Leupold Mk4HD 2.5-10 review

[2531usmc]

Haha, ok. When I submit my peer reviewed paper to Scientific American on zero retention in hunting rifles, I’ll ensure to remove the human element.

Until then, I will keep shooting with my friends and family on Sundays… I’ll just make sure they don’t talk while I’m shooting since it’s really serious business to shoot my A-game 100% of the time, right from the start with zero warm up so I can post on the internet.

You do realize that even including my first 5 round group (the low one, before I adjusted my bags better) is still 1.87 MOA for 14 shots right? With 50% of those in a 1 MOA center. I don’t see ball busting in the “post your 10 round Tikka group thread” to those shooting 1.5 MOA 10 round groups.

Again, if I switched targets from first group to second, no one would be saying anything… then again, it is a Leupold thread, so if all shots weren’t one hole, it would be zero shift.

So the OP goes on Rokslide to tell a cool story about his new rifle and his elk hunt. And what happens?

He gets dragged into the nutty “Leupold is junk” thread.

That’ll teach him to start a thread!

 

[intunegp]

So the OP goes on Rokslide to tell a cool story about his new rifle and his elk hunt. And what happens?

He gets dragged into the nutty “Leupold is junk” thread.

That’ll teach him to start a thread!

If OP had posted a thread is titled "cool story about my new rifle and elk hunt" in the elk subforum instead of "Leupold whatever review" in the optics subforum it would have been a totally different thread.

I don't get why people get so emotional about this. Nobody is saying you're never going to hit an animal or that you can't hunt successfully with a Leupold, but when you go deep down the rabbit hole there's more to the story.

Unfortunately for many, finding yourself in conversations in the optics section of an online hunting forum is deep enough down the rabbit hole to hear the chatter whether or not you're open to it.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

So the OP goes on Rokslide to tell a cool story about his new rifle and his elk hunt. And what happens?

He gets dragged into the nutty “Leupold is junk” thread.

That’ll teach him to start a thread!

I’ve been guilty of this too, but you’re failing at reading comprehension here.

 

[gbflyer]

I can buy a scope and or mount problem if you drop it or it bangs around in your truck and it’s a full mil or 2 off. Thats an easy sell. But to nit pick about .1 to .3 shooting prone with a hunting gun from one day to the next? Come on man. I’m no fan of Leupold either by the way, I’ve sent back a handful.

With what the OP is working with, there’s no way to say, and pass the red face test, that his Leupold is anything other than GTG.

I’m sure some “Fudd” has a rail gun laying around from shooting unlimited BR. Put a good barrel on it. Go throw the scope off the house, drag it behind a yoke of oxen, whatever, then test it on the RG off a concrete bench with wind flags by someone who knows how to read them. Then the Rokslide rejection standard might be believable.

 

[BLJ]

I think this is the crux here. You don’t need a bench gun or 2 million zoom scope with less than 10 ES handloads. Folks are requiring just the above statement when trying to validate a scopes reliability is all. I checked my Tikka 22 Creedmoor at 100 yards with my Maven RS1.2 the other day. Not even really trying to be “crazy accurate” as I knew that was a reliable lot of ammo for several hundred rounds already. 10 shots on a 1” square…

View attachment 796930


If you’re a 2-2.5 MOA shooter with current setup and ammo, there is no way to know what is “you” “the ammo” or “the scope shifting” is all.

I appreciate threads like this in general, I think there’s a couple small tweaks you can do to make this a bit more “reliable” from a pure “data” standpoint is all.

Is your POA the center or a corner?
Does it depend on whether your scope has a floating dot or cross? Thanks.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Is your POA the center or a corner?
Does it depend on whether your scope has a floating dot or cross? Thanks.

POA is center. Doesn’t matter if dot or cross hair.

 

[intunegp]

With what the OP is working with, there’s no way to say, and pass the red face test, that his Leupold is anything other than GTG.

Good to go as in he'll probably hit what he's shooting at in a short to medium range hunting situation? Sure. That's not what is being discussed when people talk about holding zero and that's where a lot of the confusion comes from.

If you shoot a group and say "well ya know my position was questionable, my target was questionable, my ammo was questionable, and the conditions were questionable but I'm positive the bullet is going where the reticle was when the shot broke" you haven't proven anything about the scope/mount/rifle setup one way or another which is what has been pointed out here over and over again. It doesn't prove anything other than OP is satisfied with his results. and that's fine, but you can't misrepresent that to either side.

 

[gbflyer]

Good to go as in he'll probably hit what he's shooting at in a short to medium range hunting situation? Sure. That's not what is being discussed when people talk about holding zero and that's where a lot of the confusion comes from.

If you shoot a group and say "well ya know my position was questionable, my target was questionable, my ammo was questionable, and the conditions were questionable but I'm positive the bullet is going where the reticle was when the shot broke" you haven't proven anything about the scope/mount/rifle setup one way or another which is what has been pointed out here over and over again. It doesn't prove anything other than OP is satisfied with his results. and that's fine, but you can't misrepresent that to either side.

Agree. There is a human factor, environmental factor, and equipment factor with each and every one of these tests though. There has to be an elimination of that in order to make the test as pure as folks want it to be. That’s all I’m saying.

I’m thankful for everyone that does this stuff and presents their findings. Makes for good conversation and thought. It seems to have inspired a couple manufacturers to step it up which is also a good thing.

 

[brazz04]

@AZ_Hunter Any input long term on the scope? Was looking at one for the same type lightweight 400ish yard tikka in 6.5 PRC.

Sorry for your thread turning into a shit show.
Just looking for real world use as you’ve shown, not the “testing” nonsense. Definitely a reason I limit my time on rokslide.

 

[AZ_Hunter]

@AZ_Hunter Any input long term on the scope? Was looking at one for the same type lightweight 400ish yard tikka in 6.5 PRC.

Sorry for your thread turning into a shit show.
Just looking for real world use as you’ve shown, not the “testing” nonsense. Definitely a reason I limit my time on rokslide.

The only change in zero I have had is when I changed from the Stockys stock to its new configuration with Peak 44 Blacktooth and different can. It has been on every trip I have been on, killed two more elk, and a bear in two different states again this year. Doesn’t get babied, gets bounced around in the back seat of my truck and shoots lights out.

I’m sure some would say I’ve had 1/10” of a mil “shift” here or there or some such non-sense because sometimes I hit the bottom of a .5” bulls at 100 and sometimes the top… to that I say bullshit, welcome to real life.

I have dialed it up and down, etc etc. it’s a great scope. Look at the shot placement on that bear. Haha.

 

[brazz04]

Exactly what I was hoping to hear. Seems like a great scope and I’m looking to do exactly what you are with this rifle. Critter getter in northwest Colorado. Excellent work!

 

[waresmike]

Looks good!!