Choosing a Rifle Scope for .22LR Sport Shooting
Shooting as a Passion
I've loved shooting since childhood. I first visited a shooting range at around 12 years old, but after a while I turned to other sports and didn't deal with shooting for years. There were several reasons for this:
- The extremely complicated firearms licensing process.
- The lack of suitable shooting ranges.
- The general public's aversion to firearms – mostly because they know virtually nothing about shooting sports.
- And as I mentioned, other sports started to interest me.
Return to Shooting
I came back to shooting a few years ago when I stumbled into the world of HFT (Hunter Field Target) competition – and I was hooked immediately. Air rifle competition made me fall in love with the sport so much that I also opened up to live-fire shooting. That naturally meant getting a firearms licence and finding a suitable rifle.
At first I wanted a .308 or a 6.5 Creedmoor, but I quickly realised that the ammunition costs wouldn't be sustainable in the long run.
The .22LR – a Compromise That Worked Out
As a compromise I went with a .22LR – and I haven't regretted it. It's an ideal calibre for sport shooting: easy to handle, a friendly rifle that makes shooting a genuine pleasure.
When choosing the specific rifle I relied mainly on the opinions of my fellow shooters and took into account the competition formats I was planning to enter. My goal was to compete in both speed and precision events with a single rifle – for which a bolt-action design turned out to be the best choice.
The Rifle: Tikka T1x
Two models were in contention: the CZ 457 and the Tikka T1x. There's no huge difference between them, but the Tikka felt better in my hands – so it won.
The first scope I tried on it was a DISCOVERY ED FFP 4-16×50SF, which worked brilliantly for both precision and speed shooting. It turned out to be a great combination.
F-Class Competition and the Search for a New Scope
Then I ended up at an F-Class precision competition held at the Proshooting range. That called for a more powerful scope. I wasn't keen on disturbing a working setup, but needs must.
I pulled out my range and started a thorough selection process – a video was made about it too (see below). I decided on a 6–24x magnification range and FFP (First Focal Plane) layout, since at varying shooting distances it's essential that the reticle values remain accurate at every magnification level.
The Candidates – Which Scope Should Go on the Tikka?
T-Eagle ER 6-24×50SFIR
Unfortunately not FFP. The reticle is excellent and it was a very well-regarded scope – but the lack of FFP was a dealbreaker. The manufacturer no longer produces it, so it can only be found as old stock in a few places.
Swampdeer HD PRO ZERO STOP 6-24×50SFIR FFP-A
A model I don't carry yet. It looks promising, but two things spoke against it: I don't know it personally, and the reticle lacks the windage hold lines and mil-dots needed for wind compensation.
T-Eagle Stellar ST 6-24x50FFP
A very good scope. The reticle is equally readable at low and high magnification. The only downside: no zero stop on the turret – which is strongly recommended when switching between short and long distances while adjusting the turret. Unfortunately only the 4-16x version is currently available.
Discovery ED PRS GEN2 5-25×56SFIR FFP-Z
I love the ED series: precise turrets, excellent image quality, robust build, 34 mm tube. I tried it on the Tikka – and immediately saw: this is overkill. A massive scope. Ideal for precision shooting or stalking, but for speed events something lighter is needed.
Discovery LHD NV 6-24×50SFIR FFP-Z
And here I arrived at the ideal all-purpose solution. The magnification range is great, image quality is excellent, and the reticle is thin and easy to read at high magnification. At low magnification it's slightly too thin – but that's the lesser compromise one can live with.
The Winner: Discovery LHD NV 6-24×50SFIR FFP-Z
After a lengthy selection process, a winner emerged.
The Discovery LHD NV 6-24×50SFIR FFP-Z ticks every important box: the right magnification range, FFP reticle, zero stop turret, and compact enough to be comfortable at speed shooting competitions too.
Video: Choosing the Scope
If the video doesn't load, find it here: Choosing a rifle scope for sport shooting on a Tikka T1x .22LR rifle.
A new post about zeroing and testing the scope is coming soon.