Nightforce or Sightron

[Bigsky108]

First of all, I appreciate your time and insights, everyone!​

I'm contemplating switching my Nightforce NXS 5.5-22x56 for a Sightron Siii 10-50x60. I currently have this Nightforce on my Southfork 300PRC, and I want to extend my shooting beyond 1000 yards. I know this is probably plenty of magnification for most people, but I feel like having upwards of 50x magnification would be a nice quality of life for seeing my hits.

Has anyone had hands-on experience with the Sightron scopes? How does the glass quality stack up?

Don't get me wrong, the Nightforce has served me well, but it's a decade old and optics technology has come a long way since then. Plus, it seems I could make the switch to Sightron without breaking the bank, especially if I sell my Nightforce.

 

[WeiserBucks]

Huge magnification will just amplify mirage and other poor visibility conditions at very long range. I also think that selling a Nightforce to buy a Sightron is a poor choice for 783 other reasons.

 

[Bigsky108]

Good points Weiser, I'll just stick with the ol Nightforce after all until I find myself actually needing more magnification.

I've never used a scope with really high magnification, but that's a good point about the mirage.

I appreciate the help

 

[WeiserBucks]

Good decision, if you're having a tough time at 1000+ it won't be due to a NF with a top end of 22X.

 

[Bigsky108]

Our local range only goes out to 500 yards (NW Montana), but my buddy and I are going to set up some 1000 yard targets in the next couple weeks. I have some old 12inch 375wall steel pipe that we were going to use to make some gongs out of. Weld a chunk of chain on a 12" long peice of pipe, hopefully it makes a nice audible ring when we hit it haha.

I have my rifle shooting pretty consistent 1.25-1.5" groups at 500yards so I figured it's time to stretch this rifles legs and push towards 1000 or beyond.

Anywho, silly post but I was just curious if there was anything to gain with a higher power scope like the sightron or even the Vortex GoldenEagles. This scope does have good glass, but man oh man I bought a VX6HD a couple years ago and talk about a step up in clarity.

But, I probably have to get better at reading wind if I'm going to shoot much past 1000 anyways.

 

[WeiserBucks]

This scope does have good glass, but man oh man I bought a VX6HD a couple years ago and talk about a step up in clarity.

Reliability and repeatability are what is required. Glass is pretty far down the list of what I demand from a scope. You could use that NXS to beat a VX6HD to death and it would still function correctly.

 

[Boltgun]

If you’re shooting sub 2” groups at 500 yards, you definitely don’t need to change equipment! I’ve shot out to a mile with my NX8 2-20x and didn’t feel like more magnification would help for accuracy. Spotting your hits perhaps, but now you’re getting firmly into spotting scope territory, and would probably benefit more from adding that piece of equipment. However, at a certain point mirage is just going to limit how far you can see your hits, regardless of how much magnification you bring.

Also NF > Sightron.

 

[6.5x284]

Those really high power scopes are more for benchrest or f class and other principles where they are looking for tiny groups at 600 yards and have a 2 oz trigger pull. For what you want to do I’d be more worried about the elevation travel amount and is it enough to dial to the distance you want to go. You’re going to have bad mirage at those powers more often than not. I have a ZCO 8-40 and it’s rarely above 18x. I think your scope is fine if it has a reticle and enough elevation travel to get you to your distance.


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[Bigsky108]

I was expecting a lot more backlash from this post haha. So again, I really appreciate the advice. I know Nightforce has an excellent name in the industry, so I would expect people to be baffled by the idea of straying away from such a trusted brand.

This has been kind of a self-taught process, so the input regarding high magnification scopes and experience from shooting long-range is very much appreciated. I don't know anyone who truly shoots long-range. Most guys around here shoot MOA and call it a thing of beauty, all they're worried about is jump-shooting a buck at 50 yards. I have other rifles for hunting, and plinking targets, but this all started with the idea of trying to push myself to see just how far I could take precision shooting. One day when I finish up with nursing school, I'll hopefully be making enough money to truly attempt to get into F-Class shooting. But for now, I just set out for a personal goal of being able to hit an MOA target at a mile.

I believe that the journey to precision shooting begins with dedicated practice. Most of what I've learned about form and technique has come from participating in online forums like this one, as well as from YouTube tutorials. In addition to honing my skills, I've found that investing in quality equipment is key. I chose my Southfork rifle because they're practically local, made by Defiance Machine right in my area—always good to support local businesses lol. Another crucial element I've focused on is reloading; after much experimentation with various bullets, primers, and powders, I've settled on a load that combines 87.5gr of LRT powder with 220gr LRHT Bergers. With a magazine-length-induced jump of 33 thousandths, this load exits the barrel at around 2870fps and seems to be giving me a decent SD of 20 and seemingly great results at 500 yards.

Now I'm just scratching my head in anticipation as to what I could change to improve my chances of achieving my goal. This is where the dilemma came from considering higher magnification. One thing that I do regret is buying this Nightforce in MRAD. I bought this scope 10 years ago when I was a young pup working in the oilfields not knowing what I truly wanted. All the years of welding really taught me to firmly understand the Imperial system, so I love and completely understand MOA. I feel like a ding dong trying to wrap my head around MRAD, so if anything I wouldn't mind selling this scope or trading it for another MOA-based scope. I have a Vortex Strike Eagle 5-25x56 that I was contemplating putting on this rifle, but I don't know if I care for the glass as much compared to the Nightforce.

If I'm not mistaken, at one mile the 1/4 MOA system is 4.6 inches per click, whereas the 0.1MRAD is 6.336 Inches per click. So from that standpoint alone, seems like MOA would be the better choice regardless of which system you understand more. Any input on this?

Sorry for the long post haha, I just love this crap and don't have too many other people to pick their brains on this topic.

Thanks!

 

[Boltgun]

Sounds like you’re on the right track! A few things to consider:

Not sure what you paid originally, but that Strike Eagle is an ~$800 scope. The NXS is an ~$1800 scope. There’s a lot of quality in that extra $1000.

The further you shoot, the more you’ll notice the little things with build quality. If your clicks are 0.23 MOA instead of 0.25 MOA, that won’t seem like an issue when you’re dialing things like 8 MOA at 500 for example. That’s only a ~2.5” error at 500, and likely wouldn’t be noticeable. But it becomes a 20” error at 1000 yds.

 

[UpSideDown]

I find 18x to be plenty past 1,500 yards. Glass quality matters way more than magnification. I would recommend even a Razor Gen2/3, just to get into better glass. The NXS really suffers in glass quality amongst current offerings and you can get some great optics options. Another great alternative is a Minox ZP5.

 

[IDShane]

Reliability and repeatability are what is required. Glass is pretty far down the list of what I demand from a scope. You could use that NXS to beat a VX6HD to death and it would still function correctly.

Well said Weiser...