I only have a single .22lr rifle, a take down 10/22. It's stock, although I'm open to upgrading the trigger at the very least.
I understand that 10/22s are not going to be the most accurate rifle, and the takedown mechanism probably shaves another 1/4 to 1/2 MOA off that at least.
I don't particularly want to buy a super accurate competition .22lr because my purpose isn't just to put the tightest possible groups on paper. I want something that is light and small for a survival pack.
I don't have a budget, if I find out there's a .22lr scope that's $1,000+ and it's amazing, I may buy that. I suspect there is going to be diminishing marginal returns on my lightweight barrel takedown 10/22 beyond a few hundred dollars but I know very little of scopes.
Help me figure out what optic to buy. I'm open to the possibility of moving an aimpoint T1 from one of my AR uppers to the 10/22 and then buying a new T2 for the AR upper. But I am leaning towards magnification as being useful.
Things I'd like this 10/22 takedown to be able to do:
A) Give to a young or new shooter and have them be able to use it. However, this is the least important criteria because if I need a "dumbed down" optic, then I'd rather not sacrifice my potential abilities with the rifle for some hypothetical lowest common denominator person.
B) Be able to use it defensively out to 100 yards with 25 round mags. Not ideal but possibly better than a 9mm handgun at ranges from 25 to 100 yards. I'm not great with a handgun past 25.
C) Be able to take small game.
D) Be able to identify things at distance. Whether they be possible threats, possible food sources, or whatever. It may be that I have this carbine in my pack in a survival situation, but I do not have binoculars on me. I respect the limitations of using a scoped rifle as a monocular because I'm pointing the muzzle in that direction. This would be for a survival situation only. Also, because it's takedown, I could take it apart and use the rear receiver only if really concerned.
E) I'd like to be able to use it for distance estimation. I hear good things about mil dots. Not sure if they come on any .22lr scopes
F) Needs to be "bomb proof" so if I drop it onto rocks in a survival situation, it's less likely to break. In the past, variable power optics were less durable. If I have to trade off durability with capability, I will choose durability. So if I can gain significant durability with a fixed power optic, I would go that route. If it's marginal durability gain, then maybe I'd choose variable power if that gives me significant capabilities.
What is the most amount of money I can spend to max out the capabilities of this gun where spending any more beyond that will not give me better results?
I'm open to the possibility of a variable optic if they are accurate. Because then this can more readily take the place of packing a monocular/binocular in my survival pack. So I am open to spending more money than makes sense due to limitations of the platform, as long as it gives me a better optic that would enhance my abilities to scout with this optic alone. Although I'm open to the possibility that I'm better off with a high end pair of compact binoculars in addition to whatever 10/22 scope I buy. Just as long as the recommendation is because the binoculars will be vastly superior, and not because it's cheaper to split them apart.
I'm willing to spend more money if it means I can carry less stuff for reasonably similar capability. Maybe a T1 on the 10/22 paired with some sweet Zeiss compact binos would be my best solution. I just don't think I can use a non-magnified optic to take small game past 25 yards or so. The dot would cover more than their body I think. That's why I'm leaning towards magnification.
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Originally Posted by Chuck Whitlock
