Rifle Scopes Scope Recommendation for 16'' 308 Fix Rifle

[Thegrass13]

Hey everyone, first post here. Looking for some recommendations for my new Q fix rifle. Went with 16'' 308 version as I never get to shoot past 200 yards and usually hunt within that range as well. I was looking at using a nice 1-6 or 1-8 power. I have been looking at the Nightforce NX8 and the Leupold MK 6 1-6.
I can get these scopes for around 1400-1600 and would like to stay in that budget. Wanted to see if anyone on here has experiences with these or have some other recommendations. Thanks and I look forward to meeting everyone.

 

[newguy2k3v2]

I own both. I like both. Illumination is super bright dims a bit if your head position isn't right. The mk6 might be a little more forgiving on the eyebox and feels like the ocular "disappears" more on 1x.

I usually never care for bdc type reticles but I really like the cmr762 reticle. It matches up pretty well to my mild 175/178 ar load if I zero around 150-180 and use yards instead of meters for the range. I thought I would like the tmr-d more but to me the donut clutters the center crosshair too much. I could make more precise shots with the .5moa dot on the cmr.

Mk6 is on a 16" LMT MWS and the nx8 is on a 6.5 Grendel sbr. I haven't had them side by side on the same day.

I have a 22" fix with an amg now. I think one day it will have a 2.5-20 nx8. 6x is a little too much on the low end for my liking.

 

[Thegrass13]

I own both. I like both. Illumination is super bright dims a bit if your head position isn't right. The mk6 might be a little more forgiving on the eyebox and feels like the ocular "disappears" more on 1x.

I usually never care for bdc type reticles but I really like the cmr762 reticle. It matches up pretty well to my mild 175/178 ar load if I zero around 150-180 and use yards instead of meters for the range. I thought I would like the tmr-d more but to me the donut clutters the center crosshair too much. I could make more precise shots with the .5moa dot on the cmr.

Mk6 is on a 16" LMT MWS and the nx8 is on a 6.5 Grendel sbr. I haven't had them side by side on the same day.

I have a 22" fix with an amg now. I think one day it will have a 2.5-20 nx8. 6x is a little too much on the low end for my liking.

I did notice the funky eye box on the NX8 when i last looked through one, I haven't had the chance to look through the leupold 1-6 yet but I've heard the glass is noticeably better. Only reason i really considered the NX8 is the weight/size and the extra 2x. But I'm sure 1-6 would be plenty for 200 and in plus if I ever do get to stretch the legs on it then that 7.62 reticle could come in handy. I would love to use more of a 3-18 but I know i'll hardly ( if ever ) shoot far enough to use all that magnification.

 

[htowncoog]

I had the my fix with a Steiner T5Xi 3-15. Not that heavy of a scope and within your price range.

 

[rowcifer]

Trijicon 1-8 accupower

 

[Thegrass13]

Trijicon 1-8 accupower

I’d rather not add 28 ounces to a sub 6lb rifle lol

 

[koshkin]

I do not see what 1x does for you on this gun (I have one) so I would not be looking for anything starting on 1x. Mark 6 and NX8 you are looking at are designed to be used on 1x more than half the time. With a boltgun used for hunting and stuff like that, you will almost never be on 1x.

I would probably be looking at some proper hunting scopes like Meoptas Meostar 1.5-6x42. At around 20 ounces, it is in the same weight range as most decent LPVOs, but it will work much better for you on 6x than most of those. Inside of 200 yards, this scope has a lot to offer. Meostar R2 is 1.7-10x42, but I am not sure a touch more mag makes a difference in this case.

There are other scopes in this general category, but most of the nice ones are more expensive. Honestly, if you do not need illumination, Vortex Razor HD LH 1.5-8x32 or 2-10x40 would be perfect for this application, but Vortex seems to be revamping the line, so I am not sure how available these are.

