The 4 Best Scopes for .204 Ruger — Reviews 2023

best scope for 204 ruger

Photo by Andrew Magill / CC BY

The .204 Ruger is an exceptional and unique little round. It’s easily one of the fastest commercially produced rifle rounds out there. To paraphrase Jim Morrison, the .204 Ruger can zoom on through to the other side, but what an optic to keep up with it? The .204 Ruger is a fast, accurate cartridge that is mostly a bench rest target shooter’s small bore dream, so a scope is an absolute must.

The .204 Ruger has some awesome ballistics and within 300 yards it features minimal drop. The .204 Ruger can also be an excellent choice for varmint hunters, who are often shooting small animals. In this case, the scope should have sufficient zoom for an appropriate sight picture. A wide objective lens is desirable when hunting animals like coyotes or rabbits, which tend to come out at the early evening. The best scope for .204 Ruger rifles actually needs to be a good-do-everything-well scope.

Barska Varmint Target Dot

Hunting coyotes is one thing but hunting something like prairie dogs is completely different. These fast moving little creatures scurry and scamper about so much they can be difficult to see in normal daylight. For small animals like these little critters, you’ll something with some serious power.

The Barksa Varmint Target dot is exceptionally powerful with a 10 to 40 power magnification, and a wide 50 mm objective lens. The lenses are fully multi coated for a crisp clear picture that helps deliver rounds on target easily. The adjustments are quick and easy to access with fingertip adjustments that fined tuned to 1/8th MOA per click. The turrets are large and easy to access with the rifle in your shoulder.

The main selling power is the insane level of magnification capable with this rifle. You’ll not only be able to see your target, but you’ll be able to count his whiskers if need be. This is the perfect optic for a day on the range or a day out in the wide open fields of the west. The Barksa Varmint Target dot is probably the most high power scope for the money on the market. Whether it’s topped on a bolt action, or an AR in .204 Ruger you can rest assured you’ll be able to see and hit your target. This easily one of the best scopes for .204 Rugers.

The Leupold VX-3

The Leupold VX-3 is an extremely well built, highly precise, and dead on accurate rifle scope from one of the best scope makers in the world. The VX-3 is the third in the popular VX series, and is perfect for the .204 Ruger varmint hunter. The VX-3 comes in a variety of different powers, but for the .204 Ruger I prefer the 8.5 – 25, with a 50mm objective lens.

The Leupold VX-3 (see full specs) also has different reticle options, but in my opinion the Side Focus CDS reticle is perfect. The Side Focus CDS features holdovers for both wind, bullet drop, and leads for running game. The VX-3 has a fully multi coated lenses, that use a proprietary coating known as Diamond Coat 2. This coating provides not only the highest level of light transmission, but the ability to resist scratches and abrasion.

The VX-3 is also waterproofed and uses argon and krypton gas blend to completely prevent internal moisture from fogging up your sight picture. The turret is also the easy fingertip style and adjusts at ¼ MOA. The VX-3 is a superior optic that comes with a high price, but you are also getting a scope on the forefront of optics technology. Sometimes, to get the best scope for .204, you just got to shell out the big dough.

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Mueller Eraticator

The Mueller Eraticator is a medium budget scope with an impressive power level, and a rock bottom price when you consider the features included with the Eraticator. The Mueller Eraticator is a 8.5 – 25 power optic with a mighty 50 mm objective lens. The Mueller Eraticator features a crystal clear image, aided by being both fully multi coated and having such a wide objective lens. This wide objective lens really brightens up the picture. The lenses are actually camera lens quality as well.

The Eraticator (see full specs) features an etched glass reticle with the option to illuminate the reticle with 11 different brightness settings. The illuminated red dot makes low light shooting much easier, especially when the large 50 mm objective lens is just soaking in the available light.

The turrets are of the no tool, easy fingertip variety that allows adjustments to be made on the fly. The adjustments are a fine 1/8th MOA per click, and are very easy to adjust, and zero. The zeroing procedure is important with the .204 Ruger since the ammunition tends to be a bit pricey. This is definitely a contender for the best scope for .204 rifles.

Tasco Target

If the Barska is a bit much for your zoom factor you always rely on the stalwart precision of Tasco. Tasco is an all around optics company that has its hand in many pies, including rifle scopes, binoculars, and spotting scopes. The Tasco Target is a 6-24 power optic, with a 42 mm objective lens. The Tasco Target’s 6-24 power magnification gives the shooter quite a broad range of magnifications to choose from, allowing the shooter to be more versatile on the range and in the field.

The Tasco Target uses multi-coated lenses to provide a bright picture and utilize the available light for low light situations. The Tasco Target holds zero extremely well, something a lot of more budget friendly high powered optics have trouble with. The adjustments can be fine tuned with the easy to use turrets, and each click is ¼ MOA.

The Tasco can even brag about the fact it’s waterproof, shockproof, and thankfully fog proof. The Tasco Target proved itself to be a very reliable optic, and has a very affordable price.

Conclusion

The .204 Ruger is a light recoiling, high velocity, and accurate round that deserves a solid piece of glass to top it off. A good optic compliments a good rifle, and aids in accuracy and fast target acquisition. While iron may be sufficient, you cannot squeeze the same kind of performance out of the .204 Ruger without a good optic, and we hope you’ve found the scope you’ve been looking for with this article. Good luck!

  • Owner of Reloaderaddict.com, Boyd Smith is a major handgun enthusiast, and although he owns Glocks, he prefers the revolving wheel type. His go-to guns are a Smith & Wesson 642 Performance Center for carry and a Ruger GP100 in the nightstand biometric safe (he has kids). He loads both revolvers with old-school 148-grain Federal Gold Medal .38 wadcutters. It’s OK if you think he’s a wimp. Email him.

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