I am asking this question here as I want input as to what scope would be best for an all around hunting rifle in .375 H&H. Ideally I want one scope to do it all, from 300 yard plus shots on small antelope to close up bushveld hunting and dangerous game.

I am considering the Leica ER 2.5-10x42 but am wondering if the field of view of this scope when set on low power (47.6' @ 100 yd / 14.5 m at 100 m) is wide enough for a dangerous game scope.

Would the increased field of view of a Swarovski Z6 1.7-10x42 (75.6' @ 100 yd) be worth the extra money ($700).

Or am I best to stick to my Leupold VX-III 1.5-5x20 when hunting dangerous game and switch to a higher mag scope when hunting plainsgame in areas where longer shots are possible.

This is my general use rifle, built on an Interarms Whitworth action by J. David Yale. I want a scope that will allow me to make full use of the versatility of the rifle.



My apologies if this should go in the optics forum, but I want input from hunters, based on hunting experience, not from optics junkies based only on the numbers.

--Derek

Nice looking rifle.

I personally like a 1.5-6x42 Swarovski on my 375.

I've been round and round on this same issue. I originally mounted a Leupold 1.5-5x20 on my 375 and was pretty well pleased, but really would have liked a bit more upper end magnafication when it came to plains game.

For an upcoming leopard hunt, I have switched to a 3-9x40 with illuminated reticle. The reason was not just for the illumination, but for a larger objective during early morning and last light.

However, for the best all around single scope, I think it would be a Leupold Vari X III in 2.5-8x36. That is what I use on my 30-06 and love it. It should work fine on DG and give you the upper end magnification for plains game without going to a scope too physically large for the rifle.

2.5-8 Leupold, which we have been using on our 2 375/404 for years.

For an “ALL-AROUND” scope for a 375 H&H rifle I would lean toward the 3-9X40mm Trijicon with a green center duplex type crosshair reticle .
With this scope carried on 3 power it is fine for fast moving targets or very close shots. With the scope on 9 power it will be prefect for leopard or lion om bait form a blind, or for longer shots on plains game.

This scope needs no batteries as it is lighted by fiber optics in daylight, and is adjustable for brightness. When the light fails the reticle center is illuminated with tritium. The reticles illumination is available in amber, red or green! The human eye tolerates the green the best, and causes a lot less damage to your night vision.

Mount this scope in quality quick detach mounts that return back to zero any time it is removed and replaced, The rifle needs quality iron sights as well. With these features along with the 375 H&H cartridge in a CRF rifle you are about as versatile as you can get!

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Your proposed Leica sounds great to me, given that it has enough eye relief for spontaneous shooting.

Why not take advantage of the 375's trajectory with the 10x top end? A 47' field of view on 2.5x is plenty for up close and personal, as long as you don't have to "search" for the full field of view because of critical eye relief.

Actually, I do have a Leica 2.5-10x42 #1 Ret on my .375 and it's a fantastic scope. I might wish for something lighter at times (*I have a 1.5-5x VXIII for that) but otherwise that Leica is there to stay.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
2.5-8 Leupold...

Agreed! Enough of everything (FOV, magnification, eye relief, adjustment), the perfect all-around scope for the .375 IMHO, especially when mounted in a quality quick-detach mount. Relatively inexpensive, light-weight, good looking, durable, easy to resell if the need arises, and a great warranty just in case. I have one on my Whitworth, which is not quite a pretty as yours!

I've used the 1.5-5x20's on multiple occasions including on a .416 and .458 Lott, but the extra magnification of the 2.5-8 compliments the versatile .375 nicely.

I have a zeiss victory diavari in 2.5-10X50 with illuminated reticle on my blaser 375 H&H but most recently used it on my 338 win mag barrel and took several plains game, croc and leopard in Zambia. Worked well for me.

I have a 1.7-10 Swarovski with the illuminated reticle on my .375 now.

