Scopes and eye relief

Just had a question in this morning from a customer about his scope - thinking that maybe there was a fault with it - I blame cartoons myself where people have scopes up against their eyes like they're gluded on!

Hi I received the above scope this morning - thanks however I think there may be a problem with it as I have to hold it a good 3.5 inches away from my eye before I get full unobstructed view. Your advice would be welcome.

Typically that is the way telescopic scopes work, you don't hold them close to the eye. Otherwise if you have a gun with recoil you're going to get a black eye! See this picture for an example - (not of black eyes) http://www.outdoorlife.com/outdoor/photogallery/article/0,20036,1537028,00.html

This is called eye relief i.e., distance from eye to scope lens required for a full view - closer or further away either means blurred vision or a smaller then lens circle/oval moving circle.

This distance can vary from person to person depending on eyesight and focal length.

1) Try the focus ring to see if you can change the distance to bring it to a more comfortable range, though

2) Move scope forward or backward in mounts so you're comfortable with it when taking an aimed shot.

3.5 inches is not that unusual, on a higher magnifications it's normal to be further out than that.

The best I can say that if this means you can't get used to it it maybe try a different model and see if it makes any difference for you. If you're after a sight where your eye is right up against the lens then a telescopic is not the type for you, instead you will want a red dot type which is more -what you see is what you get- but they are not telescopic.

My after notes -
The thing to understand from this is that telescopoic scopes are optical instruments, tough ones yes but sensitive in terms of how you get to see through them.

They're intended for aimed shots and yes, you can do this very fast and almost reflex once you get used to them - but you can't jam your eye up against the eyepiece and expect to get a clear view - and as I say below, you really don't want your eye jammed against one when shooting a gun thats got recoil!!