Friends-

I think within several months, I will have my .416 Rigby in hand. I know this is a fairly open question, but, I am looking for some scope recommendations. Definitely needs a 30mm tube.

That said what are your thoughts?

Thanks in advance.

Definetly the Swarovski Z6i - depends on what you wanna hunt, but for a .416 Rigby I would definetly go for this one:

http://titanium-gunworks.de/sw...i/z6i-ii-1-6x24.html

Best regards
Klaus

S&B 1.1X4 or 1.5X6 is as good as it gets.

quote:

Originally posted by 30 Caliber Mag Fan:
Definitely needs a 30mm tube.

Okay, but why do you say that, Mark?

A 1.5x5 Leupold works fine for me on my 416 Rigby RSM, but it's a 1 inch scope.

As Stonecreek asked, why the 30mm tube?

Whatever, you should make sure you have open sights or a good ghost-ring aperture in reserve so when the erector tube finally stops returning to battery after the considerable recoil punishment, you might still have a reliable sight.

Aternatively, you could look for a good, old low-powered B&L 'Custom' scope and mounts or a reticle-movement Zeiss/Hensoldt or B. Nickel model on the internet.

S&B 1.1x4x24mm Zenith or the new 1x8x24 S&B.

I have the 1.1x4x24 on my 375H&H and it is a great scope, more top end magnification would only make it better.

JPK

I have a 1.25-4 Nikon African on my 416 Ruger that I'm very happy with. YMMV, they're discontinued but still widely available on the secondary market. Very robust scopes, nice glass, and affordable.

Take a look at the Leupold VX6 for half the money of the European scopes. I have several S&b, Swarovski, Zeiss high ticket 30MM scopes that I would replace with the Leupold in a heartbeat.
Stay away from the antiques unless you like poor eye relief, non centered crosshairs and scopes that fog in the rain.
PM me if you have interest in a S&B Zenith 1.1x4x24. I have a mint one in the box I would offer at a good price.

quote:

Originally posted by Stonecreek:

quote:

Originally posted by 30 Caliber Mag Fan:
Definitely needs a 30mm tube.

Okay, but why do you say that, Mark?

Steve, good question and the answer is a little long winded. In short the 30mm rings became an independent variable in the equation.

Thanks,

Mark

quote:

Originally posted by LJS:
Take a look at the Leupold VX6 for half the money of the European scopes. I have several S&b, Swarovski, Zeiss high ticket 30MM scopes that I would replace with the Leupold in a heartbeat.
Stay away from the antiques unless you like poor eye relief, non centered crosshairs and scopes that fog in the rain.
PM me if you have interest in a S&B Zenith 1.1x4x24. I have a mint one in the box I would offer at a good price.

LJS-

PM inbound.

Thanks,

Mark

quote:

Originally posted by sambarman338:
As Stonecreek asked, why the 30mm tube?

Whatever, you should make sure you have open sights or a good ghost-ring aperture in reserve so when the erector tube finally stops returning to battery after the considerable recoil punishment, you might still have a reliable sight.

Aternatively, you could look for a good, old low-powered B&L 'Custom' scope and mounts or a reticle-movement Zeiss/Hensoldt or B. Nickel model on the internet.

sambarman338-

The .416 does have iron sights. A three leaf set up.

quote:

Originally posted by LJS:

Stay away from the antiques unless you like poor eye relief, non centered crosshairs and scopes that fog in the rain.

Yes, eye relief has generally improved but not in all cases. My old B&L Balvar5 2.5-5x has the most flexible, long eye relief of any scope I've ever looked through; the reticle is centred with mechanical and optical integrity rather than smoke and mirrors; and, having no turrets to let you down, I'll bet it's as waterproof as any variable made today. The Balfor A has no power ring, either, and that's the scope I'd trust more than anything else in wet climes.

I apologize for going on a tangent but I am curious what mount system compatible with B&L scopes Sambarman would suggest would work on a 416 Rigby. Almost without exception every old B&L I've seen lately has internal flaking to boot.

I shot my Cape Buffalo with a 450 Dakota (on a CZ550 Magnum action). It wears a Leupold 2.5-8X. All the glass you need out to 200yds. IMHO, if 2.5X is too much glass, you need to take it off and use the iron sights on the rifle.

