another scope question, but more about features

[D.ID]

What did dawn do to your lenses? Strip coatings or damage seals?
.
I have only had to use customer service twice, bushnell elite 4200 and swfa ss, in both cases I bought a used scope off the internet for a steel of a price.
They did not tack correctly wen I got them, the swfa looked like it had bean used to drive nails or something. In both cases I informed the service center I had bought used and was willing to pay for repairs if they could be repaired. Both suggested I send it in for inspection.
In both cases I had a shiny new scope inside of two weeks and they had a confident repeat customer and advocate ever since.

[barrel-nut]

I had what appeared to be a little bit of some kind of white grease looking stuff around the edges of the lens- some kind of sealant maybe? Anyway, it popped into my head that "Dawn cuts grease!" which it most definitely does. It also removes the pretty purple lens coating that gave my scope such a clear, bright view, and left it just a murky milky colored mess. Stupid, stupid, stupid. It was in early September, with deer season opening here about a month later. I called them and explained, like you offering to pay to get it fixed. They told me to send it in, and they'd take care of it. I also had another Burris that I wanted target turrets installed on, so I sent it in too. Had both back before the end of the month, with only a nominal charge for the turret job. Great customer service. I've been scared to touch any scope objective lens, ever since. I pretty much just blow them off with a very low pressure blast of compressed air now. The coatings on the Fullfield 2's do seem very fragile to me. That's my only gripe about those scopes. Otherwise a great value.

[D.ID]

Good to know!
I started using camera lens pens a while back after scratching a binocular lens using my shirt to dry off poring rain. The lens pens are cheap ($10+/-) and compact enough to throw in my pack. Work good if you use them often so there is no major build up.

[Bigdave1977]

The single power swfa SS scopes are better than any of the scopes on your list, period. You can catch one on sample list from time to time for about $250. The Vortex Crossfire and Primary Arms are the only ones that will have a comparable warranty, and the glass will be sub par in comparison. Yes, I have compared them with most of the scopes on that list with my own eyes. The only one I haven't seen is the Leatherwood. No, it doesn't have the illuminated reticle, and it is heavy, and it is a smaller than 50 mm objective. But it is optically superior to all of them, and way more durable and the adjustments are extremely accurate and repeatable.

Dave

[justinp61]

I bought a Mueller 4.5-14 X 40 APT for my Savage BTVLSS .22 and was really surprised how clear it is. Later on I wanted more magnification so I bought a Konus Pro 6.5-25 X 44, mistake, I should've bought another Mueller. At some point I will buy this one. http://muelleroptics.com/mt852544

I recently bought a Model 16 in 260 Remington and let a friend talk me into a Leupold 4-14 X 40, it was about $550. It's a nice scope but to my eyes it's not any clearer than the Mueller. The Leupold's parallax is fixed at 150 yards which is unhandy for what I bought it for. For ground hogs and punching paper I have a 22-250 FVSS in a Stockade Elk Stalker stock with a Leupold 6.5-20 X 40 with the Varmint Hunter reticle, very nice clear at any magnification scope. The side focus is a nice feature. It was around $800 when I bought it. All the scopes I've mentioned are 30mm tubes.

[jjohnson636]

Currently I'm stuck in limbo trying to find a scope that's mil/mil, at least a 50mm objective and under $500. The closest I can come up with is the PA FFP 4-14x44. The scope doesn't need to be FFP, but mil/mil I'm set on. From my research, many have spoke to the ease of dialing a correction using matching mil/mil reticle and turrets. Most of the scopes in this price range have a mil reticle with moa turret adjustments.

[foxx]

SWFA has a great sale ending today on SS. They have Mil/Mil. Be sure to look closely at specs, they come in MOA as well.

[foxx]

All of these are Mil/Mil:

Highly recommend any/all of them. The only one I do not have is the SWFA 3-15. I would buy one, but decided the PA was good enough at 1/3 the price. The sale price is tempting, though.


http://swfa.com/SWFA-SS-3-15x42-Tactical-Rifle-Scope-P62238.aspx (3-15x)

http://swfa.com/SWFA-SS-10x42-Tactical-Riflescope-P53712.aspx (fixed 10x)

Midway has a nice weaver 3-10 tactical (midway exclusive) http://www.midwayusa.com/product/598484/weaver-tactical-grand-slam-rifle-scope-3-10x-40mm-1-10-mil-adjustments-mil-dot-reticle-matte?cm_vc=ProductFinding

Primary Arms are nice for the money as well. https://www.primaryarms.com/Primary_Arms_4_14X44_FFP_Scope_p/pa4-14xffp.htm

None f these scopes need or would benefit from larger objective lenses. Just not necessary. Higher production cost without practical advantage. All of these are plenty bright beyond legal hunting hours, I assure you.

[jjohnson636]

I've looked and read about the SWFA scopes and they've received nothing but great reviews, but the scopes that fit my requirements are out of my budget. Again, as it stands, the PA 4-14x44 FFP mil/mil is the closest I've been able to find. I'm hoping to find a scope that fit my requirements, if not, I'll have to go with the Primary Arms FFP for now.

[savagemann]

I have the PA 4-14x44. It is great. Glass is super clear for the price.
Only thing to be aware of is that as you zoom, the crosshairs get pretty big. Like big enough to cover a target at long range.
This isn't a problem for hitting steel plates at 1000 yards, but if you are going for super precision at 1000 yards, you will have issues.

I also have a PA 4-16x44. The glass in nowhere as clear as the FFP model.

[jjohnson636]

I have the PA 4-14x44. It is great. Glass is super clear for the price.
Only thing to be aware of is that as you zoom, the crosshairs get pretty big. Like big enough to cover a target at long range.
This isn't a problem for hitting steel plates at 1000 yards, but if you are going for super precision at 1000 yards, you will have issues.

I also have a PA 4-16x44. The glass in nowhere as clear as the FFP model.

I've pulled the trigger on the PA FFP 4-14x44. I will still consider buying a second scope that sports at least a 50mm objective. The Hawke Sidewinder 30 and the Falcon Menace are in my sights.