Ep. 192 | Can You Hunt With a FFP Riflescope?

First focal plane (FFP) reticles in hunting riflescopes? Aren’t those reticles for all them “Tactical Folks”. Well, no. The benefits of having an FFP reticle in your hunting riflescope are many – depending on where and how you will predominantly hunt. If short-to-moderate distance shots are your norm, an FFP reticle could be a detractor. If you’ll likely encounter longer shots – 300 yards and beyond – it may make the difference between a punched tag or tag soup. Looking for one scope to do it all? FFP could make sense. If you have, or are looking to extend your effect range, listen in to see if having an FFP reticle is right for you. Like sneak-peaks at super cool optics? Listen in or watch on YouTube for that as well!

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[martin]

Yes you can, it is all I hunt with. FFP also allows you to range an animal 🦒 if needed. Hunt with what ever you are competent with. FFP all the way for me.

[briansupermag]

I've switched all my scopes to FFP MRAD. Best decision I've made in hunting. SFP long gone and so happy i did it. Just wish i did it years ago.

[daithi]

I like using Maximum Point Blank Range where you sight your scope about 3" above point of aim at 100 yards to give you plus or minus 4" for as long a yardage as possible. Let's say you've got a 6.5 Creedmoor cartridge, then you can stay in that 4" window nearly all the way out to 300 yards. Now you just aim center of vitals at everything up to 300 yards. Only if you have to go over over 300 yards do you need to use a holdover. Now you set the scope to max power and use the holdover marks. Second plane is just fine for this kind of usage.

[henrywes]

Hunted with both, I think if I was taking most my shots ranging from 200-500 yards I would lean more towards FFP. Most my hunting is between 30 and 200 yards so SFP with a duplex reticle works very quickly.

[TheCowboyfromhell]

FFP OR SFP no matter which you use you need to go out and practice with it and become familiar with your equipment. Either can be effective at any range if you know your equipment.

[denisleblanc]

I think most manufacturers have optimized their reticles for long range precision shooting and hope the hunting market can make the adjustments necessary for hunting at various ranges. What they should do is optimize the reticle more for hunting. For example, If they optimized it for a maximum range of maybe 600 yards on big game. Have the illumination automatically turn on below a certain power. The illumination should also include a big doughnut that would still be easily picked up at lowest power. I find the the illuminated center portion of the reticle on most FFP's a little small when shooting quickly on moving close range shots. For these shots the ACSS types of reticles are probably better. I realize these reticles lack the precision wanted in long shots.

[ronws]

14:41 What Jim is talking about can also be seen in SFP scopes with BDC reticles. The Crossfire II has different yardages in correlation to the reticle. First hash mark down is 200 yards for .308 Win. But it is 300 yards for .300 Win Mag.

18:18 another good point. We are naturally drawn to look at the crosshairs. So, dialing elevation works for that. And windage, if you know the wind is constant, such as the high plains states, with winds at a constant 20 MPH. Just dial it, you know that you want to.

That being said, it is easier to do on a scope with exposed "tactical" turrets. As opposed to the BDC scopes that have caps on the turrets and those are designed to just shoot with the BDC marks.

Or, like some guys do with a duplex scope, zero for 25-250 and aim somewhere around the shoulder and pray for the heart shot.

[michaelficarro]

FFP is the way to go, I'm not using hold overs at 2.5X anyway....

[ronws]

10:28 depends on logistics for hunting big horn sheep. The Mayfield Ranch, in Christoval, Texas is about 3500 for an Aoudad Sheep plus 200 per day for a guide. My boss went there, with a guide, got a ram at 250 yards with his .300 Win Mag. They take care of retrieval, skinning, quartering and sending to meat processing. He took the trophy to a place near Grandbury and the trophy is mounted magnificently in his office. Shot right at the top of the right shoulder, quartering to. The beast started charging straight for him. He cycled another round and then the ram dropped. It ran about 30 yards on it is last few heart beats. Awesome.

[KimDavis-nt]

I have been using BDC reticles for years and variable power standard crosshairs. I check my bullet drops at different power ranges and compensate if I'm at half power on a standard 3 to 9 3030 rectal at 9 power. It's two meals drop and half that power. It is four meals drop. You can use your BDC recticles the same way

[DanielBoone]

I hunt with FFP optics almost exclusively... What I like the most is in low light and the optic dialed back to the lowest power the reticle doesn't interfere with my image and if I need to take a shot I turn on the illumination preferably a night vision setting if they have them because again it doesn't really interfere with the image. (The brighter the illumination the more it obscures you image) Using that technique I've taken shots seconds before hunting hours was over or seconds after hunting hours starts when it's basically night time still and it works really good.

[ernieforrest]

As for first focal plane scopes, Bausch & Lomb Balvar scopes produced in the 60s were ffp scopes, including the 6x24 varieable target model.
It was very popular among long range hunters in places like PA. in lieu of the more popular Unertle target scopes.
They used a tapered cross hair etched on glass for the reticle.
I used one for about 25 years with an after market micrometer dial made by Kuharsky.

[zerklin]

This scope is exactly what I’ve been waiting for, excited for it to finally come out so I can order one

[aces]

Yes its amazing for coyote hunting. Hold overs are always correct on little targets when your in a rush

[ronws]

And changing my mind, once again. Still loving my Diamondback Tactical scopes for my new light weight brush beating hunting rifle, the TC Compass II in .308 Win. I simply like the EBR-2C reticle (and it's cousin the EBR-7C). So, I put one that I have from upgrading another rifle to the Venom. That being said. I will zero at 100 yards. Then, in my hunting area, where most shots are about 50 yards, I can just dial up 3 clicks for being close to .8 MOA and I am good with a 50 yard zero, as it were.

Yes, you can use a FFP for hunting. Especially or me, being more comfortable and, I think, a better shooter with this reticle though I there are other people getting more deer with the BDC Dead Hold than I have yet to get. Paul Harrell's rule number one of deer hunting: go where the deer are.

[bobparvin]

I've got both and there's nothing wrong with either. The ffp is on my long range rifle, while my sfp scopes are on my others, and I'm happy with that.

[SpudOutdoors]

I want that scope lol. I was hesitating with the LHT but this one is all I want in a scope.

[randy]

In my opinion SFP is better for most hunters. I’m either shooting at 10x or the animal is close enough to where bullet drop isn’t a factor. I could see FFP being a lot better with the higher power scopes.

[dropset]

That’s why they have field charts for hunting with 2nd plane bdc scopes for magnification adjustment. Nikon had that mapped out on the old spot on app years ago.

[bobharvey]

I have always hunted with SFP. They were common growing up. which, in my mind, is where the need to pick a rifle and caliber and stick with it. Cause you have to learn the rifle and load combo drop at expected distances. I will say if you know the dope in inches for a rifle and load @100-500 or put a dope chart on the buttstock, it is very quick and has "less" things to go wrong IMO. I would think a good SFP scope with basic set and forget turrets is always going to be lighter in weight, I would think. I will say finding a really high-quality lightweight scope without a ton of fancy features clogging up the reticle or turrets sticking a mile out of the thing in 3 different directions now and it drives me nuts.