This guy comes in and asks us if we can sight his rifle in for him because he’s having a hard time doing it. It’s not holding zero, which is when all the rounds are fired in the same location on the target. Looking at his set up, which was a nice rifle, his choice of scope was not. We asked where he purchased it; the answer was the good ole gun show. You bought an air soft rifle scope. We see it all the time.
The general rule is you spend more on the optic then the rifle itself. So, if you spend $2000.00 on a hunting rifle then spend $1000.00 on the rifle and a $1000.00 on the optic. Not $1700.00 on the rifle and $300.00 on the scope. The scope is your eyes. It needs to be clear and fog proof. The internal mechanics must be good enough for a wide range of adjustment and can withstand the shock from the recoil. The $ 200.00 scope is not going to get it.
Some you need to look at are Leupold and Nikon. These two manufactures make great scopes for the money. If you want to spend even more then you have Nightforce, Leica, Swavorski and Zeiss.
If you can’t see it, then you can’t hit it. You can strain your eyes if the clarity is not good enough. As we already said, if the internal mechanics aren’t good then it will not hold zero. If you are like me and only get to spend a few weeks out of the year in the woods hunting, why would you go out there with cheap equipment? Eat mac and cheese for a couple of weeks and take that extra money and put it towards a good quality optic for your rifle and you will have it for the rest of seasons to come.