Best Riflescope for 7mm-08 [Reviewed 2024]

Ahhh, another lesser-known caliber, maybe just less popular, and that is a sad thing. This cartridge is quite the deer hunting rifle, and at times, it can do well in long-range shooting. With that said, let us have a look and start with a bit of background on the 7mm-08 Remington.

Brief History Of 7mm-08

For a brief overview of the cartridge, I will speak in generalities. The 7mm-08 is a 308 Winchester, with a 7mm bullet crimped into the neck. About 1980, some folks working at Remington learned a bit from some wildcat rounds and gave birth to the 7mm-08. 

As a round based on the 308 Winchester, it is second in popularity only to the 243 Remington. That is not to say the 7mm-08 is more popular than the 308 Winchester, as that round seems to get more popular daily, next to the new 6.5 wonder rounds anyways.

Remington offered the 7mm-08 in the budget-friendly Model 788 and the ol' standby Model 700 into the 2000s. Remington even offered this round in their pump-action rifle, the Model 7000. The pull of that fast action must have made it into the blood of an engineer at DPMS, and they made a Model R-25 in 7mm-08 that was built like an AR10, that would be a fantastic varmint rifle with a best hunting scope screwed to the top of the receiver.

One last piece on the rifle before we look at the optics that work with this round, it seems nearly all the rifle makers are still offering this cartridge, so it must do something right. The manufacturers still putting out this caliber hunting rifle are as follows:

• Savage
• Ruger
• Browning
• Weatherby
• Remington
• DPMS (though I am not sure if they still make the R-25)

What is the difference between an excellent scope and a great scope, quality of course? The superb scope section is coming, but let us first look at the entry market and folks that may be a bit tighter on the price range.

With a flat shooting round like the 7mm-08 Remington, a high magnification hunting scope is right at home, and in an affordable price range, you will make quite a fantastic deer hunting rifle.

Best Rifle Scope for 7MM-08 [Top 9 Scopes]

1. Nikon ProStaff Predator 4-12x40mm

My Nice Scope section starts off with a bang, and people who want to throw heavy stuff in my direction will look at the Nikon ProStaff Predator 4-12x40. Now, before everyone gets all fired up that Nikon is not on the top of this pile, here is the reason – they are out of the riflescope business. To get one and put it on your deer hunting rifle or hobby long-range rifle, you have to find one left on someone's shelf, in my book that takes you out of the top runners, even though I love the Nikon riflescope above nearly all the others.

The Nikon ProStaff rifle scope has a magnification range of 4 – 12, great for deer hunting and some long-range shooting, and a 40mm objective makes a great field of view for deer hunters waiting to get a great shot at the trophy buck. The lens glass is fully multi-coated for excellent or good light transmission, and if you have ever used a Nikon riflescope, you can testify to the clarity of the glass, unbelievable!

The Nikon ProStaff uses Nikon BDC Predator Reticle, custom made for this best rifle scope. The reticle is graduated in MOA, and the windage and elevation are adjusted by spring loaded return to zero turrets.

The aluminum body, finished in matte black to work in the hunting blinds (and just looking bad ass), keeps the glare down. The fast focus eyepiece and a generous and consistent eye relief make shooting this rifle scope amazingly comfortable.

When you take this advice and find one of the last Nikon ProStaff on amazon, you can use Weaver style bases or the more modern style to mount it on a good bolt action rifle. 

When you look at the BDC and try and figure out your holdovers, Nikon has gone a step further to help a deer hunter or big game hunter out a bit and put the ballistic match on their website. Go to Nikon, type in your caliber 7mm-08, and it will give you the reticle settings and holdovers that come right out of the box.

It is a sad day to say again, Nikon is out of the riflescope business. More power to them, keep making the sporting optics and camera stuff, and I will keep buying it, but I will miss the Nikon rifle scopes.

