Do coyote hunters tend to be over-scoped?

If you are having trouble finding your target in the scope : the gun doesn't
fit you right, and or you have the scope mounted at the wrong height/ eye
relief distance. Throw different rifles up at the store with iron sights and
you will see some naturally point for you and some don't. Not that I will ever
buy one but a kimber comes up like it's part of my body for me. All anyone
seems to be interested in when mounting a scope is how close they can get
the bell to the barrel. I shim mine with cardboard and tape. When it comes up
right ( eyes closed, I open them and expect to be looking at my target) I
measure and order my rings. That said, 1.8x10 is my yote scope on the AR.
Good from 25 out. The .243 I shoot to 1000 and it has a 3.8x22. I generally
never set it higher than 16, Mirage has a lot to do with that. I hope to put it
on a Dasher someday and put a 3.2x17 on the .243.
 
Yes it is hard to resist the tempation of higher power tactical scopes. I hunt but most of my shooting experience comes from air rifles and field target shooting. The high power adjustable objective scopes help you with range findings shooting low velocity rounds at short distances. I had to break down and put a lower power scope on a new Remington VTR 700 .308. I just could not get the POI within the adjustment range of the turrets. It is hard to get comfortable with the idea practice and matching right ammo helped my accuracy more than anything. I live in Western or as it is called (Wetstern Washington) and it is thick conifer forests and brush. Most shots are
 
Originally Posted By: KenPCPilot I had to break down and put a lower power scope on a new Remington VTR 700 .308. I just could not get the POI within the adjustment range of the turrets.
what kind of scope were you running, and how far were you shooting to run out of minutes with your 308??? i can get well beyond 800 without a 20moa mount, and past 1200 with a 20 moa mount.
 
After reading the many posts, I was trying to think of a percentage of shots that would represent the number of hard charging coyotes that never stopped running like a grey hound when they were coming in to the call...perhaps 15%-20% would be accurate.

I have killed perhaps 4 coyotes at the 400 yard mark or a hair over. We hunted all over Ca, Nv, Az, SD, N. Wyoming, and Mexico for 12 years. 80% of my shots and my partners shots were 200 yards and under for our kind of hunting.

Coyote hunting sure does vary depending on the part of the country or Canada you are in and the terrain.

Bigwheeler, please tell us about those scopes you are using, they sure sound interesting.
 
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Guys thanks for the thoughts I love reading about what works and why it works for different people!


I think Bigwheeler is using USO scopes. They are the only ones that I know of that have those power ranges (I could and have been wrong before). Supposedly the quality falls around (either higher or lower depending on who you talk to but similar non the less) Nightforce, Primier, Vortex HD, Some S&B and Some Heidsolt (sp?).


Right now I am debating on putting a burris Tac30 (or Mtac) on a new truck-gun build I am going to start up so we will see if the lower power still works for me with a bolt gun
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USO is correct. I would put the glass a hair under S&B or Premier but the
overall scope is tougher and made in the States. The warranty is bullet proof.
Nightforce is not up to USO with their current offerings but is coming out with
what has been dubbed "The Beast" here shortly. It will run around 3600.00
and may put the rest of the high end market in a scamble to catch up.
USO has a really neat 1-4X that has two reticles, a lit dot type in the second
focal plane and a conventional crosshair in the ffp. With the customizing they
offer in their builds I don't think I will ever look at another company. Down
to the diopter you can custom order the range it adjusts in. They will make
up to 80mm lens or at least used too, I believe they still do. So don't let the
thousands of combos on their website limit your build requirements. If it sounds like an ad, well they've treated me awfully well over the last 15 years.
 
I would compare USO glass to the quality of NF glass, and in my experience while calibrating all of my scopes NF has been the most consistent tracking and returning to zero... I'm not saying anything bad about USO, but for 1/2 the cost the NXS's do darn good.
 
Uh... the NXS 1-4 costs the same as the USO in 1-4. Find a used one of both and you are doing really well. Higher end optics is where USO gets expensive. Granted you don't get illumination with the USO out of the box, buy a used one for cheaper with illumination and your set to go.
 
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Nightforce FFP scopes are not much cheaper than USO. And if you compare
feature to feature with no customized options on a USO they are the same.
Nightforce just started building FFP and the price is considerably higher than
their old SFP scopes. There have been lot's of threads on the forums comparing glass in the various scopes so I need not go there. No one has ever
faulted Nightforce for much, especially tracking.
 
