Vortex Crossfire II 3-9x50

The Vortex Crossfire II 3-9x50 is the least money you can spend on a deer scope that still shows up opening morning. It pairs the gold-standard 3-9x hunting range with a 50mm objective that pulls in more light than the 40mm scopes in its class, a real advantage in the first and last minutes of legal light when deer actually move. The Dead-Hold BDC reticle adds simple holdover marks, and the 3.8-inch eye relief keeps a .30-06 off your eyebrow.

Fully multi-coated lenses, a nitrogen-purged aircraft-grade aluminum tube, and O-ring seals make it waterproof and fogproof, and capped, resettable 1/4 MOA turrets hold a hunting zero. At 18 ounces it is heavier than a 40mm 3-9x, the price of the bigger objective, and a 50mm objective needs taller rings that raise the scope slightly over the bore. The whole package rides Vortex's VIP unlimited lifetime warranty, the same no-receipt coverage the $600 Viper HD gets.

Buy the Crossfire II when the budget is $150 and the alternative is a hardware-store scope. The glass will not match a VX-Freedom side by side, but it holds zero, the BDC works, and the warranty never expires.