.300 wsm...magnification for 200 - 400 yards?

[kmrcstintn]

got a .300 wsm; current scope is Nikon Buckmasters 4.5 - 14 x 42 BDC; haven't shot it past 100 yds yet, but plan on 200 - 400 yard shots as I get proficient with it; possibly consider groundhogs later on to help farmers; hunting buddies think I need more magnification...whadda y'all think?

[stang1911]

I have a tikka 300wsm w/ burris 3-10 and its shoots very well at 400 yrds. My dad has a burris 4-14 and its even better. You have more than enough magnification for 400 yrd shooting.

[SHEPHERD321]

You need a different scope. Put it in the classified this weekend, I'll help you out with it.

[Tomcat088]

Great choice in caliber kmrcstintn, lol, of course I could be a little biased since I'm currently building a .300 WSM long rifle. I shoot prairie dogs (from what I hear quite a bit smaller than ground hogs) with a .22 lr out to 200 yards with a cheap tasco 10x. 14x should be enough and the buckmasters have good enough glass that you should be able to resolve the ground hogs at those distances. I don't see why 14x should be a problem, it's mainly just a preference thing. Alot of people think that they more magnification than they actually do. If you can see and quarter a target with that magnification, you can take them out if your shooting skills are up to par. I think that you'd be better off spending the money on good ammunition, or getting into reloading if you don't already. The .300 WSM factory ammo is lacking a little bit, and you can definately get into reloading for what you'd spend to get a better scope thank your buckmaster. Shoot more and get better, and I assure you that most shooters equipment is better than their skills. Effective trigger time is what helps you get those hits, not more magnification. Best of luck to you.

[PSUfan1]

The glass and magnification is fine for 200-400 yards. 14x magnification will take you much farther than 400 yards if needed.

What is the BDC on your scope calibrated with? If the calibrations that they used don't match your load than you may be shit out of luck at longer distances. Groundhogs aren't that big... and if it's calibrated for the wrong load/caliber/conditions/etc... you might be just a bit screwed.

If you do decide to get a new scope, don't do it for the magnification. Do it for a mildot (or other tactical style) reticle and exposed target/tactical turrets.

If you are looking for something on the cheap, you can get a 10x fixed power bushnell elite with target turrets for $180 from SWFA.com... if you want to spend a bit more, you can get the same scope in a 5-15... or you can go with something from falcon (menace), super sniper, burris, etc... there are plenty of options in the sub $500 range.

[Tomcat088]

Good info from PSU fan. The bushnell elite 3200 and 4200 are great scopes and some of my favorites that aren't ungodly expensive. As he said, if you wanted a different scope, there are quite a few that are under $500 and some even under $350 that are pretty good glass. Just realize that you probably have as good of glass as the falcon, super sniper, etc. Burris has been bought up by several different companies, some offering better glass than others, so that'll kind of just depend. Alot of guys also like the Millett trs that like the super sniper, falcon, etc. Just realize that these scopes have different features, but not necessarily better glass, your scope has pretty good glass for the money.

Don't let the "doesn't exactly match your bdc" thing get you down. There is a great way around this. You can either tune your load to the BDC reticle, and hope that it is the one that actually shoots best for your rifle, this can work. The other option is that you can take the load that you like and that groups the best in your rifle and then shoot out to 200, 300, 400, etc. You can see how closely they match your load, and you may just need to hold the bottom or top of the dot to get your hits. You could also just make one click if you know the distance so that you could hold center dot, and then dial back for your normal distances. Don't let the BDC thing not being perfect discourage, they're not usually perfect unless you send it your load data and the company calibrates it exactly for your load. Even then, with differences in elevation, barometric pressure, temperature, etc, they still don't always work for your load in all conditions. Just something that you should keep in mind and why some people prefer mildots or TMR (tactical milling reticles).