$500 Varmint Scope

Rustydust

Active member
Hey Guys

A friend has just bought a .22/250 and wants to put some glass on it but his budget is around $500 or so. He plans on using it for things like ground squirrels and prairie dogs. I told him that nowadays I have no clue what five bills will buy as far as optics goes. He wants a variable power with a 30mm tube, side focus and 20-24X on the upper end. Some sort of hash marks or mil-dots in the reticle too.

So...any of you got something like this that is just really making you super glad that you bought it? I told him that I would ask in his behalf. I'm a wee bit embarrassed at not knowing what is out there now but I have not been in the market for a new scope for a long time.
 
There's some good options available from Hawke and Athlon. If he has time ask him to give us a call, 516-217-1000
Lots more options in 1" tube scopes
 
Russ, is he going to be dialing up and down and shooting this setup pretty long distances? I ask because unless he is, there's really not a lot of benefit in a scope with a 30mm tube and if your friend will open up his options to include scopes with 1in. tubes, like Doug said, it'll increase his list of possible choice.

There's a lot of good quality near new used scopes out there and you can sometimes get a lot more bang for your buck going with a nice used scope. A lot of the better scope companies have excellent warranties so that helps give a person a little piece of mine when buying used.

Do you know if he wants exposed or capped turrets?
 
If he's willing to compromise, I'd look for a used Bushnell Elite 4200 6-24x40 or 6-24x50. Most are AO not SF and they're 1" tube but they are great scopes and he can buy the scope, rings, and mounts for well under $500.
 
Originally Posted By: spotstalkshootSightron s-tac 4x20-50 moa2 reticle.

This one. I had mine on my 22-250 for last years p-dog hunt. As long as he don’t plan to hunt low light the reticle is really nice, the scope tracks well and has very good glass.
 
Originally Posted By: basdjsIf he's willing to compromise, I'd look for a used Bushnell Elite 4200 6-24x40 or 6-24x50. Most are AO not SF and they're 1" tube but they are great scopes and he can buy the scope, rings, and mounts for well under $500.

Is this great minds think alike? I have two of those older 4200 Bushnell 6-24X40 scopes. One that is at least 20 years old and has been on my .220 Swift since I bought it. Big thumbs up on the clarity. Lots of folks dont know that these older 4200 scopes were actually made by Bausch and Lomb and their glass is clear as gin. No side focus (meh!) but not that big of deal to me. Clarity is number one and they got this in spades.
 
Originally Posted By: RustydustOriginally Posted By: basdjsIf he's willing to compromise, I'd look for a used Bushnell Elite 4200 6-24x40 or 6-24x50. Most are AO not SF and they're 1" tube but they are great scopes and he can buy the scope, rings, and mounts for well under $500.

Is this great minds think alike? I have two of those older 4200 Bushnell 6-24X40 scopes. One that is at least 20 years old and has been on my .220 Swift since I bought it. Big thumbs up on the clarity. Lots of folks dont know that these older 4200 scopes were actually made by Bausch and Lomb and their glass is clear as gin. No side focus (meh!) but not that big of deal to me. Clarity is number one and they got this in spades.

Here's to great minds and 4200's!
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Bushnell 4200
Weaver V16 or V24
Or possibly a Hawke, ive had 2 diff Hawkes, and they are impressive for the $$...I dont care for Nikons personally...and i will 2nd moving away from a 30mm tube, the only benefit of that is larger internals for more MOA adjustment, not needed for 100-300yd +/- varmint shooting.
Any of the above scopes would leave $ left for rings and bases.
 
Watch for sales or look for a used Leupold VX3 in the classifieds. You can get great deals from a couple different ebay sellers also. You should be able to pick up a VX3 or VX3i in 3.5x10 or 4.5x14 for $400 or less.
 
Thanks for all the help, guys. But it seems that he has a bit more coin than he first thought so he as just about doubled what he wants to spend now.

I told him the old adage 'buy once, cry once" and looks like he is going to go more upper end. I did not try to talk him out of it.
 
Originally Posted By: gr8fuldougMeopta MeoStar 1.7-10x42 or 2-12x50 would be a great option.

Yeah, but that is nowhere near the 20-24X power he is looking for.
 
Rusty, I have that same "vintage" 4200 6-24x40. I would think
any p-dog or squirrel hunter would be pleased with it. But mine
is never going to be for sale, and I doubt yours will be,
either.
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Actually, I think one could "spend once, cry once" with several
$500 30mm scopes. I've had a Vortex Viper 6.5-20x50 for a few
years on a thumper rifle and is right there in clarity with the
Bushy. Just got an Athlon Argos 6-24x50 which can be seen here:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01APT...=UTF8&psc=1
Haven't been able to get out and shoot with it, but the glass
on it is just as clear, if not more so and less $$. I didn't
really need the illumination, but may come in handy.
 
https://www.cabelas.com/product/hunting/...4.uts?slotId=12

Here's exactly where I would go. On sale, probably closing them out. These are Meopta made, and the same as the old Zeiss Conquest. I picked up six of these but with exposed elevation turrets a little over a year ago. Now that these are on sale, it's really tempting to try a couple.

I really like the old 4200 Bushy's also, or Elite as the last ones were called. But these Meoptas put the glass to shame IMO. And if it isn't to his liking, Cabela's has always been very easy to return stuff to.
 
Originally Posted By: 204 ARhttps://www.cabelas.com/product/hunting/...4.uts?slotId=12

Here's exactly where I would go. On sale, probably closing them out. These are Meopta made, and the same as the old Zeiss Conquest. I picked up six of these but with exposed elevation turrets a little over a year ago. Now that these are on sale, it's really tempting to try a couple.


That is a superb price. I called my buddy and urged him to buy one. I bought a 6.5-20X Conquest like 14 years ago and paid over $700 back then and was thrilled to get it for that price. While I would not go so far as to say that it puts my old 4200 Bushnell scopes to shame I will say that they sure are nice an clear and might just be the bargain of the year. If I had a rifle in need of a scope or I would buy one too you bet.
 
Yeah I have an actual Conquest also, 2 of the Instinct in 6.5-20, and 4 Instinct 4.5-14. Last fall they were closing out the Instinct with exposed turrets and a windplex type reticle, I think I paid $337 for the 14x and $374 for the 20x. I haven't regretted the purchase yet, and wish I had more of those as I really like the set up of dialing elevation and holding for wind on the longer shots on pdogs.
 
That's my 6.5-20X Conquest on the rifle that I'm holding in my avatar. While a prairie dog is still a mighty small target a 700+ yards at least with that scope I could see it well enough to shoot at it and hit it. I have loved that scope ever since that day.
 
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