Long Eye Relief Hunting Rifle Scope

[Bigbull]

Hey guys,

Does anybody have a recommendation for a good rifle hunting scope with a longer eye relief?

I have a fairly light 300 win mag rifle and it kicks enough that the scope grazes my brow. I really don't want to be getting scoped, so I am looking for a rifle scope with a longer eye relief at maximum zoom. The scope I currently have has a rated eye relief of 3.7 inches at maximum magnification, and that is not enough. I mostly hunt elk and shoot up to about 600 yards. I would like to stay under $1,000.

Any input is appreciated.

Thanks

 

[MidGAHunter]

I think 3.7 inches is pretty good for eye relief. Some may have recommendations on scopes with longer eye relief but seems like most scopes at max magnification tend to be in the 3.5 to 3.8 inch range. If 3.7 isn't enough I think you may have a hard time finding something with significantly more unless you buy something with way more magnification than you need and back it down. Assuming your shooting technique isn't the culprit, maybe consider putting a brake on the rifle too.

 

[Bigbull]

I think 3.7 inches is pretty good for eye relief. Some may have recommendations on scopes with longer eye relief but seems like most scopes at max magnification tend to be in the 3.5 to 3.8 inch range. If 3.7 isn't enough I think you may have a hard time finding something with significantly more unless you buy something with way more magnification than you need and back it down. Assuming your shooting technique isn't the culprit, maybe consider putting a brake on the rifle too.

In my research, I was finding similar numbers for typical hunting scopes. Might need a break

 

[Steve_in_OR]

I don't know if it will get you to 600 yards, but a Leupold 6x42 has about 4.5 inches of eye relief. Also had a Vortex 1.5-8 HD LH Razor that had a lot of eye relief. The 2-10 HD LH I have now seems to have plenty but its only on a lightweight 270Win.
Good luck,
Steve

 

[gr8fuldoug]

In Leupold: 3.7/3.8 low/high on VX-5 and VX-6’s

In Athlon, for this application, I would recommend the Midas HMR as it has 3.9” Eye Relief for 2.5-15x.

The Steiner GS3 series has 3.5-4.3"

 

[Bcowette]

I have a trijicon acupoint 2.5 -12.5 and it has a stated 4 inches of fixed eye relief. I think it could even be more. It's the nicest scope I've ever owned.

 

[jakelogsdon]

If you get too far out there ambient lighting can become an issue with glare in the right sunlight.

 

[GLB]

Most scopes has a 3.5- 3.7 on the eye relief and a few with 4. Some of the Vortex scopes usually run a longer eye relief. I have the same problem and a shorter LOP stock helps me get the proper eye relief I need. If you have to push your head forward to get proper eye relief your stock maybe to long.

The stock should fit you in a way that with the butt seated in the pocket of the shoulder the head should be relaxed on the stock with no tension as if you were falling to sleep.

 

[Dave0317]

GLB makes a good point about not reaching forward with your head on a long stock.

the other thing to consider is if your stock is too short, it may be putting your head closer than you need and making hard to get to the back edge of your eye relief. Related to that, the scope might need to be moved forward. Especially if you are shooting prone which puts your head in a leaned forward position.

assuming all of that has been considered, I would say your form might have room for improvement.
Make sure the stock is firmly in your shoulder pocket, pull the stock into your shoulder with your left hand, or if shooting off bipods, load the bipod by scooting your hips forward into the rifle. If the rifle is tight into your shoulder, it can’t push into your body as much.

 

[Bigbull]

GLB makes a good point about not reaching forward with your head on a long stock.

the other thing to consider is if your stock is too short, it may be putting your head closer than you need and making hard to get to the back edge of your eye relief. Related to that, the scope might need to be moved forward. Especially if you are shooting prone which puts your head in a leaned forward position.

assuming all of that has been considered, I would say your form might have room for improvement.
Make sure the stock is firmly in your shoulder pocket, pull the stock into your shoulder with your left hand, or if shooting off bipods, load the bipod by scooting your hips forward into the rifle. If the rifle is tight into your shoulder, it can’t push into your body as much.

