Ok, all BS aside, what is a great scope for long range shooting?

[Txhillbilly]

Yobuck, You always seem to have differing opinions about what people like to buy / own. Most guy's don't buy / build expensive gun's or scope's for bragging rights, we buy them because most of the time, they serve a purpose and are the quality that we want.

It's true, I don't need my custom rifles or the $3k+ optics setting on top of them. I've got plenty of $350 - $500 Savage actioned rifles with $1k - $1500 scopes on them that shoot just as good. It's a want thing, not a need thing. And if you think there's no difference between the different price tiers of optics, then that tells me all I need to know about you.

For you to tell Gene " He needs to get rid of his Barrett" makes you look like a fool in my book.
I owned and shot a 50 BMG for many years, and to say that you can't hit anything with it is complete BS. If you have friend's that are hunting deer with a 50 BMG, that also tells me a lot about you & your friends.

I personally don't care what people spend their money on, that's their decision & choice. I only offer my advise on different things that I know do the job, and don't make you spend money twice for buying the stuff that doesn't.

[Fuj']

I've had mine on a RRA 5.56 speed steel rig since they were
released. Still on the same rifle but looking down a second
barrel. Model ET6245F 6-24x50mm FFP Mil (illuminated). Your
pricing is excellent. Back then I had to give $1250, and that
was street.

[yobuck]

Yobuck, You always seem to have differing opinions about what people like to buy / own. Most guy's don't buy / build expensive gun's or scope's for bragging rights, we buy them because most of the time, they serve a purpose and are the quality that we want.

It's true, I don't need my custom rifles or the $3k+ optics setting on top of them. I've got plenty of $350 - $500 Savage actioned rifles with $1k - $1500 scopes on them that shoot just as good. It's a want thing, not a need thing. And if you think there's no difference between the different price tiers of optics, then that tells me all I need to know about you.

For you to tell Gene " He needs to get rid of his Barrett" makes you look like a fool in my book.
I owned and shot a 50 BMG for many years, and to say that you can't hit anything with it is complete BS. If you have friend's that are hunting deer with a 50 BMG, that also tells me a lot about you & your friends.

I personally don't care what people spend their money on, that's their decision & choice. I only offer my advise on different things that I know do the job, and don't make you spend money twice for buying the stuff that doesn't.
Well thanks for you opinion, i hope you feel better now that youve offered it.
But id still like to be watching some day as you and Gene shoot those 50s

[geneackley]

Im talking about the rifle Gene, not the scope you have on it.
So you have shot 150 rounds, how happy have you been with the groups you got?
Would you enjoy shooting say a 10 shot group with it?
Do you think you would even be up to shooting a 10 shot group with it? lol
Recoil is a big issue with many people when talking about even the regular magnum cartridges.
Yet these things shoot bullets of 750 gr. with well over 200 grains of powder behind them.
I have several friends who are Williamsport record holding shooters and have invested huge sums in custom 50s on big Bat actions and they cant hit a deer with the things because of the recoil.
Five seasons with the thing and they have killed one deer that you could have easily killed with your 280, about 700 yards.
Another very good friend of mine watched this past season as they shot at one at about 900 and missed.
They only got the one shot before it ran off. He is also a very experienced shooter and long standing at Williamsport also.
He said just by watching Scott get ready you knew he was anticipating the huge recoil.
They told him they are already anticipating their next barrel, and it wont be a 50.
Another friend had the same smith build him one at the same time frame using the same components.
His reason was that they were missing deer with their 338x378 at the longer distances they werent capable of to begin with.
A relative of his told me that he was with them when they missed one numerous times at 1400, and it was obvious that they just couldnt handle that gun. The guy had heard there was a small buck hanging out on the hillside opposite our camp, and called me about trying to find it and shoot at it at about 600 for the practice. I told him that if we wished that buck dead he would already be dead as a result of one of the kids shooting it with a 308. lol
The relative i mentioned is a neibor about 1/4 mile down the road, and he and his son have a Barrett 50 and have shot it from our yard on several occaisions. Ive turned down each offer to shoot the thing, and havent been impressed by watching them shoot it either.
They enjoy that type of thing, they ride down to i believe Louisville KY. every couple years for the big full auto shoot fest.
I personally wouldnt go even if i lived there, so as they say different strokes for different folks.


Back in November of 2008 when Obummer was first elected, I figured that the first thing he would do as soon as he walked into the Whitehouse was to outlaw these things. I didnt particularly need one right then, but I figured that if I was ever going to own one, that then was the moment to get one... so I did.

But I have only been shooting military surplus ball though it (which is not particularly accurate). Of course I figured that when I started reloading 50 cal, that I would make a much more accurate load... I just never got around to it cause the truth is that I don't really enjoy shooting it. It's brutal, and reloading the 50 is very very expensive...

So frankly I keep it mostly for "blamtifas" -if they ever come to out mess up my neighborhood... It would be one of those glorious Crocodile Dundee "That's not a knife" moments... That round would go through several Cadillac engine blocks... ha ha!!

But I am open to selling it. Its really too much gun. So I agree with you Yobuck!!!

