[Smizno]

I just purchased a Thompson Centre Pro Hunter XT and was curious what you guys think a good scope would be. I live in the Cincinnati area and only really hunt Whitetail. I would like a scope that can cover the range of this gun. Any suggestions?

 

[OneEyedJack]

I always recommend the Simmons 4X ProDiamond available from Natchez Shooters Supply for $40. http://www.natchezss.com/product.cf...il&brand=SN&prodID=SN567793&prodTitle=Simmons


Here's my review of that scope.

Simmons 4X ProDiamond

I have four of these scopes, all on muzzle loaders. The oldest one is 4+ years old. All have been trouble free.

Pros: Long eye relief (4+ inches for me) - wide field of view - clear, sharp optics with a wide adjustment range for elevation and windage - light and short - inexpensive. The last three I bought have what Simmons calls a "fast focus eyepiece" which allows you to quickly focus the scope to suit your vision by turning a focus ring at the very end of the rear lens - kind of like the focus ring on binoculars. It's a real nice feature because you can have it adjusted when wearing glasses, then take your glasses off and quickly adjust it for your naked eye. I do that a lot when hunting because I remove my glasses to use binoculars. My oldest ProDiamond does not have that feature.

Cons: You're limited to the 4X power, of course, so it's less flexible than a variable magnification scope for things like evaluating the size of a buck's rack out there at 150 yards. Not a big a deal if you carry binoculars as I do - but still a limitation. It's a shotgun scope, so parallax is set at either 50 or 75 yards (I’m not sure which) rather than the standard 100 yards used for rifle scopes. That means on long shots if your eye is not lined up perfectly with the centerline of the scope you could have a parallax sighting error. But it's so small (an inch or less at 200 yards) as to be meaningless to me. Because it's a shotgun scope, the cross hairs are thicker than on most rifle scopes. At 100 yards the cross hairs cover about one inch of your target. Not the best for fine target work at long ranges (but dang nice in low light hunting situations).

Durability: I have a ProDiamond on a little Omega X7 that develops "significant recoil" with 110 grains of T7 FFFG and 300 grain bullets. It hasn't been able to shake the Simmons loose yet. I also have them on three TC Renegades. When I clean the Renegades after a shoot I put the breech end in a bucket of water, including the back half of the scope, and pump the bore with soap. Haven't had one leak yet.
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For most practical hunting situations, if you can’t get it done with a 4X scope a higher power one isn’t going to solve your problem.

 

[broom_jm]

I have two muzzle-loaders, one with a 2-7 and one with a 3-9. Except while sighting in, I keep both of them at the lowest power setting. I would not mind a 1-4 power, in a good brand. The general rule with glass is to go compare several of them and then buy the best you can afford. I would rather have a good scope on a quality used gun, than a $2,500 rifle with a piece of junk optics on it.

My favorites are the Leupold VXII or VXIII, Redfield (for lower cost) and the Bushnell Elite series, in either 3200 or 4200. There are many others, which can cost a great deal more, but these will meet virtually any demands you might make of a scope.

 

[Wazz13]

I have 2 scoped TC Muzzleloaders. Both of them sport the Nikon Omega scope. 1 has the BDC Reticle, while the other sports the Nikoplex. I have never had a problem with them. The BDC is fun to play around with @ the range.

 

[cayugad]

Due to the fact you want a scope that can meet the range expectations of the rifle... you are looking at a long range scope. So this would be a Nikon Omega with the BDC in it. This would allow you to shoot as far as your skills along with the rifle's quality would allow. 250 yards could be done. I would not encourage that, but 150 would be a walk in the park.

But to give you an example... I was shooting a 1.5-4.5x32mm on a T/C Black Diamond XR. I was shooting a white paper plate at 150 yards. Once I learned the drop (hold over), hitting that plate was not all that hard to do. But for most my muzzleloaders I scope I use a 2-7x32 Nikon Pro Staff, or Nikon Omega, Bushnell 3200 2-7x32mm, or some simple Simmons 4x32mm Pro Diamond scopes. I also have a one with a 1.5-4.5x32mm and another with a 1.5-6x40mm. All of them would allow me to shoot 150 yards. Where I hunt, 50 yards is a long shot.

 

[Rubberduck]

Wazz13, with the bdc what load are you using how close is it to being dead on? I assume the bdc is based on an approximate muzzle velocity and bullet weight (and possibly bullet style)

 

[Wazz13]

Rubberduck: Here are my specs for my BDC Scope.

Hornaday .430 265gr FTX
MMP Green Mag Sabot
120gr Triple 7 FFg
Zero @ 100yd

At 150 yds I use the first circle if the scope is on 6x and the second circle on 9X
At 180 yds I use the second circle @ 6X and the third circle @ 9x

That is all the farther I have seriously tested this combo out at. I have tinkered with the longer ranges, but not enough to make a call on what BDC circle to use.

I did take a mature doe last season @ 170 yds, 9x and the third circle held circle on bottom third of body. Hit middle of the shoulder and put her down right there.

As with any BDC type scope, practice, practice, and a little more practice. This is what I have figured out over the last 3 yrs. Range time and good notes can go a long way. IMO

 

[Rubberduck]

Thanks for the info. I had heard that the bdc was based on a 150 grains of powder and a 250 grain projectile. Im torn between the Omega and the Bushnell xlt with the doa 250 reticle. Both will need range time to work the bugs out and to dial it in.

 

[WyoHunter]

Thanks for the info. I had heard that the bdc was based on a 150 grains of powder and a 250 grain projectile. Im torn between the Omega and the Bushnell xlt with the doa 250 reticle. Both will need range time to work the bugs out and to dial it in.

I have the Omega w/BDC and it works well with 110 Gr. BH 209 and Barnes TEZ out of my Accura. Nikon's website gives instructions on how to use it for less powerful loads.