I was offered from a guy at the range yesterday a 44 mag: simmons scope
new 3.8x12x44 MM with smart reticle: I think he was looking for $90.00 for the scope.
I see from optic zone the newer MASTER SERIES SCOPES wonder the pro or cons on the above scope?? I am still looking
I think the 44 mag: scope are no longer made woder how they did on performance as far as a good scope for the money

Save your money and get a better scope.
I have limited experience with Simmons scopes but all of it BAD. Bad product and even worse customer service.
I would honestly save up some money and get a better scope, no heartburn and frustration.

I got a Ruger 10/22 for $35 at pawn shop and put a $37 Simmons 22 mag riflescope on it.

I have never exposed it to:
1) rain
2) additional adjustments
3) hard recoil
4) important shooting.

For 10 years it has worked perfectly, and many critters have died.

I hate cheap scopes, but they do have a place.

I once bought a rifle with a .44 mag scope and then I had a scope fog up on me two days before a hunt and the only thing I could find on short notice was a whitetail classic. Both were junk. The coatings make things darker and they neither of them gathered light at all. I would save my money.

I have a $60 4x Simmons on my Ruger 10/22 and I have to admit it isn't a bad scope.

ditto Snellstrom's remarks. Simmons products aren't worth your time and agony.

Folks can say what they want, but I'm a Simmons fan. Yes, I know they're a cheaper scope, and for all of my bigger nicer guns I've got Burris Signatures. However for my working guns that I have less expensive scopes on, my money is on Simmons. Not only have the scopes I've had from them been darn good for the money, my experience with their service dept. has been excellent. Here's an example.

Almost 20 years ago now, my father purchased a 4-16 Simmons from Cabela's. At the time it was a high dollar scope, and there weren't that many alternatives back them without forking over more money than we could afford. That scope worked flawlessly until just a couple of years ago when something went wrong internally and you would see a bunch of trash inside at high power. I sent the scope back (per the lifetime warranty) and 2 or 3 weeks later they sent me back a brand spankin' new 6-18x40 Prohunter. The Prohunter went on my 243 and is probably the best piece of glass I've ever owned for under $300 (technically free of course). I've also got a 6.5-20 Simmons on my CZ-550 22-250 varmint and you wont find a more perfect match between gun and scope.

Anyway, sorry for the rant. Just thought I'd give an opinion from the other side of the coin. Yes, they're less expensive, but that doesn't mean they're all trash. I will say that they have good any bad models, but then again so does everyone else.

Simmons makes some pretty damned good and rugged scopes and some pure trash.

Stay with the Aetec, Whitetail Expedition (now discontinued but a great scope for the money), and the older Gold Medal scopes and they're a hell of a lot better than a Vari-X II.

The Whitetail, Eight Point, and a few others are "promo" scopes that aren't worth the rings to mount them.

OH.. And what's the problem with Simmons Customer service??? I abused two scopes horribly (the only two Aetecs that I ever saw fail) and they replaced them without a question in just a few very short days.

OH yeah... Once I bought a silver Aetec on close-out sale at Wal-Mart and hated it. A year later I took it off the rifle and sent it to Simmons with the explanation that I couldn't stand the looks of it and they sent me a new matte black Aetec to replace it no charge.

$bob$

Oh.. You were asking about the 44mag.

I don't know much about it. I think it's a cheaper version of the Aetec but that it has plastic lenses and an adjustable eyepiece.

It was a pretty cheap scope when it was made and I'd advise staying away from it.

$bob$

The Aetecs are good scopes. Wide field of view and clear.

I have one left, a 3.8x12x44 that I use as my go to scope for checking how accurate a rifle is or if one of my friends has a question about whether they have a problem with their scopes or their guns. It is 12 years old and still going strong.

Whitetail Expeditions are darn fine scopes as well as the Aetecs but the rest IMO are crap.

I will admit I bought a rifle w/ a 44 MAG and it never failed. Didn't want to take the gamble so I sold it to another guy that wanted a cheap scope. He's never had a problem w/ it and it hasn't lost zero but, for me I would only look at the WE or the Aetec.

Good Luck

Reloader

quote:

Simmons makes some pretty damned good and rugged scopes and some pure trash.

Wrong. Simmons MAKES no scopes. They are a marketer which contracts with various Asian suppliers for scopes built with their brand name on them. This is the same as Bushnell, Millett, Cabela's, and a number of other marketers.

The problem with buying a marketer's scope as opposed to a manufacturer's scope is that there may be great inconsistency from one scope to another. One scope may be made in Japan by a quality producer like Hakko, while the next may have been contracted out to a former Tasco plant in the Phillipines or China and may be of less-than-stellar quality. There's really just no way to know, and price is just as often a function of marketing as it is quality.