2. Bushnell Trophy Rifle Multi X Reticle

The Bushnell folks have been around forever in the riflescope and deer hunting world. They make everything from spotting scopes to rifle scopes to laser range finders; you name it, they probably make one.

The hang up I find with Bushnell is consistency in their optics, of all kinds. I have some Bushnell spotting scopes that go to Yellowstone to sit in the weather, and if they get knocked over, not a huge loss. I have a deer hunting scope that is not worth the time to tighten the screws to see if that will keep the zero due to the cloudy lenses.

That was before Bushnell really upped their game in the riflescope world; now Bushnell is the talk of the sport. None more so than the Trophy line.

The Bushnell Trophy Multi X reticle is very popular. For a good reason, they seem to keep pretty good quality control lately, and the price range is affordable for everyone. You could afford a rifle scope on the 10/22 plinker at this price and see how good you can get with this much magnification.

The finish is matte black on an all aluminum body. The main tube boasts a built in saddle for the sub-tension. The MOA reticle is excellent and graduated in holdover dots as well. The turrets are hunting style, capped, and adjust with a coin. 

The eye relief is four inches! This is enough eye relief to mount this on a laver action like the Marlin 366 or a Scout style rifle like the Ruger Scout. The rear rapid focus eyering is nice and smooth, but they can drag a bit, make sure you check many off the shelf to find one that is right for your application.

On Amazon, the listing for this Riflescope has a "rider," I guess it's called, that has a Weaver Quad Lock mounts; they also have a Weaver Quad Lock that is also a quick detach style, so your lever gun application is a bit more of a "go" in my book.

Bushnell now offers a No Questions Asked Lifetime Warranty, and from what I have read from other reviewers, it is not near as great as it sounds, so it is up to you to do your due diligence at the store, make sure you are good to go with your rifle scope before you leave.

3. Vortex Diamondback 4-12x40mm

What can you say about Vortex Diamondback Rifle Scope that has not already been said? Not much, that is for sure. One of the most outstanding options on the hunting rifle and long-range rifle market today, the Vortex lineup definitely does not disappoint.

As some may know, Vortex genuinely stands behind their products with service and warranty, so don't hesitate to look into this optic to grace the receiver of your hunting rifles.

The Diamondback is one of the iterations of Vortex rifle scopes, and it is, as some would say, the "lower end" of the riflescope line. The lower end for Vortex is better than some manufacturers' top of the line, and the price is better.

The Diamondback for the 7mm-08 is the 4-12 magnification. How far do you feel comfortable shooting? This rifle scope will do it if you can. The Objective is 40mm, an excellent big field of view to really see what is out there. The 40mm Objective and the fully multi-coated lenses make fantastic light gathering capabilities.

The reticle is a Dead-Hold BDC, the Vortex website will match your caliber to the BDC, and you are ready to get in the field. The reticle is graduated in MOA for shooters that prefer that, and I don't remember if the Diamondback is offered in MIlDot; it would surprise me if Vortex does not provide that reticle as well.

Like all Vortex hunting scopes in every deer hunting camp ever visited are made from one piece of aircraft grade aluminum, hard anodized in matte black, O-ring sealed, and purged with Argon. This main body and lenses are waterproof, fog proof, and shock proof as Vortex is now the industry standard.

4. Leupold VX-3i 3.5–10 x 40mm Duplex Reticle

Is there anyone in the gun world that does not love Leupold? That is a rhetorical question, of course, because everyone does. Not everyone can afford them, which is an excellent reason to include everyone in these shopping guides' hunting scope market.

The Leupold VX-3i is about the only Scope I can think of that has a magnification setting at 3.5x power range. I am impressed by this because if you are a "brush hunter" or your deer hunting is not across the canyon and more like the other side of a cornfield distance, that 3.5 magnification is going to be a great feature.

In my opinion, Leupold hunting scopes are the best scopes on the market or close to the best scopes on the market. The glass is crystal clear. With Leupold's advancements in lens design, the Twilight Max Light Management System and fully multi-coated lenses improve light transmission. It gives about 20% more usable hunting light.

