Hunters or shooters who are thinking of buying the right riflescope for long range shooting should read this article to know the various features they need in an optical device for better shooting experience.
There are innumerable riflescopes available in the market and every one of them comes with their own marketing extravaganza, which plays with the mind of long range shooters. That is precisely why shooters need to be very careful about what they are buying. They might otherwise end up with a scope that does not meet their requirement or expectation level. Knowing the salient features of long range riflescopes will help them get the best possible experience out of shooting or hunting. The following is a rundown of the same.
Quality of Optics Used -The first thing that makes high end products better than other available scopes is the quality of glass. Though transmission of light through the device (more than 90 per cent) is surely a feature that determines quality of a scope, you will feel the difference when you look through these scopes and compare them side-by-side with other available optical devices. If the option of comparing optical quality is unavailable, go with the products of renowned manufacturers that are well known in the market for providing high quality glasses. Some of these well known manufacturers are Nightforce Optics, Swarovski, Trijicon, U.S. Optics, Schmidt & Bender, Zeiss (the high end versions), Leupold (the high end versions), and many more.
Reticle – Most preferred scopes come with hash marks or spaced dots. Many long range shooters prefer either floating crosshair kind of reticle (as Nightforce MOAR) or Mildot. When you are using a riflescope for long range shooting, you require ‘dial for elevation’ and ‘hold for wind’ features. For making the right calculation and hitting bull’s-eye, you need reticles through which you can calculate precisely how much turrets you have to adjust. That’s why scopes having spaced dots or hash marks on the horizontal or vertical portion of the reticle are preferred.
Range of Magnification – You can settle with a scope that has a magnification range from 5x to 25x. One of the most preferred riflescopes having moderate price is the NXS line of scopes from Nightforce, especially in the 5.5-22×56 sub-category. In long range hunting expeditions, you will not only need higher range but also the ability to take a shot at shorter distances. That’s why it is prudent for you to choose a scope that not only helps in aiming a target located at 100 yards range but also in bringing down an animal at 50 yard range. You may try Nightforce NXS 5.5-22×56, Swarovski Z5 Rifle Scope 5-25×52 BRX, Trijicon AccuPoint 5-20×50, or Schmidt Bender PM II 5-25×56 for getting the best out of your shooting experience.
Adjustment of Elevation – Elevation adjustment of at least 27.3 mil or 100 MOA is preferred. This is recommended because you would not like to have a scope that bottoms out at 50 MOA of adjustment when your ballistics is pointing out at 55 MOA.
To draw the conclusion, these are the four basic features you should check before buying a long range rifle scope or deciding whether you need a Nightforce NXS 5.5-22×56, a Swarovski Z5 5-25×52, a Trijicon AccuPoint 5-20×50 or some other scope to suit your hunting needs.
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