So I have a Ruger American .308 with a Nikon M-308 scope, pretty nice setup for deer hunting under most situations. Last year though I noticed some glare when the sun was setting and shooting towards the West so I bought and installed a sun shade on the scope, that didn't fix the problem.

Sunday night it was clear and cold. I was hunting over 3 acre field looking West. The sun had set and left an orange glow in the sky above the pine trees that were beyond the field. With about 10 minutes left of shooting light a small deer walks out and looking through my Leopold 10x42 binoculars I have no problem seeing it and the big Buck that had followed it into the field. They are both about 180 yards away and I have my .308 up on the rail ready to take down the big Buck. Only problem is when I look through the scope all I see is a haze/glare from the orange glow left in the sky above the pines, I can't see a damn thing. I look back through my binoculars and sure enough the both deer are gone, another opportunity lost to sun glare.

So I get home last night and go online and search for a solution and the only thing I can find is something called an anit-glare device (ARD) that is a piece that goes on the end of your scope with a what looks like a waffle design filter. I research purchasing one ($50-$100) and stumble on a forum thread that says the M-308 should come with one. Sure enough I find it in the box to my M-308 and screw it on to my scope, now I can't wait to see if this actually works. Picture attached of ARD.

I'll be going back up there Thursday night to hunt the same field, so is this going to work? Is there a better solution? A buddy I work with says putting a stocking or thin dress sock over the end of the scope will help too. He's an Army Veteran so I have no reason to doubt him and will be taking a thin dress sock with to try that too with the ARD and see which setup does the best. If anybody else has a better solution I'm open to suggestions until I find a proven solution!

Those ARD's are also known as killflash devices. One of them might work, depending on how deep it is. If you are looking into the sun, I'm not sure of anything that will help (besides a VERY clean lens). The killflash devices are made to work similar to a sunshade, where the flash/glare is far enough out of the line of sight that the device will basically create a shadow over the lens.

BTW, I've moved this to the optics section.

I'm not looking into the sun, the sun has set and been set for a good 15 minutes but the orange glow remains and that is what is causing the glare. It was pretty dark, only 10 minutes of shooting light left. The good thing is I can test solutions any clear evening when in that stand, I just have to wait for the sun to set. The ARD is installed, I'll also take a piece of some stockings my wife no longer uses and a thin dress sock of mine along with the ARD and see which combination works best.

Here's my 2 cants worth.

You've got the same problem facing photographers when you try to shoot (either deer or photographs) in low light, especially if the light is coming from in front of you. Your scope is a nice one, but if you've ever wondered why seemingly similar scopes can cost 5 times as much, the sad answer is the same reason the question can be asked about camera lenses too.

Unfortunately, size matters. The larger the lenses the more light they "gather". Targets are easier to see if the image is brighter and that takes big lenses. Big lenses, and in the case of scopes, big tubes, really do help in low light. In addition, high quality glass and the way multiple elements are put together are a big factor too. Using several types of very expensive glass in the lenses and using very carefully shaped lenses which are put together in such a way as to minimize various kinds of distortion and maximize contrast and resolution costs money; sometimes a LOT of money. No surprise there.

I happen to think five hundred bucks is a lot to pay for a scope, but the sad truth is that under really challenging situations like the one you describe your scope may not give you a sight picture good enough to get that special buck. You're going to suffer reduced contrast and a hazy image, making it hard to get that tricky shot.

Unfortunately, the device you show in the picture is likely to hurt rather than help. Perhaps if you were facing a low and bright sun just off to the side of your target about 20 or 30 degrees, it would help reduce lens flair, but if you're just shooting into the glow of an already-set sun, it might do more harm than good. Of course, it doesn't hurt to try, but you can most likely experiment at home assuming that a guy out in his front yard waving around a high powered rifle doesn't upset the neighborhood Moms too much.

The best answer, unless you have a really fat wallet, is to try to shoot down-sun when possible and at hunt at times of day when the light is a little bit brighter. Of course, getting God's furry little critters to cooperate is often a problem.

The problem is we can't put up a stand and shoot any other direction with full view of the field and not be pointing back towards the house that is only a couple hundred yards behind the field. The trail the Bucks come out is a main mature Buck trail and I figured out why. It allows them to exit the woods and walk across the corner of the field to survey it for Does and then they are quickly back in the woods on the other side. The field is in the shape of a triangle and that particular corner joins with another smaller plot so they can also check two plots at once.

I live in a waterfront neighborhood, neighbors wouldn't hesitate to call the cops! I'll have to wait until I get to Camp to see I the ARD or stockings work!

your device or you buddies idea should work, we use nude pantiehoes or footies back in the day cut and held on w a rubber band.

ARDs are designed to eliminate most of the reflection of light off your scope so you don't give away your location. A small benefit is the breakup of light (glare) going to your eye. A shade keeps the angle of sunlight fro directly hitting the lense. Filters or lens covers (yellow, orange, rain, contrast) eliminate certain spectrums of light to reduce glare and improve contrast definition. As you have light in your face and the target is in low light, cutting the "refracted light" limits what you see through the scope. My recommendation is to use a pair of yellow shooting glasses if you have face clearence and a yellow or orange tint lens cap is not. You can add or remove them as necessary. Research the colors as you know what the glare looks like. Those polarized fishing sunglasses that kill glare off the surface of water might do it for you if they aren't too dark.

Good hunting.

I have a Nikon ARD and it definitely cuts down on light. I will hurt you in low light conditions.

Back in the day we were told that the typical ARD(mil issue for a 40mm objective) reduced light coming thru your scope by 11%. Better than an ARD although not as practical in some conditions is to make up something like a paper towel roll.

I had a spot in Maine that I used to call yotes from in the afternoon that was looking into the setting sun. I made up a heavy black tube that slipped over the objective of my 6.5-20X40mm Leupold. It was made out of heavy craft paper that was FLAT black. Worked great and cheap. Somewhat a PITA to carry though. --- SAWMAN

Guys thanks for all the advice. I believe I have some yellow tint shooting glasses and I also have prescription polarized Oakley sunglasses I never thought to try. I'll make sure I take everything to camp this trip and try everything to see what works best in that stand at sunset.

Well I figured out a solution. Just the 3" sunshade didn't work, just the ARD didn't work so I improvised. The Sunshade and the ARD were threaded so they would screw on to the scope. Problem is the sunshade didn't have threads on the end of it to screw the ARD onto it but the ARD threads would fit inside the sunshade. What I ended up doing was screwing the sunshade on the scope and then put the ARD on the end of the sunshade with the threads inside the sunshade and then I took a piece of black electrical tape to keep the ARD in place attached to the sunshade.

Sure enough, the combination of the two did the trick. I was able to clearly see the field looking West into a setting sun that had dropped below the tree line with very little glare. I could clearly see the field that was about 180 yards away, the same field before that was just a glare with either the sunshade or ARD by themselves! Now I just need to find a piece of black heat shrink to hold the ARD to the sunshade and make it a cleaner look than just the black electrical tape which actually doesn't look too bad.

Did that Buck come by?