Hello, I’m Mike Fellon — founder and lead reviewer at ScopesReviews. My journey with firearms and optics began in Dallas, Texas, where my father, John, first put a shotgun in my hands at twelve and taught me that a good shot is mostly patience and respect for the gear. That stuck. My first centerfire rifle was a Ruger American in .308 Winchester — a 16th-birthday gift I still own and shoot today.
That early passion turned into a career. For five years (2015–2020), I worked the firearms department at Bass Pro Shops, helping hundreds of shooters pick the right rifles and optics for what they actually did — not what the box promised. That counter taught me the gap between marketing copy and field reality, and it’s the reason this site exists. I’m an NRA Range Safety Officer and a Certified Firearms Instructor (2018).
Over 15+ years of precision shooting, I’ve put in serious time on PRS-style and benchrest setups and hunted hard — whitetail and hogs on family land in Texas, elk in Montana, mule deer and pronghorn out in Wyoming, plus spot-and-stalk country in Arizona and Idaho and regular predator work closer to home. Thick brush to open Western country teaches you fast how differently glass behaves in the real world. Across all of it, I’ve personally mounted, zeroed, and tested 200+ rifle scopes.
My goal at ScopesReviews is to turn that experience into reviews you can actually use. I give you the technical data, but what matters more is how a scope performs in the field and how it feels in your hands — how the turrets click, how the eyebox behaves, how the reticle reads in fading light. I test across the whole range, from budget optics to high-end glass, and I judge each one on what it delivers for its price.
Independence & Honest Reviews
I buy the scopes I review with my own money, through normal retail channels — the same way you would. I don’t take payment from manufacturers to influence a rating or ranking, and I don’t pretend a scope is flawless when it isn’t. If the glass washes out at dusk or the turrets won’t hold zero, you’ll read it here. Every scope has trade-offs; my job is to find them and tell you straight.
Purpose of the Website
I created ScopesReviews.com in 2017 to give people one honest, focused place to figure out which scope actually fits their rifle and their shooting. The guides are built to give you enough real information to make a confident decision.
Unlike sites that chase every topic, ScopesReviews.com is solely focused on rifle optics. Every scope in a guide has been hands-tested, and every recommendation is matched to the caliber and rifle it suits best.
How I Test and Review Scopes
Every scope I review goes through the same scrutinized process before I’ll recommend it:
- I check the packaging first — not the design, but whether the scope is genuinely protected in transit.
- I read the manual. Understanding how a scope is meant to be used matters before judging how it performs.
- I unbox it and assess the basics — build, finish, and weight in hand.
- I mount it to an appropriate rifle following the manufacturer’s instructions.
- I sight it in and note how many rounds it takes to zero.
- I shoot it across multiple distances and ranges, working the adjustments to confirm it holds zero.
- I push it in varied conditions and shooting positions to see how it behaves under real use, over multiple sessions — not a single afternoon.
Then I write down my honest first impressions — what worked, what didn’t, the features I genuinely liked. Price factors into the rating too: when two scopes deliver a similar experience, the one that costs less wins. Once I have everything I need, I sit down and write the review.
You can read more about how I test scopes here.
Beyond the Range
When I’m not testing optics, I’m with my family — my wife Jane and our three sons. The shooting bug is being passed down; my oldest is learning on that same .308 Ruger American. Outside of that, I fish, ride my Yamaha MT-09, and unwind with a competitive round of Call of Duty or Battlefield.
Contact Me
Got a question about rifle scopes or shooting in general? Write me — I’m glad to help.
I’m not faultless, so if you spot anything incorrect on the site, tell me and I’ll fix it.
For any other inquiry, reach me on my Contact Page.