Best general purpose optic style?

[iron6]

I have the Mp sport with the folding mbus rear sight and I like it for target shooting but If the lights anything less than noon or If the target is black shooting past 75 yards at anything smaller than man sized is about impossible, part of my justification for buying the ar was it would be my coyote hunting gun. I'm looking at two options, one is buying quick detachment high quality rings and about a 100$ scope and the other option I am considering is buying a primary arms red dot and 6x magnifier and removing the magnifier when not varmit hunting.


What do you optic experts suggest?

I simply don't have 400-5000 to spend on a aimpoint/acog/ magicalterroristslayingnightvisionscopeofdeath

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[cyphertext]

It really depends on how you are going to be using the rifle. I use a red dot on mine for hog hunting, but I keep my shots in the 50 yd or so range most of the time, so magnification is not an issue. The red dot allows for fast acquisition on a running hog.

If you are going to be shooting at longer distances and require magnification, I would go with a scope.

 

[iron6]

Distances will be a maximum of of 300 yards I will be hunting off a tree stand with about 300 yards of field. Hopefully I can get them closer but generally my range will be 100-250 yards with the occasional 300 yard shot but never any more than that

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[cyphertext]

Then you should go with a scope. A red dot is made for fast target acquisition, at fairly close ranges where a hit is a hit. For your application, you are looking at precise bullet placement at over 100 yards.

 

[JaPes]

Maybe a scope with an illuminated reticule? That then begs the question: What type of reticule do you want to use?

 

[Dad1]

This may be more than you want to spend. I have this on my M&P T with A Larue QD mount and love it. This is my coyote gun as well. Mine has the long range duplex reticle that is zeroed at 200 yrds. Its about an inch high at 100 yrds. and the first mill dot is right on at 300yrds with a 62 grain bullet.
Leupold Rifleman 3-9x40mm Waterproof Scope - 1332935, Scopes at Sportsman's Guide

 

[iron6]

That Leopold is within my price range. I'm leaning towards an illuminated reticle. I am not a scope expert I just what to be able to put a bullet in a coyotes chest in semi low light areas

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[Rick_A]

My vote goes to a decent 1-4x. I had Leupold whip this one up for me:

 

[red dragon]

recommendations.....1-4x24 or 3-9x40. Trijicon,vortex,leupold for glass.Bobro,LaRue,ADM for mount. You get what you pay for in optics.Save up and get what you WANT not what you can afford this minute.A $100 really limits your choices. I stay away from magnifiers personally due to added weight and bulk.Go to your local shop and take a look. There's no better way of determining what's right for you.

 

[iron6]

Cheapest trijicon I could find was 900$... I think I'd stick with iron sights for that money, I can spend a combined maximum of about 300$ so I can do a bit more than 100$ but the super scopes are just not worth the money to me. I'll be shooting coyotes at estimated 200-300 yards not trying to get 2 inch groupings at 600

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[red dragon]

Simple recommendations,that's all. Never said you have to get a trijicon.If that's all you got out of my post then i'm done here.

 

[rojodiablo]

Distances will be a maximum of of 300 yards I will be hunting off a tree stand with about 300 yards of field. Hopefully I can get them closer but generally my range will be 100-250 yards with the occasional 300 yard shot but never any more than that

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Nikon 4x12 runs about $225 out the door. Just put them on my sons' rifles. Very nice scopes. I recommend the 12x because you are saying 300yds on a small dog, or bobcat as a target. Were it deer and pigs, I would have said 3x9.

 

[WR Moore]

I'll second the 1-4/1-5 scope. Or, given your projected use, maybe a fixed 4x scope with a decently large objective. Heavy cross hairs will help out on dim light use if illumination is out of your cost range.

In dim light, the higher power scopes won't give you a usable image. You'll end up dialed down to 3-4 X, so why buy magnification you don't need?

 

[MichiganScott]

I have a 8-24 that I use for loadwork. The rest of the time all my rifles have low power variables with the largest being 2-7x32. Most have 1.5-5 or 1-4.

