I often get asked what is the best rifle scope. There is no easy or, one answer to this,it truly depends what you are going to be doing with it. Also important what is your budget. For in-depth description of every major rifle scope company. You can check out my blog ==> TopQualityScopes.com But first let's go through the things you must know before purchasing your rifle scope. Some of the questions you should be asking yourself. At what distance, are you from your objective target on average. What is the size of your target. Do you do any shooting in low light,likes sun down. What kind of rife do you have. What caliber. What is my budget.

We will look at some information you should have for all the scope you are considering.

We will take a true example:

Nikon rifle scope Buckmaster 3-9x40 Nikon rifle scope Buckmaster 3-9 X 40 Rifle scope is considered the hunter's workhorse, it is at home on any rifle. Full lifetime manufacturer warranty. I've chosen this scope because I truly believe that it is one of the best scopes for the money. But that will be for you to decide once we go through this exercise.

Features:

• 3-9 x magnification
• 40-mm objective lens diameter
• 12.1 to 4.7-mm exit pupil
• 3.5 to 3.4-in eye relief
• 33 to 13-ft field of view at 100 yards
• 1-in tube diameter
• 12.7-in length
• Weighs 13.4 oz
• 1 / 4:1 click adjustment gradation
• 92% light transmission
• 100-yd parallax setting
• Brightvue lens coating
• Waterproof, shockproof and fogproof construction
• Matte finish for reduced glare
• Nikoplex reticle for quick, easy targeting

3-9 x magnification The first feature, you see is magnification in the case the Nikon is 3x9 this is pretty straightforward, "3" objects will seem three times closer than they actually are. In this Scopes case it is variable up to nine times closer than they actually are.

40-mm objective lens diameter The objective lens is a lens opposite to the one you would look through. It is the lens that will gather the light. The larger the objective lens the more light gathering capabilities the scope will have.

12.1 to 4.7-mm exit pupil The exit pupil can be seen by holding the scope at arm's length and looking through the eyepiece. The pencil of light you see is the exit pupil.The diameter of the exit pupil is easily computed. Divide the diameter of the front objective lens (in millimeters) by the magnification of the scope. For example, take a typical 4 power rifle scope with a 32mm objective lens. Divide 32 (the diameter of the objective) by 4 (the magnification) and you get 8. 8mm is the diameter of the exit pupil for a 4x32 scope. A human eye can achieve 7 mm pupi so as we can see the scope. I've chosen as an example at a magnification of three has an exit pulpit of 12.1. Therefore the human eye would have more than enough light you would not see a difference in light by looking through the scope, but if the scope is fully magnified at 9, the exit pulpit is only 4.7. The human eye could see more light therefore, it does limit you. Another thing to keep in mind is as the human eye ages. It loses the ability to have a large pulpit so if you are a middle-aged, the most your I could probably takin is 5 mm. An elderly person could be down to 4 mm. if you are middle-aged and spent on the scope that has an exit pulpit of 10 mm you eye will not be able to use this amount of light. It's a waste of money.

3.5 to 3.4-in eye relief  This refers to how far the rifle scope can be held from your eye 3.5 3.4 is plenty for most rifles you'll have to figure out how big the recoil on your personal rifle is. Also, if you're shopping for handgun scope since handguns are usually handled arm length away.You will need a scope that has an eye relief of the length of your arm, which is usually 20 to 24 inches. Keep this in mind.If you used a 22 caliber you do not have to spend on a lage eye relief one inch is fin.

33 to 13-ft field of view (FOV) at 100 yards The field of view is the area seen through the scope.Most scope manufacturers state how much linear area is encompassed by their scope at 100 yards.The larger the field of view the more area you can see through your scope. A big field of view is particularly important at close range, or for following moving animals. The field of view diminishes as you zoom in, there for the scope in the example has a field of view of 33 to 13 feet.

1-in tube diameter  This is pretty well self-explanatory. It is the tube diameter it is important as it will determine the size of mounting rings. Most Scopes made for the US are 1 inch diameter, although you may get some European makes which are 30 mm. Make sure to get the proper size rings. Another interesting point that was made recently by Tony Proper, president of Alpen Optics. He was quoted as saying a 42mm objective lens gathers all the light that a rifle scope with a 1-inch tube can transmit. He said buying more glass is a waste of money and adds unnecessary weight. With many companies now offer for 56 mm objective lens and only having a one inch tube it brings up an interesting point. I have not been able to get anybody to confirm this. So Far!

12.7-in length This simply is the length of the scope. It is mentioned, because many people are looking for a more compact rifle scope.

Weighs 13.4 oz an other self-explanatory measurement. If you are going to be carrying it around for some distance. Or if you are going to be mounting it on a handgun.This is a factor to keep in mind. 

1 / 4:1 click adjustment gradation  This refers to the elevation and windage adjustments. Basically the adjustments are made with Clicks if your target is hit 1 inch high, at 100 yards. You will need to move the elevation 4 clicks down to the equal 1 inch at 100 yards. This is where high-quality Scopes really begin to shine if you've ever tried to zero in a cheap scope. You'll know what I mean, also some companies offer 1/8:1clicks which is a much finer adjustments. You would have to move eight clicks simply to move one inch at 100 yards.

92% light transmission This is how much light is transmitted through the scope anything at 90% and higher is a high-quality scope. The imperfection in the lenses coding on the lenses. All affect this measurement. It is important to get good light transmission, especially at high zoom and if you're going to take longest shots. It will affect the definition of what you are looking at, if you've ever blown up a 2MG pixel picture as compared to a10MP pixel picture you understand definition. One is blurry in grainy, the one still sharp and crisp.

100-yd parallax setting it is not usually apparent in normal use unless there is something wrong with the sight. Leupold, for example, designs their center fire rifle scopes to be parallax free at 150 yards; rimfire rifle and shotgun scopes are designed to be parallax free at 75 yards. Some special telescopic sights, usually long range varmint or target models, come with an adjustable objective that can be adjusted to eliminate parallax at specific distances. High magnification scopes, or scopes for long-range shooting, where even slight sighting errors would be serious, should be equipped with a parallax adjustment.  

Brightvue lens coating this is just a type of coding the Nikon scopes use every company has their own branding for coding. It will affect light reflection, which will diminish light transmission if the coding is not properly done. Some companies such as Nikon coat their lenses on both sides, some company only coat there lenses lenses on the exterior. Some company such as Bushnell’s Scopes have permanent, patented, hydrophobic (water-repellant) lens coating prevents fogging by causing condensation from rain, sleet, snow or even your own breath to bead up.

Waterproof, shockproof and fogproof construction all of these things you should look for in a high quality scope. If you are to enjoy your scope for years to come.

Matte finish for reduced glare this is simply to color many people are now buying silver in camouflage scopes as well.

Nikoplex reticle for quick, easy targeting reticle now reticle come in so many different design's. It used to be a simple crosshair, but now every company has their own branded reticle often times it is simply what the person is comfortable with. There are many special radicals for specific shooting. If you're a large game hunter, if your a Varmint Hunter. If you are a bench shooter this topic is large for this hub. You can read more here rifle scope reticle

I hope this gives you a better ideal of what is the best rifles scope for you. For even more indepth  information.  As mentioned above, at the beginning.  You can visit my blog. http://topqualityscopes.com