Rich

quote:

Originally posted by LJS:
I apologize for going on a tangent but I am curious what mount system compatible with B&L scopes Sambarman would suggest would work on a 416 Rigby. Almost without exception every old B&L I've seen lately has internal flaking to boot.

Not sure what you mean by internal flaking. Obviously, if that means rust, those mounts have become a bit dodgy. The ones I've got here are OK and I understand a guy in NY sells B&L mounts to fit rifles sold at the time.

Whether the mounts they made were strong enough to work on a 416 Rigby, I don't know, but I bet a heavy duty spring could be cobbled up to take the strain, in the daisy-wheel type at least.

What I like about the B&L philosophy was their uncompromising attitude to locating the lenses and reticle in the scope. Lyman used to boast about cushioning their elements but B&L argued that this would lead to parallax as the cushioning compressed over time, a phenomenon recognized by Unertl as well. B&L claimed the only answer was to mount them hard up against the metal, which had to bear perfectly or shock would break the glass.

I have used a 1.75-6 Leupold with zero complaints.

Mark,

I don't see any reason you couldn't use 1in rings.....am I missing something? You can swap the modified cam plate and/or I can get you another one, in fact Morris just sent me several extras.

I lean towards 3X Leupold on all DG rifles, but a 1x4 or 1.5x5 is nice if your bent on varibles. I have never seen much need on any big game rifle than these three scopes or for that matter just a fixed 3X..Ive shot a lot of game both in N.A. and Africa with those scopes, and I have a couple of 2x7x28s and a 2.5x8 on one of my .338s, and one 3x9 on my big game, varmint 6x45..but mostly I've used the 3Xs.

whats wrong with a LEUPOLD 4X

Not much. I'd prefer a 3x though personally

Another vote for the Z6i. It is available in an extended eye relief configuration, denoted as "EER" on the label. While you may lose a little field of view, the eye relief makes using it on a heavy recoiling rifle a joy. Expensive, though......

1.5-5x20 Leupold on my 404 Jeffery. I also have one on my 458 Win Mag.

Additional DG rifle/scope combos I have are: a Zeiss Victory 1.5-6x42 on Mauser M03 375 H&H, a Weaver 1-3x20 as a 2nd scope for my 458 Win Mag (lighter load), Burris 1.75-5x32 on my RSM 375 H&H, and a Leupold 1.75-6x32 on my 9.3x62.

I've got a Leupold 1.75-6 on mine with no problems. It replaced the 2.5 Ultra-lightweight that I tried first. That little bugger seemed perfect until dim scope met herd of black buffalo in black bush at first light.

For what it is worth – one approach is to relate the recoil of a cartridge to the length of eye-relief needed to avoid joining the half-moon club. Big-bore cartridges from 375 H&H and up need some extra consideration, and let me site 3 distict groups of recoil levels:

Recoil categories:

• 375 H&H recoil = 43 Ft-Lbs
• 416 Remington/404 Jeffery = 55 Ft-lbs
• 458 Lott = 75 Ft-Lbs

Eye-relief categories in big-bore scopes:

• 90mm:
Zeiss Diavari 1.1-4x24 = 90 mm

• 95 mm:
S&B Zenith 1.1-4x24 = 94 mm
Kahles 1-5x24 = 95 mm
Leupold VX3 1.5-5x20 = 94 mm
Leupold VX6 1-6x24 = 96.5 mm

• 100 mm and more:
Nikon Monarch 3 1.5-4.5x20 = 100 mm
Weaver Classic Extreme 1.5-4.5x24 = 100 mm
Swarovski 1-6x24 = 120 mm
Trijicon Accupoint 1.25-4x24 = 120 mm
Leupold FX-11 Ultralight 2.5-x20 = 124.5 mm

Pieter

Pieter,

Curious as to where and how you came up with your numbers?

This is published product information that could be obtained from the respective websites. Their are still scopes that only offer 75 and 80 mm eye relief that are not suitable for high recoil cartridges.

Pieter

Pieter,

Except that it is NOT available on all the manufacturers websites, so it CANNOT be obtained from those websites as you claim. At least I was unable to find eye-relief info on the Leupold website when I searched for it. So, I ask again, where did you get the numbers, please?

Not trying to be argumentative, but on AR when one makes a claim, it is necessary to be able to substantiate it when asked for the factual data source.

