fatrap,
Thanks. I had stated my function above in response to Rich's post -
It's looking like a bench target gun, but will probably be an all around plinker.
By that, I mean it will probably spend most of it's time on the range, but I'm not opposed to taking it out with my family for some plinking.
I'm by no means a competition smallbore shooter. I'm a guy who likes to take a nice rifle to the range for some friendly quarterly competition with the guys in my shop. I also use my smaller calibers to practice shooting skills without blowing through lots of $$$ in ammo, as well as avoiding further damage to an already aging and damaged right shoulder.
I wish I could use iron sights. I used them for half my life on my favorite .22 rifle - my Remington 552 Speedmaster. However, recently I have not been able to focus on iron sights like I used to. My optomitrist and others on these boards have explained that I am simply getting older and therefore my eyes do not have the elasticity they used to - making it more difficult to focus on iron sights. Therefore, even my lever action .30-30 got a scope last year... which I REALLY did not want to do.
I do not like buying $50 scopes anymore. I went that route... trying to save a couple pennies here and there. I seldom was happy with the results. However, I also do not like spending more on a scope than I paid for the rifle, which I realize a lot of people do.
I'm a "$100 to $200" kind of scope guy. I don't shoot long distances - seldom do I ever take a shot over a 100 yards. Just not my "comfort zone".
I was dead set on getting a VX-1 last year for my lever action. I've always wanted a Leupold. I don't know why... Probably "Name recognition" and my buddy Rich constantly telling me that they were "the" scope to have. When I finally put money aside and was dead-set to get one - the Bass Pro Shops employee handed me both the VX-1 and the Nikon Pro Staff and had me do a side by side comparison - without talking about price on either. I walked out of the store with the Nikon after scoping all the big game animals across BPS San Antonio.
The most expensive scopes I've ever purchased were a Simmons Aetec, which does a wonderful job on my .270 Remington 700ADL, and a Nikon ProStaff, which adorns my .30-30 Marlin. They are clear, precise scopes that do a great job for me.
A while back, I got hooked on Bushnell Banner Dusk & Dawn scopes. At the time, I thought they were perfect for my tasks, and they were for several years. After getting my Nikon ProStaff and using it quite a bit, I changed my mind and started selling them off - all 3 of them. Not a bad scope... just not as good as the Nikon ProStaff was for me.