My Swedish friend has just come into a large estate with lots of boars. I will be visiting in a while

I need an 8x56 I think - but is it wise to mount such a bulky and heavy scope on a 9.3x62. I am concerned at the forces on the mounts during recoil. I could use my 7x57 which has half the recoil.

Hola 94 main problem with heavy big scope and heavy recoiling rifles it's the stress on the screws of the bases , if screws are on the big side (M4) and good quality and support recoil , the second problem it's rings , you need a wide ring with three screws per side , like the GK model of ERA Feintechnik , to avoid the slip of the scope under recoil .
Saludos

Daniel

1894,

we are using here very often and for long time such big scopes due to the night hunt and don't have more problems as with smaller scopes.
You have to use a good mounting, then it is no problem. Even with bigger and harder calibers.

For example:
http://www.eaw.de/English/english.html

I don't know the products of UK but you should have similar.

Best regards

1894,
pupil exit of an 8x56 scope is 7mm and it is very likely that the pupil of your eye, a middle aged gentleman, may not expand up to that diameter.
any pupil exit larger than 5 or 6 mm is useless.
for this reason I believe that you might not need such a bulky scope on your rifle.
anyway, the 9,3x62 does not recoil thaat hard and if the scope, even a larghe x56, is correctly mounted you should not have any problem whatsoever.
sometime ago I had a large heavy scope mounted on a light 8x68S that kicked like a mule and never had any problem. mounts were quick detachables EAW.
regards,
montero

I will put on a 6x42 or a 3-9x42, Have used both and worked great on moonlit night and normal daytime hunting

I agree with Montero. Exit pupils larger than 5 to 6 mm add little, if any, to the brightness of the scope (I'm assuming here that you are considering night hunting). More important is the light transmission efficiency of the scope lenses. I would much prefer a high-quality 40mm objective to a lesser-quality but larger objective.

Magnification needs to match distance. While a higher magnification raises the theoretical "twilight factor" (a formula designed to sell optics, not to apply in any practical way), as in any hunting situation, your magnification needs to be low enough to provide you with an adequate field of view. This makes a high-quality varible a bit more practical than a fixed power.

Although in "normal" circumstances I don't care for them, a heavy crosshair is helpful in very low-light shooting.

I think a good 3-9x40 or 42mm and heavy cross hair is the most versatile for night shooting.

And by the way, if you mount a 56mm scope, it will be so high above the barrel line that you won't be able to place your cheek properly on the stock and will find sight picture acquisition slow and shooting awkward.

Best of luck with the boars, Adam!

1894

I had a 3-12X50 on a 375 H&H without any problems of breakdowns or scopes sliding in the mount. Get a propper scopemount and there will be no problem

/ JOHAN

My brother uses a 6x42 on his 375 H&H and are very happy with it, so a 9.3x62 should have no problems

1894,

You are welcomed to compare my 8x56mm S&B against whatever you have now and see, what if any, practical improvement it offers. I can't see any improvement over my 3-12x50 swarovski, although both are better than my 7x50 Meopta ...mind you, my old 7x42 Swarovski Nova was a touch brighter than my 7x50mm Meopta too, at least to my eyes and thats what counts.
Let me know if you want to try it and we can sort something out...

Regards,

Peter

The hunting is apparently going to take place in the summer nights when it is only truly dark for 3 hours or so. Most will be in half light.

I have a 1.5-6x42 Swarovski with heavy cross hair in a 4a reticle on it at present. It loses the reticle before the outline of the animal is lost so it would appear to make sense to get an illumination device.

Perhaps stupidly I have the exact same scope in spare mounts as a back up for my moose hunting.

I have a choice of replacing the back up with an illuminated S&B1.5-6x42 (same mounts)or adding an illuminated S&B (Hungarian)8x56 in new mounts. This will cost no more because the scope is a lot cheaper.

I really don't want to spend money but I only get one trip a year and I would hate to fail for lack of equipment.

Pete - Thanks for the offer, it would be good to work something out.

[ 02-12-2003, 14:56: Message edited by: 1894 ]

Hogs when hunted usually move only at night. You won�t even see them out in the field at full moon, it�s already top bright. Most bait sites are in pretty dark thickets as well so the 9x62 topped with a 8x56mm scope is considered the classical boar medicine. A fixed scope has less lenses than a variable one which translates into better light transmission. I have a Zeis 8x56 mm which compares favourably to a 2,5-12x56 mm from the same brand. I found it sometimes really difficult to distuinguish the front from the rear end. If a better scope gives you 5 or 10 more minutes of shooting light and helps to avoid wounding a game animal (to look for a gut-shot hog at night is no fun) it is most probably worth it.
Regards, D.

I friend of mine used to have a 8x56 S&B on his 270 for shooting at night, I looked at it and can't say It was so much better than 42 mm scopes. For me 6x42 is the highest fixd scope a will use

I use a 2,5-10x56 S & B on my .375HH R93, no problems with the scope mount, its like Johan says it all depends on the quality of the mount.
Tron

Hi
I use Leupold QR mounts on mys 3,1 kg 9,3x62.
I had a Helia steel tube scope on it weighting in at 0,6 kg with no problems.
The mounts did not require re sighting the scope after removal of scope from the gun.

Use a steel mount of good quality and you will be fine with a 56 mm scope.

//

1894 You have an excellent setup. What is wrong with having 2 quality scopes for one rifle, sounds like a good idea to me. You have 2 good scopes.
I would NOT buy another scope UNLESS you get one with an illuminated reticule. That would be an EXCELLENT idea. Then you could use your other Swarovski on your next rifle or as a spare on a rifle you already have.

I hunt with my Mauser66 mounted with a Zeiss Diasta 8X52.Caliber 8X68S.Best rifle for wildboarhunt by night.The most boar you shoot in the night.In Germany you have the best chance if there is not to much moon!!!-and some clouds.
So a good glas is very important to have Waidmannsheil .
Hauke

I have a S&B 2,5-10x56 on my 9,3x62 Sauer 200. No problems if the mounts are properly fitted. Which they weren't when I got the rifle. A couple of shots, and before I noticed the problem the rear mount thingy that locks into the base (EAW Schwenk)had started to crack. But since then, no problems what so ever.

Frans

Swarovski PF/PH lines have some fine "big lightweight" scopes.
6x42= 340 grams/12.0 oz
8x50= 420 grams/14.8 oz
8x56= 450 grams/15.9 oz
3-12x50= 480grams/16.9 oz
2.5-10x56= 510grams/18 oz