Drop test aside, what compares to Leupold?

[Dave Thomas]

Baby atacr with mil r reticle.

 

[maxillathrilla]

Zeiss

 

[Jim813]

I appreciate most all the comments. I don't see why it's unreasonable to have a scope that a family member can shoot a couple hundred yards and not be confused by the reticle, while I can take to longer ranges. Nowhere did I say I'd have a kid shooting 700 yards, and the reticle option I posted does have simple references for elevation and wind. With an adjustable turret for elevation, the wind references have been sufficient for my applications thus far.

I hunt/shoot in multiple states, some that don't have clearly defined regulations on legal shooting hours. I pulled this from one state regulation: "In general, if you can see well enough to shoot safely, you are legal." No, I am not saying that all the scopes that I've looked through do not allow me to shoot in those low light conditions. Yes, I am saying that I want a scope that performs as good as possible in those conditions.

As I posted initially, the point of this post was to compare options that perform (glass quality, weight, reticle options, warranty, illuminated options) as well as a Leupold VX5/VX6 with better reliability.

It sounds like these are options to be considered in a generally similar price point to a Leupold Vx5/6 with comparable performance and better reliability.
- Trijicon Accupoint or tenmile
- Maven Rs1.2
- Zeiss V6 (or V8$$)
- Schmidt & Bender Klassic (or T96)
- Swarovski (more expensive)

 

[nm.otter]

I appreciate most all the comments. I don't see why it's unreasonable to have a scope that a family member can shoot a couple hundred yards and not be confused by the reticle, while I can take to longer ranges.

A mil-dot or mil-quad will do just that.

 

[Macintosh]

@Jim813 the reticle image you posted just appears as a black square with a tiny red dot in the center for me, so folks may not be able to see what your benchmark is.

Agree on mil dot, etc.Below is a ffp mil-dot reticle (P3L from S&B) at 3x and at 12x. Pretty simple stuff. Pretty useable at all magnifications. Useable for wind and elevation. This thread here on rokslide has a number of photos showing high and low magnification on a number of ffp scopes, so you can be your own judge on what you are looking for.

 

[SDHNTR]

I appreciate most all the comments. I don't see why it's unreasonable to have a scope that a family member can shoot a couple hundred yards and not be confused by the reticle, while I can take to longer ranges. Nowhere did I say I'd have a kid shooting 700 yards, and the reticle option I posted does have simple references for elevation and wind. With an adjustable turret for elevation, the wind references have been sufficient for my applications thus far.

I hunt/shoot in multiple states, some that don't have clearly defined regulations on legal shooting hours. I pulled this from one state regulation: "In general, if you can see well enough to shoot safely, you are legal." No, I am not saying that all the scopes that I've looked through do not allow me to shoot in those low light conditions. Yes, I am saying that I want a scope that performs as good as possible in those conditions.

As I posted initially, the point of this post was to compare options that perform (glass quality, weight, reticle options, warranty, illuminated options) as well as a Leupold VX5/VX6 with better reliability.

It sounds like these are options to be considered in a generally similar price point to a Leupold Vx5/6 with comparable performance and better reliability.
- Trijicon Accupoint or tenmile
- Maven Rs1.2
- Zeiss V6 (or V8$$)
- Schmidt & Bender Klassic (or T96)
- Swarovski (more expensive)

Remove Swarovski (fragile internals, but with great glass) from your list for sure, and likely Zeiss.

 

[SDHNTR]

I appreciate the constructive comments so far. Some funny ones as well.

"My idea" of a simple reticle is one that a 10 year old new hunter, an adult who enjoys hunting but has minimal enthusiasm for shooting, and an enthusiast can all be successful with. Attached is an example that has fit the bill so far. For my situation, something too complex for this would be the NX8 mil-xt.

I've looked through several scopes from the Leupold line, vortex line, and Nightforce NX8 with the mil-xt reticle. To my eye the Vx6 had a crisper image and better low light transmission than those I've looked through so far. In my situations that last 5-15 minutes of light can be the difference.

My intent in the point of this post is to figure out if there is a comparable viewing experience with better durability/reliability. It sounds like some think there is and some agree there is a compromise. Is it worth it to give up a little on the glass for better reliability? That's what I'm trying to figure out.

Weight wise, I don't think 8 extra oz will be a deal breaker but its worth noting.

Warranty, no one intends to use but I don't want a product that their company doesn't stand behind if there is an issue.

I see now, you have to zoom in. I’m not aware of an illuminated reticle in a good scope that is really similar. As per above, the Swfa mil dot is great, but you’ll give up illumination and some marginal glass quality.

Is this too busy for you? There are milrad variants too.