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I just put together a new Rem 700 synthetic with the detachable magazine in 270 Caliber. I installed a 1.8# Timney trigger. The rifle shoots great just like all Remington rifles.
BUT, I made a mistake in putting a 3-12 Nikon Monarch scope on top. This was my thirid and last Nikon.
As much as Nikon advertises and especially because of the hunting pro's who do the advertising I expect much more than what I got. I always thought that their eye relief was less forgiving then most others but I would live with it for this "loaner" rifle for customers who hunt with me.
Friday evening, with the sun already down, but still enough light left to see deer 200 yards away, I could tell bucks from doe, but when I put this scope up to my eyes, the light transmission was so bad that all I could see was a foggy site picture. When I turned the power down to 4-5X, I could see, but turning the scope back up to 12X was impossible. This was a new scope. It was almost as if the scope couldn't distinguish the still bright sky from the darker tree lined ground and just turned to a blur. There might be a name for this but I don't know.
This is the second Nikon scope to do that. I have an M-223 on a 223 Howa. Since it is just a coyote gun, I haven't needed to seriously hunt with it in low light conditions. But this scope performance was terrible. Saturday evening, in the same stand with the 257 Roberts and a 3-10 Zeiss, the site pictures was excellent to dark.
Where we hunt, being able to hunt right before dark, especially with a full moon rising, up's your chances on a big buck or hogs tremendously. Not being able to do so means you sit in your stand and twiddle your thumbs.
I don't mean to upset Nikon owners, I really don't, but I swear, Nikon's advertising budget must triple what other manufacturers spend. The scope has all of the right features, but a good scope starts with good glass. The best I have ever used during low light conditions is the Zeiss. But I have not used that many different scopes. I've never used a Swarovsky, I just can't justify that kind of money. But I was wondering if anyone can suggest another move here.
For this rifle, I wanted to keep in the 3-12, 3-10 power range.
I was looking at the Weaver Grand Slam in the 3-10x50 millimeter, or the Leupold in the same spec. Pentex makes one similar and as well as the Burris 50 Millimeter.
I have a Zeiss that is a 3-10 x 44 mm, but gathers more light than any I have seen. I can literally hunt with a full moon rising in the evening up to midnight if needed and it still gives a full site picture.
Anyway, I see the Nikon as a good target scope but I would never recommend for hunting. I guess I'll never get on one of those shows!
Any suggestions on your favorites scopes for low light conditions?
Again, Not trying to rip on Nikon, but my experiences with them in low light has not been good.
BUT, I made a mistake in putting a 3-12 Nikon Monarch scope on top. This was my thirid and last Nikon.
As much as Nikon advertises and especially because of the hunting pro's who do the advertising I expect much more than what I got. I always thought that their eye relief was less forgiving then most others but I would live with it for this "loaner" rifle for customers who hunt with me.
Friday evening, with the sun already down, but still enough light left to see deer 200 yards away, I could tell bucks from doe, but when I put this scope up to my eyes, the light transmission was so bad that all I could see was a foggy site picture. When I turned the power down to 4-5X, I could see, but turning the scope back up to 12X was impossible. This was a new scope. It was almost as if the scope couldn't distinguish the still bright sky from the darker tree lined ground and just turned to a blur. There might be a name for this but I don't know.
This is the second Nikon scope to do that. I have an M-223 on a 223 Howa. Since it is just a coyote gun, I haven't needed to seriously hunt with it in low light conditions. But this scope performance was terrible. Saturday evening, in the same stand with the 257 Roberts and a 3-10 Zeiss, the site pictures was excellent to dark.
Where we hunt, being able to hunt right before dark, especially with a full moon rising, up's your chances on a big buck or hogs tremendously. Not being able to do so means you sit in your stand and twiddle your thumbs.
I don't mean to upset Nikon owners, I really don't, but I swear, Nikon's advertising budget must triple what other manufacturers spend. The scope has all of the right features, but a good scope starts with good glass. The best I have ever used during low light conditions is the Zeiss. But I have not used that many different scopes. I've never used a Swarovsky, I just can't justify that kind of money. But I was wondering if anyone can suggest another move here.
For this rifle, I wanted to keep in the 3-12, 3-10 power range.
I was looking at the Weaver Grand Slam in the 3-10x50 millimeter, or the Leupold in the same spec. Pentex makes one similar and as well as the Burris 50 Millimeter.
I have a Zeiss that is a 3-10 x 44 mm, but gathers more light than any I have seen. I can literally hunt with a full moon rising in the evening up to midnight if needed and it still gives a full site picture.
Anyway, I see the Nikon as a good target scope but I would never recommend for hunting. I guess I'll never get on one of those shows!
Any suggestions on your favorites scopes for low light conditions?
Again, Not trying to rip on Nikon, but my experiences with them in low light has not been good.