Reviews & Ratings for BSA Optics Contender Series Rifle Scopes 4-16 X40 mm — 22 reviews — Page 1

I have owned my 6x24x40 contender for 7yrs now. Mounted on a custom built .280. Had to use mount pads to keep scope from moving from the recoil. Still mounted to the same rifle and still has a clear view after the years and tons of rounds. I have no regrets in my choice and happy I didn't buy one of the high priced brands. I own a few of those as well and experiance has shown me that the contender will perform just as well, last as long and leave me with more ammo money.

I bought this scope at Optics Planet last June Overall quality and good looks. The eye relief is poor for this gun / mount. It takes awhile to find a full sight picture given the pupil interference that I seem to have when looking through the scope. Also I found that the scopes wind-age knob is getting hit with the ejected shell case. The scope has not broken down - after nearly 500 shots. Suggest using scope on a bolt gun rather then the mini.

Good Scope, easy to set & zero. I have 5 of these of different powers on everything from a .45-70, .308 down to a pair of .22 lr. Love the 3 color/light briteness settings for the ability to get a high def cross hair for different backgrounds. Must use a "High" or taller set of rings due to the nitrogen nipple port location--my only real complaint. Comes with a fairly cheesy rubber lens cap-- they are still threaded for the old metal covers that were excellent but not longer made by BSA. Hard to beat for the quality, warranty & the price.

Just got this scope and I'm not really impressed. The push/pull turrets don't work very well and the magnification ring and eye piece are not threaded on square on the end making the scope tilt up slightly at the back. I have two other BSA scopes that I love but not happy with this one

I bought this scope due to the price and because it got a lot of good reviews here. The turrets are a major down side to this scope. The click adjustments are sloppy. Locking down the adjustments are a pain as the turrets fight to find a position to settle in. Pull out the turret to adjust POA and you better be careful because they'll pull all the way out into the position you'd use to put them back to zero. Over 12X the glass gets very dark, fuzzy and the eye relief shrinks considerably. The scope weighs 8oz more than the advertised weight. The rubber bungee scope cap thingy the scope comes with is a piece of garbage and broke on the first trip to the range. The sun shade does what it is supposed to do but adds even more weight and in my opinion is to bulky. Not sure why they didn't just make it a simple cylinder instead of the crazy geometric concoction they came up with. I didn't expect a whole lot going into this purchase but one thing is for certain, there are much better scopes in this price range.
Pros: Price
Cons: Horrible Turrets, heavier than advertised

This scope is a very good buy for the money.. The optics are clear, even at high magnifications, eye relief is decent, and holds zero very well. I bought this scope as my first scope into long range shooting, and I'm still using it. It has a slight parallax error that I cant get rid of, but still allows me to shoot .5 MOA with a $300 Savage Axis .308. My wife and I ring gongs shot after shot up to 560 yards with this scope.. So far has held zero through 200+ rounds of .308! Besides the small parallax error, the only other complain is the lockable turrets tend to stick when trying to unlock them, but I'm just being nit-picky about that.. :-)
Pros: Inexpensive, Clear even at high magnification
Cons: parallax error

I bought a BSA Catseye 8 years ago and it is still going strong. When I bought a gun I decided to get another BSA scope and I am happy to say the quality has of the scope has not gone down in the last 8 years. Might not be as clear or crisp as a Swarovski but you are paying 10 times less. It does the job and does it well. I hunt in Northern Minnesota and the temps can range from -5 to 50 in November. I needed a durable scope and this has proved it is up to the task.
Pros: You get more for less

Bought mine based based on the reviews of others on this website. I'm glad I made this choice - Scope met my expectations and some
Pros: Nice Clear lens, Free Sunshade, Free Ring Mounts, All Metal Construction
Cons: gets a bit dark at 16 Zoom, Turrets bit finicky to use

This is an excellent value. I was surprised at the optical quality - the image is very bright and crisp and the ocular focus is a breeze to use. I have one mounted on a .22 K Hornet and one mounted on a .25-'06 and have had no problems whatsoever with holding zero.

The zoom functions smoothly as do the windage, elevation and parallax adjustments.

There are many much more expensive scopes on the market that don't deliver the performance of this Contender. I highly recommend this product.
Pros: Clarity of optics, smooth operation, ease of focus
Cons: No material crticisms

I have two of these. I ordered the second to mount on my Pro Hunter .22 K Hornet after using one on my .25-'06 for a period of time. I was very impressed with the clarity of the optics; certainly better than expected for a scope in this price range. The clarity is consistent throughout the magnification range and if there's a shift in zero across the range, you have to be a much better shot than I to tell. I especially like the ocular focus ring - it's a breeze to focus this scope properly - and the parallax adjustment, windage and elevation controls are positive and accurate. This scope is a terrific value and I can recommend it without reservation.
Pros: Value, clarity of optics, ease of focus, very good controls
Cons: None that I can think of