 

[iron6]

Simple recommendations,that's all. Never said you have to get a trijicon.If that's all you got out of my post then i'm done here.

I apologize if I came off a little aggressive, I'm still in college so the upper grand level scopes are about as viable and responsible to buy as a ferrari for the average Joe

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[Carrot]

I just got a nice Bushnell 3-9x40 for about $150. It is a 223 specific model with bullet drop reticle Marked out to 500 yards and parallax focus.

It isn't illuminated, but it is a nice bright optic for the price. My first time shooting at 250 yards was all hits on a gong that was roughly the size of a coyote kill zone.

 

[spad124]

I recently searched for a scope in the < $200 range for a bolt action rifle firing a low recoil round. I bought a Redfield 3x9. It was about $170 IIRC. I found the glass was very clear for the price range. I'm also a SLR camera collector so glass clarity is important to me. Yes, you get what you pay for, but there is also the law of diminishing returns. $1000 glass will be better than $300 glass, but by how much? And can your eye tell the difference?

And with a low recoil round like the 5.56/.223 the Redfield (now owned by Leupold) or a comparable Nikon will stand up to the vibration.

 

[cyphertext]

You might have a hard time finding an illuminated reticle scope and a quality mount for $300. The Bushnell 3x9x40 firefly looks like it runs between $250 to $275. Add in another $100 for a mount like the Burris PEPR.

If you go without an illuminated reticle, you can get a lower end Leupold 3x9x40, or nikon. Bushnell would also have several offerings within your price range.

 

[rojodiablo]

I'll second the 1-4/1-5 scope. Or, given your projected use, maybe a fixed 4x scope with a decently large objective. Heavy cross hairs will help out on dim light use if illumination is out of your cost range.

In dim light, the higher power scopes won't give you a usable image. You'll end up dialed down to 3-4 X, so why buy magnification you don't need?

With decent glass, you can shoot out to surprising distances in the dark, with only moonlight as illumination.
A BDX reticle helps this a lot; the larger reticle edges point inward to an 'open' center at night, and when that is centered on your animal, you are going to hit it.
I use the highest magnification I can at night, to get the best picture on what I am shooting at. I have taken hogs on depredation hunts out to 200+yds at night. While this is rare, shots if 75yds with no spotlights are not uncommon at all. I have easily taken 'yotes out to 120-140yds without spotlights at night here in the desert.

Illuminated reticles are NOT the greatest thing ever; if you have decent eyesight, you will fare much better without it.
Illumination levels need to be so low as to be nearly imperceptible to be effective. A bright illumination will blind the view in the scope. I have seen scarce few optics with light resolution LOW enough to work properly. All the optics I have ever used with low enough light were not economical scopes in any manner. The closest is an Eotech. These tend to go low enough that they are usable in the real world at night.

If you are hunting...... go with MORE magnification for 200yd. shooting. A 1-4 does not give enough resolution for small game at those distances unless the shot picture is very clear. You will find that coyotes do not just sit still waiting to get bullets thrown at them. It's not like shooting paper targets......

 

[Gatorade]

I second the Nikon recommendation. In my humble opinion, they make the best scope under $250, and they make some nice AR specific models. If you're looking to shoot coyotes at 200+ yards, you're really going to want an optic that gets you at least 9x, maybe even 12x. I personally wouldn't buy a cheap scope with an illuminated reticule, but that's just me - the quality difference between cheap light-up scopes and expensive ones is HUGE, and I wouldn't buy one at all if I couldn't afford a good one (which I can't). Good glass will transmit enough light for you to shoot in pretty dark conditions, and if it's too dark to shoot with a plain reticule, it's probably too dark to be shooting it at all.
The Amazon.com: Nikon P-223 3-9x40 Mate BDC 600: Sports & Outdoors@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41Pu%2B51eKmL.@@AMEPARAM@@41Pu%2B51eKmL are both great value for money and have BDC reticles, with high-transparency glass. For maximum versatility on a limited budget, I'd go with the 3-9x40 (which is almost the same scope I have on my Remington 700 - I have the ProStaff, not the P233).