll try to post a picture of Rifle 1, but suffice to say that it already has bases that appear to be rock solid.
Thank you.
