Now a days if you have the money you can get anything you want. Wanting because its cool and what is practical for the situation are two different things. The standard seems to be the Plex crosshair, thick ones that become thinner in the center. For the core deer hunter this keeps it simple and works well.
The European post was intended for low light and night situations but covers a lot of the target in some situations. The most elaborate (and most expensive) seems to have their origins with the more simple Mil dots used by military snipers. These reticles have lots of little lines and dots and sometimes electric luminescent diodes.
Personally, I like a small dot and the plex. What I wanted was both in one, but no one made it for years. People complained they couldn’t find the dot and I scratched my head. I see it well, not just well but faster than anything else.
Then Vortex with the Crossfire II scope in several powers came up with the V-Bright, this was just the way I wanted it and affordable for the core hunter. I put the 1×4 on my Ruger Scout rifle and the rest was history. The dot covers 1/4 inch at 100 yards, if you can’t see it turn on the diode and the dot turns red and bright. The simple evaluation is it works like a charm and its fast.
I’m pretty fast with my plex reticle scopes by Burris and Leupold this goes without saying for these two outstanding brands. All my rifles are tack drivers with Weaver, Simmons and Swift brands respectively.
Then we have the Plex/Mildot that comes on the Bushnell scopes I have that gives me Black, Green or Red illuminated crosshairs. That works well on my high trajectory rifles like a 22, 7.62×39 and 45-70. I keep it turned off most of the time but when the light goes down Green and Red have its place depending on the background and light conditions.
Recently I covered the Vortex Scout Rifle Scope that came with a standard plex reticle. This worked real good on a Ruger 77/22 and would do as well on any Scout type rifle. I did notice one thing, if the rifle was actually used in combat a V-bright dot would work better than the standard plex. You could even use it in very low light like a quick point scope with both eyes open.
At one time it was said a big mistake was to buy an expensive rifle and put a cheap scope on it. Well this is still true in some cases, however some of the mid priced scopes I mentioned have been tested over and over without a hitch. I want our Law Enforcement and Military to have the top of the line, but for the core White Tail Deer Hunter playing Rambo with a military sniper rig may find you in a dilemma where you can’t get on target in time for all the bells and whistles.
You have about 5 seconds to safely and ethically decided to take a shot at a deer unless your are in a box stand. Then you may have a little more time. Never the less the reticles I recommend work very well. Now its up to you….Pass it on.