[yobuck]

Back in November of 2008 when Obummer was first elected, I figured that the first thing he would do as soon as he walked into the Whitehouse was to outlaw these things. I didnt particularly need one right then, but I figured that if I was ever going to own one, that than was the moment to get one... so I did.

But I have only been shooting military surplus ball though it (which is not particularly accurate). Of course I figured that when I started reloading 50 cal, that I would make a much more accurate load... I just never got around to it cause the truth is that I don't really enjoy shooting it. It's brutal, and reloading the 50 is very very expensive...

So frankly I keep it mostly for "blamtifas" -if they ever come to out mess up my neighborhood... It would be one of those glorious Crocodile Dundee "That's not a knife" moments... That round would go through several Cadillac engine blocks... ha ha!!

But I am open to selling it. Its really too much gun. So I agree with you Yobuck!!!
Well understand i dont particularly care what people choices are.
I assume they have what they have because i fills a need for what they do.
I also understand that not everybody would agree with my opinions, and further, not everybody agrees with the way i and many others like me hunt.
You came here rather recently seeking opinions and information.
Making statements about your lack of experience in shooting beyond as i recall about 350 yards.
You also stated your dislike for magnum rifles and the amount of powder they consumed.
Which was why you chose to build a 280 AI.
I never attempted to sway you from that decision, other than to point out that it would never be a 7 Rem Mag.
Ditto when you asked for opinions on a scope for it.
Unlike others whoes opinions were all over the place, i recomended just using one of the ones you had untill you gained experience with the gun.
As for you asking about the Ruger rifle, they offer it in 300 Win because its an excellent long range cartridge, better than a 7 Rem Mag, and i attempted to convince you of that.
But after all the not wanting the expence of loading magnims, not wanting to shoot long distance, not having the money for an expensive scope, you announce that you own a Barrett 50 cal?
I said to myself WHAT, after all this he tells us he owns a 50?
Certainly you cant shoot it Gene, and neither can i or anybody else on this site, at least with any degree of what many of us might consider accuracy.
But you do whatever you feel best to do with it.
And good luck with the new gun and the shooting of it.

[geneackley]

Well thanks for you opinion, i hope you feel better now that youve offered it.
But id still like to be watching some day as you and Gene shoot those 50s

Funny you should say that: Hillbilly and I were just on the phone the other day discussing places to go shoot now that his favorite long range place has shut down... And I was going to finally see how far I could push that Barrett with the old Korean War vintage ball ammo!!!

[Fuj']

Well understand i dont particularly care what people choices are.


Well, that there is a stretch....lOL Most of your postings are
just that !! As for shooting the big 50 accurately (subjective)
The guy's shooting the 2 mile courses will tell you differently,
and many with a Barrett. It's been known that the Barrett M82
is low recoiling. A bit pricey to enter my stable but if Hathcock
would have had one, he probably would have tripled his score.

Gene have you settled on a basic load to start your works ??

[yobuck]

Well, that there is a stretch....lOL Most of your postings are
just that !! As for shooting the big 50 accurately (subjective)
The guy's shooting the 2 mile courses will tell you differently,
and many with a Barrett. It's been known that the Barrett M82
is low recoiling. A bit pricey to enter my stable but if Hathcock
would have had one, he probably would have tripled his score.

Gene have you settled on a basic load to start your works ??
Hathcock’s score was what it was because of the type of enviornment in which he performed his duty Fuj.
Quite the opposite of what our sniper Chris Kyle had when he set the US record as for kills.
Whereas Hathcock operated in a jungle type enviornment, using a stalk method, Kyle operated in an urban enviornment offering multible targets on a daily bases.
And if you had read Kyles book, you would know that he had multible weapons at his disposal for use.
Including a 300 win mag, a 338 Lapua, and a 50 caliber, all having Nightforce scopes.
His favorite, and the one he used to make pretty much all his kill shots was the 300 Win.
He also did not dial the scope at all for the vast majority of his shots.
Rather he had it zeroed for 400 yds, and simply held up or down as required on the body.
Remember also Fuj, that a hit anywhere on the human body is a game changer.
Unlike an animal that will take a good hit and simply walk off as though not touched.
Even with large cartridges like 338s.
And those who dont believe that, only believe it because they have never seen it in real life.
We can impress people on the internet, but not so much out there.

PS. Kyles longest kill however Fuj, was at 2000 yards, and not with the 50, but the 338 Lapua.
He readily admitted in the book that it was in fact a BS luck shot, which used all the elevation the scope had plus a holdover using the reticle.
It was confirmed by a witness that the target did in fact fall from the tree he was in.
But the book didnt actually say wether the guy was dead, or that he simply fell out of the tree due to a near miss.
In any event it was counted as a kill shot.

[geneackley]

Well, that there is a stretch....lOL Most of your postings are
just that !! As for shooting the big 50 accurately (subjective)
The guy's shooting the 2 mile courses will tell you differently,
and many with a Barrett. It's been known that the Barrett M82
is low recoiling. A bit pricey to enter my stable but if Hathcock
would have had one, he probably would have tripled his score.

Gene have you settled on a basic load to start your works ??

