Hi you all, guys
Can you please reccomend me the most suitable scope for a marlin 1895 SS (45-70 Govt)? Mostly for close up work ...

Reasons for the resulting preference?

Thank you all in advance !

I would chose the Leupold Vari XIII 1.5-5, VXII 1-4 or similar scope.

[ 11-11-2003, 21:40: Message edited by: Dr. Lou ]

I'm fond of low power scopes and have quite a number of them, most abundant is the old steel tube Weaver K2.5. Anything in the 1-3X range will be suitable for close range, quality is what you pay for. I don't have anything against variables, and own them too, but close range and variable power are an oxymoron to me. Back to the Weavers, reason I like them is that they are cheap and tough. All of mine have the standard plex reticle, and while they work fine up close, they are quite suitable for big game applications as far as most people would shoot.

Have you considered a red dot sight?

yes ... I have considered red dot sight but I am not too much fond of them ... I use to hunt in very low light conditions and the use of red dot sights make me loose night vision sharpness ...

I have a 2.5x compact leupold on my Marlin 45/70 I would not have any other scope. I tried a leupold 1-4 but at the ranges ones uses a lever 45/70 2.5x is all thats needed, it also looks nice on the rifle. It is a ough scope as well and the rear part of the scope is in front of the hammer. IMHO it is the 45/70 scope of the century !!

I use a 2.5X on a pivot mount.

I have a Leupold VX III 1.5x5 on mine, with a Warne QR rings on Weaver Grand Slam Steel Bases.

Other sutible scopes:

Leupold 2.5 Compact
Burris 2 Fullfield Compact
Leupold VX II 1x4

Afrikaander, the red dots are terrific for low light IF they have intensity control for the dot, and most do. I use a Millett SP-1 on a Ruger and am quite fond of it for still hunting. It has a 3 moa dot and 11 increment intensity. The dot is hardly visable on the low setting during normal light conditions but perfect for deeps woods dusk and dawn scenarios. I use it with both eyes open BTW.

That said, there are higher quality units available than the Millett, Aimpoint for one. It is no matter one way or the other to me if you use one, but the red dots have only one shortcoming to me and that is the battery. Okay, two: ain't worth a poot for a 1000 yd match.

I have the Pentax 2.5x lightseeker. It is a
very good scope but, might not allow enough light in for night work.

I use a Redfield 4x widefield on mine. I have it mounted with Warne QR rings. I also have a lyman tang mounted peep sight. I drilled out the front bead and replaced with a fiber optic tube, the type that is used on shotguns.

I find the combination to be very good.

Pete

You guys will think I'm nuts but I have a few leo 1.5-5's. They're nice BUT--a year or two back I picked up a weaver V-3 which is a 1-3 scope.
At dusk it is actually clearer than the leo. When set on 1x you don't even close an eye to look through it. You just see a black circle and cross hairs as you swing. You should be able to get one for under $150. I'm actually thinking of selling one or 2 of my leo's and getting a few more of the v-3's. If you didn't like the v-3 put it on e-bay and watch some guy pay almost new price--you wouldn't be out hardly anything.

I have a Leo VARI XIII 1.5-5 on mine that has been fitted with a 4A reticle by Premier Reticles. This works very well in the dim light/dark animal of early morning-late evening hunting. I have shot black hogs and dark deer with this scope at twilight with no problems since the conversion, with the standard dual X reticle I tended to lose the crosshairs when it got dim.

I have a 1.75-6 Leupold Vari X III (but the older short tube variety) on my Guide gun. It works very well.

Bob257

For close up work and if you don't need zooming in, why not using a red dot like the aimpoint compM-xd. I use one on my steyr scout rifle and up to 100 meters it is terribly accurate .....and fast shooting guaranteed.
Dirk scout from flanders;

I can second or third the Leupold 2.5 scout scope. I have it with an XS (formerly AO) scout scope mount and Warne detachable rings. Perfect setup.

You can leave both eyes open. Makes it almost as fast as a red dot or Holo sight.

Man do I feel like the Lone Ranger. I have a VariX-II 3-9 that I picked up new for $200. Works just fine as I shot two running deer with it last year. Just keep it on 3X for hunting and it works fine for me.

[ 11-15-2003, 02:20: Message edited by: MS Hitman ]

Two thoughts:

On scopes, I agree with Kraky, you wouldn't believe how nice that little Weaver V3 is. Really nice and very bright. I have one on a 425 Express and it is just right.

I have a receiver (peep) sight on mine Marlin 45/70 and it shoots as good as I can hold it. They don't fog and they don't break. They don't gather up as much light at dusk or dawn, but they don't flare either. Ku-dude

The low powered and small sized Leupolds are great. For less money ($100) the Bushnell Banner 1.5 to 4.5 is also good. Optically it seems as good as the Leupolds and mine has held zero for a few hundred rounds on an 1895G.