Originally Posted By: HORNdawgUh... the NXS 1-4 costs the same as the USO in 1-4. Find a used one of both and you are doing really well. Higher end optics is where USO gets expensive. Granted you don't get illumination with the USO out of the box, buy a used one for cheaper with illumination and your set to go.
i wasn't specifically talking about the 1-4, with USO you "can" get many more options than you do with NF, which in turn can bring your total a whole lot higher.
 
while i think most higher powers are useless for hunting you can always look at it and say you can turn the power down if you don't need it but you can't turn it up if you don't have it
 
USO SN4s 1-4X w/ red lit FFP Circle Chevron reticle...
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Same stick, with a NXS 2.5-10x24 w/ red lit NP-1 reticle
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Sold the USO, still gots the baby NXS. Less expensive, less weight, more magnification, very comparable glass. Overall, a better fit (for me) on an AR hunting carbine...
 
Knockem - Thas SN-4 is one sexy scope.

Do you find you are limited for close up and fast shots with the 2.5x10 compared to the SN-4?

Also how far were you comfortable to shoot with the SN-4 the reason I ask is to figure out how much benefit the quality of glass gives on the lower power scopes.

I know the NF is pretty good. The first time I shot a 50 BMG at 1000 yards was with a 5.5-22 (?) NF benchrest scope and it spoiled me as far as clarity.


Thanks
 
frankr, I used to practice @ 300yds with the SN4s on my coyote steel silhouette target all the time without a problem. And @ true 1X power with the illumination on high , the USO is essentially a reflex red dot optic. Pretty cool for that kind of shooting where you see guys runnin' Aimpoints or Eos with flip over magnifiers. The SN4s did all that in one package.
If I were a 3 gunner, or door kicker, I'd prolly still run the SN4s on that stick. However, I just found I liked the baby NXS on it a little more better-er for the reasons stated above...
As it goes, our NY coyotes mostly aren't the hard chargin' type, so being able to dial a bit more magnification in for threading a bullet through the wooods does come in handy. And 2.5X is plenty low enough to get on a close in coyote. Also, I prefer the simple NP-1 and slightly more magnification for calling/shooting at night...

Subjective opinion, of course!
 
Originally Posted By: skinneyOriginally Posted By: HORNdawgUh... the NXS 1-4 costs the same as the USO in 1-4. Find a used one of both and you are doing really well. Higher end optics is where USO gets expensive. Granted you don't get illumination with the USO out of the box, buy a used one for cheaper with illumination and your set to go.
i wasn't specifically talking about the 1-4, with USO you "can" get many more options than you do with NF, which in turn can bring your total a whole lot higher.

Sorry, I didn't mean to jump down your throat. That's very true you can buy USO's with a lot more upgrades, and thats where NF loses the battle. You customize the scope to what you want and how you want it. NF lets you chose reticle and that's about it other then the bell. You put into the scope what you want and you get plenty out of USO. I've owned NF before and great scope, but USO is way more customizable. If you have the cash go USO.
 
3-9 X 44 scope on mine. Keep it on 3 for night hunting and for day hunting it gets moved as needed. One spot the furthest spot to shoot is 100 yards next spot 300.

For fine tuning the scope or grouping diff kinds of ammo I wouldn't mind a little more power on the scope. Probally more of a mind thing but still would be nice to only have the bullseye in the scope and see where it hits without needed to grab the spotting scope.
 
Frozen - That is an idea. I am trying to figure out how to afford a phone that has skype so I can borrow my B.I.L's I phone and put mine next to the target and view where I am hitting through the phone!!!!!!!!!!!!
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I know it will work but I hate to think if you missed your target and hit the phone
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If I had a rifle that was solely dedicated to calling, I believe a Eotech would work best for me.
I like to play with trying to find diff. loads/bullet and punch paper so mine all sport 3-9, 4.5-14(2), and 6.5-20
 
Even on higher range scopes, the lower end of that is usually 3,4, or 6 power. Not too "crazy." The option to have 9x or more probably makes that setup more adaptable for the average hunter. I have great eyesight, but on a few occasions, I have upped the power on my scope to see something better or verify when not sure. I use a Swarovski 4-12x50mm, and I love it. Unless you always hunt a place where you can't see more than a hundred yards, you are probably selling yourself short. Do you also use 4x binoculars? Probably not. If a 3x scope is too much, sounds like you should just use a shotgun. Because a scope goes to 12 power, 16, or 20 doesn't mean you have to crank it up to that, but the option is nice. Better to have and not need, than to need and not have. I would imagine most people are not really "overscoped."
 
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One thing maybe not mentioned yet is the weight and bulk of some super sized scopes on hunting weight rifles. That can affect the balance and handling qualities of the rifle. You also have to pack that mass around and on some rough country hunts ounces count. Or is that just me?
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