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Scope Power Decision #7379147 12/17/18 04:49 PM
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I normally hunt from the same blind and the distance from blind to feeder is 143 yards. My normal practice is to use the highest power available for the rifle/scope I am using on any given day. Been doing it that way for 50+ years.
After this weekend, I have changed my mind...
I had this buck come out from some brush, 25 yards away. He was moving right along and my scope was set on 10 power. He was so close that he completely filled the scopes field of view.There was no time to adjust the scopes power, I managed to pop him but I was not sure of the hit until he humped up and took off.
From now on, my scopes will be set to the LOWEST power available. I feel that I will have time to adjust the scopes power for longer shots at the feeder.
Lesson learned!

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Last edited by DH3; 12/17/18 05:27 PM.

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Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379170 12/17/18 05:14 PM
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The majority of my time hunting has been done with a Leupold Varix-II 3-9x40 old school scope. Most of my shots have been close, it was just how the properties I have had the opportunity to hunt were laid out. One of the stands I hunted most would be more of a bow stand than a rifle stand, the absolute longest shot you could stretch out was 220 yards and the only way you would shoot that far is if you purposely wanted to. The remainder was about max 80 yards and 99% of the shots taken were 25-60 yards. I hunted there for about 15 years. I hunted on 9 power all the time and took mostly neck/head shots. If I was going to shoot for the body/vitals I would back the power down. Never had a problem finding deer etc. I have spent the majority of my most recent hunting years with a 4x16 power and find that for the majority of the time I leave it on 8 power and adjust as needed.


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Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379171 12/17/18 05:14 PM
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A lesson I learned the hard way as well some years ago. Now I hunt with a 3-18 and it stays on 3. When it’s time to shoot I put the scope on the animal and zoom as needed. That was about 5x at 75 yards and 18x at 510 this season.

Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379173 12/17/18 05:16 PM
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Yep! My nephew missed a 35 yard shot over Thanksgiving. It was my rifle he was using, so I took the rifle to verify that it was sighted in properly. I saw that it was on 9 power, and asked if he had changed it since he missed. Nope! I said, well, that's why you missed. My lesson learned...when handing a rifle to a younger, less experienced hunter, set the scope on a low power for them.

Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379175 12/17/18 05:17 PM
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100 yard zero, focus set for 100 yards, magnification as low as it will go.

I know if I need to make an adjustment, everything has to come up.


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Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379178 12/17/18 05:19 PM
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Thankfully I've never had to make such a quick decision on a buck. In almost all cases I've watched my target animal for 10-15 minutes before deciding to shoot.



Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: unclebubba] #7379183 12/17/18 05:21 PM
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Originally Posted by unclebubba
Yep! My nephew missed a 35 yard shot over Thanksgiving. It was my rifle he was using, so I took the rifle to verify that it was sighted in properly. I saw that it was on 9 power, and asked if he had changed it since he missed. Nope! I said, well, that's why you missed. My lesson learned...when handing a rifle to a younger, less experienced hunter, set the scope on a low power for them.

He didn't miss because the power, he missed because he missed.


It's hell eatin em live
Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379184 12/17/18 05:22 PM
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Always on the lowest power, until I see an animal and if he is so far off that I need to increase the power, normally, I have more than enough time to do so.


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Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: unclebubba] #7379204 12/17/18 05:31 PM
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Originally Posted by unclebubba
Yep! My nephew missed a 35 yard shot over Thanksgiving. It was my rifle he was using, so I took the rifle to verify that it was sighted in properly. I saw that it was on 9 power, and asked if he had changed it since he missed. Nope! I said, well, that's why you missed. My lesson learned...when handing a rifle to a younger, less experienced hunter, set the scope on a low power for them.



This is a problem for me and is exactly why my son wasn't able to take his first deer until this year at age 12. Until this year he hadn't had the maturity and knowledge to handle the rifle on his own (safely load and adjust it as needed) and make an accurate decision on an animal without my help.



Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379229 12/17/18 05:47 PM
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Interesting to see some of the replies...The buck I shot was MOVING...right to left, just like ducks at a carnival shooting gallery. He was headed for some heavy brush, there was NO time to diddle with the scope.
You see him, get the rifle up and shoot or he's gone. If it ever happens to you, the memory of how big the animal looks in the crosshairs will stick with you for a while.
I have killed dozens of deer at the feeder, 143 yards away. There was always plenty of time to adjust scope power, which was unnecessary because the scope was already set for the long shot.
The short, no time to fool around opportunity was a game changer for me..


Old age and treachery beats youth and stupid every time!
Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379233 12/17/18 05:49 PM
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If I don't have enough time to change the power on the scope chances are im not going to take the shot. We are pretty picky about what we shoot and shooting that fast is how the majority of animals that aren't on the shoot list for us wind up getting shot.


It's hell eatin em live
Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: redchevy] #7379239 12/17/18 05:54 PM
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Originally Posted by redchevy
If I don't have enough time to change the power on the scope chances are im not going to take the shot. We are pretty picky about what we shoot and shooting that fast is how the majority of animals that aren't on the shoot list for us wind up getting shot.


When you have been deer hunting as long as I have, you know a shooter when you see one.


Old age and treachery beats youth and stupid every time!
Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379240 12/17/18 05:55 PM
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I leave mine on 6 or 8 ( on my higher magnification scopes) and I never have issues when on a stand.

Hunted a feeder this year that was 50 yards from the blind. Set the scope on 6x.

Deer spooked and stopped at 175 yards and I popped him, but at that distance he was a tad small in the scope.

Hunting includes tons of variables. It’s never gonna be perfect.


My advice would be to learn to use your variable as a variable and not a 9x fixed scope.


Same holds true for the guys that always keep it on 4x

Last edited by txtrophy85; 12/17/18 05:56 PM.

For it is not the quarry that we truly seek, but the adventure.
Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: redchevy] #7379245 12/17/18 06:01 PM
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Originally Posted by redchevy
Originally Posted by unclebubba
Yep! My nephew missed a 35 yard shot over Thanksgiving. It was my rifle he was using, so I took the rifle to verify that it was sighted in properly. I saw that it was on 9 power, and asked if he had changed it since he missed. Nope! I said, well, that's why you missed. My lesson learned...when handing a rifle to a younger, less experienced hunter, set the scope on a low power for them.

He didn't miss because the power, he missed because he missed.


You are correct. He missed because he missed. However, being over powered for such a close shot surely hindered him. In my own experience, having the scope turned up too high does make an easy shot more challenging.

Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: titan2232] #7379247 12/17/18 06:05 PM
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Originally Posted by titan2232
Originally Posted by unclebubba
Yep! My nephew missed a 35 yard shot over Thanksgiving. It was my rifle he was using, so I took the rifle to verify that it was sighted in properly. I saw that it was on 9 power, and asked if he had changed it since he missed. Nope! I said, well, that's why you missed. My lesson learned...when handing a rifle to a younger, less experienced hunter, set the scope on a low power for them.



This is a problem for me and is exactly why my son wasn't able to take his first deer until this year at age 12. Until this year he hadn't had the maturity and knowledge to handle the rifle on his own (safely load and adjust it as needed) and make an accurate decision on an animal without my help.





To clear up any confusion, my nephew has shown the maturity to handle a rifle responsibly. He knows how to load/unload safely. Has shown the ability to watch his muzzle, keep his booger finger off the trigger until he is ready to shoot, keep the safety on and unload before getting out of the stand, etc, etc. He is mature enough, and has experience with this particular rifle. However, he is still a less experienced hunter.

Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379249 12/17/18 06:09 PM
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My first serious "deer" rifle wore a Weaver K-12, and since there wasn't any magnification adjustment to be had I learned to shoot it, near or far. Don't mean to imply that that's the best course...not hardly...but it's doable.

My variables get carried set in the lower half of their power range (with the exception of my .375 and .416...their Leupold 1.5x5s stay bottomed out unless there's a) time and b) a need for more magnification).