ILya

 

[Thegrass13]

I do not see what 1x does for you on this gun (I have one) so I would not be looking for anything starting on 1x. Mark 6 and NX8 you are looking at are designed to be used on 1x more than half the time. With a boltgun used for hunting and stuff like that, you will almost never be on 1x.

I would probably be looking at some proper hunting scopes like Meoptas Meostar 1.5-6x42. At around 20 ounces, it is in the same weight range as most decent LPVOs, but it will work much better for you on 6x than most of those. Inside of 200 yards, this scope has a lot to offer. Meostar R2 is 1.7-10x42, but I am not sure a touch more mag makes a difference in this case.

There are other scopes in this general category, but most of the nice ones are more expensive. Honestly, if you do not need illumination, Vortex Razor HD LH 1.5-8x32 or 2-10x40 would be perfect for this application, but Vortex seems to be revamping the line, so I am not sure how available these are.

ILya

Most my hunting is done within 100 yards, as well as I don’t see the benefit of doing a 1.5-6 vs a 1-6 I’d rather have the dual use of being able to go to 1x. Thanks for the input though!

 

[cleric]

I am putting a pst 2 3-15 on my 16in fix

 

[TacticalPlinker]

TRIJICON ACCUPOINT 1-6 circle dot is amazing , light weight , and perfect for hunting

 

[Burdy]

Most my hunting is done within 100 yards, as well as I don’t see the benefit of doing a 1.5-6 vs a 1-6 I’d rather have the dual use of being able to go to 1x. Thanks for the input though!

I hunted all last year with a Kahles K16i 1-6 which optically is about as good as it gets for LPVOs. I can tell you I stayed at 2-6 power and I wished for a larger objective twice at dusk that could have resulted in two more dead deer. I will be running the Meostar R2 1.7-10x42 this year to make sure light transmission is good enough at higher mag levels at dusk. I don't feel like I will be giving up an ounce not have the true 1x on a hunting rifle, at least not on a rifle that shoots game that doesn't try to kill me too. The other good thing about more magnification while hunting is it gives you a good chance to look the deer over a bit better before deciding its the one you want to take.

 

[Sub-MOA]

Trijicon 1-8 accupower

I'm not a fan of the accupower. The 1x does not appear to be a true unmagnified view, but rather more like a 1.1 or 1.2x.

Also, the reticle is quite "fat" at 8x.


The new 1-6x Meopta Optika6 might be worth a look. Reasonably priced and should have pretty good glass if the higher magnification Optika6 scopes are anything to go by.

 

[Thegrass13]

I'm not a fan of the accupower. The 1x does not appear to be a true unmagnified view, but rather more like a 1.1 or 1.2x.

Also, the reticle is quite "fat" at 8x.


The new 1-6x Meopta Optika6 might be worth a look. Reasonably priced and should have pretty good glass if the higher magnification Optika6 scopes are anything to go by.

Thanks I'll check em out!

 

[koshkin]

Most my hunting is done within 100 yards, as well as I don’t see the benefit of doing a 1.5-6 vs a 1-6 I’d rather have the dual use of being able to go to 1x. Thanks for the input though!

The benefit is in the larger objective you get with the 1.5-6x42. if you never hunt in low light, that's a different story.

ILya

 

[Thegrass13]

The benefit is in the larger objective you get with the 1.5-6x42. if you never hunt in low light, that's a different story.

ILya

I’ll have to find a shop that carries them and give them a look. I’m not gonna say I never hunt in low light cause it’s always a possibility. I’ll give those options a look.

 

[beretta682]

I’ll have to find a shop that carries them and give them a look. I’m not gonna say I never hunt in low light cause it’s always a possibility. I’ll give those options a look.

 

[beretta682]

why don't you just put a straight six power scope on there and call it a day

 

[Thegrass13]

why don't you just put a straight six power scope on there and call it a day

I like the ability to go up or down in magnication. The scope could also be moved onto different platforms. I did decide to take a look at the zeiss 1-8x30 with 36mm tubes. I’m thinking that would be another good option

 

[koshkin]

I like the ability to go up or down in magnication. The scope could also be moved onto different platforms. I did decide to take a look at the zeiss 1-8x30 with 36mm tubes. I’m thinking that would be another good option

I thought you were looking in the $1500 range.

