And here is the burris

 

I’ll take some more pics through the burris at 9x. But the difference is astounding in my opinion. The gun with the bushnell WAS my go to late night critter getter, but I’ve swapped up places with the two seeing the difference in clarity for night shots on armadillos.

 

I have a couple Burris scopes and a spotter, all bought used in good shape, clear and bright. I did have an issue with the spotter, and Burris sent me a new one under the lifetime no hassle warranty. I had a Bushnell Trophy optic go bad and I had to pay a reduced by 20% replacement price plus shipping. That is a big difference right there. I have a Bushnell TRS-25 and the Trophy, OK but nothing special to be sure.

 

I might contact bushnell, I doubt this is normal for this scope now that I think about it. At 9x it gets so distorted that it does something to me while looking through it. Maybe “fatigue” is how I can describe it. It’s like I have to try too hard to see through it and try and focus on my target. It’s quite annoying. The burris in the other hand, I can look through it no problem.

 

Not bad on the pictures I know how much of a pain it is to get one good one.

Signalman 🚦

 

These days if I buy Bushnell it is the Elite series. Much better glass. I have several Burris scopes. They are as the OP mentioned clear and doesn’t lose sharpness with higher magnifications.

Like in photography, the variable power scope is like a zoom lens. Good glass and engineering to reduce or prevent a soft image throughout a zoom range costs money. Burris seems to be a good middle ground for glass quality and cost.

 

I was blown away by a Burris Fullfield IV 6-24 x 50, 30mm tube I bought late last year. I thought it was a Philippine made scope, but when it showed up it was China. I was disappointed, until I used it, really nice sub $400 scope. Moved it to my ultimate 10/22 last week to replace a Weaver 40/44 that is Philippine made but the reticle is thick.

 

Bushnell has decent scopes but their customer service is almost non-existent. Therefore I stay away from them. Burris is quality products across the board. JMHO

 

The

bad thing is I found a burris rimfire illuminated scope last night that I really like. Bummer

 

I agree with the comments on Burris. I own a couple and are very pleased with them. I have a Fullfield II 4.5-14 on my 22-250 coyote rifle, this scope has been on there for about 12 years and around 500 rounds fired. I have slipped on an icy slope and fallen on the rifle/scope and it just never loses zero. It makes great use of the available light at dawn and dusk. I use this combo here in Michigan in the winter in temps from 0 to 40°, it never fogs, always clear. This scope has been a testament to Burris quality. My other Burris leads a pampered life on a rimfire that only goes out on good weather days.
I guess the fullfield isn’t really a “budget” scope, but I would still recommend a Burris.

 

I think most of what Bushnell sells now is made in China. That sucks. At least Burris's lower end is made in the Philippines.

 

Not my experience. I bought a Fullfield IV 6-24x50 30mm tube late last year when CameralandNY had a sale and my research indicated it would be Philippine manufacture, but it has a China sticker on the bottom, box had no country of manufacture listed. It is still a really nice scope though, very crisp turrets and the glass is quite nice.

This one: Product Description

 

so if any of you were on a budget, but looking for a decent, cheap illuminated scope, would you pay $105 shipped for a new bushnell 3x-9x-40 illuminated rimfire scope? Or spend $300 on a burris? It’s just a .22 night plinker (pests at night)

 

I'm just jealous that you have so many "night pests" you are building a rifle just for them.

 

Here is a Mueller 3-9-40 illuminated scope that I would take hands down over a Bushnell. I have several Mueller scopes. Very good budget scopes.

Mueller Sport Dot Rifle Scope 3-9x 40mm Illuminated #4 Reticle Matte

Mueller Sport Dot Rifle Scopes are designed for the big game hunter. They are built to withstand heavy recoil and feature a glass-etched reticle and...

www.midwayusa.com

 

I bought a Burris Droptine rimfire 3-9x last year for about $120 iirc. I was very pleased with it and like it better than the discontinued Nikon Rimfire scopes that I was using on my Marlin semi-autos.

 

I used to swear by Bushnell golf range finders until I needed warranty on one. After a two month run-around and shipping costs and never getting any help at all, I finally gave up and bought another brand that was cheaper and got better reviews. Same experience on a scope I had on a rimfire that was supposed to have a lifetime warranty. The whole ocular bell came loose. After a month of trying, i gave up and went with another brand. Much happier with both.

 

Thanks for the info and the effort.

Things change so fast these days with optics that it's hard to keep up.

 

Burris no BS warranty is all you need to know but I have not had an issue with one yet. Comparing Burris to Bushnell is like comparing oranges to apple and Burris got them beat period.

 

mpolk has a good point with Mueller, they also have some nice scopes.

