Why You Should Hunt with a Fixed-Power Scope

The thing is, you don’t always need a big scope to go hunting, and you don’t need all of that zoom. The more complicated your scope is, the more it can actually get in the way. To save on weight and complications, there’s one good choice, and that’s the fixed-power scope.

Fixed power scopes offer many advantages, which I’ll get into below. Unfortunately, there aren’t a lot of new fixed-power scopes on the market. If you’ve considered tracking one down, or you’re not a believer yet, here are a few reasons why you might want to buck the long-range trend and go with a fixed-power.

Running a fixed-power scope around 4X or 6X should have you covered on shots out to around 250 yards as long as you do your part.

Simply put, with a fixed-power scope, you don’t get any zoom or variable power. They come from the factory at a set power level and parallax that the manufacturer feels is most practical for the application. With the rise of electronic optics, you might see a lot of fixed power red-dot and reflex sights. But there are fixed-power hunting and target scopes, too.

Fixed-power scopes range in magnification from 2.5X to 4X to even 10X. Some dangerous game hunters and guides actually prefer fixed power 2.5X scopes as there is less to go wrong, and they know their shots are going to be within 100 yards. In general, a 6X scope is the most versatile for hunting. If you know what you’re doing, you can use a scope like this out to around 250 yards and still have enough low-end magnification for quick shots under 50 yards. Fixed-powers of around 4X are also popular on rimfire rifles, as most shots are taken within 50 yards.

The Burris Scout 2.75x20mm is one of the best options for a scout rifle. Even though it offers no variable power, its light weight keeps your rifle from becoming muzzle-heavy.

Right off the bat, a fixed-power scope is going to save you a bit on weight. Variable-power scopes are slightly heavier because they have more stuff inside of them to increase the power. With a fixed power, you don’t have any of that stuff, and typically you’ll save around an ounce or two when compared to a similar optic. For example, a Hawke 4x32mm fixed power weighs around 11.1 ounces. Compare that to a Vortex Diamondback 2-7x35mm at 14.2 ounces.

There are ultralight variable-power scopes (like a Leupold VX-3HD, which weighs just 11.8 ounces), and you could just set one at medium power and leave it there, but there’s always a temptation to crank up the magnification, and that can complicate things later in your hunt.

Having less glass in your scope will also help with light transmission. Fixed-powers really shine at first and last light, and you can have a brighter scope for less money than you’d spend on a variable-power scope.

There’s also less to go wrong on a fixed-power scope. Take this scenario for example. You’re cranked up to 15X for a shot on a deer. You hit the buck, and he goes down, but when you walk up to him, he gets back up. You raise your rifle for a follow-up shot, but all you can see is a big brown splotch of deer hair. In all of the excitement, you forgot to crank the power back down on your scope, and it’s useless for a close-range shot. You fiddle with the scope, and the buck runs off. None of this would happen with a fixed-power optic.

Fixed-power scopes also allow you to see more of what happens after the shot. On a recent hunt in Africa, I shot an impala at 100 yards. When I lifted my head from the rifle, the impala was gone. I was lucky to have a PH with me, who told me the animal was down 40 yards from where I shot him, but my scope was cranked way up, and I couldn’t see which direction it ran under recoil.

Compare that to a day I spent at the range with a former Ranger Sniper about a year ago. We were shooting his fixed 10X Leupold on a 308 out to 1,000 yards. Whether it was a shot at 200 yards or 1,000 yards, I could still hit my targets, and more importantly, I could see my misses. Even under recoil, I could see bullets hit the ground and adjust for wind. The same would be true when shooting an animal. Under a low-power like 6X, at 200 yards, it’s easy to see how an animal reacts to a shot, and this can give you a huge edge when trying to find that animal afterward.

A fixed 2.75X scope is perfect for quick shots at close range.

At first, it feels weird to go out hunting without the ability to crank up the power on your scope. And that’s the main disadvantage of a fixed power. You’re locked into whatever power the factory thought would be good for hunting. On long shots around 400 yards and up, a 6X could leave you feeling under-scoped. But I think we need to be a little more honest about how far we really shoot game, and how we can use a little boot leather to get closer.

On that same trip to Africa, I took seven animals. It was like having several years of big-game shooting data crammed into one. The biggest thing I noticed was that all of my shots were under or right around 200 yards. Toward the end of the trip, I didn’t even touch my scope. I just set it to 6X and went hunting.

Thinking back over all of the big game animals I’ve shot, I can only think of one I had to take at around 300 yards. I’ve shot competitively out to 800 yards, and, with help from a spotter, made hits on steel out to 1 mile. But I feel like I’ve had more fun stalking close to game than picking animals off at long range. Though a fixed power might take long shots off the table, personally, I’m happy not to have the option.

The other disadvantage would be cranking down to low-end magnification for close shots in the woods. I’ve done some snap-shooting tests with this at 6X and found it was no problem to get hits at 25 yards at that power. Still, at 1X or 3X, it’s way easier to take a quick close-range shot. Where I hunt deer in the Catskill Mountains, the farthest shot is around 75 yards, with the majority falling somewhere between 40 and 60 yards.

I could easily set up a rifle with 2.5X or 4X fixed-power for this kind of terrain and, with quick-detach rings, convert it to a 6X, 8X, or variable-power scope for more open country. Sure, there are some downsides to this, but I’d take them to save on weight and get a little more light in my scope in dark timber.