I have just bought a brno .17 hmr and am not sure what scope to put on it. my dad has told me to go for a reliable brand, so i have narrowed it down to 2 scopes the Schmidt n Bender 10x42 or the Leupold VXI 4-12x40.

Two good scopes. Guess I shoulda gone into farming!

Boy that is quite a seperation between two scopes. I guess whatever scope you think is best for a .17 is what you should go with, but in my opinion for a little .17 hmr I would go with the Leopold, unless your farming money out there.

Welcome Farmer Spud;

Hat's off to your dad for the reliable brand advise. Of the two brands you mention, I would opt for the Leupold due the variable power. However, I think I'd step up to the VX-II series even if it meant stretching the budget a bit.

Let us know what you decide and how it works out for you.

Dave

from what i can tell any S&B 10x scope is gonna run you a cool grand easy. they didn't list them here http://www.swfa.com/c-282-schmidt-bender-fixed-riflescopes.aspx but it gives you an idea of a fixed model price. for that kind of money i would buy a VX-III and spend the other money on ammo.

Welcome to the forum farmer spud. Rules are simple, be nice and join in.

I'm not much into fixed power scopes, the advantage of a wide field of view on low powers makes lots of sense to me anyway, especially for a plinker like most rimfires are. Your talking about a lot of money difference so I guess the question would be what kind of money are you looking to invest in your scope for the little Bruno? Recoil isn't much on them. I'm shooting a 2 by 10 Weaver Classic on my CZ 452 22 long rifle and it's a very good scope.

If your killing soda pop cans at 25 yards or ground squirrels at 50 yards it doesn't take a lot of scope on a rimfire. Both those you mentioned have good optics.

Farmer,
On a really, really, light kicker like the 17 HMR, I sure wouldn't be spending big $$ on a S&B (although I hear great things about the scopes). I'd look at some Simmons scopes for the range that the 17 HMR is appropriate for (100 yards or so), and you'd be spending less than $100, and that for some pretty decent clarity and reliability. If you want to step up, but still get some great value for your $$, take a look at Burris 3-9x40, for around $200.

Well I have two S&B's on my hunting rifles, but on my 10/22t I just have a little old BSA 3-9 mil dot scope that works really well. I would pick whatever 100 to 150 dollar scope you like and spend the other $950.00 on ammo.

FNMAUSER

The S&B is as good as it gets in the form of optical sights.. S&B wil not let you down in fashion........

Several manufacturers (Simmons, Cabela's, BSA) make "Sweet 17's scopes that are specific to the .17 HMR. They are variable scopes and perfectly suited for your needs. Lot lower costs than either the S&B or Leupold.

+1 on the BSA Sweet 17 scopes, I have one on my Savage and it does well for the ranges you will be shooting with a .17HMR

Heck, I have a bushnell rimfire scope on my 60 .22lr, and at 100 yards it's spot on for under 50 bucks (It's sent many squirrels and rabbits to meet their maker from 100 on in). Good thing with that little rimfire is that you can put a scope on it that doesn't have to take the shock of being on a 358 Norma Mag, if ya know what I mean. Anyway, there are a lot of FINE scopes for under $200 for rimfires that are excellent quality. I just don't know that I would drop a grand on glass for a rimfire.