What is the Best long eye relief scope? Read on as we discover the best Scopes with long eye relief.
Eye relief refers to the distance between your eye and the scope where the full field of view is visible and which prevents your eye from being hit by recoil from guns with high recoil. In certain situations, scopes with long eye relief tend to be more effective than high-powered scopes.
Scopes with long eye relief are ideal for high caliber guns where inadequate eye relief scopes can lead to scope eye and in older firearms that weren’t designed with any optics mounting in mind.
They are also the only scopes that can be used for handguns since you need a lot of eye relief to correctly position a handgun for shooting.
With so many scopes available nothing beats those with long eye relief. To be considered as long eye relief scope, the scope should at least have an eye relief of 6 inches. We have reviewed some of the best scopes with long eye relief that are available on the market
Here is a quick look at the best Scopes with Long Eye Relief
1) Leupold VX-3 Handgun 2.5-8x33mm Rifle Scope |
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2) Hi-Lux Optics 2-7x32mm Rifle Scope |
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| 3) Burris Scout 2-7x32mm Rifle Scope
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| 4) Burris Handgun 2-7x32mm Rifle Scope
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| 5) Leapers UTG 2-7x44mm Scout Rifle Scope
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| 6) Vortex Crossfire II 2-7x32mm Scout Rifle Scope
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Best Long Eye Relief Scopes
1) Burris Scout 2-7x32mm Rifle Scope
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2) Vortex Crossfire II 2-7×32 Scout
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This Vortex scope feature has an outstanding eye relief of 9.45” which is able to keep you safe from heavy-duty gun recoil. It is specially designed for discriminating hunters and shooters as it provides the highest levels of performance and reliability. It features fully multi-coated lenses that enhance light transmission as well as resettable MOA turrets that can be reset to zero after sighting in. Its fast-focus eyepiece allows quick and easy reticle focusing. Its body is built from a hard-anodized aircraft-grade aluminum single-piece tube that ensures strength and durability and is nitrogen-purged and O-ring sealed to deliver waterproof and fog-proof performance. You can, therefore, use the scope in any weather conditions. It also features an SFP reticle which means that it always maintains the same appearance even after changing the magnification. Features
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3) Leupold VX-3 2.5- 8×32 mm Handgun Scope
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This Leupold VX-3 2.5- 8x32mm Handgun Scope is completely waterproof, shockproof, and fog proof. It features an outstanding eye relief of 15 inches which keeps you safe from heavy-duty gun recoil. Designed, machined, and assembled in the USA, this rifle scope guarantees you rugged reliability in any shooting activity you will be engaged in. To cater to its long eye relief, this scope features Twilight Light Management System which delivers clarity and brightness by balancing light transmission, glare reduction, and image contrast and resolution providing the shooter with a crystal clear image in any lighting condition. This scope is also designed to withstand impacts and its Duplex reticle enhances quick target acquisition. Features
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4) Burris Handgun 2-7x32mm
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This Burris Handgun 2-7x32mm Ballistic Plex Reticle Pistol Scope is the best long eye relief pistol scope for those who prefer hunting using a handgun. This is a tough and rough scope as it features a double internal spring-tension system therefore it has the ability to hold for harsh recoil up to 50BMG. It is also resistant to shock, impacts as well as vibrations. Its 2x low-end magnification offers quick target acquisition plus a large field of view. You can trust its 7x zoom at the top to provide you with great accuracy at handgun stretching distance. Its 11-21 inches eye relief means that you can aim without fear of getting your eye hit by high recoil guns. The clicks of this scope are quiet which means that they can’t alert the prey of your presence. Lastly, this scope is nitrogen purged and O-ring sealed to deliver waterproof and fog-proof performance. Features
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5) Leupold FX-II Scout 2.5x28mm Duplex
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The relentless performance of this Leupold FX-II Scout 2.5x28mm Duplex makes it the ideal choice for scout rifles and lever action rifles. Designed, machined, and assembled in the USA, this rifle scope guarantees you rugged reliability wherever you decide to take it. It is nitrogen purged and O-ring sealed to deliver waterproof and fog-proof performance and impact tested and verified. Just like other Leupold scopes, this scope features Twilight Light Management System which minimizes glare for premium edge-to-edge image quality. Its lightweight design disperses recoil energy for unrivaled durability and performance with its ultra-lightweight construction. Features
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Choosing the Best Long Eye Relief Scope
When looking for the Best long eye relief scope, it is important to consider the following basic factors which come in handy with long eye relief rifle scopes.
