36x for praire dogs?

[pikespeakgoat]

My opinion, variable, you can crank it up when conditions allow yet you can crank it down when conditions dictate.

 

[ken158]

Took a 36X on one or my yearly trips and put it back in the truck in a few hours... those PD mounds get to looking the same in short order and the mirage was driving me crazy. Also use a NF variable on other guns and 20X is about it with the mirage factor.

 

[bheadboy]

the money you spend and the time you have to go, are the thing that caused me to get rid of my 24x and higher on PD rifles, I use only the 6.5x20 and find myself cranking down to handle the mirage.

there are a few who may have had luck with higher but I bet they are far between, get the extra scope and don't waste a trip finding out you should have. check Gunbroker for used Luep 6.5x20/24 and don't look back

Bob

 

[searcher]

In that $600.00 - $650.00 parameter, you can kill two birds (er prarie dogs) with one stone. I do a lot of varminting as a retired full-time shooting nut. The guys are right on the mirage. I'd not go with a fixed 30 - as will be too much on hot days in dog town much of the time. I shoot ground squirrels and coyotes a lot in much cooler coastal weather conditions (40 to 85 degrees) and find that, like when target shooting, I want as much scope as I can use - but not more. That led me to a Sightron III scope with a 30mm tube, variable 30 power. It also has a 60 mm objective lens, so extra-high scope rings are a must. It has 1/8 minute target turrets. This one costs about $650.00 or so and is perfect for multi-use. You'll have enough power for target shooting at 30x, yet you can do your come-up based upon what you rifle does at 15x, for example, for those hot days. My cold-weather varmint rifle is the same Sightron III in 10-60x. If I had any complaint about the Sightron, it is that the side-focus knob is a bit hoarder to turn than most scopes and the target turrets turn just a bit easier than I like - both items don't degrade the scope - just personal preferences.

I have an 80x March scope on my rimfre benchrest rifle and even in 100 degree heat, I can still use the full power at 100 yards. Take it out to 500 yards - and you cannot make out the landscape. Kind of a drastic comparison - but you don't want to be overscoped for the conditions.

 

[expiper]

Here is a pic of my PD rifle ,,,its a .243 (Rem 700 w/tupperware stock) and the scope is a 30-50 Lue/Premier ....most of the time it stays on 30 x,,,,can only use more when there is no mirage and when there is something to help with target aquisition.....I have used scoped rifles a LOT and reccomend LESS magnification ,,,6-20 is about perfect,,,Roger

PS,,notice the wind blowing the mirage shield on my bbl straight out to the left,,,hahaha

 

[DogBuster]

A quality 4-16 or 6-24 is your best bet....I shoot a lot of p/dogs...

summer mirage will have you leaving your variable scope on

12x to 16x....leave your T36 home......

 

[Tim Singleton]

Most of the advise has went straight to the prairie dog hunting aspect of the question.
The OP said his rifle was mostly target shooting with a once a year dog hunt. If you want to be serious at all about target shooting even at local club matches. IMO you need a 36x scope. Varialble would be better. But I would take my weaver T36 for under $400 before any 6-20 variable every time for target shooting.
The 8-32 SIII sightron is a good choice as well but your in a different pricing bracket

 

[Shynloco]

Most of the advise has went straight to the prairie dog hunting aspect of the question.
The OP said his rifle was mostly target shooting with a once a year dog hunt. If you want to be serious at all about target shooting even at local club matches. IMO you need a 36x scope. Varialble would be better. But I would take my weaver T36 for under $400 before any 6-20 variable every time for target shooting.
The 8-32 SIII sightron is a good choice as well but your in a different pricing bracket

+1. Simply, if you intend to go Target shooting 10 times a year and P-dog shooting once a year, you are putting yourself at a dis-advantage if you buy a variable scope. I know of several more serious Target shooters (including myself - not the serious part) who have T36's atop their rifles. Doest't make sense to me to be focusing on a P-dog hunt that happens very infrequently.

Alex

 

[triggerhappy243]

no one said anything about where the mirage originates. My dog hunts occur at the hottest weeks in the summer. and I use a 8x32x44 mm burris. at 625 I saw no mirage... 95 degrees to boot. lens quality and properly focused? maybe. one shot, one killed... with an eye witness thru a separate spotting scope.

 

[CatShooter]

no one said anything about where the mirage originates. My dog hunts occur at the hottest weeks in the summer. and I use a 8x32x44 mm burris. at 625 I saw no mirage... 95 degrees to boot. lens quality and properly focused? maybe. one shot, one killed... with an eye witness thru a separate spotting scope.

Mirage originates when the ground (or rifle barrel) or anything between your scope's objective and the target get hotter than the air around it, the heated air forms wigglie streams as it rises.

Mirage can happen in the summer or winter, and winter mirage can be much worse than summer mirage.

It has nothing to do with the quality of the lenses. Larger objectives are more affected by mirage than smaller ones, and higher power is affected more than lower power, which is why variables are desirable in areas where mirage is bad.

 

[boltgunluvr]

Not just no, hell no! That power will drive you nuts and gives no versatility. Given the price range, consider the Weaver V16 or Nikon buckmaster. If you want to get an high quality scope, shoot long distances and want a mil/mil optic.....the Weaver GS Tactical 3-10x40mm. MidwayUSA exclusive and they run them on sale for $299 every now and then.

 

[remy3424]

as said above....I would stay home and avoid the frustration before going p-dawg shooting with only 30+ power scopes

 

[shoot4fun]

The T36 is a great scope for target shooting from a bench. As many on here have said it will SUCK for PD shooting. Mirage will make most shots misery. Locating a PD with that small a FOV will take forever.
You can buy a used T36 and get a decent variable with zoom up to 18 or 20x in budget if you look around.

 

[GrocMax]

Not just mirage, but field of view makes for miserable shooting at PD's.

Half the fun is seeing hits. Get much bigger than 35g of powder in a varmint weight rifle you won't see hits with an 8x.

When the spotter has more fun than you do, what's the point?

 

[Tommie]

Where I've shot PD's there was no mirage to be seen. The constant insane wind took care of that issue!