I saw a hunter's Simmons fall completely apart (literally, the objective bell fell off on his first sighting shot) a hundred miles from civilization on a Canadian bear hunt.

Inexpensive fixed-power scopes very often do just great on .22's, but if you're depending on a scope for serious hunting, buy one from a manufacturer, not a marketer. By the way, some manufacturers are beginning to market outsourced Asian scopes under their brand names, so be careful.

in 1984 I bought a green rubber armoured 3-9x40 simmons riflescope. it was a type of scope I have`nt seen since, the crosshairs, and everything inside the scope was elongated, like a football, you could see more left to right than up and down.the outside of the scope is the exact same way any other scope is but the insides show more windage area. I bought it for $60 dollars and I mounted this scope on my remington model 600 in 6mm. I have hunted with this scope from 1984-2002 and it NEVER let me down, it stayed in the rings, it was stout and never moved off center at all. I only had to re-sight it in when I changed ammo. in 2002 my son became old enough to hunt and I found then bought him a remington model 600 also in 6mm. I bought what I needed to make our guns identicle. I figured since I had such great luck with simmons before I would try again and went to wallyworld and bought 2 3-9x50 simmons scopes and put them on. well they would NOT stay sighted in, the slightes bump and they were "off" by a freaking foot. I removed them after one season, but I did not catch on. I sold those and went and bought two matching pro hunter in 3-9x40 and mounted them on our guns. same thing- they were sighted in to nail tacks at 200 yards, I was even shooting mine out to 600 yards in my front yard and doing just fine. 1st trip hunting and same damn thing. every single time they were "touched" they shot high and right by a foot at least. this cost us several coyotes and 2 deer. the bottom of the new scopes said "phillipines" on it. I looked into it and even the simmons website says they have the pro hunter series and they could be made in 2 different places- the ones we had sucked ! they were removed and I placed two NEW leupold VX-II 3-9x40 scopes on our rifles. I sighted them in at 2 inches high at 25 yards and when I moved to 200 yards my son was nailing tacks dead nutts. I have ours sighted in dead center at 200 and know where to hold past that. but I almost cannot believe how crisp and clear these optics are, just a nice change of pace from those simmons for sure. these scopes will last our lifetimes no doubt about that. I guess I just got a good one back in 1984, I still have it too, in case !!!!!

quote:

Originally posted by Reloader:
Whitetail Expeditions are darn fine scopes as well as the Aetecs but the rest IMO are crap.

Problem is-- they aren't made anymore.

Meade Instruments is in serious trouble, ready to get delisted from Nasdaq.

Most might find it stunning for a telescope / scope maker to post a $15 million dollar loss-- but, they managed.

I have had a 44 mag for about 20 years,I am very happy with it used mostly for problem beaver control for County highway dept. I really like it for low light conditions very clear. I broke it this summer when I fell and hit a rock with it. Sent it in to be repaired with a $10.00 check,received it back in 2 weeks,real please with the customer service.
Simmons is owned by Bushnell now. I have used their customer service a few other times over the years, I have aiways been pleased with it.

My very first high power rifle was a 308 mountain rifle made by Remington. Kicked like a pissed off mule...My father got me a Simmons 3-9x40mm scope from walmart for on the cheap. I think he paid all of $70 for it new...

It lasted for 6 shots when trying to dial the rifle in. Then the reticle actually split into 4 pieces...glass was still intact and it worked well for a spotting scope after that.

Also, my father purchased the same identical scope and put it on his 22LR. Scope has been on that rifle for about 15 years now and never shifted impact points.

I think they are alright for super budget minded scopes. And as long as your rifle doesnt kick like a pissed bull you should be fine.

What rifle are you putting it on?
For what purpose?
What is your budget?

My opinion, you can buy the scope new for 99.00 and have the warranty in your name. Not a bargain he's offering you @ 90.00, offer him 50.00 if your interested in it.

For 139.oo you can get the Simmons Aetec 4-14 with illuminated recticle the better model from simmons.

See links: http://www.samplelist.com/

http://swfa.com/Simmons-44-Mag...le-Scopes-C1743.aspx

Buy the best scope you can afford,...when my buddies were buying 99.00 tasco world class 3-9's I bought a Leupold vx-II 3-9 for 199.00 Mine is still used on the same rifle there's, broke, been sold or sit in the cabinet for a last resort if they get a new gun and can't put the scope they want on it. You should plan on spending at least half or what you paid for the gun on a scope.

Hope all that helps,