I cannot find a fault with it. It has great low light capability, and allowed me to take a last minutes of daylight Leopard, and I took a Thompson's gazelle at a little over 300 yards with it.

It is probably a little heavier than some of the other choices, but the field of view does come in handy sometimes.

Having the real low magnification and the illuminated reticle allow it to operate pretty much as a red dot sight, which if you are hunting DG and don't want to be pulling a scope on and off and dealing with verifying zero, is really a plus.

The only real drawback is the price, but if you are willing to pay the change, I think its worth it.

Saeed makes a great point, in my opinion. My .416 carries a 1.5-5 Leupold, but I always carry a 2.5-8 as a spare, with a different zero, for longer ranges. That said, on my last trip, I never took the 1.5-5 scope off and took shots out to nearly 300 yards. Leopard might be a different story. I might want a bigger objective, but I have yet to hunt them.

To realize the full potential of the longer range capabilities of the .375, I use much more scope on my .375. On one, I have a Zeiss Victory illuminated in 4 x 12 x 56 and on the other 2, I have Zeiss 4.5 x 14 x50. All of these are in QD mounts so if it is close, I can use the irons. I use a 2.5 x 8 Leupold on my .416 also in QD mounts. Works for me.

Have a 3-9x40 on my .375. Giving strong thought to a Leupold VX-6 in 2-12x42 with the illuminated reticle. Not quite the FOV of the Swarovski 1.7-10, but also about 1/2 the price.

My one .375 H&H carries a Leupold 2X8, as Saeed has suggested, the other a Leupold 3.5X10 illuminated reticle, that I've used for, among others, two Leopard. Together, both guns have taken a butt load of plains and dangerous game.

Leup VX 2.5-8

Swarovski Z6i 1.7 -10 x 42 It's simply the best.

For low-end magnification, 1x allows both-eye-open snap shooting. At the top-end, for off-hand shooting, 6x is all most can handle. And extended eye-relief stops the dreaded cut-foreheads. So have a look at the Swarovski 1-6x24 EE scopes!

http://www.thescopesmith.com/PDGImages/CD.jpg
http://www.thescopesmith.com/PDGImages/CD-I.jpg

I am satisfied with the 2-7 Leupold I have on my M70

quote:

Originally posted by R.Jolly:
Swarovski Z6i 1.7 -10 x 42 It's simply the best.

Given the 375's versatility that magnification range seems to cover it best I would think. I have two 375s one of them sports a Swaro PH 1.75X6X42 and the other a 3X9 Zeiss. I used to use another great choice in my opinion the Leupold 1.75X6X32 and with that, I've made shots from twenty five out to three hundred fifty plus, but the scope was over fifteen years old so I retired it to backup status. I also think Saee's choice is excellent but both my 375s are optimized for low light hunting (leopard soon I hope) and I think the larger objective and good glass of the ones mentioned give it an edge. jorge

Many good replies, here, but I've gravitated from my youth and high power optics to those that provide a good middle ground. Low magnification for close shots and field of view have come to be more important to me than raw power. I would not go higher than 2.5x on the low end for almost any game. On the high end? With some of the new wonder-scopes, 10x. Sooner or later, weight WILL take its toll. I've been very happy with Leupold 2.5-8x and 2-7x scopes. I may make some changes with the new ones out, but still could be happy with what is on my rifles now.
Max

The last shot I've taken was a finisher on an eland with a broken neck at 2 yds using a .375 with a fixed 4x scope. I had to use The Force to get the shot between the shoulder blades. This definitely confirmed my bias that for all round use, a scope on a bigger rifle should have a low end of <2x.

Dean

quote:

Originally posted by maki:
The last shot I've taken was a finisher on an eland with a broken neck at 2 yds using a .375 with a fixed 4x scope. I had to use The Force to get the shot between the shoulder blades. This definitely confirmed my bias that for all round use, a scope on a bigger rifle should have a low end of <2x.