Mark


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Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: unclebubba] #7379272 12/17/18 06:38 PM
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Originally Posted by unclebubba
Originally Posted by titan2232
Originally Posted by unclebubba
Yep! My nephew missed a 35 yard shot over Thanksgiving. It was my rifle he was using, so I took the rifle to verify that it was sighted in properly. I saw that it was on 9 power, and asked if he had changed it since he missed. Nope! I said, well, that's why you missed. My lesson learned...when handing a rifle to a younger, less experienced hunter, set the scope on a low power for them.



This is a problem for me and is exactly why my son wasn't able to take his first deer until this year at age 12. Until this year he hadn't had the maturity and knowledge to handle the rifle on his own (safely load and adjust it as needed) and make an accurate decision on an animal without my help.





To clear up any confusion, my nephew has shown the maturity to handle a rifle responsibly. He knows how to load/unload safely. Has shown the ability to watch his muzzle, keep his booger finger off the trigger until he is ready to shoot, keep the safety on and unload before getting out of the stand, etc, etc. He is mature enough, and has experience with this particular rifle. However, he is still a less experienced hunter.


Good deal keep that young man hunting
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Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379273 12/17/18 06:41 PM
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Originally Posted by DH3
Originally Posted by redchevy
If I don't have enough time to change the power on the scope chances are im not going to take the shot. We are pretty picky about what we shoot and shooting that fast is how the majority of animals that aren't on the shoot list for us wind up getting shot.


When you have been deer hunting as long as I have, you know a shooter when you see one.



Yep. You see PLENTY of shooters



Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: titan2232] #7379345 12/17/18 08:02 PM
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Originally Posted by titan2232
Originally Posted by DH3
Originally Posted by redchevy
If I don't have enough time to change the power on the scope chances are im not going to take the shot. We are pretty picky about what we shoot and shooting that fast is how the majority of animals that aren't on the shoot list for us wind up getting shot.


When you have been deer hunting as long as I have, you know a shooter when you see one.



Yep. You see PLENTY of shooters



Guess I am just lucky!


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Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379347 12/17/18 08:05 PM
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How many of you would pass on this buck??

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Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379349 12/17/18 08:07 PM
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Is that a serious question?


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Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: txtrophy85] #7379356 12/17/18 08:18 PM
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Yes it is..It seems like redchevy has an issue with my shooting quickly. So I thought I would let some of the others on this forum chime in.
Would you or would you not take a crack at the buck in the pictures with no time to adjust scope power??


Old age and treachery beats youth and stupid every time!
Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379360 12/17/18 08:22 PM
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Anyone who has hunted with variable power scopes, at some point has had a similar situation. The first thing I do when I get to the stand is check to see that the scopes power is set to low.

Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: Erny] #7379366 12/17/18 08:36 PM
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Originally Posted by Erny
Anyone who has hunted with variable power scopes, at some point has had a similar situation. The first thing I do when I get to the stand is check to see that the scopes power is set to low.

The next time I climb into my blind, the scope will ALREADY be set to low power.


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Re: Scope Power Decision [Re: DH3] #7379414 12/17/18 09:11 PM
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Originally Posted by DH3
Yes it is..It seems like redchevy has an issue with my shooting quickly. So I thought I would let some of the others on this forum chime in.
Would you or would you not take a crack at the buck in the pictures with no time to adjust scope power??


I have no problem what so ever with you shooting quickly or you shooting that deer. Some bucks have a heck of a nice rack before they are mature (that isn't a comment on your buck in any way)

Me personally we are very picky about what we shoot. We have shot some deer we regretted in the past and at this point would rather they just walk into the brush than take the chance of shooting something we don't want to.

For me it is as simple as if I don't have the split second to adjust the power on my scope which in over 20 years of hunting ive never had to do, I don't have enough time to decide if that is a deer I want to shoot. And if I miss out by the split second that it would take to adjust the power im ok with it. Heck most of the time if we see deer crossing the sendero that don't stop I would never have a chance to even see them through the scope as I don't sit with the gun out the window and my first look is usually through the binos.


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