From Russ Chastain,
Your Guide to Hunting / Shooting.
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When buying a scope for a deer hunting rifle, you want to get the best you can afford. I strongly recommend against buying a junk scope, by which I mean just about any scope that sells new for less than $120 or so - and even at that low price range one should be wary. There are plenty of scopes that sell for $30-$40, but I wouldn't put them on anything more than a squirrel rifle.

A. What Magnification?

By far, the most common scope used on hunting rifles is 3x-9x, which means that it magnifies about 3 times at the low end of adjustment, up to 9 times at the high end. A 40mm objective lens is plenty big, and that's what I prefer on my own hunting rifles. So for the purposes of this discussion, I'll stick with the most popular scope there is: 3x-9x, 40mm.

What Brands are Good?

Well, there are plenty of them to choose from. I find myself gravitating towards Sightron at the low end of the price scale, now that I have tried one and liked it. The high end, for me, would be Leupold (excluding their cheap Rifleman series) - but there are others that cost more and offer better optics... but to me, the improvement in quality doesn't justify their high prices.

What's it Going to Cost?

Often, it comes down to how much you want to spend. I have some very good scopes, and I have some junky ones. The cheapest good one I own is a Sightron S1. Before I discovered this brand I bought a couple of Nikon scopes in the $200 range and a Burris for a little more, and I'm pleased with them... but the $130 Sightron gives me about the same performance for considerable savings.

Gloss or matte finish?

I generally use matte scopes because my guns have matte finishes, and I don't want my gun shining like a new dime when I head into the woods. If you enjoy the cosmetics of your rifle as much as its performance, then a more polished gun would look better with a gloss scope on it.

Which Reticle/Crosshair?

When it comes to choosing a crosshair or reticle (that's what you see - usually a cross - when you look through the scope), it's hard to beat the tried-and-true cross with lines that are thicker towards the outer ends of the "hairs" and thinner in the center, where they cross. Different manufacturers call them by different names, but usually they will be named "plex" or some variation thereof.

Conclusion

All in all, you can get a good quality scope without breaking the bank, if you're careful. 3x-9x is a good range of magnification, and scopes in that range are readily available and often cost less than others. Go with a 40mm objective lens and you will have all the light you need and will still be able to mount the scope nice and low, as it should be.

Buy a scope that's good enough that you can trust it to perform when you need it, where you need it. The hunting woods is not a gentle environment, and that requires scopes that can take some punishment. Make your choice accordingly - the buck of a lifetime may depend on it!

- Russ Chastain