Pistol scope

[fishooter]

Any recommendations for a scope to go on a 7 1/2 " SS Ruger .44 Bisley Hunter for deer hunting?
Mark

[Tail Chaser]

Mark,

I'm using a Burris 2-7x on my T/C 308 pistol & really like it. You'll prob. end up hunting w/ 2-4x power only although the higher mag. is nice for target shooting or sighting in. Other than the Leupold, Burris the Bushnell Elite handgun scopes looked nice as well.

Check out the red dot scopes too, some friends of mine use them and they might work well for you in that cal. + are less $$.

Here are a couple of sites I looked @ when searching for a pistol scope & ended up ordering mine from Midway.

http://www.handgunhunt.com/ubbthread...b=5&o=&fpart=1

http://www.nodakoutdoors.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=72

http://www.eabco.com/Reports/report01.html

[Notch]

Mark- I have quite a few pistol scopes mostly on my Contender barrels. My favs are Leupold 4X and Burris 3X or 4X. I have some scopes with higher magnification, but rarely do I ever need higher than 4X for hunting. You can't go wrong with USA made Burris and Leupold's. They both have a Lifetime garentee. If you ever have a problem, just send them back and they'll fix or replace. No questions asked.

Notch

[fishooter]

The Burris 1.5-4x looks good to me. any feedback on that particular scope? Does the eye relief change with the power? Otherwise I'd go with a 2x fixed, either Burris or Leopold. I like the Leopolds on my rifles but may go for the Burris on the .44. Got a Millet reddot on it now. Don't really like the battery thing or the 3 moa dot or the coarse adjustments. Is that just a shift I need to make as a long time rifle/bow shooter?

Thanks for the links and the first-hand information, guys!

Mark

[KenCraft]

For pistols I'm a Burris fan also.....

[eightshot627]

Mark,

Buy Burris with no worries. I have talked with there customer service twice with great satisfaction. The first time I bought used scope that had target knob but no turrets caps. I called them and explained that I bought a used scope and that I wanted to get the knobs. They asked for my address said OK and hung up. Three days later they were in my mail box. No bill, just the caps. My next experience with Burris was I had target knob installed on a scope. They called me to ask if it was OK to send me a check for $10 because they had lowered the price of installation.

Eye relief doesn’t change with power. It is harder for find the right spot for your eye. The higher the power the smaller the exit pupil (column of light exiting the scope). and field of view.

I have the following optics on my hunting handguns.

3-9x32 Burris (no longer in production) .308 Win 15 inch Encore this scope is awesome but OVER powered for deer hunting. Unless you have shots over 200yds. I only use this rig hunting from a stand with a shooting rail. (Did I mention DON�T WEAR FLEECE GLOVES) Great for groundhogs shooting off a backpack, it can really reach out. The field of view (FOV) is to small and is hard to find things without lots of practice. With long eye relief scopes the FOV changes DRASTICALLY with power.

2-7x32 Burris 7x30 Waters 14inch Contender. Same as above but with much better FOV. 1x makes all the difference with the long eye relief.

2-7x32 Burris .22 Long Rifle 10inch Contender with a rest squirrels don’t stand a chance within 100yds.

4x20 Leupold 7mm TCU Contender good clear scope light weight but 4x has less FOV than the 3x9 on 3x. The 10inch barrel and light scope makes this combo pointable, with in reason, without a rest.

Tasco Pro Point 3, PPD3 5 MOA dot. S&W 629 44Mag 6 1/2 inch barrel. Eye relief doesn’t play, FOV doesn’t play. Very light weight. I have the fear of the battery too. I start every year with a fresh battery and carry 2 spares in my pocket. I turn it on before light and off after dark and never needed to replace a battery in a season. I did have my first bad experience with it this year on WV opening day. It rained and the scope fogged on the inside. All caps tight. I am looking for a new dot sight to replace this one.

After some comparing here is what I found:
2x20 Burris
Field of View at 100 Yards:
• 21’@2x
7oz

2x20 Leupold
Field of View at 100 Yards:
• 21.2 feet at 2x
6oz

4x26 Burris
Field of View at 100 Yards:
• 11’@4x
9oz

1.5-4x20 Burris
Field of View at 100 Yards:
• 21’@1.5x
• 11’@4x
11 ounces

2-7x 32mm Burris
Field of View at 100 Yards:
• 27’@2x
• 7’@7x
13 ounces

2.5-8x32 Leupold
Field of View at 100 Yards:
• 13 feet at 2.5x,
• 4.3 feet at 8x
10.9 ounces

3-12x32 AO Burris
Field of View at 100 Yards:
• 14’@3x
• 4’@12x
16oz

I’m a field of view junky. I just got to have more! If you decide to go without batteries the 2x7 looks best. With batts I’m still looking. Burris and Leupold make red dots. I have various red dots on my competition guns (Tasco, C-More, Adco). I like red dots for wheel guns, their range and pointablity make red dots the way to go for me.

Good luck,
Walt

[fishooter]

Good stuff, Walt. Thanks for the reseach. Maybe I'll shoot the red dot for awhile to see if I can get used to it. It did seem like a good idea when I bought it. Maybe I'll put it on the 629 SS Classic and scope the Ruger with a Burris 2-7. Right now the Smith only has open sights on it. Gotta have my readers to see the sights anymore and then I can't see the target so well.
Mark

[Brutus]

LEUPOLD, LEUPOLD, LEUPOLD!..................why play???

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