I have a 1895g stainless 45-70. I have put both the Leupold vx11 1x4x20 and the varix111 1.5x5x20 on it. They both work great, the varix111 is brighter and has more clarity than the vx11 but is more expensive. In the end I left the vx11 on because it works just fine and the 1x4 power is just right for this gun. I load mine to 450 marlin velocity which turns it into an honest 200 yard rifle the 4x is just right.

The problem I had with my 1895G was finding a scope mount that positioned the scope far enough forward. I remedied this by creating my own scope mount based on the Weaver design. I have actually sold a few of these to other Marlin owners. I call it the Hunter Scout mount. It places the scope about 2-1/2 inches farther forward than the Weaver base. It works well with both intermediate eye relief scopes and most standard scopes, with the ability to mount the scope forward or rearward. I currently have a LOOpold Vari-X II 1-4x20 on my GG. More eye relief can be obtained with intermediate eye relief scopes, albeit at the expense of field of view. The intermediate scope I have is a Burris Compact XER 1-4x. The Pentax Lightseeker Zero-X/v is the same scope (it's even made by Burris). It sounds like the LOOpold 2.5x compact has similar eye relief.

I have put quite a bit of work and no small amount of practical experience into scoping the Marlin guns. Please feel free to contact me if you wish to attempt to benefit from this experience.

Live well

[ 11-20-2003, 03:50: Message edited by: Big Redhead ]

Thank you very much for your offer, Big Redhead

I haven�t decided yet which scope to use in that rifle ... tough the great majority reccomend me scopes with 20 mm of objetive diameter, they are not much usefull for the intended use of this rifle (small diameter wouldn�t gather enough light for night hunting ... at least desirable)
I am making up my decision between Leu M8 4x33 or 6x42 ... or even the 3-9x33 ... and/or perhaps an aimpoint ...
Do you think I might have any mounting problems (as you specified) with any of these ?

regards,
Afrikaander

Afrikaander
I have a 1.5x5, a 1.75x6 [the wifes actually] and a 2.5x8 all Leupold all with the HEAVY DUPLEX.
All 3 of these are excellent scopes.
I think the best choice for your 45/70 is the 1.75x6 with the HEAVY DUPLEX. I CANNOT STRESS THE IMPORTANCE OF THE HEAVY DUPLEX ENOUGH. In my experience you loose the ability to see the reticle before you loose the ability to see the game.
The 1.75x6 does "gather" more light than the 1.5x5.
A friend just got a Leupold 30mm 1.5x5 with the illuminated reticle. Seems very nice in very low light but I wish the daytime reticle was thicker.

I am skeptical of the claim that the bigger scopes are significantly better for twilight shooting. I've tested all my scopes from 8x56 to 1-5x20 and didn't really think there was all that much difference. Certainly not enough to justify some giant scope on a handy short range rifle like an 1895G.

A 6x42 for close range? I don't use 6x for groundhog even.

Afrikaander,

About the best way to know if you will have trouble with any scope/mount combination is by assembling them. Sometimes you can hold the parts together in approximate location in the store (without actually assembling them) and get a rough idea whether or not a gross problem exists. The Weaver base positions the scope rings the most rearward of any base I have seen on Marlin rifles. This is a good way to get a black (or bloody) eye. I think some of the other brands position the rings a little farther forward - far enough for use with standard eye relief scopes. The fact that the fixed power scopes have no adjustment ring sometimes facilitates mounting farther forward than variable scopes, unless the limiting factor is interference between the front ring and the w/e turret on the scope. In that case, you must get a different scope mount base to mount the scope farther forward.

Using an intermediate eye relief scope or a scout scope requires a different mount. The AO Leverscout base is designed to work with scopes like the Leupold 2.5x scout that has 9-14 inches eye relief. It seems that many Marlin owners like this setup. My Hunter Scout base is designed to work with a scope with 5-7 inches eye relief, such as the Burris Compact XER or the Pentax Lightseeker Zero-X/V mentioned in my previous post. This scope will mount forward enough to eliminate the need for a hammer spur (the scope is forward of the hammer) but still allow enough room for the factory rear sight. In fact, no modification to the gun is required. It's a pretty slick setup, if I do say so myself.

Take your gun into the store and ask the clerk if he will allow you to trial fit the parts by hand. He might even offer to actually assemble it for you. This is the best way to tell.

Live well

Big Redhead,

Haven't seen you much on Marlin talk in a while. word has it that you don't have any more Hunter scouts available. Is that true? IF so bummer for me I was just getting to where I could order a setup. And just in case I can still obtain one, do you know if the Burris compact line will work well with the set up?

Hi Dave,

I post occasionally. I lost access to Marlintalk from my PC at work so I can only post from home. I get up early (5Am) to surf a bit B4 going to work. My family has our only phone line tied up in the evenings.

I can still make the Hunter Scout mount bases. I try not to dwell on it in these forums and be a bore. Send me an email and we'll discuss it.

Big Redhead
but getting smaller and grayer.