Tnhunter444

That minimum eye relief is what it is at the highest magnification. The difference between 3.3" and 3.7" is nearly a half inch and my experience has told me on more than one occassion that I wished I had another 1/2" of eye relief. Yes, bumping your nose or brow due to short eye relief when shooting a .300 mag is a real concern one should have when scoping it, IMHO.

pahunter123

I would go with 4X12 on that caliber.

Wayspr

At that price point I'd go with the best 3-9x40 I could find.

jandrey

Do you think I would ever need the higher power than a 3-9x40 out west for elk or north for caribou/moose?

Bbj270

I know people that killed elk and moose with standard 3-9x40 scopes. I would take a quality 3-9 over a cheap 4-12 any day.

Tnhunter444

All three animals you've mentioned are large ones. They have kill zones the size of a basketball or larger. With good glass, it's not that difficult to shoot a 1" (or less) group at 100 yards at 4X. Many newer hunters overly worry about getting enough magnification, when they are shooting large animals.

As already stated above, the quality of the scope (glass & coatings) trumps higher magnification every time. In many cases a higher quality scope in 2-7 or 3-9 can be purchased over a 4-12 for the same $$. See the two scopes, compared below at the exact same price point.

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/136...ProductFinding



http://www.midwayusa.com/product/136...ProductFinding

Lunkerdog

3X9X50... For the reason I stated earlier.

The last scope I bought was a Leupold VX III 4.5X14X40 with a Boone&Crockett reticle @ $700... It's a great scope but today I wish I had bought it in a 3X9X50... At 4.5 power I have an exit pupil of 8.8. That's not much more than the human eye.

Take my advise for what it's worth, but I'm giving it too you based on my own experience. I didn't learn about "Exit Pupil" until about a year after I bought the scope. I know a guy that has a Leupold 3X9X50, and we've compared them side by side in the dark. The difference is huge.

Many animals are shot very early, or very late in the day. In low light conditions your optics can often make the difference between success, and failure. They can also give you a much better view of "what is beyond" your intended target.

I should also add that 95% of the time my scope is set at 6 power or less... Many folks, myself included, can be swayed by the "high power" of a scope, only to find that they rarely ever need or use that "high power".

The scope is mounted on a 7mm ultra mag that can reach out to 500yds with relative ease (The rifle, not necessarily the shooter) In 10 years the longest shot I've taken is just over 300yds, and most have been 100yds or less.

buffybr

The last two bull elk that I killed were both less than 200 yd shots with my scope set at 12x. However, I have killed dozens of elk, several caribou, a mountain goat, and a couple of Shiras moose with a 3-9x scope set at 4 or 6x.

I have also killed several bighorn rams, a Dall ram, a mountain caribou, and a couple dozen pronghorn antelope with a fixed 6x Leupold scope.

Sheridan

Most big game hunters use a 3X-9X scope; unless they only hunt dark timber (in which case more often a fixed 3X or 4X is better).

Varmint / predator hunters want a little more magnification (12X or 24X at the high end).


I use a 4X-16X on all my rifles, only exception is my dedicated varmint gun (6X-24X).


Always set out with my scopes powered down to their lowest magnification........................I power up on a need be basis !