LPVO Recommendation Under $1k

[AlabamaMountainMan]

In the firearm thread, I posted recently about a recommendation on a low recoiling do-it-all rifle. I have pretty well determined to run a 6 ARC AR and am now at the point of needing a new optic. My current 2.5x prism is great, but not what I would want to hunt with in all scenarios. I could spend as much as $1000, but of course if there is something really good for less, that would be great. This rifle set up needs to:
- Excel at shorter range timber since I hunt this most of the year.
- Excel as a "ranch" rifle, which for me means I can take it out to shoot a coyote/stray dog/hog that is harassing my dogs in the middle of the night or any other similar event.
- Be decent enough to stretch some shots out to 400 yards for some upcoming western hunts (ID bear, WY pronghorn, etc.), although I probably would stick to 300 to 350 max in most scenarios. ***I know this set up is not the premier "western" rifle, but I am taking some advice I received and making this rifle excel at 95% of the job's I will ask of it and be good enough to not hinder me in the other 5%***

An LPVO with a 1-6, 1-8, or 1-10 seems like it would fit all 3 of those criteria pretty accurately although I am thinking the 1-8 may make more sense? I have only ever owned the Sig MSR 1-6 and no longer have it. I remember it being decent and am not opposed to buying it again if it is a good option. Hoping for some good recommendations. I am unsure if I would benefit more from FFP or SFP. I am not opposed to a FFP if everyone thinks it would meet the above criteria, but I have no experience with FFP to have an opinion. Would love some feedback on this as well.

So far I have seen the following as being in the budget and having good reviews online:
- Sig MSR 1-6
- Vortex Viper PST 1-6
- Eotech Vudu 1-6
- Primary Arms (way too many options to post here)
- Meopta Optika 6 (I believe was a 1-6)
I am not opposed to buying used if the company warranty is good and fully transferable. ie. Vortex, Leupold, etc.

 

[Macintosh]

It's every inch of your budget, but I got one of these this year that I REALLY like, especially for that shorter-range timber application where I appreciate the bold reticle and the always-on dot. Mine has a duplex, but spin it up to 6x and the mil dot would allow easy holds for your few 300+ yard shots. My favorites about this scope are the eyebox and eye-relief, it's one of the nicer scopes I've used in that regard. I havent used many 8x or 10x erectors, but my impression is the eyebox is often a lot more finicky and the max-magnification image is darkened considerably, at least with scopes at this price point. Those have NOT been issues on my 1-6.

Trijicon AccuPoint 1-6x24 MIL-Dot Green Dot 200095

Trijicon AccuPoint 1-6x24 MIL-Dot Green Dot 200095 | Only at EuroOptic.com!

www.eurooptic.com

 

[AlabamaMountainMan]

It's every inch of your budget, but I got one of these this year that I REALLY like. Mine has a duplex, but the mil dot would allow easy holds for your few 300+ yard shots. My favorites about this scope are the eyebox and eye-relief, it's one of the nicer scopes I've used in that regard.

Trijicon AccuPoint 1-6x24 MIL-Dot Green Dot 200095

Trijicon AccuPoint 1-6x24 MIL-Dot Green Dot 200095 | Only at EuroOptic.com!

www.eurooptic.com

I am definitely okay with maxing the budget since I am asking a lot from the rifle. Do you ever wish it was a 1-8 or FFP? I had a Vortex 2.5-10 that I usually left on 5x to 6x for most shooting at 300 yards and did not seem to matter much.

 

[plebe]

I prefer the Accupoint, but they have some less expensive 1-6s new this year in the Ascent and Huron lines with a broader range of reticle options.

 

[Macintosh]

I am definitely okay with maxing the budget since I am asking a lot from the rifle. Do you ever wish it was a 1-8 or FFP? I had a Vortex 2.5-10 that I usually left on 5x to 6x for most shooting at 300 yards and did not seem to matter much.

I'm closer to 60 than 40 at this point, so my eyes may have as much to do with it as the scope itself. I had a 1.5-4.5 for a while that I liked, but I felt under-magnified trying to pick a hole through beech whips in the woods even at closer range. I went to a 2-10 scope and felt that was a great magnification for my use. I've had a few scopes go south on me and hence am touchy about durability, and never really trusted that 2-10 and didnt love the reticle. I would have gotten a 2-7 or 2-8 in a heartbeat, but I could not find the combination of magnification, reticle and durability that I wanted, so this was my solution. I havent used it enough to say that I'll never find it lacking, but I suspect if/when I do it'll be trying to find a hole through a bunch of twigs, rather than a range-related thing. For me, I dont ever expect to shoot this gun past 150 yards, and 99% of shots will be half that or less, so you'll have to extrapolate as best as you can from that. That means I have zero use for FFP in this scope, everything is point blank, so I was more focused on having a crazy-bold reticle and lots of FOV, while also just enough magnification to pick out twigs at 60 or 80 yards. At 6x it's low-enough magnification that if you do need to use the reticle holdovers it's no biggie to spin it up to the stop, so I would not be too worried about sfp with that in mind.

So far I'd say having a great eyebox by far trumps having 8x instead of 6x. I have not looked thru the 8x though, so perhaps try to look through both or get feedback from someone who has both--I assume the 8x is worse in this regard but that's conjecture. If there was no loss in eyebox or or brightness, then sure, I'd prefer the 8x. At least in Trij and some other models I might have considered, the 8x and 10x lpvo's were ffp with exposed turrets, and I did not care for the reticles--all of those were fetures that were more of a liability than a benefit for my use. They might be fine for you though if you'll use them much at longer range.