Dean

Agreed. I use the 1.5-5 VXIII on mine and bought a 1.5-6 Kahles with ill ret for leopard. The VXIII on 1.5 allows focus down to about 10ft and is as quick as irons up close and is nice and light. If you need more that 5or6 for a shot, it is probably farther than you should be shooting. JMHO.

quote:

Originally posted by Blacktailer:
If you need more that 5or6 for a shot, it is probably farther than you should be shooting. JMHO.

+1

I have a 2-7 Leupold on a .375, a 2.5-8 Leupold on a .375 H&H, and a 2-7 Leupold on a .416. Any of them are plenty wide and fast at low end and offer ample magnification for anything you would shoot with a .375 at any distance. The same would apply to Leupold's 1.75-6X.

However, more critical than field of view (which is certainly important) is the latitude of eye placement that a scope offers, that is, how easily the sight picture is acquired. I think you will find that anyone's mega-variable (offers power varying more than about 3 times) will necessarily have some optical trade-offs that greatly restrict eye placement. Before using any of these on any rifle, mount it on the prospective rifle and shoulder it a number of times and ways that simulate field conditions to assure that you can quickly and easily acquire the sight picture. A scope that you have to "hunt" for several seconds before seeing anything but black is impractical, regardless of how wide its theoretical field of view.

I agree with most suggestions here with some reservations! All are good choices for different reasons. However the question was for recommendations for an “all around scope”.

To consider all the needs for an all around scope for Africa, one must consider first and foremost portability. A scope that is too large and/or too heavy is out. An acceptable eye relief for use on a heavy recoiling rifle is a must. The size of the objective bell should be large enough to gather enough light to be useful when the light begins to fail, but small enough so the scope can be mounted low. IMO no scope is fully “all around” unless it has an illuminated reticle apex and appears black when not illuminated. On this point it should work without batteries. On the light gathering thing, the human eye cannot utilize an exit pupil larger than 5mm, that is more important than the size of the objective in most cases.
Under hunting conditions, little is gained by going higher than 9 or 10 power on the high end on the low end it will be most useable as near as it can be to 1 power as it can be for fast action with both eyes open.

Finally the method of mounting the scope to the rifle should be QUALITY quick detachable. In this case quality means ease of removing, and re-mounting and return to zero absolutely every time it is removed, and remounted. In this case there is no need for verifying zero.

If the scope is to be mounted on a double rifle the weight, low mount and return to zero is even more important than on a bolt rifle, to avoid changing regulation but all other aspects can be the same. The only difference between these two is which is primary, and which is specialty. On the bolt the scope is primary, and irons are back-up or specialty. On the double the irons are primary, and the scope is specialty. IOW, the bolt is carried with scope attached, and removed when there is a need for iron sights, while on the double the rifle is carried with irons, with scope attached when needed for special purposes.

There is absolutely no doubt that the very high dollar scopes are very good, but in most case they have draw-backs just like the lower priced quality scopes. The $2000 scopes may be better than a $1000 scope, but are they twice as good as the price seems to indicate, or are they twice the price because of import duty, and name! I believe they may be slightly better, but I don’t believe they are twices as good! That is, as is everything above, only my opinion!

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I am the odd man out on this subject. I have been using a .375 H&H since 1998 at ranges from 30-40 yards out to 300+ yards and all I had used was a fixed 6 power Cabela's Pine Ridge. Two years ago a similar scope I had mounted on Lora's .257 Robert's went wobbly and I moved the one on my .375 over to her Robert's. It is still as clear and doing the same job as it did on the .375.

I now have an older steel tube El Paso K 6 weaver and it works just fine.

I would not want to go in the bush after a wounded, highly peed off animal of any kind with a 6x scope.
I have a 1.5x6x24 VX7 Leupold that I consider PERFECT for my use on my 375 H&H.
My eyes are not good enough for open sights anymore, a front bead would have to be as big as a dime for me to see it well.

quote:

I would not want to go in the bush after a wounded, highly peed off animal of any kind with a 6x scope.

