I picked up a Ruger American ranch in 308 and now I’m on the hunt for a new scope. This will be an under 300 yard rifle mostly for whitetail. I am currently looking at the vx3-hd 3.5-10.5x40 with the firedot reticle. I was able to look through one in the store, but that isn’t as good of a judgement of the scope as being in the field. Just wondering if it is worth the extra price over their standard reticle.

Does anyone own a similar scope and how do you like it? Thanks

If you ever hunt in the forest just as the sun starts to set behind the trees, you will LOVE being able to see where your crosshairs are. It’s still legal shooting time, you can clearly see the animal and your reticle won’t disappear.
I won’t buy a scope w/o an illuminated reticle for that very reason.

I have a Leupold with the predecessor to Firedot. It serves a purpose on my 1895 Marlin. I use it for Bear hunting.

Early fall finds the trees are still leafed out, creating dark woods before sunset. Finding dark crosshairs against a black target is difficult. Bears tend towards diurnal lifestyle.

All that to say they make for a nice option in specific circumstances. I very rarely find it necessary to turn it on. Once every 2-3 seasons I use the light, because I have it. But as I get older eyes light is becoming more important.

NikonUser makes a very valid point about using an illuminated reticle in his shooting.
Long range, black target.
That’s not something I will do in my lifetime and it doesn’t sound like what you need but that illuminated dot can make all the difference in the world when hunting. I’ve used mine a dozen times in the dark woods.

My current scopes I use for deer are a VX3I 3-9 (30-06) and a freedom 2-7 (44 mag). Most of my hunting is fields/edges of brush. Our camp is mostly pines and this is where I use my 30-06 due to overlapping deer/bear season. Due to the thickness of the pines I’m generally done hunting 30 mins before final shooting time due to being unable to see. I feel like the illuminated reticle would definitely help in this situation, but I guess that real question is if it is worth the $300 difference from the duplex reticle. They are currently running a sale, but it excludes any of the firedot models.

Next week I’ll go help a relative with a little guiding he does with bear hunters. Over the years he has had a few hunters that had trouble with crosshairs on a dark bear as daylight waned. I say that because it can be a thing. I’ve only shot 2 bears, get enough being an assistant, don’t need to shoot another. I never had an issue with a mid quality scope or better.

They quit making them, but even a Zeiss Conquest 3-9, or a Leupold vari-x-III, 2.5-8 should get one right to the last minute of legal light. In extreme lighting situations, one can ‘walk’ the crosshairs down from the edge, 25 yard shot.

I can easily hunt to the last minute deer hunting with normal crosshairs & my Zeiss Conquest. If for some reason one is in a swamp, cloudy day with light fading early, safety trumps everything. That is, if it’s not safe to shoot, head in.

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Originally posted by shkuhn:
My current scopes I use for deer are a VX3I 3-9 (30-06) and a freedom 2-7 (44 mag). Most of my hunting is fields/edges of brush. Our camp is mostly pines and this is where I use my 30-06 due to overlapping deer/bear season. Due to the thickness of the pines I’m generally done hunting 30 mins before final shooting time due to being unable to see. I feel like the illuminated reticle would definitely help in this situation, but I guess that real question is if it is worth the $300 difference from the duplex reticle. They are currently running a sale, but it excludes any of the firedot models.

If you’re looking at a budget I would advise to put money towards glass first. The lighted reticle while nice is by no means a deal breaker.

If I’m honest with you, the damned battery has been dead several times I’ve thought it would be nice to have on. Crank the power back a bit to be certain your exit pupil is not a limiting factor.

I am an avid WI hunter. Whitetail deer, depending on a setting, is typically harvested with one of several 6.5x55 modern rigs.
I have NEVER ran into an issue with non-lighted reticles during LEGAL hunting hours. I also do NOT own/use cheaper quality optics. Its true, that some scopes gather more/better light compared to others and one has to be careful when selecting an appropriate hunting optic.
For upto 300m shots, I can’t, honestly, think of a single capable scope in a sub $400 range.
If your range goes from 100-300, I would recommend a decent scope with a BDC/DOA scale dedicated to 30caliber and pair that with a rangefinder, unless you hunt same spot and know your distances. Just because your crosshairs or dot light up, does not mean scope checks other boxes such as clarity at all levels of magnification, light gathering, decent eye relief, accuracy of adjustments when sighting in, rugged (or will recoil, shocks and bumps throw it off every 5-6 shots)….
While at it, please do not mount anything in $14 Amazon China made rings - spend the money and have your glass properly mounted (includes leveling) and rings properly torqued.

Short answer is yes, worth the money. As noted, dark cross hairs, dark animals, low light are difficult conditions. At this point in my life, most of my scopes have some form of illuminating aiming point.

I don't believe I have ever felt like an illuminated reticle would help me in any hunting situation I've ever been in. I hunt til the legal time OR I can't see my crosshairs anymore and the former almost always comes first. I'd say spend the extra on better glass but Leupold VX-3 are as good a glass as I ever buy for hunting rifles. So I'd just save the money, personally.

That said, I'm 42 and have never worn any corrective lenses or had any trouble with eyesight. Maybe things will change for me and if they do, that sounds like a good option for a dedicated woods gun. A 1.5-5x20 w/ firedot would probably be a killer.

quote:

That said, I'm 42 and have never worn any corrective lenses or had any trouble with eyesight. Maybe things will change for me and if they do, that sounds like a good option for a dedicated woods gun. A 1.5-5x20 w/ firedot would probably be a killer.

Me to a tee. Except add 20 years and now I find the eyes are not what they once were. That 1.5-5x20 illuminated reticle has lived on my 1895 Marlin for years. It’s a great matchup. I used QR rings and mounts which leave the irons useful.

I’m going to save the money and go with the duplex reticle. That is all I have ever hunted with and has served me well for the last 26 years of hunting. It’s always nice to try something new, but in this case after thinking about it, it’s not really necessary.

To each their own, but I also get by fine with a duplex reticle. I may get a fine x-hair on a higher powered scope, prairie dogging and such.

For regular deer hunting, just about all my shots are inside 130 yards. Even with longer shots at small targets, ‘pasture poodles’, I prefer a simple cross hair. One can always hold on the upwind side a tad, as needed.

As an aside about dogging, I always tried to go mid-June. The vast majority of the shooting was 50-200 yards, I like that. Of course you can always shoot at 400+ if desired.

Have a fire dot on a stainless Marlin .44 mag. I love the feature in the heavy cover I hunt which gets gloomy fast around sunset.