3-15 optic

[Samsydow]

HI guys I'm looking at getting a 3-15 scope for a rifle I built for shooting in the bush and animals out to 500m and steel out to 1000m an I've settled on these 4, the criteria were low turrets, good glass an around 20oz or less. Does anybody have experience comparing any of theservice
Cheers.

Ziess hd5
Vortex razor HD LH
Whisky 5
Leupold vx5hd

 

[jhm2023]

Can't speak for the others, but the Leupold VX5 is really nice. Can't beat that CDS ZL2 turret. Plus with the Leupold you can use the alumina flip back covers as opposed to plastic ones.

 

[2five7]

The 20 oz limit will make it tough to fill your needs, imo. Scopes with really rock solid, repeatable turrets generally weigh more than that. If I remember correctly, the hd5 is a single rotation turret if you use the zero stop, with around 16 moa available. Not enough to get to 1000, also their reticles have no hash windage marks on the main crosshair, so you'd have to dial wind.

The whiskey 5 I've read good things about, but again no windage marks so you'd have to dial for wind (not a problem, just an FYI)

The vx5 probably has the best glass, but some people have reported issues with leupolds not being dependable on dialing and return to zero (Personally I chalk his up to the sheer volume of Leupold scopes out there).

Personally, for a hunting rig I think I'd like to try a vx5.

 

[jhm2023]

I have 3 Leupold scopes with the CDS system and they have always been spot on. Granted I only shoot out to 600. The vx5 I have is a 2 turn turret with and indicator to show what turn you are on. It also has windage marks in MOA. I'll attempt taking it to 1,000 with my 33 Nosler when the weather warms up.

 

[BrushyHillGuide]

I’ve found my Leupold VX6HD (4-24x52) w/ the ZL2 turret to be almost as good as my Nightforce scopes when dialing. It’s a little mushy in the clicks but very accurate and when running a box test it performs perfectly. The glass is WAY nicer on the VX6 and it’s a feather compared to my NF scopes. It’s a little heavier than 20oz but darn close and it’s a LOT better for shooting LR with the added magnification. If you’re truly wanting to shoot accurately out at 1k and further, you’re going to want more than 15x, IMO. The ZL2 turrets are TWO rotation. The new Mark 5HD have ZL3 turrets with 3 turns and it only adds a couple of ounces to my VX6HD; but I have plenty of elevation. The VX6HD and the new Mark5 HD have reticle available with windage subtensions for holding wind, FYI.

Hope this helps!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[mlevimadden]

I have a zeiss conquest HD5 3-15x42 and a vortex razor hd lh 3-15x42. My zeiss has the RZ800 reticle and came with capped turrets, but I shipped it to Kenton industries to have them install elevation and windage turrets on it. The vortex has the G4 bdc reticle, and it is my favorite reticle of any scope I have ever used. Just for clarification, neither of my scopes have any sort of a zero stop on them.

Honestly, the only areas I can give to the zeiss are better build quality, and I like the exposed Kenton turrets better than the capped turrets on the vortex. The vortex was cheaper (for me), lists yardage on the parallax knob, has a better reticle, and weighs less. I have a really hard time telling any difference in glass quality or repeatability between the two scopes. If I had to get rid of one, it would probably be the zeiss, but you probably can't go wrong with any of the scopes on your list.

 

[Josh Wright]

I just received a whiskey 5 for wife's gun. Going to shoot it Sunday. Will update. Seems well built.

 

[ckkone]

The Vortex Razor HD LH is very underrated, tough choice for you all the scopes you mentioned are great and you would be splitting hairs to judge which is best.

 

[Samsydow]

Thanks for all the feedback guys, it will be mainly used for the bush and out to 350m with the occasional longer shot hunting Which is why i want the 3 power , shooting steel will be it's secondary role and I want to try an keep it around US$1300 or less thats why I'm not looking at the vx6. At this stage I'm leaning towards the leupold or the vortex just for reticle choice ,I emailed leupold about the windplex with firedot and they said they would have one for the vx5 in the next 6 months so I might wait for that because I think it would be handy for the bush. Does anybody have the vx5 with the windplex? Is it thick enough for Bush hunting without a dot?

 

[gr8fuldoug]

Of the scopes you mentioned I would say the best of them would be the Leupold VX-5HD, however, I would say that you might also take a look at the Steiner GS3 Series as they are excellent scopes with German optics.

