looking to buy a new scope

[upgofurbeer]

I just picked up a new Savage .17. Now I need a scope. I am looking at the BSA sweet 17 3-12x40 or the Barska in the same magnification. I have had no previous experience with these brands. Anyone know anything about them or have another suggestion? I plan to visit Bass Pro and Dunhams tomorrow to look and fondle and few scopes.

thanks,
Dale

[xring]

Drink the beer and hold the bottles up to your eyes . The view thru the necks will be a little worse than those brands ! Anyway , best to compare them yourself side-by-side . Better to buy a used Weaver , Bushnell , etc. It will save you the headache of moving up later . :D

[Oleman]

Scopes will last for a long time go with quality you won't be sorry. I'd be looking for something with a lifetime warranty. Nikon, Bushnell, Weaver Grand Slam or a Leupold. A year ago I picked up a Bushnell 4200 4 X 16 LNIB for $300 shipped from Cliff Haydel and a Weaver Grand Slam 4.5 X 14 for $285 shipped. Both have been flawless.

[T.D.C.]

BSA and Barska have pretty boxes. That is the best I can say about them. I had a frugal (read cheap) friend that wanted to get into woodchucks. Retired Navy, working a $25 / hourt production job and single. so $$ not a proble, Had a beautiful Rem 700 of about 1965 vintage in 22-250. Put a Barska on it and shot about 20% when he could find a target. I was shooting about 90% shooting clean up with his misses. He was 20 years younger and much steadier and better eyes. It took all summer to convince him to spnd the money on a decent scope ( Bushnell 4200). He went to 90%+ hits in a week. No more clean up for me

[Larry L]

FWIW, Natchez Shooter Supply has the Browning scopes on sale at half price. They are the Bushnell 3200 scope with Browning name on them. If you decide to give them a look, they are not on the general website. Go to the front page and pull up the online flyer of the month. They are around pg 16 of the flyer only. Heck ofa deal ona heck ofa scope.
http://catalogs.natchezss.com/jan08/t1.asp?page=16

[Big Bo]

Another nice Bushnell,

http://www.natchezss.com/Optics.cfm?contentID=productDetail&prodID=BH755154M

[upgofurbeer]

Thanks everyone, glad I asked, now I know what not to buy and have a few ideas on what to go look at.

[upgofurbeer]

does anyone know who makes the RedHead brand for Pro Bass and who is making Cabela's thier scopes?

[T.Zimm]

I am not trying to confuse the issue, but for some rimfire use a big game scope is not suitable. Most big game scopes the parallax is set at 100 yards. If you are inside of this range using a rimfire can be difficult. Adjustable Objective or side focus will take care of that. You are then able to adjust out the parallax when shooting close in. You will really like that HMR. I highly recommend buying a box of each brand/style of bullet as your rifle will most likely display a distinct preference for one. At least that has been my experience on all the HMR's I am familiar with. Good luck on your scope quest. I know how hard it is to choose. Good shooting!:)

[xring]

but if you look at them you can often see great similarities to one of the Major Brands .....same Turrets , same length , same Power turning knob , etc . so you can pretty much guess . A few years back , I just asked the salesman and he told me . However , the real manufacturer can change from year to year for the big Stores like Cabelas . For now , you can look at the box .....I would stay away from Chinese made Scopes . If you have a Cabelas near you , check out the Scope Dept . I don't know if every Store has the same set-up , but the Cabelas in S.Dakota ( or maybe it was Minnesota ) had the best set-up for testing Optics that I've seen in a Store . Big Tripod with a head to accomodate several Scopes so you can do an AB Test in seconds , comparing one to another . AND on a far wall , a nice Image Resolution Target. If you scan the Chart you can pick out finer and finer detail and rate the scopes from best to worst . Price is usually ( but not always ) a good indicator . There are still a few real bargains out there . Happy shopping !

[charlie sterner]

If you have a Dunham's nearby, check out the Mueller scopes. They usually have a 4-12 scope in stock for about $115. They are not a Leupold or Swarovski, but they are very good scopes for the money. They're 10 times better than the BSA "been screwed again" or Barska.

Charlie

[Damnear]

For what it's worth I am very happy with the Simmons Atec. It has a very good FOV and as far as my old eyes can tell, is very clear. Desent priced also.