Some info comes from gun magazines and some I looked up on mfg sites like on the newer models on offer.

Pieter

OK, and thanks.

I take all gun magazine articles with a heavy grain of salt! Too many writers/magazines are influenced by advertisers and it reflects in their evaluations.

Eye relief is critical on big bore DG rifles, for sure, and some major manufacturers, Zeiss and S&B in particular, have reputations for having minimum clearance tolerances. I mount all my own scopes, perhaps 90-95% Leupolds, and have never had a problem. I have seen Leupolds mounted incorrectly by others using lead sleds that are very dangerous on big bore rifles and had to be re-mounted when fired from the shoulder.

Clearly we agree on this issue.

If you go with a Leupold VX-6 or VX-R be sure to get 30mm Leupold off set rings. Action is long and the scopes are short!

quote:

Zeiss and S&B in particular, have reputations for having minimum clearance tolerances.

Quite so - older models from both Zeiss and S&B came out with 80 mm eye relief, which is too short for big bore cartridges and those that wear glasses are even in more trouble. However 80 mm is fine up to 30-06 level imo. It may just be that the Europeans have been using mainly the 7x64mm, 6.5x55 and some the 9,3x62, which are all low recoiling rifles. They have never been actually into big-bores as they did not need it.

Meopta, another European manufacturer, offers a DG scope (Meostar R1) that still only provide 3.15” or 80 mm eye relief, and it begs the question if they do understand the needs of a DG hunter.

Lately they have catered for a longer eye-relief for the US and SA market.

Pieter

quote:

Leupold FX-11 Ultralight 2.5-x20 = 124.5 mm

Lionhunter,

I quess you are referring to this scope with its long eye relief of 4.9 inches:

http://swfa.com/Leupold-25x20-...iflescope-P3264.aspx

Pieter

Leupold FX II 3x20

by John Barsness - Tuesday, April 30, 2013
The 3X Leupold possessed the perfect compromise of just enough magnification and a tube long enough to span bolt-actions long enough for cartridges such as the .375 H&H, .416 Rigby and .458 Lott. Additionally, the scope only weighed a little over 8 ounces, had almost 4 inches of eye relief, and was really recoil-resistant. (Yeah, we’ve all heard that modern variables are just as tough as fixed-powers. Tell that to hunters who’ve had variables croak in the field on .375s, .416s and .458s.)

Leupold continued to make a 2.5X scope, which was also very recoil-resistant and weighed only 6.5 ounces, but with a really short tube. While it wasn’t impossible to mount the 2.5X on dangerous-game rifles, the scope’s position in the rings—therefore eye relief—was severely limited. The longer 3X could be mounted to perfectly suit any hunter’s shooting stance.

The new 3X Leupold has slightly more magnification and eye relief than the old scope, reducing the field of view at 100 yards from around 40 feet to 30. This still proved plenty wide for aiming at close-range buffalo. Personally, I find field of view one of the most overrated aspects of hunting scopes.

Technical Specifications:

Type:fixed-power riflescope 
Magnification:3X 
Objective Lens Diameter:20mm 
Focusing Range: 10 yds. to infinity
Eye Relief:3.9" 
Exit Pupil:6.7mm 
Field of View @ 100 yds:30' 
Coatings:multi-coated fully with Multi-Coat 4
Dimensions:1" tube; 10.3" long 
Weight:8.7 ozs. 
Construction:anodized aluminum tube; gloss or matte black finish 
MSRP:$304 (SWFA) 

Pieter

quote:

Originally posted by Live Oak:
If you go with a Leupold VX-6 or VX-R be sure to get 30mm Leupold off set rings. Action is long and the scopes are short!

This may be very good advice from Live Oak. Today I mounted a VX-R 2-7x on a 458B&M (Win Mdl 70 WSM action) and needed almost all the space between the bell ends to fit the scope in standard Leupold QRW base/ring combo. A standard or magnum length action may require the off-set rings.

This scope on this rifle will be used with a lighter load 250gr CEB Raptor for use on PG. A second scope, VX-6 1-6x illuminated, will be used when hunting DG using the CEB 470gr solids.

The trouble I've found with extension rings is they are usually made to set the scope closer to your eye. With a .458 you might prefer to have it farther away.