Simmons pistol scope?

DirtroadSniper

DirtroadSniper

New member
Just got a Taurus model 44 in 44 mag.I'm new to hunting with a hand gun so I don't want to make a huge investment up front in glass.any body have thoughts on Simmons pistol scopes? I've looked at a few red dots but don't think they will do what I want for pig hunting.the fixed power Simmons seem lime they would fit my needs.any advice?
 
I had a 4x28 on a .223 Encore for a while and it served me well. I liked the scope, but can't comment on their ability to handle recoil greater than the .223.
 
I have a couple different pistol scopes that I use.
First is on my 629 44mag. It is a bushnell trophy 2-6 and has stood up to some heavy loads from 180gr to 240gr with out a problem.

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This is good out to 150yds off shooting sticks.

The next is on my 327trr8 in 357. It is a burris xts red dot sight and held up to factory loads very well. I have smacked gongs at 125yds with it.

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I also have an xts on one of my 22's and love it. It is great for shooting squirrels.

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The xts's were $150.00 plus a 30mm ring on sale. So it would put it in at just under $200.00
The bushnell was right in the same it not slightly higher due to the mount.
 
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I wouldn't touch a simmons w/a 3069' pole after the last 2 I had couldn't keep on track, cruddy turrents w/too soft clicks, side focus was as cruddy. On top of that the glass was what the Chinese Tasco mfg throws away....IMO
 
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Not the fixed power, 2-6x. Have had this off and on of this revolver for years, hundreds of rounds of 44mag and 454 (SRH) and it's holding up just fine. Hit some pigs with it at night by spotlight, so light gathering has been plenty for me. I'm 5'10" with a 6'0" wingspan (broad shoulders) and the eye relief is spot on for me.
 
I have a weaver 4x on my 44 super red hawk . Natches shooting supply will have a sale on them every once in a while. Picked this one up for about 160. I run 320 grain cast through the gun and its held up fine, plus it survived a leap from my shoulder holster out of my tree stand.It hit about every limb to the ground expected to have a broken crosshair but it didn't ran 3 shot off my bench still on target at 70yards.
On the red dot side I have them on both of my 41 mags their a couple of old tasco red dots. For getting on a target fast with a pistol its hard to beat a dot. If I were to buy a new dot I would look into the Ultradot brand the guys over on the castboolit site seem to really them the straight 4 mill dot I think runs in the 160's also.
J
 
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The weaver looks like a good option. I was set on the red dot but in low light picking out detail is a problem.90% of the hogs we take come out at that very last bit of light.think something with a 20mm bell or the 28 might help.
 
Originally Posted By: deaddogwalkinI have a bushnell trophy 2-6 and has stood up to some heavy loads from 180gr to 240gr with out a problem.

I just sold a Trophy 2-6x. It withstood hundreds of 325gr-400gr rounds from a 480 Ruger without a hitch. Not bad for a $150 scope.
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Before that, I had a Weaver pistol scope. As much as I like Weaver Classics and find them a bargain, I do not like their pistol scopes. I simply cannot get comfortable behind them due to subpar eye relief/eyebox.

Even before that, I had a Leupold M8 4X28. I liked it. FOV was adequate, not great. Eye relief was very good as was eyebox.

And even before that, I had a Leupold 2x20. I got rid of it because I thought I needed more power, and it was kinda old and beat up. I didn't need more power. Bad move.

And now, finally, I have reverted all the way back to my roots, and am using what I consider the best all around revolver scope for my needs. A simple, yet effective, 2x20 Leupold:
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It has the best eyebox, best eye relief, and greatest FOV. All by a pretty wide margin IMO. The 3 attributes I have come to consider most important in a revolver scope. The glass is not spectacular, but it is plenty good and more than adequate. The reticle focus is excellent. Magnification is just enough without being too much and paying for it in other areas.

I compared the 2X Leupy to a Trophy and a Weaver. It was worlds better IMO. As for toughness, I would put it up against any pistol scope made. Sometimes less is more. Which certainly seems to be the case here. It took me a lot of trial and error to figure out I had it right in the first place.

You can find a used 2X Leupy for $200 or less. For a hunting revolver, can't go wrong IMO.......

 
I guess maybe I should adress the original question. Snowwis scopes. I mean Simmons.

They are a compromise in almost every area IMO, except price. Not the best in any one aspect. The biggest problem with Simmons is that you never know when your scope may take a dump. I have seen some hold up as good as can be to heavy recoil. Others have had POI changes, broken reticles, and the click adjustments go to he11. They are a total crap shoot IMO. A scope you put on a light recoiling gun or a scope you buy until you can afford better. For the price, I would consider their pistol scopes a bargain, providing they don't fail on you.

Most of the guys who run cheap scopes that haven't failed in some way, like them. They feel the guys who paid more didn't get their moneys worth and that their scope does the job just as well for less. I feel this is mostly due to the fact that they have never experienced the better scopes.

Yes nice glass is great. But it seems some are so hung up on the brightness of the view, they kinda forget about the "other factors" that truly make a good scope what it is. Great glass is useless to me without good FOV, eye relief, eyebox, durability, repeatability, etc......

 


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