Seems that for the past few years I have had trouble finding Springers scopes
that wont break after a few hundred shots and that are affordable. I
got a box of scopes with varying diseased conditions, broken reticules, non resettable turret adjustments, power ring also turns the reticule there at least one where the lenses are all on a horizontal plane.and makes clinking noises when one shakes it.

Seems that back in the 80s the scopes I got from Beeman are still holding up
They look worse for wear but still work.

Guess as I get older I'm getting hard on scopes. I have had troubles with
most brands within the extent of my check book. with a the exception of one leaper behemoth 30 mm that looks more like a submarine than a scope and feels
like it weighs as much,but at least it has held up.

Please forgive my whining but this has been an unsatisfying quest. I will
stay away from discussing mounting options, I am convincing myself that machining has given way to cheap castings and they break.

Did find this resource from Kermit Texas air gun Club about scopes.
http://www.kermitairgunclub.com/scopes/ might be useful in getting thatnext scope.

My ramblings are drying up, I bid you all a good morning I think the coffee's on.

Sylvan

The 3x9x50 isn't too heavy. Just picked up a 4x16x40 at WalMart for $73 after taxes. That one is a bit heavy, though. Nice thing is they focus down to five yards. You can order direct from Dick's Sporting Good's website, as well.

BTW, they are made in the same factory as Leapers. Maybe even the same scopes in some models.

If all else fails, bite the bullet and get a Leupold. Lifetime warranty and all of their scopes are rated for airguns.

cost of all those scopes in your deceased box and see if the dollar amount would be equal to a couple of Leupold 3x9 EFR's. I used to love Beeman's catalogs where he quoted John Ruskin.

Sylvan;

my experience with scopes is that you have to match the rifle to the scope by way of a good mount. having said this the mount also has to be able to take care of barrel droop and hold itself to the rail

been testing the "Dampa" mount from Sports Match. it was shipped from the Nederlands by Johannis. I went to the Sports Match web page and found out the top rail of the mount slides 1 minute and comes back to the same exact position, this absorbs the recoil, facinating idea.

this mount is on my 48 .22 cal. with a Barska 3-12 x 40 AO scope ($69.00 from OpticPlanet), no creep from the mount and holds itself just well. the scope has held on for about 100 pellets, still experimenting since I got the mount 1 week ago. the mount compensates some for barrel droop also and that is a plus

I can attest to an affordable scope on a 800 fps gun (medium recoil) because of the Dampa mount. will post about it when I get time to shoot it more and change the scope to my Bushnell Sportsman 4-12 x 40

warren PS: drink decaf coffee

and remember "it's 30% the gun and 70% the shooter"

Tasco Golden Antler 3-9X32AO is a good buy for the setback of the spring:

The general rule of thumb is that the scope should cost at least as much as the rifle it is mounted on. Quality iron sights often do. So if you are looking for a $50-$100 scope to do justice to a $200-$400 air gun I think you are short changing yourself.

On the other hand optics are much better today. I have a leapers and bought a counterpoint for my brother. Both have good optics but both have problems with ligthed reticles and really holding click repeatable point of aim. On the other hand I just bought a weaver grand slam (good buy at $279) and while the optics aren't fantastic at 20 power I trust the adjustments.

So pick your posion. Get one of the cheaper scopes with tons of features and power with decent optics at a great price or settle for less features and power on one that can be trusted under all conditions. If you want both than be prepared to pay at least a few hundred to a grand (for a nice 20+ power side ajustable scope).

Names? Bushnell, Nikon, Lueopold, Zeiss, Khales, etc. No reason why it can't be used on more than one rifle BTW:)



Russ

Depends on what features you're wanting. If you don't want/need AO, there are nice values out there in older, used scopes like the Bushnell Scope Chief. These were Elites before the elite name came to be. Most are available in 3-9 x 32 and are non AO. Optics are Bausch & Lomb made in Japan. Older Bushnell Banners with Japanese optics are nice scopes too. Most good glass is sourced from Japan and Light Optics works. This holds true today - even with some of the German maker scopes. They leave this detail out though.

As for newer scopes, I like Bushnell Banners in the 4-12 x 40 as they are AO and will withstand medium to heavy recoil provided the mount is stout. A Bushnell Sportsman in 3-9 x 32 AO and target turrets is a nice scope and springer rated. You should have no problem sending either of these scopes back for warranty repair/replacement. Bushnell's warranty is one of the best. These scopes are under $100 new.

On the best bang for the buck front I like the Simmons 44 mag scope in 6.5 - 20 x 44. You can't get them new any longer but you can still find them used on Ebay and gun auction sites. Glass is from the Phillipenes - still better than China any day. Very nice optics and a very rugged scope for under $150. The Simmons Prairie Master scopes are supposed to be nice. They are current production and are supposed to handle heavy recoil but I don't have personal experience with them yet.

"but I'll be needin' that gun, fer squirrels and such."

For what it's worth many have said that the cheaper Tasco Golden Antler has stood up to their 350's when other more expensive scopes broke. This is a scope made for Magnum Springers or "adult break-barrel air guns" like Tasco puts it. I bought one but put it on my 850. Once I get that dang RWS 1pc mount that has all the screws stripped of my 350, it's going on the bad boy..

The Golden Antler 3-9x32 A/O is not a bad scope for the $. For $43 (shipped! from OpticsPlanet) I think you get a lot for your $. It also comes with rings that have some huge screws, big enough to fit a dime or a penny that you can turn with a pair of pliers until they 're extremely tight but I 'd probably get a good 1-piece mount if it's a Magnum Springer you are using it for.

Diana 350 Mag .22
Hammerli 850 .22
A few Crosman CO2 & Pump .177

Thank you all for all your effort, knowledge and time to answer my
query. there is quiet a bit to digest.I do have a dampa mount somewhere, once I dig it up I will mount it, if I remember it was an involved installation project with several screws to tighten if memory serves I also remember that that mount has the added bonus of extra windage adjustment built in the mount.

I also noticed that the rings that come on the Tasco antlerare the very same rings that Beeman used to sell back in the 80's I sevearal pairs and they have done yoman duty on several .22s and air rifles up to about 800 fps.

Again my thanks to all.

Sylvan


S/SP

a good scope on a lousy mount with a MAGNUM gun will fail and you are out of $$$$. I have the adjustable Sports Match 5039 and it is supposed to be one of the best for barrel droop and Johannis sent me the Dampa which is also a SM mount

well I will tell you, w/o a vertical stop pin the Dampa is far superior to the 5039 due to other considerations

1st. it does have extra windage built in for (barrel droop)

2nd. it is a shock absorber between the gun and scope

3rd. even a "CAVEMAN" can install it

warren

PS: Johannis is shooting next month his 48 at 100 meters competition with a Model 450 RWS scope that is mounted on a DAMPA, guess this tells you something about this mount

and remember "it's 30% the gun and 70% the shooter"

WARREN, unfortunately I am NOT one of the 7 shooters in the 100 meter contest because this is the first "official" attempt on the 100 meter. I am on of the 4 jury members and will have a super sharp lookout what these 7 topgunners do with their hight tech. PCP's !! Off course there will be a next event and here we want to split in PCP- and springer rifles, of course in this event I will try to beat the PCP's but these guys are really marksmen with air rifle's !! I will place the groups they shoot on 100 meter on this forum or send the results to you that you can post it on the forum, good to hear that you're satisfied about the mount, best regards from Johannis.

Johannis could you give me a price on the dampa mount, and would it be possible to get one.
Thanks Ray