For those who shoot high-powered variable mag scopes?

[Marksman]

Do you find yourself cranking it to the max and leaving it there? Or do you keep it slightly less than max for clarity? Or do you regularly find yourself adjusting the magnification?

 

[std7mag]

I think first off, we need your definition of high power.

I have a 4-20X56 Sightron STAC.
And a Sightron SIII 10-50X60 LRTD.

Both of which I vary the power settings.
Some days you just can't see through the mirage at anything higher than say 25 power.

Just depends on the day.

 

[NZ_Fclass]

I rarely use the full 50/60x, but there are times when whatever you have just isn't enough,

 

[nettle]

Target shooting I crank the magnification up. Hunting I crank the magnification down.

 

[rwj]

I use the magnification that produces the best sight picture. As noted above, the setting varies with environmental conditions. I can say that when the magnification is raised over 45X, the sight picture starts to get dark and I usually opt for a lower magnification/brighter setting. I’ve been told that some of the higher end March and Valdada scopes do not darken… but they are beyond my financial resources!

 

[Pinetreebbs]

I always cranked scope to the max so my last scope was a fixed power Sightron 45X target dot scope.

 

[jds holler]

I'm a squirrel shooter, and my highest power scopes are 25x. My best clarity is a little below that, and with bad mirage even lower. I find myself frequently turning down to mid-power to easier see the squirrelsplosion. I doesn't take much recoil to move the scope off the target at 25, and I'd prolly never use 36 or 48 if I had it. jd

 

[SCVOJTA]

Many factors dictate so it all depends......
If you got good/great glass...use the magnification to your advantage. And yes, mirage will only let you get away with so much.

 

[Nvcnvc]

Multiple variables at play here. The main variable is how good are your eyes. My old eyes need all the help they can get. I started using March majesta’s a year ago and I leave at 80 power as much as the mirage allows me. I shoot Fclass open and at1000 yards it a pleasure to look thru one. Sometimes when the mirage is extreme I might crank it down to 60. The majesta is that good to cut thru the mirage. That’s the second variable. How good is the glass on your scope.

 

[Dgd6mm]

I have shot 600 yard f class several times for all 3 relays with my Golden Eagle on 60. I was able to see the X and rings clearly. BUT most of the time I'm between 45 - 50 X.

 

[60723]

I fight with myself when target shooting. I like the highest power possible for precise aiming. But I am learning fast that to win you must be able to see wind flags! Not a problem at 600 yards. At 300 yards I have to use max power to see bullet holes and setting up flags is a challenge. And at 100- well I would like some input about setting flags at that distance for shooting 22.

 

[Turbulent Turtle]

Multiple variables at play here. The main variable is how good are your eyes. My old eyes need all the help they can get. I started using March majesta’s a year ago and I leave at 80 power as much as the mirage allows me. I shoot Fclass open and at1000 yards it a pleasure to look thru one. Sometimes when the mirage is extreme I might crank it down to 60. The majesta is that good to cut thru the mirage. That’s the second variable. How good is the glass on your scope.

I have been running my Majesta for 18 months now. I am always at 80X. I shoot in Sout Texas year-round and have shot at Ben Avery and Lodi. Always at 80X.

If your Majesta has the MTR-WFD reticle, I designed that reticle to be subtended at 80X and 40X. The middle horizontal lines above the circle-dot is meant to be placed on top of the LR-1 target frame 1000 yards @ 40X. The top line is for the same at 80X. If you go down to 60X, you should place the top of the frame to be between the two horizontal lines. These cues are there to help you hold the waterline in bad mirage.

 

[Nvcnvc]

Thank you Denys. That is great help!

 

[AlNyhus]

As a SR BR competitor, I  want to see the mirage. When you have optics that will give a sharp target image at the same time, that's a double win.

Good shootin' -Al

 

[chester999]

As a SR BR competitor, I  want to see the mirage. When you have optics that will give a sharp target image at the same time, that's a double win.

Good shootin' -Al

I've never shot competition BR. My father use to talk about using mirage to judge wind.

 

[AlNyhus]

I've never shot competition BR. My father use to talk about using mirage to judge wind.

Absolutely.

Dialing down a scope to eliminate the mirage removes a valuable source of info...wind you can see. In many cases, the mirage will shift before the wind flags show a directional change. In a competitive environment, knowing when not to shoot is paramount.

Just because dialing down clears up the mirage doesn't mean it's not still out there. The target image is still being displaced...but now you can't see what's happening.

Good shootin' -Al

 

[kyotekiller25]

Seems like most days I'm at 35-40x on the S&B 12-50x

50x it starts to get pretty dark and you lose a lot of clarity and FOV.

Some days it's hard to be much over 25x also depending on the mirage.

 

[JEFFPPC]

I fight with myself when target shooting. I like the highest power possible for precise aiming. But I am learning fast that to win you must be able to see wind flags! Not a problem at 600 yards. At 300 yards I have to use max power to see bullet holes and setting up flags is a challenge. And at 100- well I would like some input about setting flags at that distance for shooting 22.

A buddy and walkie talkies.

 

[Andy Work]

As a SR BR competitor, I  want to see the mirage. When you have optics that will give a sharp target image at the same time, that's a double win.

Good shootin' -Al

@AlNyhus Which scope do you prefer?

 

[Marksman]

Thanks for the insights. I'm looking at getting a scope to try some ELR shooting and I've got it narrowed down to either a FFP 6x-30x or a SFP 10x-50x.