The VX-3i is just an excellent ol' hunting scope with a Duplex Reticle like we all grew up using. The turret knobs on this latest Leupold are kind of strange, they are set and leave like a hunting rifle, but finger click adjustable like a long-range rifle, they do not reset to zero like the long-range guys use when twisting knobs and not using holdover shooting.

This may be another maker trying to fit everyone's sport and not excelling at just the one sport. The body is made from 6061-T6 aircraft aluminum, anodized matte black, and that matte black coating with the thin gold ring on the objective lens housing is just damn sexy.

Of course, the main tube is O-ring sealed, purged with Nitrogen, and fog proof, waterproof, and as Leupold set the standard with the Punisher Test, damn sure shockproof. If you do not know what the Punisher Test is, Leupold has a great write up on that on their homepage, and I encourage you to check it out for yourself.

5. Zeiss Conquest V6 3-18x50mm Ballistic

The 7mm-08 is a great flat shooting round, and if you want to challenge the round, your trigger finger, and the optic, this one is it. 3 – 18x magnification, and it is from Zeiss, so I am going to have to lean on some past experiences with Zeiss and say you should be suitable for near total magnification and clarity.

The other significant part of this rifle scope for hunting, especially the long-range deer hunting, will be that 50mm Objective lens! Talk about a field of view, and with the 18x magnification cranked all the way up, you will need all 50mm Objective to see more than a pathway across the canyon.

Zeiss has been in the optics game for a very long time, and they have a solid following. Like Leupold, the old guard is on board. The new guard is in love with Nightforce and Vortex, and for a good reason, they don't make better scopes than that line-up, and others, don't get all hatey on me.

The Zeiss Conquest V6 has a parallax knob on the side to get that super Scope dialed right in to meet your eyeballs. The reticles are available in MOA (Zeiss calls it the ZMOA) and MIlDot, and some others. The lens coatings are space age; nearly from science fiction, they are so advanced.

The turrets for the V6 are tactical style, and they have a ballistic stop, the same essential thing as the return to zero and set stops on others. Still, Zeiss takes it to the edge of fantastic, you can get as adrenalin, hyped up, giant trophy buck fever as you want, and this Scope can survive you and then take the deer hunting experience to the next level.

Now, to call a fair game, this Scope is not for the tight budget, so if your 7mm-08 is going to be your go to long-range shooter, this is a place to look. If your 7mm-08 is going to be your deer hunting or varmint hunting go to, I personally will look a bit down the price range.

6. Burris Optics Fullfield Rifelscope 4.5-14x42

This is the Best Scope for the 7mm-08 Rem if I have ever seen one. The magnification is spot on for this caliber, from a close range of 4.5 magnification, all the up to a 14x magnification; this Riflescope will cover every inch of this rifle's ballistic range. The 42mm Objective lens is excellent for this as well. You may need a taller than Weaver rings mount, so the objective housing clears the barrel, but that is doable, no question.

Everyone knows about the Burris warranty, I don't need to cover that in this article, but it does not get better. Burris glass is crystal clear, fully multi-coated with their proprietary emerald coating, making light transmission fantastic, and the scratch resistance is top notch as well.

The main body is coated matte black, with the side focus knob to get your sight picture adjusted to fit you exactly, then turn the finger tip tactical style turrets for windage and elevation, and hit that long-range target.

Most of the time, a Burris rifle scope is on the pricey side, but the Fullfield is right on the money to get practice with your 7mm-08. As you improve the gun and the shooter, this rifle scope will do the job, maybe forever, like their warranty.

7. Sig Sauer Whiskey Riflescope

This Scope is not in MY personal stack as of yet, but my brother has one; he mounted it on a home built 6.8 Grendel the put the big hammer on some wild boar in Texas. After shooting this, I really need one as soon as I can get my hands on one. I have a need to put it on a Savage in 308, and now maybe the 7mm-08 is the better choice for this rifle scope.