 

[Brix8984]

Not mine but there is a 1-8 credo in the classifieds that’s a pretty good deal. I would pick it over the other options you have listed. Also the sightron stac 1-6 passed the drop eval id add that to your list if you want sfp.

 

[justinspicher]

On a 6ARC, I wouldn’t hesitate to put a Trijicon 2-10x or something similar. My buddy has an 18” 6ARC with a NF 2.5-10x32 that he shoots everything with all the way out to 700yds with no issues.

 

[Speaks]

I just bought a swfa 1-4 I am going to mount up this weekend. Similar purpose to what you are describing.

 

[menhaden_man]

Trijicon ascent is a good buy

 

[AlabamaMountainMan]

On a 6ARC, I wouldn’t hesitate to put a Trijicon 2-10x or something similar. My buddy has an 18” 6ARC with a NF 2.5-10x32 that he shoots everything with all the way out to 700yds with no issues.

I considered several of the 2-10 options out there but would really like the low end to be a 1x for the more “ranch” side of usage. We’ve had some issue with stray dogs and coyotes coming onto the property and being pretty close up.

 

[AlabamaMountainMan]

Trijicon ascent is a good buy

How does it compare to the Huron and AccuPoint? I don’t fully understand the differences. I am assuming different price brackets?

 

[menhaden_man]

How does it compare to the Huron and AccuPoint? I don’t fully understand the differences. I am assuming different price brackets?

Actually can’t recall… but I know I looked into it and somehow landed on that.

Have it on a 45-70, pulled the trigger 5 times in last 14 months and whacked 4 bucks and a coyote on USFS lands.

 

[justinspicher]

I considered several of the 2-10 options out there but would really like the low end to be a 1x for the more “ranch” side of usage. We’ve had some issue with stray dogs and coyotes coming onto the property and being pretty close up.

It sounds like a 1-6x or a 1-8x is what you want.

I put a Burris RT-6 1-6x24 on a buddy’s rifle and it’s a great option if you don’t want to spend a ton of money.

 

[bnsafe]

I put a hawke 1x4 on my 6 arc for close timber hunting. However, Im changing it this year. I was sitting in my blind and completely lost light way before shooting time was over. Might just be mine so not saying all lvpo are like that, but it didnt work.

 

[AlabamaMountainMan]

I put a hawke 1x4 on my 6 arc for close timber hunting. However, Im changing it this year. I was sitting in my blind and completely lost light way before shooting time was over. Might just be mine so not saying all lvpo are like that, but it didnt work.

No kidding? I guess the front objective needs to be bigger for the light gathering.

 

[hunting1]

My PST II has been rock solid on a AR-10 and seems like a higher power in the field. I have over a 1,000 rounds on it.

 

[AlabamaMountainMan]

My PST II has been rock solid on a AR-10 and seems like a higher power in the field. I have over a 1,000 rounds on it.

It is definitely one I am looking at. I had to use the vortex warranty one a set of binos when I left them in a bag on a stand for 2 weeks. Had hardcore rain for about a week and a half and got some moisture in the lens. Wound up getting a new pair with no cost to me even though it was my fault. Hard to pick a different company with that level of security.

 

[flyfisher117]

In my experience with many budget LPVOs.
Stick to a SFP in 1-6. It's a nice middle ground in usability and glass quality. The FFP or the 1-8/10 options really give up glass quality.

The Viper PSTii 1-6 while dated, is still one of my favorites as far as overall quality goes. Reticle kinda sucks but I'm not sure what I would want otherwise. I'd have no drama buying one today at full price.

I have 3 or 4 Primary arms sub $500 LPVOs. One is a 1-8 and I dislike it. The rest are 1-6. If you can snag them on sale then they're OK. I wouldn't buy any of them full price. I don't care for their chevron reticles. Glass is meh on all of them but the 1-8 is extra poor.

I absolutely hated the Sig MSR 1-6. Glass was atrocious, it had terrible fish eye and distortion. It also had some sort of cluttered Christmas tree reticle which felt silly.

Haven't used the others but if your budget is 1k I would skip the ones I mentioned above and watch the classifieds. Example you can find Razor 1-6 e models for right under 1k frequently. The Eotechs and Trijicons etc can also be had in that price range.

 

[AlabamaMountainMan]

In my experience with many budget LPVOs.
Stick to a SFP in 1-6. It's a nice middle ground in usability and glass quality. The FFP or the 1-8/10 options really give up glass quality.

The Viper PSTii 1-6 while dated, is still one of my favorites as far as overall quality goes. Reticle kinda sucks but I'm not sure what I would want otherwise. I'd have no drama buying one today at full price.

I have 3 or 4 Primary arms sub $500 LPVOs. One is a 1-8 and I dislike it. The rest are 1-6. If you can snag them on sale then they're OK. I wouldn't buy any of them full price. I don't care for their chevron reticles. Glass is meh on all of them but the 1-8 is extra poor.

I absolutely hated the Sig MSR 1-6. Glass was atrocious, it had terrible fish eye and distortion. It also had some sort of cluttered Christmas tree reticle which felt silly.

Haven't used the others but if your budget is 1k I would skip the ones I mentioned above and watch the classifieds. Example you can find Razor 1-6 e models for right under 1k frequently. The Eotechs and Trijicons etc can also be had in that price range.

Looks like a lot of the Eotechs and Trijicons can be had right at the budget mark so I will be checking them out a lot. I am keeping an eye out for vortex razors as well. I do remember the fish eye effect of the Sig I had a while back. I never pushed it past 100 yards , but it is good to know that other optics do not have that. I figured it was just part of the LPVO design.