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Keoni · New Member

Hello, I'm new to this site and airguns in general but I'm going to purchase a Benjamin .22 Marauder as my "real" airgun and I was looking at scopes. There are so many out there to chose from with such a variety of prices it's a bit over whelming. I'll be doing a some night and day pest control (fairly close range) and on occasions some plinking.

I read for night shooting you should have a large tubed scope and a large objective lens (I'd like a scope with AO) to capture more light. I'd also like one with parallax adjustment (I'll get a wheel for it), mil dots and illuminated retical.

I was looking at this scope as it seems to have a lot of what I heard about but I'm guessing I'll need some high rings to get it to fit properly and maybe mod the stock to raise the cheek rest.

Does anyone have some suggestions on what scope to get for my needs (links would be great!) and any possible issues I may have with a large scope. Thanks in advance, aloha![/url]

AirGunEric · Site Admin

The range on airguns is much shorter than on firearms- so a 16x magnification will NEVER be useful to you- maybe 10x at the best of times. Pick something with a narrower magnification range that is built better, such as this: HK3316 http://www.hawkeoptics.com/us/riflescopes/niteeye/index.php

or the HK3217 http://www.hawkeoptics.com/us/riflescopes/airmax/index.php

For the dollar spent, you get a far better scope.

Keoni · New Member

sniper · Silver Status Member

no, leapers are good. so is hawke. i have a BSA 4-16x40 on mine and the only thing i thing i would change is a larger objective. you want one that will focus at close range-5-10 yards. mine goes down to 10 which is the range
of my rodent control. Twisted Evil

you can go 6-24 but likley won't use it.

40mm is the smallest AO you want.

JMO

Keoni · New Member

Would the tube size play a big part in night shooting? I noticed the Hawke scopes are 1" vs. the Leaper I linked to is 30mm.

rsterne · Moderator

The tube size has little to do with the amount of light transmission.... It has more to do with the total range of adjustment in windage and elevation.... or room to install a side-focus.... In some cases, a larger tube might be brighter.... but the most important variable in brightness is the diameter of the "exit pupil".... To find the maximum that the exit pupil can be.... divide the objective size by the magnification.... eg 40 mm objective at 10 power has a 4mm exit pupil....

The human eye can open to about 7mm in night time conditions.... That is why the best binoculars for night use are a 7x50 or a 10x70.... The old standby 4x32 riflescope used by most deer hunters at dawn and dusk at relatively close range has an 8mm exit pupil.... It actually puts out more light than you can cram into your eyeball.... Good coatings will increase the light transmission and allow a greater percentage of the light entering the scope to pass through it.... I use a 4x32 scope for Grouse Hunting....

I have used a variaty of scopes on my airguns.... I have a 6-18 x 44 Hawke SR12.... a 5-15 x 40 Bushnell Legend.... a 4-16 x 50 Leapers.... a 4-12 x 40 Bushnell Banner.... a couple of 3-9 x 40 Leapers.... and a couple of 4 x 32 Leapers.... and a 2-7 x 32 Fitco.... I have just purchased a 3-9 x 40 Hawke Airmax.... All my scopes have an adjustable objective (AO) which I consider crucial for airgun use.... because we spend so much time shooting at under 50 yards (where non-AO airgun scopes are focused)....

I find that I use 4 power a lot when hunting Grouse out to 30 yards or so.... If my scope is a variable, I usually set it at 4X for that job.... It gives a decent field of view for quick target acquisition.... it's bright enough for dim light.... and by setting the AO at 20 yards the image is clear from 10-30 yards and the parallax error is minimal within those ranges as well.... If I happen to see a target at longer range I usually have the time to increase the power and refocus.... and the field of view is not a problem either.... On the other hand, I rarely use any of my scopes at over 9 power unless shooting at targets from the bench....

I find that any variable where the lowest power is more than 4X is really only suited for target work.... or extreme hunting ranges.... ie over 50 yards.... By that time, you need to start compensating for pellet drop, so a MilDot scope or one of the specialized Hawke reticles comes in very handy.... My "go-to scope" for airgun use is a 3-9 x 40 AO.... Mr. Green

Bob

sniper · Silver Status Member

keoni, meet bob. Laughing

don't worry, he likes to do this to everyone. Laughing

now bob, i know why both binoculars i inhereted from grandpa
are both 7x, with different objectives. Razz

Keoni · New Member

Thank you all for the replies. I'm trying to absorb all this information so I can make a well informed purchase and not waste my money, you know how it goes.

rsterne · Moderator

sniper · Silver Status Member

donwalk · Veteran Member

basically, you can use any scope of your choice...PCP's have no recoil so that's a non-issue.

distance, however, is an issue. unless you're going to be shooting at aspirins at 100 yds...i wouldn't worry about very high powered scopes.

by and large, even using open sights, if you can see it, you can hit it...with a scope you can pick the place you want to hit it.