With the magnification coming in4x – 12x magnification, how perfect is that, and a 40mm Objective lens, even better for the ultimate hunting rifle, taking deer hunting from the family tradition of 30 calibers to a new caliber of 6.8 Grendel. I am more the bolt action lover than an autoloader, so a Savae in 7mm-08, maybe that is coming to a gun locker near me soon.

With the reticle in the Second Focal Plane, holdover hunting is right on the money. Just be sure to set your magnification where you feel you will find the game, and leave it after you practice at that range, at that magnification. If this rifle scope were a First Focal Plane rifle scope, the holdover would not change with magnification; however, the reticle will get "thicker" as the magnification increases. Chose your style and get good at it.

The focal eyepiece is an European style, smooth, and easy to use, even with gloves on. The glass is Low Dispersion, so the sight picture is crystal clear. The main body or the whole rifle scope actually is rated water proof to IPX-7; what the hell does that even mean? Drop it in water up to a meter deep, and it is still good to go.

The Sig Sauer Whiskey does not have a side adjustable parallax knob, so the parallax is set, but the eyepiece will adjust to focus on that reticle and place the MOA adjustments right where they do the most good, in the deep freeze.

8. Athlon Optics Riflescope Illuminated

This rifle scope is the ultimate package, and when I get more time with one, I will come back and let everyone know what I think after some time. This long range scope is loaded with every dial you can want; the whole damn thing adjusts for a perfect sight picture.

Althon is the new player, and every rifle scope maker needs to be afraid and get their acts tightened up. Althon is going to fill the empty space Nikon is leaving on their way out of the sporting optics world. The Althon is a First Focal Plane reticle, windage and elevation finger turn turrets, and quick focus ring, with the extended knob.

The Rear Eyepiece focuses on a side mounted knob along with the parallax side focus knob as well. The lenses are fully multi-coated for better light transmission. The 6061-T6 aluminum materials are coated matte black and look fantastic as well as function like a Swiss Watch.

The Althon is the only illuminated reticle I have included in this guide. The illuminated duplex stle MOA BDC reticle is glass etched, like the big guys, except for one thing the price range is more like a Nikon or even the upperclassmen Bushnell rifle scopes. This rifle scope is not really intended to be a deer hunting scope and more of a long range scope.

9. Primary Arms SLx 4-14 x 44mm Hunting Scope

And last, but absolutely not least, the Primary Arms 4-14x44. Not many rifle scopes from Primary Arms are hunting scopes, so when they make one dedicated to the deer hunting world, I pay attention.

Primary Arms has a unique reticle called the ACSS Orion, which is basically an inverted Chevron inside a Horseshoe looking thing. You will have to go to the link and see the reticle for yourself, and it is a great moving target shooting reticle. 

With the scope reticle sitting in the First Focal Plane, the windage and elevation can be adjusted with the turrets -finger tip adjustable – but a holdover for a moving deer hunting scope would be my choice.

The ACSS Oriion reticle graduated for holdover shooting for windage and elevation on the MOA graduated reticle sub tension, or you can twist, which you fancy. Or, do the one you don't do now, and get better with practice.

The SLx is the more budget-friendly price range, and that is not saying anything about the rifle scope's quality. It is a fantastic shooter, tough as nails, matte black, and looks like a severe player on top of an AR10 platform or a Winchester or Remington bolt action rifle. This deer hunting scope would even make the Browning BAR look good, and that takes a bit of magic to pull off.

Summary

The 7mm-08 is an excellent beginner round for shooters moving into more high powered rounds. The rifle scopes here run the gambit in the price range, and most fall in the 200 -300 price point, so they are affordable optics that perform like the best. You now have a good starting point to do your own research and make a decision for your 7mm-08 hunting scope and rifle build.

Good Hunting!

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