šŸ”“150 Scopes! Comparison in 3 Scope Specs Tables

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150 Scopes! Comparison in 3 Compact Scope Specs Tables

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Do you like scope shopping? I do. šŸ˜„

Do you get sometimes confused by the myriad of options, spread over the internets? I do. šŸ˜Ž



Wouldnā€™t it be nice if we could compare the specs of a certain scope group side-by-side? šŸ˜‰

Then we would be able to see just which scopes are appropriate forĀ airgunning, which fulfill our minimum requirements, which scopes have deal-breakers, which have cool extras, and how much each scope costs approx...!Ā 



Many of the following questions about scope features are important when scope shopping ā€“

and the attachedĀ Scope Specs TablesĀ answer each one of them ā€“

comparing the specs of over 150 scopes side-by-side, in three very compact tables.





šŸ”¶ (1) Wouldnā€™t you want to know aboutĀ what kind of warrantyĀ comes with a certain scope?



šŸ”¶ (2) Isnā€™t it painful to see a scope, start liking something about it ā€“ only to find out after digging deep into the webpage that this scope has a 50 yard parallax...? Which scopes actually DO haveĀ 10 yard parallax? Good luck trying to find aĀ search result filterĀ when you go scope shopping....



šŸ”¶ (3) I really like adjusting my parallax with aĀ side focus (SF),Ā notĀ with an adjustable objective (AO) ā€“ I can hold the gun more stable if I donā€™t need to reach way out there.



šŸ”¶ (4) If I want to change the turret setting I donā€™t need a turret cap getting in the way. Capped turrets seem to be the manufacturersā€™ way of saying: ā€œZero the scope, put the cap on, and leave it alone. The turrets of this scope are not made to be dialed constantly. Thatā€™s why they have a cap!ā€ ā€“ So, which scopes haveĀ exposed turrets?











šŸ”¶ (5) You shoot (plink & hunt) at changing ranges and with changing magnifications. Having aĀ first focal plane (FFP)Ā scope would be helpful for that, as the holdovers are always the same no matter what the magnification. Then you only needĀ oneĀ dope chart, justĀ oneĀ set of holdovers to remember. Which scopes under $500 are FFPs ā€“ and do they have the other features that I like in a scope?

If you exclusively shoot targets at predetermined ranges, youā€™d probably want aĀ second focal plane (SFP)Ā scope. Which ones are SFP andĀ at what magnification is the reticle calibrated?







šŸ”¶ (6) Are you looking forĀ a really light scope? OrĀ a really short scope? But you also must have 10y adjustable parallax? Those are rare ā€“ good luck sifting through piles of scope webpages....



šŸ”¶ (7) If long range shooting and heavy projectiles interest you ā€“ wouldnā€™t you want to know if a scope hasĀ enough elevation turret adjustmentĀ so you can reach those ranges?





šŸ”¶ (8) Often scope manufacturers donā€™t tell you ā€“ but they build scopes where the turrets canā€™t talk to the reticle and vice versa, because they speak different languages: one speaks MOA, the other MIL. Not cool. But no scope seller has a filter to throw those mismatched scopes out of the search results. And how to find scopes quickly that have eitherĀ MOA or MILĀ if you have a strong preference?



šŸ”¶ (9) For airguns a holdoff reticle must have evenly spaced hash marks/ dots. Is it a deal breaker if a scope does not have aĀ holdoffĀ reticle (e.g., only crosshairs, or a bullet drop compensating reticle [BDC])?







šŸ”¶ (10) You hunt and want an all-round scope that can take close shots on a stalk, but you also want to reach out to 50 or 100y with the same scope. Then youā€™ll need a scope with a wideĀ field of view (FoV),Ā and alsoĀ a high magnification. Which scopes would qualify?



šŸ”¶ (11) TheĀ eyeboxĀ is the area in which your eye has to be in order to see a full scope image without dark corners. The larger the better, because the quicker you can aim and shot on a hunt. And therefore, the larger theĀ exit pupilĀ at max. magnification should be.Ā What exit pupil sizesĀ do the top five scopes on my wish list have?



