Mueller 4.5-14x40 APT Scope Question

[floppy ears]

I've recently purchased a Mueller 4.5-14x40 APT scope and have a question prior to mounting it. As I'm new to rifles and scopes I've been reading as much as I can which has left me semi-confused. I purchased the scope due to its seemingly good quality and feature set for a "budget" scope. I chose the APT over the APV due to the 30mm tube vs 1" tube and well, because it's more tacticool. My intent is on plinking, target shooting, and small game hunting in the future. This will be attached to my Savage FV-SR (.22LR).

My issue is this...the reticle is Mil Dot, but the adjustments are in 1/4 M.O.A. The description states, "the magnification ring is also highlighted green on 10x, which indicates the setting for accurate Mil Dot measurements." Does this mean the only time Mil dots should be used is when the scope is set at 10x? Did I screw up by purchasing a scope that breaks the (un)written Mil/Mil or MOA/MOA rule by purchasing a Mil/MOA scope? For someone new to rifles and scopes, is this going to make it significantly more difficult for me to learn?

Any and all help is appreciated as I continue to learn.


Thanks,

Jeff

[Hotolds442]

What it means is that the scope is calibrated at 10x to accurately show true mils for range finding purposes. Any other setting will not give accurate readings.

[justinp61]

Most of the less expensive mil dot (second focal plane) scopes have to be set to a specific magnification to use the mil system correctly. I have the same scope as you on my MKII BTVLSS, great scope for the money.

[Imaybail]

Based on your stated use, the scope should work very well. I have the APV scope on a .17 HMR rifle and it has worked well for me.
with your reticle, you need to decide on how to use it. You can rangefind the target (at 10x) and use the mildots to hold over, or you can use your range info to adjust the turrets for a "deadhold" sight picture. If you choose to adjust the turrets for range, you will need a table or calculate the mils to moa. Sitting on a bench shooting at targets this would be doable for me, but if I were hunting, I would try to use the mildots and not mess with the turrets. Also, if the turrets are not resettable, it can get very confusing to change for certain range targets and come back to your zero range setting. I think I would just zero the scope at 50 or 100 yards and then learn my holdovers and use the mildots based on my experience at different ranges. Then, I would carry my dope or range card with me until I had it memorized.