Never have had to do that, just passing along what I use on my .375, and in my situations it has worked consistently for me.

Swarovski Z6 1.7-10x42 would be my choice. Good for close quarters and a the ability reach out there also.

I have a 2-7x32 Nikon on my 375 Ruger that I find to be just right. FOV isn't the biggest, but the size and weight of the scope falls into what I wanted.

quote:

Originally posted by R.Jolly:
Swarovski Z6i 1.7 -10 x 42 It's simply the best.

Have one on mine. Great scope, the illuminated 4a dot is great. Especially on a dark animal or at low light conditions.

In order to have low-power for DG & long range ability for that antelope @ 250+ yds; and instead of having 2 separate scopes, I'm leaning toward the S&B 2.5-10 x56mm for my .375 Ruger...Not cheap but looks like one can be had for under 2k

Step up a bit, to the Leupold 2.5-8X. I had one on my CZ 450 Dakota when I hunted buffalo with CM Safaris in Zim 4 years ago. Worked great.

Rich

I have the 2.5 to 8 on my 375 but I would like a little more on the top end. I am use to having a higher mag scope for all of the open country that I hunt here in alberta.

I would be putting the new VX-6 from leupold on the 375 now. A 2x-12x would be ideal for the 375. And it comes in Illuminated for the Leopard blind.

Can't go wrong with that. IMHO

When the 375 was released and subsequently it's reputation as an all round calibre was established, not many rilfes were mounted with a scope. Animals are no smaller now than they were then, so why fit a high magnification scope to a 375?
My 375 scope is a 2.5x Leupold Ultralight.
Canadaboy your 375 1.5-5x combination is perfectly good as is

canadaboy,

some specs on that lovely rifle would be appropo at this time!

Have you guys tryed the new Leupold VX-R series?
It seems that they are popular in Norway.

After reading all of the suggestions I think I will go with the new Leupold VX-6 2-12x42 with the illuminated #4 reticle. It has great eye relief, and plenty of field of view at low power, so it should be great up close in the bush. The illuminated reticle will be a nice feature here as well

It likely will not be as good in low light as my Swarovski Z4i 2.5-10x56. But with apparently decent glass the 42 mm objective should be fine in low light when set on 6x or lower, and the illuminated reticle will help in low light as well.

It also has high enough top end magnification to allow really long shots (my relatives in South Africa live in the high veld and my next plainsgame hunt may be there or in Namibia, both have very open and hilly country where long shots are common). Plus I can put the CDS elevation dial on if I am hunting non-dangerous game in really open country.

It may not have quite the night time performance of a Z6i 1.7-10x42, but it's less than 1/2 the price.

I will post a review once I buy it and find some time to test it out.


JSL, the rifle was built by J. David Yale of Colorado. It was built for its original owner for an African hunt that never happened. It was sold to Robin Hollow Outfitters of Rhode Island, and I bought it from them. It was built on an Interarms Whitworth action.It weighs in at empty at 8 lbs 6 oz without a scope, 9 lbs 3 oz with the VX-III 1.5-5x20 mounted. It has a 24 inch barrel, of which I do not know the make as I have not taken off the stock. It appears to be absolutely unused since it was built. It is nicely stocked, the inletting seems very good. And best of all it fits and handles like a dream. Plus it was a real bargain, it only cost a couple hundred dollars more than my new Model 70 Safari Express (which is also in .375 H&H). Once I have used this new rifle enough to be confident that it feeds flawlessly I will likely sell my Winchester, as I can not see myself hunting with the Winchester anymore.

Canadaboy,
Please send your redundant 1.5-5x scope to New Zealand asap

And the voice cries out in the wilderness, again:

U.S. Optics 4x.

Good hunting.