šŸ”¶ (12) Maybe youā€™d like yourĀ reticle to be a grid style (ā€œChristmas treeā€). But who sells one for under $500 ā€“ and with a 10y parallax?







šŸ”¶ (13) Are you shooting long range and dial your turrets? Then youā€™d probably like to knowĀ how much one revolution of the turretĀ moves the reticle: a dinky and uneven 6 mil, or a large and round 10 mil.



šŸ”¶ (14) Would you like yourĀ reticle hash marks/ dots numberedĀ to quicker find your correctĀ holdoff?



šŸ”¶ (15) Is it important if a scope has anĀ illuminated reticle?



šŸ”¶ (16) Some want them thicker, some want them thinner:Ā How thickĀ areĀ the main lines of the reticle?







Below youā€™ll find three PDF files, each comparing the specs of a group of scopes with a certain magnification.

Which magnification you probably need for which type of shooting requires a separate discussion....

The three Scope Spec Lists are:

  • Short Scopes (any magni*)Ā -and- 3-12x, 3-9x *[any magnification if at least 3-9x]
  • 4-14x Magnification, also 3-18x, 4-20x, and similar
  • 6-20x Magnification, also 6-24x, 5-25x, 4-20x, and similar





I hope this post and the Spec Tables are helpful! šŸ˜Š

Matthias



PS: If you want other forum members to find this postā€¦.

May I suggest you write a very short replyā€¦.?

A ā€œUseful!ā€ or ā€œDownloadedā€ is all that it takes to help that this post doesn't get totally buried under the pile of more recent postsā€¦.Ā 





3 Attached PDF files

šŸ”“Short Scopes -and- 3-12x, 3-9x [UPDATED 2020-05, 3 new scopes, corrections on locking turrets]

download.png
View attachment 1588406743_12225214475ead29d76cb7a6.21324476.pdf

Below you can also have the data as a spreadsheet ā€“ BUT you're not getting any explanations of what the table is all about, or its requirements for inclusion. So, you could read the PDF first, and then do some sorting according to your own criteria using the spreadsheet.

download.png
View attachment 1585959836_7659432645e87d39c9c8b71.21748830.xlsx



šŸ”“4-16x (and 3-18x, 4-20x, and similar)

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View attachment 1585834678_9351739565e85eab62fbbe9.37702505.pdf



šŸ”“6-20x (and 6-24x, 5-25x, 4-20x, and similar)

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View attachment 1585834687_18794436205e85eabfc1aab7.97073483.pdf











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Unless I am missing something this reference should be a 'sticky' at the front of this section. I downloaded the Pdf for short scopes. Scanning the far right column I quickly eliminated scopes that were over 10.5" inches in length. The Pdf has two major divisions. Do you want FFP or SFP. In case you need a refresher on those distinctions its included in the preface. Next I checked price to see if it fit my budget and then the warranty for that scope. Then you can compare eye box, eye relief, style recticle, etc., etc, There were some scopes on their I have never heard of before that earned some consideration. There are 3 different Pdfs. One is for 'short' scopes. The other two allow the same info but by magnification. I didn't look at those as the most important things to me are length, cost, and warranty. The URL is included in the post..150 Scopes Comparison....etc.

Pick out your top 3 and look online farther. Read and watch the reviews. What's the reputation on the glass? Is it waterproof or water resistant. There is a technical difference. Maybe it's important if it works on a springer... and on and on.

I book marked it and printed the Pdf.
 
Long_Shot, šŸ˜Š

thanks for the suggestion ā€” I have to admit I missed the Sightmark brand somehow!

In the next edition I will include them! šŸ‘šŸ¼



This particular Sightmark 5-30x56 seems to have a minimum parallax of 20 yards ā€” the tables' requirement is 10y....

(At 15y I sometimes list a scope anyway if it has some other feature that is rare, and because 15y still kind of works for close range shots....)Ā 

Thanks again! šŸ‘šŸ¼

Matthias
 
mtnGhost,


Your idea is good ā€” spreadsheets for sorting. šŸ‘šŸ¼



So far I've converted the short scopes table (3-12x).

