In the 1980’s Jeff Cooper developed the idea of a general purpose rifle that would work across the board. From hunting to self-dense, this fantastic machine could do it all. This gun later had its name changed to the Scout Rifle, which Cooper continued to refine until his death.
This amazing bolt-action rifle weighted about seven pounds and stood at about a meter long with a 19” barrel. Detailed characteristics of this excellent weapon involved a low-mounted, low-powered, and extended eye relief scope.
Why would you even want a gun like the Scout Rifle? What else does it have to offer?
- Capable of successfully hitting a man-sized target out at around 450 yards
- Fitted with practical slings for both carrying and shooting.
- Lightweight and easy to lug around.
- Forward-mounted accessories also allow for rapid reloading.
As you can see, this well-crafted and carefully designed rifle has surpassed the trials of time and iterations. Jeff Cooper aimed to make this gun a reliable weapon that serves practical purposes. For someone to continue to work and develop a piece until their death is a pure sense of dedication to the craft.
Now that we have seen some of the gun’s capabilities, it’s time to dive in a bit deeper. What is this Scout rifle capable of when considering performance?
Going The Distance: Maximize Your Shooting Range
Out-of-the-box, a Scout Rifle chambered in a .308 or similar round can shoot up to 200 yards with less than 1 MOA.
Add a suitable scope and you can triple that distance and shoot even further with practice.
A Quick Guide To Distance: How Far Will Your Bullet Go?
For a Scout Rifle with a standard barrel size, keep these rough estimations in mind:
- Long Range: 350 yards and up
- Medium Range: 150 – 350 yards
- Close Range: Up to 150 yards
Whether you’re hunting at a long distance or want to improve your close range shooting, the right magnification can be beneficial for both.
What Magnification Do You Need?
With its growing affection and admiration, you are going to need a new kick to turn this practice weapon into something spectacular. However, it is important to know that not one single scope will work for every person.
Every individual will need to use a different type of scope for their own personal use and reason. Your average trip in the field will determine what kind of scope that you will use.
- Long Range (350 yards and above)
- At the 350 yard range and above, you won’t usually be taking down any large prey. This is mostly because of the lack of penetration at this distance. However, the range is still an impressive distance to shoot a target at. If this is what you’re interested in, you will want to look for a 7x magnification or higher.
- Medium Range (150 – 350 yards)
- This is a comfortable range for most shooters. The Scout Rifle is the perfect weapon for it. If you’re looking to shoot around the medium range, you will want a 3-7x magnification.
- Close Range (Up to 150 yards)
- There isn’t anyting the scout rifle cannot wipe out at this range . If you find yourself at this distance, you will want to be using a 1-3x magnification.
Let’s take a look at the scopes that we have narrowed down to help give you an advantage over your competition.
The 4 Best Scout Scopes
Forget every other scope that you have seen until this very moment. We have scoured every deep corner of the internet in order to find the absolute best Scout scope available! Here are our tops picks from everything that we were able to scrounge up and discover for your enjoyment.
- Burris 200261 Ballistic Plex 2-7x32mm
- Trijicon TR24R AccuPoint 1-4x24mm Riflescope
- Vortex Optics Crossfire II 2-7×32 Scout, Second Focal Plane Riflescope
- UTG 2-7X44 30mm Long Eye Relief Scout Scope
Hoping to find out more about these bad boys? Keep reading below to see why each of these scopes are our top picks.
Finding Your Next Scope
Which one of these fantastic attachments will be your choice?
1. Burris 200261 Ballistic Plex 2-7x32mm
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This Burris is great for short to medium range shooting, the lengthened eye relief allowing for casual shooting out on the field. You can see targets with both eyes open as well.
The optics of this scout scope are crisp and bright, the reticle thin and sharp for precise aiming. The variable adjustment knob for determining the magnification is low-profile and stiff. This is great because then the scope does not end up moving under recoil or when being jostled around.
The Burris Ballistic Plex reticle fills and purges at least two dozen time with laboratory grade, high-quality Nitrogen. Each cycle helps to improve the lens’s weatherproofing. The Burris is an excellent choice for m1a scout.
Posi-Locked And Loaded
Burris goes through a lot of effort to make sure that their products are of the utmost quality. During manufacturing, the scope is subjected to many extreme recoil tests. Burris uses an impact machine that can replicate the action of the acceleration and duration of a recoil pulse.
Talk about great testing and guarantee of customer satisfaction! Burris goes through a lot of measures to impress.
