[Mptycreel]

I'm looking into a which scope to put on a new rifle. Burris offers their Fullfield II in a 3X9 40mm and a 3X9 50mm. Both have the same plex, and finish and the same tube diameter. Can anybody think of a reason to chose the 40mm over the 50mm?

 

[kbkrause]

price?

 

[Keith Sage]

I like the 50mm on my varmint rifles,, and the 40mm or smaller on my deer rifles...If you shoot over 300 yards and light is a issue the 50mm is a good choice. but its difacult to quickly get on focus with the 48mm and over objective lenses..Try one, some people cant use them and will raise all kinds of heyy..Whay kind of rifle are you planing to install a scope on? If its a deer fifle, 3x9 is a very good choice for some. there are others that like a 4x7.
3x9? you wont be disapointed, just dont buy a Jap or China scope.Burris makes some real good scopes for the money and they stay on zero.

 

[Swamp Monster]

The 3x9x40 Burris Fullfield II is bright enough to let you hunt well past legal shooting light which ofcourse means it's plenty bright enough for all your hunting needs. 50mm imo, are pretty specialized pieces of equipment. The human eye can only use about 6mm of exit pupil anyway. Dividing the objective diameter by the power gives you the exit pupil for example 10x50 gives you a 5mm exit pupil. So those big heavy 50's only give a shooter an edge in the higher magnifications. The 40mm gives you plenty of brightness, costs less, weighs less, and can be mounted with low or medium rings depending on the rifle. For a deer rifle the 40's are far more practical.
I just purchased a Burris Fullfield II in 1.75x5x20mm and It is extremely bright at all power levels. I use it in a dark gloomy swamp and am impressed with it. I plan on going with the 3x9x40 Fullfield II for my Muzzleloader. For the $$, these scopes can't be matched.

 

[Robert W. McCoy Jr]

If you look through a quality 30mm tubed scope and a quality 1 inch tubed scope you will see a big differance.. FYI

 

[jmoser]

As stated above, exit pupil is the real key. At magnifications under 10X there is no real benefit to a 50 mm objective lens unless you are shooting in very low light (meaning after dark) conditions.

I have a 6.5x - 20x 40 mm on my target .22 and you can see just fine at 20X magnification. I also have the same scope in 50 mm objective - it is BIG and I would not want it on a deer rifle.

Field of view is another benefit to the 50 mm - easier to acquire the target.

For general hunting I would spend my $$ on the best quality 35 mm - 40 mm scope and leave the 50 mm for specialized conditions.

I put a 2.5 x - 8 x scope on my .44 handgun, not for the 8x but since this scope came with a much bigger objective lens. The expanded field of view and exit pupil size is a huge benefit with the extended eye relief (EER) handgun scopes.

 

[NATTY BUMPO]

Those real big scopes are a pretty specialized piece of optics. Maybe they have an application for some varmint/predator rifles. If you ever go Out West on a horseback hunt, dont think you'll get one into a saddle scabbard, because you wont.

I've said it before, you dont need a scope the size of the Hubble telescope on your deer rifle.

Natty B.

 

[FIJI]

on my elk rifle fit JUST FINE in the scabbards last Oct on a pack in trip. There were more 50mm scopes in camp that week than anything. No one had any probs at all with scabbards.

Go to the manufaturer's website and look at the weights for the 40's vs the 50's. The weight difference will be in grams...hardly justification to give up the light gathering capabilities of the 50 !!

I'll keep my 50 TYVM, and will thoroughly enjoy & appreciate those extra minutes of clarity in the am and pm.

 

[Swamp Monster]

Most eyes can't use that "so called extra brightness" unless you keep your scope cranked up to 8, 9 power or more. Clarity has everything to do with the quality of the glass and nothing to do with objective size by the way. Those 50's may not weigh much more on paper, but mount one in high rings on a standard weight bolt gun and compare the feel and balance to the same gun with a similiar scope in 40. Those high mounted 50's are pretty top heavy and in a good quality scope the difference is more so because the good glass is heavier to begin with. There's nothing really wrong with a 50, and in some cases they are an excellent choice but general deer hunting isn't one of them. More are sold due to the advertising prowess of the manufacturer then due to the need of the shooter. And they are the norm in Europe, many even bigger yet, but you can hunt all night long there in many cases so the need can be justified.
In any case, go with what works for you cause that's all that matters. For my money, I can get better glass in a 40mm than I can in a 50mm and size will never overcome quality. That being said your Vari X III is awesome glass but you already new that or you wouldn't have purchased it!!

 

[NATTY BUMPO]

Well, I've also been on a few pack-in hunts Out West, in WY, Idaho and Colorado for both elk and mule deer and my experience was sure different. Most guys (if they were smart) brought their own scabbards. But some didnt, thinking I'll just use the outfitters. What they didnt know was that most of these scabbards were made to fit a WIN 94 with iron sights!!! Just try jammin' that 50mm scope mounted in high or extra high rings in one of those babies! I heard of a guy who did and missed a dandy bull because of it. He had actually bent the tube on the scope. True story from the Selway-Bitterroot WA.

So I'm with SM on this one. And BTW, I love those Leupold's. Most of my rifles wear em.

Natty B.

I'd tell you what that elk outfitter said when he saw that huge scope on the guy's elk rifle at the traihead, but I can't - this is a family forum!!!

 

[TSS Caddis]

Guide/Outfitter can say whatever he want's, but whatever scope might be "Ideal" for his "Specific" territory, does not qualify in others, so should you buy something that is suited for just his area? I've carried my 4.5x14 50mm Leopold on quite a few hunts ranging from Mi, Argentina, South Africa, Botswana, S.D., etc... and all I can say is any fault anyone can find with a 50mm is nonsence as far as I'm concerned.

From my experience good guides make due with what you bring and have success, bad guides talk smack and look for excuses.

Don't mean to go off, but I have a real distaste for guides that critize clients.

 

[Grouse Hunter]

mptycreel,

I looked at the burris line for quite some time. The fullfield is great. Many places are offering a free spotter when you purchase the ballistic plex. I know bass pro was at one time. Some otehrs are offering on line. Anyway, the fullfields have the same diameter internal lenses regardless of objective. According to Burris you notice more light gathering as you increase teh size of the internal lenses. Thats where the Signature series come into play. They have larger internal lenses. I think the 40MM is a great buy especially with the free spotter. Good Luck

 

[Swamp Monster]

Natchez, I believe had them for $189 for the 3x9x40 Fullfield II with Ballistic Plex and they throw in a Compact 20x50 Spotter also. This is a great deal on good glass. Those little spooters are pretty cool and work surprisingly well.