I'll attach the spreadsheet here and also in the OP.



Note: The spreadsheet has no explanations whatsoever ā€” to understand the minimum features that scopes met in order to make the table, cf. the PDF file in the OP. šŸ˜Š



Matthias

Attachment:

download.png
View attachment 1585972194_6524041465e8803e2142ea6.84136787.xlsx


 
Matthias --=--

I hope that you and yours are well.

Nice work all around on the Cheat Sheets. Excel is a great idea, it offers much more flexibility when searching.

If you click on cell B-4 and go to 'View' in the tool ribbon, then click on "Freeze Panes" (close to center of the ribbon), you can freeze that cell to enable scrolling right/left or up/down yet keep your top rows visible.

Great work though, just a small tip here.

mike
 
mtnGhost,


Your idea is good ā€” spreadsheets for sorting.
1f44d-1f3fc.svg




So far I've converted the short scopes table (3-12x).

I'll attach the spreadsheet here and also in the OP.



Note: The spreadsheet has no explanations whatsoever ā€” to understand the minimum features that scopes met in order to make the table, cf. the PDF file in the OP.
1f60a.svg




Matthias

Attachment:

download.png
View attachment 1585972194_6524041465e8803e2142ea6.84136787.xlsx


Right on!Ā Great job, your hard work is appreciated šŸ˜ŽĀ 
 
AG-Hobbyist,

I have been updating the 3 Specs Tables as time went by.
Would be a bummer to let the initial investment of effort go to waste by not keeping them up-to-date. šŸ‘šŸ¼
And what would I be doing with all that free-time I have on hand after my 60 or 70-hour work weeks.... šŸ¤£


A few changes/ improvements:

šŸ”øThere are more scopes.
We really live in a wonderful time-period to be an airgunner, and we definitely live in the Golden Age of Scopes.

šŸ”øI have started to expand the price range a bit upwards.

šŸ”øThere are a more explanations of the importance of some of the specs in the introduction.

šŸ”øOne day I will have to bite the bullet an update all the prices.... Well, I should be biting a mouse rather than a bullet, probably: Google until your mouse finger goes numb..... šŸ¤¦šŸ»ā€ā™‚ļø



šŸ”˜ After digesting a heavy diet of scope discussions on the forums I have come to a conclusion:
Many things I advocate directly or indirectly in those Scope Specs Tables are not necessarily in the interest of the shooter who wants a scope for only shooting squirrels.

The squirrel shooting scenario usually calls for very quick shots, where there is often no time to play around with all the bells and whistles I seem to advocate in the Tables:
ā€¢ variable magnification
ā€¢ parallax adjustment
ā€¢ elevation turret dialing
ā€¢ holdoff reticle

I discuss this further here:



šŸ”˜ In a similar vain, the Tables do not favor shooters who just want something real simple, the fewer adjustments the better ā€” just give me a point and shoot (akin to: "Just give me a rifle and a tin of pellets ā€” keep it simple!").



Well, find the updated Tables below.
I probably should make a new post of this sometime after SHOT Show 2023...



Happy scope shopping! šŸ˜Š

šŸ¤« I just purchased to top scope in my tables..... šŸ¤© Deeply discounted from https://www.OpticsWarehouse.co.uk

Matthias




āŒ 3 Attached PDF files

šŸ”“ Short Scopes ā€”andā€” 3-12x, 3-9x

View attachment SCOPE Specs Table. For SHORT Scopes -and- 3-12x (3-9x) Scopes.pdf



šŸ”“ 4-16x, incl. 3-18x, 4-20x, and similar

View attachment SCOPE Specs Table. For 4-16x or 3-18x or 4-20x Scopes.pdf



šŸ”“ 6-20x, incl. 6-24x, 5-25x, 4-20x, and similar

View attachment SCOPE Specs Table. For 6-24x (5-25x) or 5-30x or 4-20x.pdf






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