18 power scope enough?

Originally Posted By: spotstalkshootFor prairie dogs with 17 and 20 caliber, is a 18 power top end enough scope?

I have ZERO experience with shooting P-dogs so I can't help except I'll take a stab at it and suggest it should be good to go.

I's also guess the type reticle is important as well... don't want a thick one that covers your target at distance.

Interested in the experienced answers...
 
I had a 4x20 on my 223 last summer, in the middle of the day on side winds I had to turn it down. I had a 4x16 on my 22-250 and do not recall any mirage, but there was a noticeable difference when shooting 300+. The reticle does make a difference, the 4x16 was a Nikon bdc terrible for prairie dogs. I need to replace the Nikon for next summer's shoot, was thinking 6x18 fine duplex or the Leupold wind plex.
 
I spoke to the folks at Leupold about the windplex ret and was told it was pretty thick. I ended up getting a VX-6 3x18 with moa hash marks and it is a fine ret that should work for you.
 
A friend of mine always used a 6-24x or 6.5-20x. He told me he could make use of the higher power in the morning, but by 10am would go down to 16x because of mirage.
 
Originally Posted By: Catdog1A friend of mine always used a 6-24x or 6.5-20x. He told me he could make use of the higher power in the morning, but by 10am would go down to 16x because of mirage.

This is my experience.

I have a couple of scopes that go to 24x but seldom
get above 20x.
 
Originally Posted By: 204 ARI have shot my share of pdogs and 18 or 20x is just about perfect IMO.

Sure is. Even though most of my prairie dog rigs have variables of 20X or higher I usually use 12X for most of my actual shooting. I like to see them fly and you need field of view for that.
 
As stated above, a lot of times anything over 12X isn't very usable due to mirage and such. Focus on a higher quality optic over higher magnification...it will pay dividends in the long run.
 
Go with more resolution and less magnification and you will be happy. Shooting on lower power lets you spot your shots better and see more wind indicators as you still see the dogs. Also like Rusty said it is fun to watch all the parts fly off. 18x is a big plenty with great glass.
 
Originally Posted By: BAMHigher magnification.... Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it......

Except when one sacrifices image resolution for more magnification. Clearer is better than closer, yet distorted.
 
Yep get glass over gadgets. If your budget will get you a higher quality optic with a plain reticle and no dials, get it. The better you can see the target the higher your chance of hitting it. High power, busy reticles, and dials do nothing on POOR QUALITY GLASS.
 
I will echo the above concerning quality/clarity of glass. Scopes with crowded ret's or heavy cross hairs are not something I use much. Fine duplex or even some fine cross hairs in clear glass make for good shots.

I must say that the scope industry seems to be over infatuated with loading the ret's up with what, for most hunters/shooters, are confusing dots and lines. I know this is driven by perceived buyers demand but there are a lot of folks I have talked to that bought expensive (some very) scopes only to not use the various "busy" ret's as they were designed. Dont get me wrong, I shoot a pretty dotted up Mil Dot on my 6.5 CM but I have shot it quite a bit and worked out the dots for my loads. Frankly when set on 10 power I am good to go out there quite a bit but thats me. Most of my predator/varmint scopes run 6-18 or 6.5-20 but very clear. You really cant shoot what you cant see clearly humanely.

Again, buy the clearest glass you can afford with the simplest ret for your purpose. Power wise I like being able to go to 18 or 20 even though most of the time I am set at 6-8.

Just my thoughts.
 
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