Thread: Wanting opinions on discovery optics

Hi team, recently purchased a Tikka T1X to get in to the world of precision rimfire. At this stage it's in an MDT oryx chassis and has a Burris droptine 22lr scope up top but at this stage I'm looking for some more magnification to aid with precision at 100yds.
I'm not in a position to spend silly money on scopes etc, but I did notice that the discovery optics have some great reviews online and also have a local NZ dealer. What are your opinions of these scopes?

I have a Zeiss on my 270, and I'm not expecting that sort of clarity based on the price of the discovery but at the same time I'm reading it punches well above its weight in terms of glass and performance.

Any insights would be helpful before I spend the hard earned cash.

There are quite a few good options for cheaper optics these days, however everyone of them has reviews saying they are good value for money and have good glass.
Basically the same rules apply that used to, you get what you pay for.

There are good reviews for the Discovery scopes but i can't say I love them. I'd definitely be looking for a used one as I'd imagine you'll look to upgrade in the future and buying used means you waste less money.

Personally I'd be looking for a Arken EP4 or EP5, Vortex Strike Eagle (34mm version not the older one), Vortex PST Gen2, Vortex Venom, Bushnell Match Pro, or Element Helix.

I'd be looking at used scopes.

There are other scopes out there that will work just fine hut for precision rifle you definitely want: FFP, Mils, a Zero stop, exposed elevation turret.

I potentially have an Arken EP4 I'm considering parting with if you are looking at 2nd hand. 4-16. PM if interested.

Thanks for that detailed reply mate! I did initially look for a used model and will keep my eye out, I will also have a look for the scopes you recommended.

Others may chime in here but for PR22 and full-bore quite a few shooters prefer second focal plane scopes to keep aiming point as fine as possible.Each to their own, I use both ffp and sfp scopes. One guy at full-bore club here has a Discovery scope and is happy with it. I’ve looked through it at 800 and it was nice and clear once adjusted for my eye. I’ve just gone down the path of new scope and looked at various brands. They all much the same. Ended up with an Arken EP5, it just suited my eye and was a good price. All the Arkens I looked at were good but the EP5 was noticeably clearer/better definition. Don’t forget to look at GPO scopes. Got a Spectra 4-16x50, excellent scope for the money and perfectly usable out to 900. Good luck with whatever you go with.

Originally Posted by woods223

Others may chime in here but for PR22 and full-bore quite a few shooters prefer second focal plane scopes to keep aiming point as fine as possible.Each to their own, I use both ffp and sfp scopes. One guy at full-bore club here has a Discovery scope and is happy with it. I’ve looked through it at 800 and it was nice and clear once adjusted for my eye. I’ve just gone down the path of new scope and looked at various brands. They all much the same. Ended up with an Arken EP5, it just suited my eye and was a good price. All the Arkens I looked at were good but the EP5 was noticeably clearer/better definition. Don’t forget to look at GPO scopes. Got a Spectra 4-16x50, excellent scope for the money and perfectly usable out to 900. Good luck with whatever you go with.

Cheers mate, appears the discovery seems to be good bang for buck, hence looking at them. I have heard good things about GPO scope, very popular in Europe!

@Westie when you say precision rimfire, are you talking about benchrest or the PRS/NRL/SPARC 22 stuff?

If it's 22lr benchrest then woods223 is right that SFP may be preferred. However if it's the PRS type stuff then 100% go FFP.

If you are thinking about giving the SPARC 22 series a go, they have a loaner rifle you can use. If you go to a shoot, it's highly likely someone there will have a discovery scope that you can have a look through, as well as many other brands and models.

Iv got a 5-25 , cons are its huge , and palax only comes down to 25m
Apart from that it dials as it should and glass is surprisingly clear

@Beetroot, yes I should have been more specific. Ideally the Sparc series at some stage. Hoping to start in the sporting class for now.

If you wanting to get into that style of shooting, I'd strongly recommend just giving it a go first.
Typically at a match you'll ba able to task yo a bunch of people who do that type of shooting, ask them what they prefer in terms of gear, and find out what path they have taken gear wise.
Learning from other people's mistakes/experiences can save you a lot of money!

They have a loaner rifle I you aren't confident in your own rifle (zeroed, drop data, reliability etc) sp for thr $60-$80 entry fee you can basically get into it straight away.

I've been doing that type of shooting for a while now and the beat thing you can do is just give it a go with the gear you have, or use their loaner rifle.