Thanks for the responses guys. Prone position is primarily where the issue is. Most of my practice shooting is off a pack with jackets, etc...to try and simulate a real hunting situation. This some times means that I don’t have the ideal rest. I have considered using a bipod to avoid this but I don’t like the extra weight because I tend to hike pretty good distances. Plus, it make shooting off hand a little tough. With that said, I have been reconsidering.
As obvious as it may seem, I never thought about the fact that maybe I am holding it a little too loose and allowing the gun to travel further backwards. Also, the stock may be a little long because I do have to stretch my neck forward a bit. I have mounted the scope as far forward and as far back as possible but there was little difference.

I will keep working at it

 

[fleming007]

ACCUFIRE NOCTIS V1 should fit in this price. I personally use it. It is not the cheapest scope but it has the nice image quality and can work for 5 hours. Video can be recorded with 1920×1080 resolution. Night vision mode is fine and can provide you multiple colors for viewing. Included IR-illuminator gives the possibility to see clearly at 300 yards. https://under-reviews.com/top-5-digital-rifle-scopes/ helped me very much to choose the right scope. Strongly recommend paying attention to this review, it should help you.

 

[DropTyne]

I put a Tract Toric 2-10×42 on my lightweight 30-06, which is all the recoil I care for. It has a constant eye relief of 4". It also has very repeatable tracking and great lenses for low light. Plus, it should hold up to the recoil abuse your rifle will dish out. It is well below your price limit.

FWIW, prone position is rarely an option for me during my hunts, primarily because of the height of the grass/ground cover. This may certainly differ for you with the areas you hunt. I have pretty good luck using my pack as a rest when needed. A packframe is typically tall enough to use while sitting, provides a solid rest, and eliminates the need to haul around a bipod and/or shoot from prone.

Also, you may want to consider downsizing in cartridge. A 300 certainly isn't warranted. There are many fine cartridges available with less recoil that will cleanly take an elk. Chances are they will give you a better rifle platform to haul around as well. Everyone, regardless if they admit it, will shoot rifles with less recoil more accurately than they can big boomers. You will be hard pressed to find a good scope with more than 4" of eye relief at max magnification that will fill your needs.

Good luck!

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

My T3X in 300 Win Mag and VX6HD weighs 8 pounds. The scope has eye relief (low) is 3.7" and high is 3.8". I've shot it from many funky positions and not been scoped. Take a look at your form and/or look at a muzzle brake if that floats your boat.

 

[Bater]

My Razor LHT has LOOONNGGG eye relief throughout the mag range, they can be had for $800-$1000. IMO the best scope in its price range for western hunting.

 

[30338]

Got a pic of how you have the current scope mounted?

 

[maj]

According to Vortex website, the older Razor LH and newer LHT all have 3.8 inches eye relief. OP-- if you have any interest in a new 2-10x40 LH, PM me (although I'm not sure the extra .1" would help much...)

 

[gmeek]

I have a Meopta Meopro 4.5-14x44 (89mm/3.5" of eye relief) on a light weight Tikka 300WM and I have not come close to getting kissed by it. Knock on wood!!

 

[Motown]

I put a Tract Toric 2-10×42 on my lightweight 30-06, which is all the recoil I care for. It has a constant eye relief of 4". It also has very repeatable tracking and great lenses for low light. Plus, it should hold up to the recoil abuse your rifle will dish out. It is well below your price limit.

FWIW, prone position is rarely an option for me during my hunts, primarily because of the height of the grass/ground cover. This may certainly differ for you with the areas you hunt. I have pretty good luck using my pack as a rest when needed. A packframe is typically tall enough to use while sitting, provides a solid rest, and eliminates the need to haul around a bipod and/or shoot from prone.

Also, you may want to consider downsizing in cartridge. A 300 certainly isn't warranted. There are many fine cartridges available with less recoil that will cleanly take an elk. Chances are they will give you a better rifle platform to haul around as well. Everyone, regardless if they admit it, will shoot rifles with less recoil more accurately than they can big boomers. You will be hard pressed to find a good scope with more than 4" of eye relief at max magnification that will fill your needs.

Good luck!

I also have a Tract Toric but in a 3-15. This scope has become one of my favorites and the 4” eye relief is very helpful as well. It is great in low light situations and I will be adding a few more of them to my collection shortly. The T-plex reticle is also one of the best I have ever used as it is bold and easy to see in low light but not too thick.