Objective lens size
Objective lenses in any scope are responsible for letting as much light into the scope as possible.
In long eye relief scopes, a large objective lens isn’t a must and all you require is an objective lens that allows adequate light to give you a clear sight picture even when your eye is half a foot away from the scope.
Durability
Ensure that the scope you choose is capable of handling the rough terrain and recoil from your firearm as well as your style of hunting or shooting.
The ideal scope must stay zeroed, stay dependable regardless of the weather conditions, and still remain accurate. To enhance durability, some scopes are O-ring sealed to keep them watertight and gas purged with either nitrogen or argon to eliminate fogging in the interior chambers of the scope.
Other factors that enhance the durability of any scope include construction materials. Scopes made from aircraft-grade aluminum and single-piece tube bodies improve a scope’s long time life of use.
Usage and environment
The other consideration to have in mind when selecting the ideal scope with long eye relief is to determine what you are going to use it for and where you are going to be using it.
You can find a scope that is of help in a certain situation but a liability in another. Extreme weather conditions, extreme temperature, humidity, and moisture conditions are some of the environmental conditions to keep in mind as well.
Magnification power
Long eye relief scopes tend to have a smaller magnification compared with short eye relief scopes. To determine how much magnification you will need, consider your intended shooting range and the size of your target.
The farther the target is, the greater the magnification power you will require.
For competition shooting for 500 yards, 20x+ power is ideal. With zoom ratios of 6:1 becoming popular on spotting scopes, you can take advantage of true 3-28x power scopes that can be able to cover all the bases you need for either close or long-range shots.
Scopes with greater magnification power cost more than those that cannot zoom in as much.
Reticle
When it comes to selecting a reticle, there are numerous reticle options in design, layout, as well as features such as illumination, color, and caliber optimization.
First, you will need a reticle that will be able to provide harsh marks of some kind in either MOA or MILs that will enable you to compensate for both windage and elevation.
An illuminated reticle is recommended if you plan on shooting in low-light conditions. Illuminated reticles are versatile but normally increase the cost of the scope. They also need batteries, so keep that in mind if you decide to take that route.
Selecting the right reticle really comes down to personal preference. The difference between the dot and the cross-hair won’t change the performance of your rifle but one or another way may be personally preferred.
Long Eye Relief Scope FAQs
- What is eye relief?
Eye relief is the distance between the eyepiece lenses to where the exit pupil is actually positioned for a full view. Scopes with long eye relief make observing through the scope for longer periods of time easier and less tiring. It also makes it easy for people wearing glasses to use a rifle scope.
- Does eye relief change with magnification?
Yes, it does. Typically, when you are using a variable scope, you will have a range of eye relief. The higher the magnification, the shorter the eye relief and vice versa.
- What magnification will I need?
Generally, the type of scope magnification that you should get depends on what you will be using the rifle the most for. For instance, choose a hunting scope that you don’t have to tweak to get a good sight picture, therefore a fixed magnification is the ideal choice.
- Which objective lens size is ideal for my scope?
The size of a scopes’ objective lens determines the width of the field of view that the scope can see. The shooting activity you are engaging in will determine the ideal objective lens for your scope. Smaller objective lenses are ideal for shooting activities such as game hunting and target shooting whereas a larger objective lens is best suited for shooting activities such as bird shooting and mobile targets.
Long Eye Relief Scope Advantages
- Wide field of view. Long eye relief allows you to mount your scope further up on the rifle which enables you to shoot even with both your eyes wide open.
- Quick target acquisition. Shooting with both eyes open enables you to acquire the target easily.
- Relaxed shooting posture. Long eye relief scopes allow for a more natural shooting position.
- Forward mounting. Having the ability to rapidly reload a bolt action can make a huge difference when taking a second shot at a moving target.
Long Eye Relief Scope Disadvantages
- Limited magnification levels. Scopes with long eye relief have smaller magnifications compared with small eye relief scopes. They will not hit more than a power of 6-8.
- It requires lengthy rail space for mounting.
Conclusion
Having a long eye relief scope is a requirement if you own a rifle that has strong recoil. It enables you to aim properly without worrying about your eye getting hit during recoil.
When looking for a long eye relief scope, always look out for one with at least 6 inches of eye relief. We hope that this review helps you find the ideal long-eye relief scope.