I am in the market for a scope for a new rifle built by Derrick. I's .308 Rem 700. Intended use is hunting, muley and Elk. I'm not made of money, so it needs to be affordable. Where I am is not easy to put hands on to compare. Shot distance would not be overly long, max maybe 300yds. I'm not married to a brand, have Bushnell, Nikon and Leupold.

If you want to save money and 300 is your max range, I would get a fixed SWFA scope in Mil/Mil, either 6 or 10 power. They are 300 dollars or so.

Otherwise, I would search of a used FFP scope so if you want to do long range shooting down the road you can. Used. I have bought 3 Vortex Viper PST FFP scopes around the 700 dollar mark and I love them for hunting.

If you aren't pushing past 300-400 yards. I'd pick a scope with lifetime warranty and save the receipt. As technology changes so does scope prices and performance. I'd look at luppy, vortex and (not a fan of Nikon but they now offer lifetime warranty)

I'd go with Minox like this one http://www.cameralandny.com/optics/minox.pl?page=minox_66420 the open box at $450 is a lot of scope for the money. It's also available in 1 inch saving $20.

I hunted with a fixed 6 for quite a few years, and shot deer and coyotes out past 300, so certainly a 6 power will do. But, if you like shooting paper at 100, a 3-12 will let you see the bullet holes in the target, and a 4.5-14 will let you see them better. And, a Burris FFII 4.5-14 (of which I have a couple) is $300, and that's quite a nice scope unless you need turrets.

http://www.cameralandny.com/optics2/meopta.pl?page=meopta541800

You will not do any better than this for the money. I have 3 of them.

I've still got the Bushy Elite for sale...

Midway had Zeiss Conquest referbs for $600 ish. Lot of scope for the money if you like what they've got.

http://www.cameralandny.com/optics2/meopta.pl?page=meopta541800

Cameraland.com has a great deal on a Meopta MeoPro 3.5x10x44 for 349.99. No Tax or shipping. Very good glass for the money!!! Good Luck with your choice, Baker

Dang, I bought a Vortex FFP in August. Wish I would have known you were selling this!

That scope for $700 won't be for sale long.

I'm not a fan of the company, but that is actually a very very good scope. Thankfully the Bausch & Lomb foundation it was created on, didn't change much.

Well, I threw out the mention of that $300 Burris thinking that the OP wanted to keep the cost down, and again I'll say that it's a lot of scope for the money. Now...if ya want to spend more than that, and the use is mostly hunting, I really like my Leupold VX3 4.5-14x40 with the Varmint Hunter reticle. Great scope. And I'm really fond of the Vortex Viper 4-16x50 PST FFP on my 260. The more I use that Vortex, the more I like it. I'm on the second year with the Vortex and the POI hasn't moved even a teensy bit. With the Leupold, same deal, but more years. They are always set right where they should be.

For me, the good news is the bad news. The wife just asked me what I want for Christmas, and that's right after she bought a purse for more money than her first car cost, and I just don't need a new scope. Here's my big opening, but I like what I have and just don't need an upgrade. Dang!

Redfield revenge is also a good choice

Meopta!!!

I bought one too and am very satisfied. The scope appears identical, even right down to the turrets, to the Zeiss Conquest. The scope has nice low-light performance, and the large, forgiving eye box makes me think that most of the Meopta components are interchangeable with Conquest. But I don't know this as fact.

I DO KNOW that it will meet your stated needs in spades. If you ever get into long range shooting, you can always budget for a proper LR scope at that time.

If I was on a dead tight shoe string budget...

http://www.natchezss.com/weaver-kaspa-hunting-series-riflescope-3-12x50mm-dual-x-reticle-matte.html

This would be good option for over 2 1/2 bills...Nikon glass is pretty darn good!

http://www.natchezss.com/nikon-monarch-3-2-5-10x42-bdc-refurb.html

For $400...the Meopta mentioned above would be a strong choice
http://www.cameralandny.com/optics2/meopta.pl?page=meopta541800

Above these...you have a lot of options...

Ed

I also think the Burris Fullfield II is a great scope for the money. Meopta built the Conquest for Zeiss. I have a Conquest and the Meopro, like the Meopta better.