Hey guys I recently bought a bushmaster 450 ruger all american. I am contemplating about which scope to put on it. I have heard that this gun beats up scopes pretty bad. Anybody have any opinions on scopes. Would like to find a cheaper one that is decent considering its only really a 200 yard gun or so. Thanks
Think you'll find it's a 300 yard gun. 9x minimum. They make some with reticles just for that round. I always buy Scopes with lifetime warranties.
bigbuckhunter88
PMA Member
I'd be looking at 4x12 on up. I agree on the lifetime warranties. With all the apps you should be able to use any bdc reticle and be super close. The guys that got them up here didn't have any scope issues. Most were Nikon, Leupold, or Scheels.
hunt&fishman
New Member
I put a Vortex Crossfire II 1-4x24 on my American and have had excellent luck with it out to 200 yds. As long as your is compensated you shouldn't have any issues with it breaking the scope, the first generations were built without the compensated barrels and were prone to the scope breaks due to recoil. Spend the extra $ and make sure you have a good set of quality rings. I would highly recommend throwing a pair of ear plugs in your hunting pack as well. I shot it once this season wihtout ear plugs and paid for it the rest of the day.
HorseDoctor
PMA Member
We should probably all wear hearing protection all the time when shooting. I wish I had started many years ago. That said, all muzzle breaks should come with a discount coupon for hearing aids!!! Many years ago I took 3 shots at a deer with a 30 mag rifle with a muzzle break & no hearing protection. Couldn't hear a normal conversation for 3 days, and my ears have a constant ringing noise to this day! That was over 15 years ago... Just don't do it!!!
HorseDoctor
PMA Member
As far as scopes goes, the VX-1 & VX-2 lines from Leupold are pocketbook friendly. Have a number of 2s on some hard hitting guns that have never given me any problems at all. Heard good things about Vortex also. Only have one Scheels scope & it's on a 22/250, so recoil not a big concern there.
jjohnson
Well-Known Member
I sold around 100 Ruger American 450 Bushmasters last fall. A lot got Vortex Diamondback 3-9x40 bdc's on them. Zero at 100 then hashes are like 143,203,252,300. Any BDC will be very close to these numbers. Leupold and Burris also make a very nice scope. I hunted with a 3-12x42 Vortex Diamdback HP. This scope has better eye relief than a standard Diamondback.
As far as noise. Yes its very loud with a break. We sold a lot of the 22" barrels with no break and a lot of guys took the break off of the Ruger Ranch.
The gun is smoking accurate as I was seeing a 1.5" group at 250 yds.
As far as noise. Yes its very loud with a break. We sold a lot of the 22" barrels with no break and a lot of guys took the break off of the Ruger Ranch.
The gun is smoking accurate as I was seeing a 1.5" group at 250 yds.
msauer933
Active Member
I have a Vortex Diamondback 4-12 on mine. I had it laying around so I threw it on there and it worked well. The recoil on these is overrated. I would say it is 20 gauge'ish recoil so the talk of them beating up scopes isn't a real issue in my mind.
As far as the noise.....wow! With that muzzle brake on, my ears were ringing for a day after I took a shot in the woods. I ended up taking the muzzle brake off but haven't shot it yet. I hope that cools down the report a bit. If you are using it with the brake in the field, I would highly suggest hearing protection.
As far as the noise.....wow! With that muzzle brake on, my ears were ringing for a day after I took a shot in the woods. I ended up taking the muzzle brake off but haven't shot it yet. I hope that cools down the report a bit. If you are using it with the brake in the field, I would highly suggest hearing protection.
What? Can you repeat that? What??? I can't hear you.....
Ya..... I've been around those guns "too much" and not had protection on several times. Dag nab, no joke - they will blow your ears out. I've got AR's & ML & have 50mm scopes on both, for light. One has Fire dot... Leupold, V-6 or something like that. Other is Vortex with Illuminated reticle. Buddy a while ago showed me this and I was hooked. During even hazy conditions or last of legal shooting, they are amazing. If you try it, you pry be hooked. I never shoot bigguns with guns so I'm not sure why I have good gun set-ups but it's still fun.
rutnstrut
PMA Member
Ill second the illuminated reticle... If youre a stand hunter only then get a variable power scope with 9-12x mag if you do any still hunts or drives then Id recommend something that will have a lower power setting as well...
My .450 has a Leupold VX-6 2-12× with the firedot. The firedot is awesome, its bright enough that its daylight visible, its just a small dot in the center of the reticle thats lit up instead of the entire reticle it shuts itself off after 5min of not moving to save the battery then turns right back on as soon as you move the gun to shoulder it or get into position for a shot.
I had a scope on it that was more of a combat scope, it was a lighted reticle 1-8× and it worked fine and I really liked the 1x setting for quick target acquisition but it had a small objective lense that didnt let a lot of light in for low light shooting andthe extra power of the 12x was a nice addition as well.
I know a few other people running them amd theyre running Leupold VX-R scope in the 1.25-4× and 2-7× powers the VX-R will give you decent glass and the firedot reticles for a lot less money than the VX-5 and VX-6 line. Vortex isnt a bad option either if youre wanting to save a little money, I've been looking at there V-Brite lighted reticle scopes for a few guns as well... Like skip said the lighted reticle can really come in handy in low light situations or if its a good scope with daylight visible illumination like the Leupolds then it really helps find your aim point in a fast action scenario as well.
My .450 has a Leupold VX-6 2-12× with the firedot. The firedot is awesome, its bright enough that its daylight visible, its just a small dot in the center of the reticle thats lit up instead of the entire reticle it shuts itself off after 5min of not moving to save the battery then turns right back on as soon as you move the gun to shoulder it or get into position for a shot.
I had a scope on it that was more of a combat scope, it was a lighted reticle 1-8× and it worked fine and I really liked the 1x setting for quick target acquisition but it had a small objective lense that didnt let a lot of light in for low light shooting andthe extra power of the 12x was a nice addition as well.
I know a few other people running them amd theyre running Leupold VX-R scope in the 1.25-4× and 2-7× powers the VX-R will give you decent glass and the firedot reticles for a lot less money than the VX-5 and VX-6 line. Vortex isnt a bad option either if youre wanting to save a little money, I've been looking at there V-Brite lighted reticle scopes for a few guns as well... Like skip said the lighted reticle can really come in handy in low light situations or if its a good scope with daylight visible illumination like the Leupolds then it really helps find your aim point in a fast action scenario as well.
rutnstrut
PMA Member
BDC reticles arent bad but theyre not always that close to true point of impact and can be a bit "busy" for some people. If you're just expecting it to be a 200yd gun then just get a regular old easy on the eye duplex scope and sight it in (depending on gun... Scope height, barrel length, ammo choice) 3-4" high at 100yds which will put you close to zero at 150yds and 3-4" low at 200yds... Thats pretty easy to remember and if you held center mass 0-200yds youd have a dead deer