The Bottom Line
With an adjustment system with audible clicks, an internal spring force, posi-lock, weatherproofing, and ultra-fast target acquisition- what more can you really ask for? The Burris Ballistic Plex Riflescope tries to cover everything its customer might need all the way from its development to manufacturing stages. Truly a reliable piece.
2. Trijicon TR24R AccuPoint 1-4x24mm Riflescope
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Scout rifle users may want to consider the TR24R AccuPoint optic from Trijicon. It’s a superior tactical and relatively close-range choice since it can magnify between 1-4x and features a 24 mm objective lens. While it’s not the longest range scout rifle scope on the market, there are a number of beneficial aspects to this scope that make it a good pick overall.
For instance, the optic comes with a rugged design that’s perfect for use in inclement weather or outdoor areas. It’s made mostly of aircraft-grade aluminum and features an anti-corrosive finish to ensure it’ll last for a long time to come.
The glass lenses are also coated with additional protective and light transmission boosting layers, improving accuracy and longevity across the board. The optic offers optimal eye relief ranging from 3.4 inches to 4 inches at maximum magnification.
You can boost your accuracy even further thanks to the windage and elevation adjustment turrets, which don’t require any tools. These come with capped and zero-stop adjusters to make sure you don’t accidentally shift the dials when changing your position.
Tritium Illuminated Reticle
But this is a great scope as well thanks to its illuminated reticle, which doesn’t use any battery. Instead, it uses tritium lamps so the reticle continues to shine without you needing to fiddle with another control. Furthermore, the brightness of the reticle will automatically change based on the ambient light environment around you. It’s an elegant and simplistic design that nonetheless provides tons of extra value.
The Bottom Line
Overall, the TR24R AccuPoint optic is a great choice for combining with any modern scout rifle. Consider it if you want a relatively short-range scope for tactical target shooting or for taking down game at closer distances.
3. Vortex Optics Crossfire II 2-7×32 Scout, Second Focal Plane Riflescope
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Scout rifle users may want to consider the TR24R AccuPoint optic from Trijicon. It’s a superior tactical and relatively close-range choice since it can magnify between 1-4x and features a 24 mm objective lens. While it’s not the longest range scout rifle scope on the market, there are a number of beneficial aspects to this scope that make it a good pick overall.
For instance, the optic comes with a rugged design that’s perfect for use in inclement weather or outdoor areas. It’s made mostly of aircraft-grade aluminum and features an anti-corrosive finish to ensure it’ll last for a long time to come.
The glass lenses are also coated with additional protective and light transmission boosting layers, improving accuracy and longevity across the board. The optic offers optimal eye relief ranging from 3.4 inches to 4 inches at maximum magnification.
You can boost your accuracy even further thanks to the windage and elevation adjustment turrets, which don’t require any tools. These come with capped and zero-stop adjusters to make sure you don’t accidentally shift the dials when changing your position.
Tritium Illuminated Reticle
But this is a great scope as well thanks to its illuminated reticle, which doesn’t use any battery. Instead, it uses tritium lamps so the reticle continues to shine without you needing to fiddle with another control. Furthermore, the brightness of the reticle will automatically change based on the ambient light environment around you. It’s an elegant and simplistic design that nonetheless provides tons of extra value.
The Bottom Line
Overall, the TR24R AccuPoint optic is a great choice for combining with any modern scout rifle. Consider it if you want a relatively short-range scope for tactical target shooting or for taking down game at closer distances.
4. UTG 2-7×44 30mm Long Eye Relief Scout Scope
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With the name of the gun in the title, you know that this scope was made with the Scout Rifle in mind.
A little bit of a heavy-duty piece, this item is optimized best for hunters hoping to shoot at a longer range. It has a TS Platform that is all types of weatherproofing, along with an angled type of integral sunshade.
The long eye relief of the gun, a common theme, ensures that the optics provided can’t be mounted directly above any of the action. This is to help your quick focus pairing well with the zero setting and zero locking target turrets. It’s incredibly precise at ¼ MOA per click.
Not touched upon by many of the other scopes listed, the UTG also has an adjustment for parallax from 10 yards up to infinity.
Working on a simple lithium battery, this well-rounded scope has everything that a hunter could ever ask for.
EZ-TAP Illumination
This rifle offers EZ-TAP illumination, making this piece have the ability of 36-color etched glass mil-dot reticle. This 36-color mode helps to accommodate for any and all weather and light conditions.
Whether it is raining, the middle of the night- or even raining in the middle of the night! This scope has your back on a clear and steady focus.
