I am ordering the custom rimfire rifle below to be built on the synthetic stock as per my specs using high quality parts. Now I am at the point where I have to choose a scope for this rifle and I am asking for suggestions and advice.
The rifle is a custom built accurized semi-auto model with 0.0001-inch tolerances for USD ~$1,500 so I am interested in mid/high-quality variable magnification scopes ($300-800 USD) from Zeiss Conquest, Nikon, Sightron, etc. to go along with this ~$1,500+ rifle.
However, this rifle will be used offhand and bench-rested first at an in-door 17-yard (50-foot) pistol range for learning and practice then as the season changes it will be taken outside for some longer distance target shooting up to 100-yards or practical limits on the .22 LR caliber. The close range requirement is where the difficulty in making the choices comes in.
I read and understood the informative Rifle Scope article on Wikipedia and done some preliminary research on forum posts for general opinions and suggestions for rifle scopes. I understand that using high magnifications at close ranges, such as the in-door pistol range, will create parallax problems.
Standard hunting scopes all have a set parallax setting at a 100-yards that is non-adjustable. Scopes with Adjustable Objectives (i.e. AO or A/O) or preferably Side Focus knobs are offer parallax settings starting at 50-yards minimum up to infinity maximum. There are non-adjustable scope models designed for Rimfire/Shotgun with a set parallax setting of 50-yards. Finally, there are Airgun/Rimfire scopes with adjustable parallax settings from 7-yards and up however only very few are available on the market and usually from lower end manufacturers.
However, since in the beginning the primary use of this rifle during winter will be at an in-door pistol range even the closer parallax settings are not close enough for 17-yard (50-feet) maximum distances and most of the high quality adjustable objective type scopes start with a minimum parallax of 50-yards and go up from there. For less than 50-yard parallax settings the only alternative are lower quality Rimfire/Airgun only scopes and I have reservations with making a choice like that. I do not know if it would be acceptable to use a 50-yard parallax adjusted scope at a 17-yard distance with a 3-4X magnification without suffering from serious parallax problems or the extent of the parallax error at these close distances so I am not sure how much weight I need to place choosing such a scope with a parallax adjustment under 50-yards.
I am not certain about the magnification or objective sizes that would be most usable for the short and long range target shooting so these parameters are up in the air but I presume that initial magnifications of ~3-4X for short range 17-yard (50-foot) distances is about the maximum usable and the higher magnification will be useful for outside shooting. The objective size could vary but I presume that a scope somewhere between 30-40 mm would be fine since I don't foresee the need for 50 mm or larger sizes and sizes smaller than 30 mm might be problematic at the in-door range that doesn't offer the best lighting.
Originally, I read many rifle scope reviews and many people favored the Zeiss Conquest rifle scopes over Leoupold or other manufacturers when choosing a mid-quality scope. If I didn't take into consideration any of the parallax issues at the in-door distances then I would most likely choose one of the two shotgun model scopes and most likely favoring the 3-9x40 model for the bigger objective and due to its popularity.
Optionally, the cheaper scopes designed for Rimfire rifles with parallax adjustments starting at 7-10-yards would be perfect for in-door usage but I am not quite confident about the reputation and reliability of these scopes. One person mentioned that the semi-auto action that this rifle is built on while having a very low recoil still offers quite a pounding to the scope that will be mounted to the receiver block just above because of the reciprocal semi-auto bolt action. While I do like the features of the Burris and possibly the BSA rimfire scopes I have some reservation about these scopes being able to function reliably with this type of action pounding away right below.
I am trying to make a difficult decision that hopes to satisfy the close range 17-yard in-door distances at the pistol range while still being good at outdoor distances of up to ~100-yards or so. This is a tough choice to make and I have a feeling that there might be no single best scope for these requirements and that I will have to make a decision between a lower quality in-door specific scope or a higher quality outdoor scope.
I'm hoping that someone will know more about scopes and have more experience than me to help me make a decision. So please post your opinions and experiences to help me. Also if you have any other recommendations for my rimfire rifle I would appreciate them.
Scopes
Non-Parallax Adjustable (50-yard set)
Parallax Adjustable (7-10-yard minimum)
Parallax Adjustable (50-yard minimum)
[size=-2]The Zeiss scope above is installed on the Volquartsen Signature Series Semi-Auto Rimfire but I am unsure if the initial 4.5x magnification might be too much for short range shooting at an in-door range.[/size]
Airgun/Rimfire Scopes
Rifle Specs
Volquartsen Custom - Deluxe Model Semi-Auto Rimfire - .22 LR
Bell and Carlson - Odyssey Synthetic Stock - 3-way Adjustable, Black
Harris Bipod - HBLM - 9" to 13" with notches
[size=-2]* I'm not affiliated with any retailer or any of the scope manufacturers, the links, images, and prices used in this post are for example use only as an aid.[/size]
The rifle is a custom built accurized semi-auto model with 0.0001-inch tolerances for USD ~$1,500 so I am interested in mid/high-quality variable magnification scopes ($300-800 USD) from Zeiss Conquest, Nikon, Sightron, etc. to go along with this ~$1,500+ rifle.
However, this rifle will be used offhand and bench-rested first at an in-door 17-yard (50-foot) pistol range for learning and practice then as the season changes it will be taken outside for some longer distance target shooting up to 100-yards or practical limits on the .22 LR caliber. The close range requirement is where the difficulty in making the choices comes in.