I just got my rifle built last night with a temporary 6.5 CM savage barrel. I wont even worry about the 280 Ackley until I get my barrel and dies. In the meantime I will just shoot 6.5 CM in my long action... Savage Prefit barrels are great that way; 5 minutes and a head space gauge and you have a whole new caliber!!! You cant beat it!!! That's why I am here and a proud member of the BARREL NUT BROTHERHOOD - even if my receiver is not a Savage but rather a Nucleus!!!! ha ha !!!

[Fuj']

Not sure what components you have on hand but I did love 42 grains
of R-16 with a Nosler 140 RDF sitting on top, for the Creedmoor.

[geneackley]

Not sure what components you have on hand but I did love 42 grains
of R-16 with a Nosler 140 RDF sitting on top, for the Creedmoor.


I will try that.

I have been using 40.5 grains of H4350 on old 140 grain Hornady Amax bullets. These bullets are obsolete now cause they had issues with the polymer tips melting...

Anyway, Its a mild load but very accurate. Any more and I start getting pressure signs in my AR10, although not in my Tikka bolt gun. Go figure. I have been loading for both guns temporarily, but I now plan to develop a proper load for each one.

[Txhillbilly]

I've always found it funny that Hornady claimed the polymer tips on the Amax bullets were melting. I shoot those bullets out of many guns in .224 -.264 -.284 - and .308 calibers for many years and never had any issues with them.
I personally think it was just a marketing ploy for them to make / sell the new ELD series bullets at a higher retail price.

[geneackley]

I've always found it funny that Hornady claimed the polymer tips on the Amax bullets were melting. I shoot those bullets out of many guns in .224 -.264 -.284 - and .308 calibers for many years and never had any issues with them.
I personally think it was just a marketing ploy for them to make / sell the new ELD series bullets at a higher retail price.


Well, you may have something there cause I have no way of checking it as they fly... ha ha!!!

[Fuj']

I've always found it funny that Hornady claimed the polymer tips on the Amax bullets were melting. I shoot those bullets out of many guns in .224 -.264 -.284 - and .308 calibers for many years and never had any issues with them.
I personally think it was just a marketing ploy for them to make / sell the new ELD series bullets at a higher retail price.

I shot mainly the 162 BTHP away's back. I always blamed Hornady's
politician bean counters for killing it off in favor of plastic. That 162
was one damn fine bullet.

[geneackley]

Well, I just got home after running some errands this morning, and lo and behold, UPS had left a big box at my front gate from Midway USA!!!.

I took it into the house and opened it up this evening and to my joy the scope is very nice. It also included a sunshade which I thought it did not have originally... so that was a big relief!!

I ordered some butler creek scope caps.... it has that cheap plastic bikini thing (which I dont care for) out of the box.

Pulled the tab on the battery and the illumination works well...

All the controls are stiff... but should wear in soon... I hope.

I DO NOT LIKE that the parallax knob is calibrated in YARDS!!! For some reason I feel that a MIL scope should be calibrated in Meters... Go figure; But I will live. Its close enough.

You can take the European kid to Texas, but you cant take the first 23 years of Europe out of him, even after 41 years here!!! ha ha ha !!

So the image seems very nice but I didn't get a chance to take it outside tonight to really see... it was getting dark and late and I have 6 one month old Pyrenees puppies to feed; They have sharp little teeth and mom is getting tired of that crap!!! ouch!!! 2 are spoken for but the other 4 need homes if you are interested....

But back to the Bushnell Elite DMR II: I will mount the scope in the morning and see what it looks like... But I get the feeling its gonna be just fine!

So my initial impression is very favorable.

Looks like "We are not in "SWFA Kansas" anymore Toto!!!"

ha ha ha !!!

good night fellas!!!

[Robinhood]

I would not worry about the marks on the parallax knob. I can guaranty they are not calibrated. There is a process to setting a parallax scope correctly. If you know you are good to go. If not ask.

[yobuck]

I shot mainly the 162 BTHP away's back. I always blamed Hornady's
politician bean counters for killing it off in favor of plastic. That 162
was one damn fine bullet.
I believe you will find that the 162s having the tips are a different bullet than the 162 bthp match fuj.
I haven checked lately because of my stash, but i believe the 162 hpbt match are still produced.

[geneackley]

I would not worry about the marks on the parallax knob. I can guaranty they are not calibrated. There is a process to setting a parallax scope correctly. If you know you are good to go. If not ask.


I sense a chance to learn something. Please do share this procedure Robinhood. Thank you.

[geneackley]

I meant to go play with my new scope today but I was kept busy with retirement related paperwork. I just officially retired on February 8th and haven't even gotten my first social security check yet, much less my pension. They sure do take their sweet time.... good thing I had some savings...

Anyway, I will tentatively take my new scope out tomorrow and check it out for a proper "range report" here afterwards. I have a feeling its gonna be great!

[Fuj']

I believe you will find that the 162s having the tips are a different bullet than the 162 bthp match fuj.
I haven checked lately because of my stash, but i believe the 162 hpbt match are still produced.

The 7mm 162 HPBT #2840 is the hollow point I was referring to.
Bullet has been discontinued.