Rudolph scopes

[TommyGunn]

Awesome, thank you all gents for your input and very valuable advice. I have a good idea now of what I should look for when I make my purchase.

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[264WinMag]

Friend who shoots alot of steel and also hunts has gone through tow Rudolph scopes. The paralax packed up and they were willing to replace it under the warranty. It is however a pita to wait for a new scope.

In your budget I would also recommend the sale from yeti.

I also have a 308 bull barrel (26 inches) with a 6-20X50 Burris scope on it. Shooting paper with it is great because you can see the target nicely. When hunting the 8-12 magnification works great. So if you are going to shoot more paper and steel I agree with Messor that you get a scope that fits the need.

[A-R]

Choosing a scope is always a matter of compromise. You just can't have it all, and if you can, you will likely not be able to afford it.

First thing to consider with any scope, is after sales service. Many makes promise fantastic guarantees. Many are not worth the paper they are printed on in SA. If a firm does not have a reputation for excellent after sales service and support, I won't spend a cent on their scopes. I have a couple of Lynx and Leupold scopes on my rifles. Half of them have been back to the agent for repairs. The Lynxes were back on the rifles in less than a month. Leupold takes a few months, since they go to the factory in the US, but they were fixed. Many other makes offer similar (or better) service. Swarovski and Vortex likely have the best warranty policy, and they do honour it. Do the research.

Rudolph is a local company and I have met 'Dolph himself. Seems like a decent guy. I expect good service from him as well, if ever needed. Just one thing that I noticed fairly recently. That "special package deal" that everybody got mails and SMS'es about, where they offered a (6-24x50) scope, cheap electronic ear muffs and bipod for R12k. Well, a dealer friend sold the same package for R7500. I know what the wholesale price was, and his markup wasn't zero%. My point is, look around and make certain the prices are realistic.

The correct magnification range for both hunting and target shooting depends a lot on the skill level of the user. It takes lots and lots of practise to find a target (live or man-made) at the higher magnifications. If you have all the time in the world it's easy, but if you shoot in a match with time limits (e.g. veldskiet), or at animals that can bolt at any moment, too much magnification will not be an advantage at all. The target size also matters. Small targets like varmints need more magnification than kudu.

Then we come to recticles. It always amazes me that manufacturers install a fancy (complex) hold-over recticle in a SFP scope. That fancy recticle is only useable at one calibrated magification setting. This basically reduces your fancy variable magnification scope to a fixed version, with maybe a little better target finding capability at lower mag settings. And I'm willing to bet at least 5c, that most users will get caught out using the recticle while dialed to the wrong mag setting at some point. Make no mistake, I have several SFP scopes, but most of them have simple duplex-type recticles. That is a good combination. An uncomplicated recticle is also better for a beginner shooter, or even an advanced one who is pressed for time while making the shot. A complex recticle is very confusing if you are not very calm and very familiar with it. I have seen many experienced competition shooters using the wrong magnification or holdover-bar in competition. So use a complex FFP recticle for slow extra long range shooting, but stick to simple recticles on SFP hunting scopes.

Mounts: While a Picanini rail with QD rings looks very "tacticool", is it really worth the cost? For about R1000, you can have a set of Lynx steel rings and bases installed, that should give perfect service to 99,5% of all civilian rifle users. I have seen quite a few shooters using a <R150 aluminium Picanini base with <R500 aluminium rings, and complain about various issues. One of the primary gripes is the rifle's inability to hold zero during transport. If you really need the QD capability, get the proper quality steel parts, and do not complain about the price tag.

So do a lot of research, and try out as many setups as possible, before deciding. And keep in mind that your tastes and needs will change, as you progress on the maksmanship journey.

[TommyGunn]

Hello gentlemen, I thought that I will give some feedback on the thread.

I learned a lot about optics since I made the post. The more I learned about optics the more I realised that I will probably never know everything about scopes.

In the end I drilled my choices down to 2 scoped:
1. Nikon Monarch 6-24×50 NPlex reticle and
2. Rudolph Optics VH 04-16×50 T3 reticle

Ultimately I made the desicion to go with the Rudolp Optic. If I compared the two scopes next to each other what swayed my decision was amongst other

1. The Nikon "tube" was thinner
2. The glass on the Rudolph at max setting was still crystal clear where as the Nikon at max magnification was a bit fuzzy
3. The Nikon did not have the zero function
4. The Rudolph comes with a no questions asked replacement warranty, the Nikon actually also have a superb warranty
5. I liked the weight on the Rudolph compared to the Nikon
6. I liked the Rudolph reticle more than the Nikko Plex reticle
7. The Nikon would reach effectively at my current skill level to around 350m and the Rudolph could reach to 500m

There was a significant price difference between the Nikon Monarch and the Rudolph, but I was willing to pay it as the scope felt "right" to me.

Now I have to just slep through the wait to get my license and have it fitted.

What I can surmise about optics are that ultimately it comes down to:

1. What you as the shooter want to use the scope for
2. Your budget
3. What functionality you are willing to not compromise on when buying a scope on a budget.

Lekker ouens, over and out.


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[TommyGunn]

Hello gents

I have received my license and took her out on Saturday to SWAT to set the scope.

My feedbaback is that I am very impressed (in my limited capacity) with my Rudolp scope. It was easy to set up and the reticle is crisp and very clear.

Overall I am very happy with the Rudolph.

Meet... Patience and Time....




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[Captain Hook]

They are very very nice. If the reticle on their new 1-6 was the T1 I'd buy that any day.