Shooting More Accurately – How to Mount and
Sight-In Scopes
How to Pick a Riflescope
Editor’s
Note: The secrets to shooting accurately include choosing
the best rifle for your hunt, the correct ammunition
and the right bases and rings, mounting your scope properly
and then sighting-in your scope correctly. To gather
the best information on how to make rifles shoot more
accurately, I talked with Russ Sockwell of Mark’s
Outdoors in Birmingham, Alabama, a gunsmith with 10
years of experience who mounts scopes and sights-in
thousands of rifles each year.
According to Russ Sockwell, the gun, the caliber and
the terrain best will determine what scope to use on
your hunting rifle. “If you’re big-game
hunting with a .375, you don’t need to put a 6-24X
varmint
scope, because this is more scope than the gun possibly
can use,” Sockwell warns. “On a .375, I
recommend most hunters use a 6X scope and no more than
a 9X scope because most of your shots will be up-close
and personal. If you’re varmint hunting, you want
a 6-24X scope because most of your shots may be 200-
to 400-yards away. “When hunting whitetails, most
hunters need a 3.5-10X or a 3.5-12X scope. And size
does matter because of a scope’s light-gathering
capabilities. The bigger scopes gather more light than
the smaller scopes do, but they also make the rifles
much heavier and more cumbersome. So, if you’re
stalk hunting and climbing up and down mountains, you’ll
want a smaller scope than if you’re sitting in
a shooting house, hunting over a green field.
“For most eastern deer hunters, I recommend the
Leupold 4.5-14X scope on a .280 Ackley, which is a custom
rifle. Then the hunter will have the ability to make
really-long shots at whitetails. However, for
a deer hunter who hunts with a .30-06 or a .270, I recommend
the Zeiss Conquest in a 3-9X or 3.5-10X scope. Smaller
scopes with great light-gathering capabilities that
will solve most problems for most deer hunters. The
3-9X scope sells for about $399. This same type of scope
made by Leupold will cost $499. Both these scopes are
in the 40mm category. For more light-gathering ability,
you can step up to the 50mm lens, but you’ll also
step up in price. I also like the Zeiss V series, which
sells for $1299 and believe it’s the ultimate
scope. This European scope is 3-12X56, has a 30mm tube
and will allow you to hunt longer and take shots later
than the laws in most states will permit you to shoot.
If you’re looking for a less-expensive scope ($100
- $150), consider either the 3.5-10X Simmons or the
Tasco 40mm or 50mm style scopes with a 1-inch tube.
“When you’re considering an objective, remember
that the larger the objective, the more light-gathering
capabilities of the scope. Therefore, a 40mm objective
won’t gather
as much light as a 50mm objective will.
“For the average hunter who comes in and buys
an average-priced .30-06, I’ll recommend the Zeiss
Conquest, although that scope will cost about as much
as the gun. However, the hunter will be much happier
with a quality scope than if he tries to save money
on the scope. Being able to see a deer in the riflescope
later in the afternoon is the difference in not getting
a shot and getting a shot. Therefore, when you’re
considering buying a rifle and a scope, if you have
$1,000 to spend, I suggest that you plan to spend $300
or $400 on the rifle and spend the rest of that $1,000
on the scope. If you can’t see the deer through
your scope, then you can’t get off the shot.”
To learn more, go to www.marksoutdoors.com,
email Sockwell at mark@marksoutdoors.com
or call (205) 822-2010.
Tomorrow: What’s the Best Reticle
|