 

I need some guidance. I really would like an illuminated scope. I have an illuminated bug buster but it’s not near as nice as my bushnell so I’m not interested in getting another one of those now. The burris and bushnell have spoiled me. A burris illuminated is $200+ and I don’t like the reticle offering and it’s not really got a rimfire. But bushnell offers this: Buy Rimfire 3-9x40 Riflescope Illuminated and More | Bushnell
And I can get it for $95 shipped….advice? I’ve read mostly good about it.

 

I've had good luck with Bushnell in the past but am taking a break from them. We purchased a couple of Bushnell Trophy 6-18x50 scopes direct from them, one in July and the other in August last year and the latter would not adjust on our 1022 Carbine. We sent the scope back and was told it couldn't be repaired but would be replaced. The unfortunate thing the replacement wouldn't be in stock until after the 1st of this year. The brand new replacement arrived a month or so ago so I carried the rifle and scope to my gun dealer buddy's range this week to check out the rifle and mount the scope. Neither of us could get the scope to sight in even after swapping rings and trying to shim it.

I called Bushnell yesterday, explained the problem and asked if we could just return it and get a refund. The rep looked at the original sale ticket, lab return ticket for inspection, shipment date of the replacement scope and said yes I could return it and they would refund the original selling price paid. He emailed me a return label and per his instructions I also packed a copy of the original sale ticket, case number and Lab ticket of the 1st scope returned so it's under the carport scheduled for FedEx to pick up today. Now I need another scope so may try a lower tier Athlon Neos or Talos on the 1022 since the Athlon Argus BTR GEN2 10-40x56 BLR is fantastic on my 457 Varmint MTR.

 

I have been using Burris scopes for decades now and I am a big fan of Burris, everything from the Black Diamond down to the timberline is all good quality good clarity. I am also a fan of the higher end Bushnell scopes. Never trophy never banner. But the elites, the nitros and even the engage are all good scopes.

 

So no on the bushnell? The only thing it’ll be used for is shooting armadillos at night. I have a banner dusk till dawn on it now.

 

I have a Bushnell Trophy 6-18x50 on my old Marlin 881 that I periodically use to hunt raccoons at night using a scope mounted light, it is still doing fine but if it starts giving trouble I'm looking elsewhere.

 

Man. I just went to Walmart and they had one of those illuminated bushnell in stock. I checked it out and it doesn’t do the blurry thing my banner does. Around 7x or 8x it starts getting really blurry and if I focus it, the reticle gets really blurry. The one at the store is crisp and clear the whole time. I think I’m gonna order one and when it comes in, send my banner to bushnell and have it fixed. I just remembered as I’m typing this, I have a .308 bolt action my brother gave me to cut and recrown the barrel and it has a banner on it too. I’ll check and see if it does the same thing. I just shot my .22 with three different types of ammo to see if it hits on target the same with all three and I realized just how bad the banner gets at 7x and up.

 

Well as much as I wanted another burris, I had to settle for another bushnell. I can’t afford what I really want right now and I was impressed with what I saw at Walmart yesterday. I think maybe mine is just flawed. I’ll let you guys know when the new one comes in plus I have a gun I can put the banner on anyways.

 

Got a notification my scope arrived today. I'm going to attempt to sight it in tonight and let you guys know if the clarity is better than the dusk to dawn banner I have....

 

Ok. Got the new scope sighted in. So….

at first during daylight I compared the two bushnell scopes. The new illuminated scope was noticeably clearer at 9x.
I sighted it in and let me tell you I was impressed at how easy it was to dial in. Ever sighted in a rifle and you move the dials and the bullet just doesn’t go where you think it should in the next shot only to move the turrents more and it does make a difference or even goes backwards? Well I have. Probably Due to most of the scopes I’ve had are junk. Lol. Well it made the exact changes I was expecting.
I wasn’t quite convinced after shooting the target after sundown with a stream light mounted on the rifle. Still seemed maybe a little blurry. But, I was fighting it in at 25 yards at 9x. Over kill. Back it to 7 or 8 and it’s clear. Now its pitch dark. I went grabbed the at-one rifle with the burris on it. Started looking at things. One thing was quite apparent, the bushnell is definitely brighter in low light. This scope I’m able to focus and still see the crosshairs, so there may be something off with the banner scope. It’s good enough to use on something else that’s not purposed like these two rifles. I have the exact same flashlight mounted to both rifkes, so the light is a same comparison. I did get some pics through the new bushnell.

 

No one ever seems to talk about scope weight when comparing scopes. I like a good scope and as light as possible. Easier to find ones that weigh 20 oz. or more. Ok for bench shooting; not so much for carrying.

 

The three scopes I’ve mentioned all weigh around 15oz.

(All scopes are 3x-9x-40)
Bushnell rimfire illuminated: 15.4oz
Bushnell banner 3x-9x-40 13oz
Burris droptine: 13oz