How To Choose A Rifle Scope

Investing in Your Rifle Scope

The old rule of thumb used to be that you should spend as much, if not more, on your rifle scope than the rifle you were going to mount it on. The logic behind this adage was that if you spent sensibly on your rifle scope you potentially wouldn’t ever need to upgrade it.

This was certainly wise advice when there wasn’t very much to a rifle scope apart from the lenses within it. However, nowadays, rifle scopes are filled with all sorts of added features, some of which are electronic and therefore become outdated year on year. My personal opinion is that it is still worth spending wisely on your rifle scope, but this doesn’t have to mean taking out a mortgage if you’re realistic about which features you actually need. 

Glass vs Digital

Realistically, nowadays the first decision you’ll be faced with when buying a new rifle scope is whether you opt for a traditional ‘glass’ scope like a SWAROVSKI OPTIK Z6i or a ‘digital’ scope like a HIK Micro Alpex 4K. When making this decision I think you have to be honest with yourself – firstly, are you a tech savvy person?

If you’re someone who hates technology and struggles navigating the latest software update on your iPhone then I’d strongly suggest a digital scope isn’t for you. Much like an iPhone, digital scopes have internal menus, settings, and profiles to fiddle with, so if this isn’t something you’re confident doing then you're more likely to make your own life more difficult.

Matching the Scope to Your Shooting

Secondly, does the style of shooting you’ll be doing suit a digital scope? In my own experience, if you’re shooting tricky deer species, such as Fallow, in very dusky conditions on open fields then a digital scope can offer a massive advantage thanks to their ability to artificially adjust the brightness of an image. However, if you’re culling in woodlands with dappled light conditions I favour traditional glass as I think glass gives much better contrast and clarity than microchips. 

The Rise of ‘Crossover’ Scopes

If you’re struggling to make that decision then you’ll be pleased to hear that there is a middle ground; a few manufacturers have started producing traditional glass scopes, but with built in gizmos and gadgets to provide some of the added functionality of a digital scope. Two such examples of these ‘crossover scopes’ are the Burris Eliminator and the SWAROVSKI OPTIK dS.

SWAROVSKI OPTIK dS: Traditional Scope with Modern Technology

Picking on the dS, it looks like a normal scope, works like a normal rifle scope and has many of the usual features you’d expect to see on a rifle scope – variable magnification, adjustable parallax and an illuminated reticle.

However, the dS has an added advantage thanks to its built in ballistic solver. Press one button on the dS and it will range the target you are looking at and automatically present an adjusted aiming point on the crosshairs. There is a degree of tech-savvyness required to setup the dS, but thanks to the proprietary Swarovski app that accompanies the dS it certainly isn't as complex as its full digital counterparts. 

Reliability in the Field

Aside from increased simplicity (compared to a full digital scope) there is another significant advantage to crossover scopes, like the dS, in that it isn't so reliant on technology that it becomes unusable if the electronics fail.

If a battery fails or runs out of power on a digital scope whilst you’re in the field you are fairly scuppered. However, with something like the dS even if the electronic element stops working for some reason the rest of the scope is still usable and you can carry on shooting. 

Buy the Best You Can Afford

Regardless of whether you opt for a traditional glass scope, a digital scope or a crossover scope two things remain true – firstly, buy the best you can afford at the time as this will prevent false economy later. Secondly, buy a reputable brand.

Across all of the variants of rifle scopes cheap poorly made optics from previously unheard of brands are being brought to the market, some of which are offering unbelievable value for money. However, I would urge you to consider whether the manufacturer will be able to offer you any aftercare or honour their warranty promises. Its why a brand like SWAROVSKI OPTIK will always get my vote – their customer care is unparalleled within the optics market, making an investment into a piece of equipment like a dS much less daunting.