I read and understood the informative Rifle Scope article on Wikipedia and done some preliminary research on forum posts for general opinions and suggestions for rifle scopes. I understand that using high magnifications at close ranges, such as the in-door pistol range, will create parallax problems.
Standard hunting scopes all have a set parallax setting at a 100-yards that is non-adjustable. Scopes with Adjustable Objectives (i.e. AO or A/O) or preferably Side Focus knobs are offer parallax settings starting at 50-yards minimum up to infinity maximum. There are non-adjustable scope models designed for Rimfire/Shotgun with a set parallax setting of 50-yards. Finally, there are Airgun/Rimfire scopes with adjustable parallax settings from 7-yards and up however only very few are available on the market and usually from lower end manufacturers.
However, since in the beginning the primary use of this rifle during winter will be at an in-door pistol range even the closer parallax settings are not close enough for 17-yard (50-feet) maximum distances and most of the high quality adjustable objective type scopes start with a minimum parallax of 50-yards and go up from there. For less than 50-yard parallax settings the only alternative are lower quality Rimfire/Airgun only scopes and I have reservations with making a choice like that. I do not know if it would be acceptable to use a 50-yard parallax adjusted scope at a 17-yard distance with a 3-4X magnification without suffering from serious parallax problems or the extent of the parallax error at these close distances so I am not sure how much weight I need to place choosing such a scope with a parallax adjustment under 50-yards.
I am not certain about the magnification or objective sizes that would be most usable for the short and long range target shooting so these parameters are up in the air but I presume that initial magnifications of ~3-4X for short range 17-yard (50-foot) distances is about the maximum usable and the higher magnification will be useful for outside shooting. The objective size could vary but I presume that a scope somewhere between 30-40 mm would be fine since I don't foresee the need for 50 mm or larger sizes and sizes smaller than 30 mm might be problematic at the in-door range that doesn't offer the best lighting.
Originally, I read many rifle scope reviews and many people favored the Zeiss Conquest rifle scopes over Leoupold or other manufacturers when choosing a mid-quality scope. If I didn't take into consideration any of the parallax issues at the in-door distances then I would most likely choose one of the two shotgun model scopes and most likely favoring the 3-9x40 model for the bigger objective and due to its popularity.
Optionally, the cheaper scopes designed for Rimfire rifles with parallax adjustments starting at 7-10-yards would be perfect for in-door usage but I am not quite confident about the reputation and reliability of these scopes. One person mentioned that the semi-auto action that this rifle is built on while having a very low recoil still offers quite a pounding to the scope that will be mounted to the receiver block just above because of the reciprocal semi-auto bolt action. While I do like the features of the Burris and possibly the BSA rimfire scopes I have some reservation about these scopes being able to function reliably with this type of action pounding away right below.
I am trying to make a difficult decision that hopes to satisfy the close range 17-yard in-door distances at the pistol range while still being good at outdoor distances of up to ~100-yards or so. This is a tough choice to make and I have a feeling that there might be no single best scope for these requirements and that I will have to make a decision between a lower quality in-door specific scope or a higher quality outdoor scope.
I'm hoping that someone will know more about scopes and have more experience than me to help me make a decision. So please post your opinions and experiences to help me. Also if you have any other recommendations for my rimfire rifle I would appreciate them.
Scopes
Non-Parallax Adjustable (50-yard set)
- Zeiss Conquest 2.5-8x32 Rifle Scope (Shotgun Model) - Z-Plex - $529.95
- Zeiss Conquest 3-9x40 MC (Shotgun Model) - Z-Plex - $449.95
Parallax Adjustable (7-10-yard minimum)
- BSA 3-9x40 Sweet 22 Riflescope - Plex - $68.95
- BSA 3-9x40 Sweet 22 Riflescope - Illuminated Plex - $79.95
- Burris Compact 3-9x32 Rimfire / Airgun Scope - Plex - $266.95
- Burris Compact 4-12x32 Rimfire / Airgun Scope - Ballistic Plex - $326.95
- Weaver Classic RV9 3-9x32 Rimfire Rifle Scope - Dual-X - $199.95
Parallax Adjustable (50-yard minimum)
- Leupold VX-II 3-9x33mm Rimfire EFR - $349.95
- Nikon Monarch 3-12x42 Riflescope - NikoPlex - $419.95
- Nikon Monarch Gold 2.5-10x50 Riflescope - $699.95
- Sightron SII SS 3.5-10x44 - Plex - $484.95
- Zeiss Conquest 4.5-14x44 AO MC Rifle Scope - Mil-Dot - $849.95
[size=-2]The Zeiss scope above is installed on the Volquartsen Signature Series Semi-Auto Rimfire but I am unsure if the initial 4.5x magnification might be too much for short range shooting at an in-door range.[/size]
Airgun/Rimfire Scopes
- BSA Air Rifle / Rimfire Scopes
- BSA Sweet 22 Riflescopes
- Burris Rimfire/Airgun Scopes
- Leupold Rimfire/Airgun Riflescopes
- Weaver Classic Rimfire Rifle Scopes
Rifle Specs
Volquartsen Custom - Deluxe Model Semi-Auto Rimfire - .22 LR
Bell and Carlson - Odyssey Synthetic Stock - 3-way Adjustable, Black
Harris Bipod - HBLM - 9" to 13" with notches
[size=-2]* I'm not affiliated with any retailer or any of the scope manufacturers, the links, images, and prices used in this post are for example use only as an aid.[/size]