The Bottom Line
A heavy-duty Scout Riflescope with an excellent 36-color mode that allows for a variety of light and weather conditions. Zero lock rest, a flip-up lens cover, and emerald lens coating are all just icing on the already delicious cake. No matter where you find yourself out in the field, you’ll be able to rely on UTG to create a quality product.
What Are You Waiting For?
Out on the field, the Scout Rifle is made for the flexibility to perform any job at any time. Why should you expect anything less out of your scope?
While finding the right type of attachment for your rifle may be difficult; hopefully, these four wonderful pieces can help to narrow down your options.
- Durability wants to be the Burris scope’s middle name. The rigorous testing the piece goes through during development is intense. Just by holding it you can immediately tell that it is a great quality product that will last you a long time.
- Eye relief is incredibly important for the Scout Rifle and the Leupold makes it their mission. If you want long eye relief with a mix of fast target acquiring, then this scope is a necessity. We honestly would not recommend hunting without it if these are your priorities.
- While the Vortex also has excellent eye relief, it should also be mentioned how great the broad field of view is. Hunters will love the ability to scope out the area while being able to focus on medium-range magnification.
- We still can not get over the UTG and its 36-color mode. It is undoubtedly heavy-duty, but when you have a gun like the Scout Rifle, you are going to need something that packs a punch. However, just make sure that you have a battery with you while you are out on the field.
The next best Scout scope for your rifle is just a click away. Are you ready to take your shooting up to the next level? If you are a fan of something traditional you may like best muzzleloader scopes.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is A Scout Rifle?
Scout rifles are general-purpose rifles developed and popularized by the late Lt. Col. Jeff Cooper, a well-known firearms expert.
It’s a type of gun that’s been meticulously built to suit a wide range of applications. If you could only have one firearm, this is the one you’d choose.
In the 1980s, Cooper championed the idea of a scout rifle, but the only way to get one was to have one custom made. He outlined a concept that any scout rifle should achieve. A few gun manufacturers set out to create branded scout rifles that would suit Cooper’s specifications.
Only a few scout rifles are considered to be close to Cooper’s ideal scout rifle.
Why Should You Own a Scout Rifle?
These guns provide you with speed and reliability, which were two of Cooper’s key objectives. With stripper clips, the rifle reloads faster, allowing you to quickly dispatch any threat. Empty cases can likewise be ejected with ease.
This is a weapon that will suit anybody without regard to their individual needs. You can’t go wrong with this rifle paired with a high-quality hunting sight placed on it for self-defense or even hunting in severe terrain. It’s a small gun that can easily be carried on your back. When traveling in the woods, the rifle length is carefully calculated to avoid touching the grasses and shrubs.
Overall, a scout rifle will open up a world of options for you, whether you’re shooting outside or indoors.
What Are The Downsides of the Scout?
The scout design has some drawbacks, the most significant of which is the scope. Scout scopes have a lengthy eye relief and objective lenses with a small diameter. Only a few high-end manufacturers have made significant investments in the design. Because of these drawbacks, hunters can’t see as well at dawn and night.
Who Was Jeff Cooper?
Cooper was a former Marine lieutenant colonel and firearms instructor and the founder of the legendary Gunsite Academy in Paulden, Arizona. He was a leading expert on rifle shooting and marksmanship and authored the rifleman’s tome “The Art of the Rifle”.
What Qualifies A Scout?
There are multiple factors that Cooper used to determine is a rifle is a “scout”, such as:
The rifle had to be a bolt action rifle that operated smoothly. There was no particular brand or model that was preferred. Semi-automatic rifles were not prohibited, but they are difficult to meet the weight requirements.
The firearm must be under a meter in length. Today, shorter barrel rifles with 18-20 inch barrels are relatively prevalent, demonstrating Cooper’s importance.
The rifle had to be 6.6 pounds, but with the sling and optics, it can weigh up to 7.7 pounds. The rifle was designed to be used across long distances, which is why a sling was included. Scout sights can help with the increased weight, but choosing the right scope for a scout rifle is critical to meeting the scout criterion.
Mike Fellon was born and raised in Dallas, Texas. He inherited his hunting passions after his father John – he was fascinated by his stories, hearing how much attention, focus, dedication and patience he invested in shooting every animal. When he was old enough, his father first allowed him to shoot some cans and bottles with his shotgun, and then took him hunting – it was love at first sight. Mike has never stopped pursuing his hobby ever since.