ILya

 

[Thegrass13]

I thought you were looking in the $1500 range.

ILya

Im privy to certain dealer discounts and this particular zeiss victory model would fall within that range. I’ve only just discovered this as an option. Did you have any opinions on it?

 

[koshkin]

Im privy to certain dealer discounts and this particular zeiss victory model would fall within that range. I’ve only just discovered this as an option. Did you have any opinions on it?

At their regular price, I thought that Zeiss V8 scopes were a little behind other high end scopes. However, for $1500 it is a good option. Still, there are compromises involved with scopes that go down to 1x and I can't figure out for th elife of me why you need 1x on this bolt gun. You can get more for your money with something else even with this discount.

ILya

 

[Thegrass13]

At their regular price, I thought that Zeiss V8 scopes were a little behind other high end scopes. However, for $1500 it is a good option. Still, there are compromises involved with scopes that go down to 1x and I can't figure out for th elife of me why you need 1x on this bolt gun. You can get more for your money with something else even with this discount.

ILya

I just like the option I’m usually one to swap scopes around, it’s not going to be a dedicated hunting rifle the the 1-6/1-8 may be moved into a honey badger or AR style gun in the future. I understand the better options you’ve listed and I’ve been really liking the meopta 1.5-6 you listed. I appreciate all the advice and it has certainly made me rethink some aspects. I’m leaning towards purchasing a more dedcicated hunting scope for this season and then I can entertain my previous two options as time goes on. My original option was a leupold mk 5 3.6-18. But again I would never get to truly use that magnification

 

[koshkin]

I just like the option I’m usually one to swap scopes around, it’s not going to be a dedicated hunting rifle the the 1-6/1-8 may be moved into a honey badger or AR style gun in the future. I understand the better options you’ve listed and I’ve been really liking the meopta 1.5-6 you listed. I appreciate all the advice and it has certainly made me rethink some aspects. I’m leaning towards purchasing a more dedcicated hunting scope for this season and then I can entertain my previous two options as time goes on.

That sounds perfectly reasonable.

If you do decide to get a scope that is going to eventually migrate to an AR, you may want to consider a reticle better suited for AR use.

Personally, I'd get a proper hunting scope and keep it on the Fix.

For the HB or something along those lines, you can always pick up something like Steiner P4Xi 1-4x24 later. It is nicely compact and has excellent 1x performance.

ILya

 

[Thegrass13]

That sounds perfectly reasonable.

If you do decide to get a scope that is going to eventually migrate to an AR, you may want to consider a reticle better suited for AR use.

Personally, I'd get a proper hunting scope and keep it on the Fix.

For the HB or something along those lines, you can always pick up something like Steiner P4Xi 1-4x24 later. It is nicely compact and has excellent 1x performance.

ILya

Yeah may just do a hunting specific scope. And pick up a leupold 1-6/Steiner down the road. If some new ranges pop up with some actual distance I can always get that mk 5 hd and throw that on there

 

[Greg Jr]

If you don't trust your scope, you'll never be able to get the value you want from your gun, and you'll keep buying more and more costly glass and accessories until you either run out of money or reach a point where you can stop chasing small groups.

There are better scopes, even within Vortex’s own line of scopes, but Bang for your Buck, most shooters will love the Viper PST GEN II. At the PRS competition last weekend, all 25 shooters were using a Vortex Viper PST Gen II.

If you're a Leupold fan, of course the Mark 6 should be the choice. The MK 6 is an improvement on the older Mark 4s that used to be the gold standard for long range shooting.

I have a detailed list of the best scopes for 308 that you could get as of now. You can read the article here: https://patriotichunter.com/best-scope-for-308/