Hi all,
I'm ideally after a Simmons WTC 1.5-5x20 but was wondering what else is out there that is similar and spring gun rated? If there is one with a higher mag that would be ideal, so what's out there please? Many thanks.
Hi all,
I'm ideally after a Simmons WTC 1.5-5x20 but was wondering what else is out there that is similar and spring gun rated? If there is one with a higher mag that would be ideal, so what's out there please? Many thanks.
Sometimes I sits and thinks, but mostly I just sits.
Don't be tempted by the BSA Advanced 1-4×24
I got one in a sale because a £100~ scope with those specs looked comparable - It's not
Personally, I wouldn't get a scope below a 40mm object lens, 20mm just doesnt let enough light in...I have recently bought the 3-12X40 by Atom, bought from Amazon for £50, and I absolutly love it.
Lol! I've compared my little whitetails with lots of other scopes in low light & none come near it's light gathering abilities. Also people tend to forget the higher the mag on a zoom scope the less light & smaller fov it can have.
Last edited by junglie; 26-02-2018 at 01:29 PM.
I've managed to snag a Simmons wtc 1.5-5x20 I've read nothing but good things about these scopes so really looking forward to giving it a try.
Sometimes I sits and thinks, but mostly I just sits.
I'm not sure if they're available new any more but 'Rhino' did a 1.5-4x26 and another model up to x10 mag in a 26mm lens. I have a 1.5-4x26 and like it a lot. May be worth keeping an eye out for one s/h.
The Simmons used to be the best available in that category but for current scopes I rate the Nikon Pro Staff 2~7x32 very highly. The Simmons is still very popular and come up quite regularly on here selling for £75-85 depending on condition. I paid £100 for my boxed Pro Staff in really nice condition.. Mine actually has the BDC reticule but most of them around in the UK have 30:30 reticules . You can pay more as most of the top end makers offer something around that spec so as usual it will depend on your budget and what you want to use it for.
Funnily enough I also recently bought a Leapers 2~7x32 scope with mildot for only £30 and that is almost as good as the Nikon but with a more useful reticule than 30:30.
'It may be that your sole purpose in life is to serve as a warning to others'.
Another cracking little scope of a similar ilk is the Simmons Expedition 1.5-7x32 which is also no longer made but crops up now again secondhand !
I manged to get one of these for a Fenman and wouldn't mind another !
A higher price bracket but superb scope is the Vortex Diamondback 2-8x32 dead hold BDC !
“An airgun or two”………
With apologies to the OP and others I would just like to make a few points clear. The ' light gathering ' ability of a classic optical instrument such as a scope is only a function of its aperture. The magnification determines the exit pupil which illuminates the light recpticles of the human eye and for all intents and purposes and exit pupil of 7 mm is optimal which fully illuminates the recpticles.
A scope of 5X26 mm will have a theoretical exit pupil of 26/5= 5.2 mm, in the case of an 8X56mm scope it will be 56/5=7mm which is optimal. What we sometimes mistakenly refer to as light gathering is actually the transmisiblity of the scope or its light transmition factor. Manufacturers do not publish this figure but I would hazard a guess that in the case of cheap high zoom ratio scopes this is around 70% mark. The more elements the scope has the more light is lost through scatter and in order to minimise light loss highly polished lenses with exotic glass and sophisticated coatings (on all light receiving surfaces and not just the front element ) are required which means caughing up a lot of money .
I am sure that you have heard that in order to judge the performance of a scope it should be tested in very challenging lighting conditions and here mega box scopes score high because they transmit more of the gathered light. Scopes with small apertures also scatter less light and have greater apparent depth of field which gives the impression that they are bright and sharp. This may not be the case in reality but the impression is there. Just wanted to make matters a little more clear.
Regards,
A.G
Simmons WTF are dammed good scopes do not go near the BSA jobs they are China made and crap. Also try and avoid the Bay most scopes a knock offs.