 

[mcseal2]

I have two Leupold VX-6 scopes that I think have the same erector system as the current models from what Leupold told me. Neither dials consistently and the clicks are really mushy on both. The glass is amazing and if I zero them, tap the elevation and windage turrets with an empty brass pretty hard a few times, and leave them alone they stay on target. Both have been very consistent that way until I start dialing them. I feel like they are a good optic but just not designed for dialing. Both scopes I've tried dialing with have ended up on flat shooting coyote rifles now where their exceptional field of view and zoom work great. The TMOA reticle lets me make the shots I need to for coyotes without dialing and once they are in position they have held their zero bouncing around in the feed truck or UTV very well. I like Leupold a lot, I just don't think they are a great dialing scope. They didn't design their erector system around dialing like some companies, just put turrets on their current scope from what I read. I wish I didn't have to speak negatively about them, if the dialing was on they are ideal scopes to me. The 3-18x50 VX-6 is every bit as good in low light as the Swaro Z5 3.5-18x44 I have. The Leopold is a 30mm tube and larger objective, but still it matching the Swaro impresses me.

If Sig offered a MOA marked reticle for windage I'd give that scope a shot. I own several Sig firearms that impress me. As it is I'm looking at replacing my Leupolds with the Nightforce SHV series, Bushnell LRHS, or Huskemaw scopes on the big game guns I want to dial with. I think I'm going to give up some low light performance no matter what way I go there from reviews I read. I really like a covered windage turret so that limits my options. I can't afford Swaro X5 scopes for everything.

 

[Josh Wright]

Shot with the Whiskey 5 Sunday.

Initial thoughts:

Seemed clear glass
The adjustable red dot was nice.
A breeze to sight in.

I was in a rush, so couldn't test tracking for longer distances, but it moved where it was supposed to during sight in.

I found a deal for it for 700. I liked it a lot. My wife doesn't have great vision which is why I wanted a red dot. She likes it.

 

[Samsydow]

Thanks Josh, if they did a MOA reticle of some sort I think they would be top of my list with the dot, does yours have the parallax adjustment?
mcseal2 how do you find the x5 for dialing? I was looking at the SHV but they are just to heavy for the rifle it's going on.

 

[Doc Holliday]

I just sold a 3-15 Vortex LH Razor because no matter how high rings I used or how far forward I mounted, the brass kept hitting the windage turret and failing to eject 30% of the time. While this is primarily an issue with the rifle's ejection angle, I put a Swaro on with much lower profile turrets, and problem solved.

If you do go Vortex LH Razor, I would recommend the HSR reticle over the G4. The G4 has a "dot" for its primary point of aim, and at distance for target shooting, the dot covers up too much.....also I could see it being hard to find in low light against a dark target. The HSR is much "cleaner" in my opinion.

From your list I recommend the Leupold, but with your apparent budget, I would take a look at a 14.5 oz Z3 4-12 with BRH:

Swarovski Z3 4-12x50 Rifle Scope with BRH Reticle | eBay

If you want to dial, you could get the Ballistic Turret version: Swarovski Z3 4-12x50 Rifle Scope with 4W Reticle 708026590245 | eBay

 

[Matt W.]

Of the scopes you mentioned I would say the best of them would be the Leupold VX-5HD, however, I would say that you might also take a look at the Steiner GS3 Series as they are excellent scopes with German optics.

Those Steiners look intriguing Doug. Another one to add to my research list! Thanks!

 

[Justin Crossley]

Thanks Josh, if they did a MOA reticle of some sort I think they would be top of my list with the dot, does yours have the parallax adjustment?
mcseal2 how do you find the x5 for dialing? I was looking at the SHV but they are just to heavy for the rifle it's going on.

This may help. Sig Sauer Whiskey 5 Riflescope Review - Rokslide

 

[Samsydow]

Thanks Justin I read that the othe day, my only concern is with the reticles having no windage marks for hold off, if they did a reticle with MOA windage marks I'd be all over it.

 

[Samsydow]

Thanks doc I did look at the swarm 4-12s but I currently use a zeiss conquest 4.5-14 and didn't really want to go less zoom than I already have.

 

[Benjaminwill80]

I’ve now had two Leupold vx5hd 2-10 with the cds zl2 dial that I’ve had to return. The hash marks line up at zero but by the time you get to 10 moa the hash mark on the scope body is sitting halfway between the hash marks on the dial. Oddly it lines back up at a full rotation and then is off again another half rotation. Both scopes the same issue. Can’t say if the scope tracks as never shot them because didn’t want to mount and not be able to return. Seems to be a defect in the design. I’ve called Leupold and they don’t know why the issue. If you go with the Leupold look closely before mounting it.

 

[TauPhi111]

No one has suggested the SWFA SS 3-15x42. I've been thinking of getting one because I only hear good things about them and for the price they can't be beat. Comes close to your 20 oz limit at 24oz, but as others have said, I think it's going to be hard to get under that with your other requirements of good turrets and such.