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February 24, 2021

Droptine™ Riflescope 4.5-14x42mm

Tom Claycomb III shares his experiences using Burris Droptine Riflescope 4.5-14x42mm.
By Tom Claycomb III

I recently was testing a Umarex .22 cal. Origin airgun. I haven’t used a Burris since I left Colorado 22 yrs. ago so I thought I’d try a Burris scope on it. Of course when I’m hunting with a .22 cal. airgun I’m hunting small game that has a small kill zone. Due to this, I like a 4.5-14x scope. After checking out the Burris line-up I noticed that they had an economical 4.5-14x with an Adjustable Parallax named the Burris 4.5-14x 42mm Droptine. After testing it I was glad that I did.

For whatever reason at first I had trouble. I ran out of clicks and was still shooting 8” low. I tried to shim up one ring but the screws wouldn’t reach the bottom half. I talked to my gunsmithing buddy and he suggested that I shim up the back base mount. I did that, we bore sighted it and I was back in the saddle.

I then took it out on the high desert country and my buddy Robert Martin and I sighted it in. Using JSB Match Grade Dome pellets I was getting 5/16” groups. Now we were talking. Wow, 5/16” groups with an economical rifle.

If you' ve ever shot some of the cheaper airguns you’ll know that some airguns come with cheap scopes, especially one company that I knew in the past. I understand why they mount a cheap scope on their airgun. It is to keep the price point down but I think that hurts the airgun industry as a whole. Here’s why I say this. A kid is just getting into guns/shooting. If his/her first experience with a scope is some blurry, out of focus cheapo it degrades his experience. The older I get, the more that I like good glass.

Is the Burris 4.5-14x Droptine scope a little bit of an overkill for an airgun? Well, maybe but I was impressed with its crispness and clarity. It sure made for an enjoyable shooting experience. I can’t wait for spring when the ground squirrels start popping out. I’m going to wear them out with my new Umarex .22 cal. airgun with the Burris 4.5-14x 42mm Droptine Scope mounted on it.

For an airgun it’s nice to have to have an Adjustable Parallax that goes down to 10 or 15 yds. but again, this is a big game scope that I wanted to try out on an airgun. But to contradict what I said in the above sentence. I had no problem at all with taking close up 15 yd. shots. The scope focused fine for me.

Like I said above, I can’t wait for spring to roll around so I can start ground squirrel hunting. This Burris 4.5-14x 42mm Droptine scope is going to work great. A lot of airguns come with 3-9x but that’s just not enough magnification if you’re wanting to reach out there and touch someone. Last spring, I hit one at 100 yds. To do that you need more than a 3-9x. This Burris scope is going to be a deadly combination with my new Umarex Origin.

The MSRP on the Burris 4.5-14x 42mm Droptine scope is $167.00. And as is usual, we will close with the specs.

  • Adjustable Parallax
  • Reticle-Ballistic Plex
  • Matte Black
  • 4.4-14x 42mm
  • 1” Tube
  • Eye Relief 3.1”-3.8”
  • Click Value ¼ MOA
  • Adjustable Poarallax 50 yds. - infinity
  • Length: 13”
  • Weight: 18 oz.
  • Covered by the Burris Forever Warranty
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Burris Droptine riflescope mounted on a pictanny rail used on a shotgun