PRS scope that passes drop eval?

[ddowning]

and yet Leupold, Kahles, and Vortex are on every podium.

Why are mid-pack and below shooters unable to be competitive because their scopes don't hold zero, but the top shooters are winning with scopes that don't hold zero?

If a scope breaks that's one thing. But a scope that tracks fairly consistently (not even accurately) and zero moves a tenth up and two tenths right over the course of a match isn't costing anyone a Golden Bullet.

Zero boards are saving them. I have literally zeroed a Vortex scope at my house on a gun that would shoot 20 shots into a half inch, put it in the car, driven 4 hours to the match and had to move the zero 2 clicks after checking zero on the zero board. Now, on matches with no zero board, it will make a difference. Also, one shot over the course of an entire season will lose you a golden bullet. Yeah, any equipment issue can cause you to lose and a scope that shifts zero is on the list. The list of stuff that can cause your zero to move is quite long. However, when you can consistently shrink a small group by 50% or more just by swapping the scope and you can remove the problem of a shifting zero just by swapping the scope, it would seem the scope is the issue.

Also, most people in the comp world have been checking tracking for years. Most scopes track accurately now and even more (nearly all) track consistently. Also, losing zero is on a spectrum. Some scopes hold zero unless dropped or really bounced around, some won't even hold zero under normal use, some won't hold for a car ride, and some, like a typical NF or Trijicon, will hold zero through some abuse. That's to say nothing for barrel to action fitment, bedding, base, rings, action screws, etc that can also cause problems.

 

[alexnelon]

Zero boards are saving them. I have literally zeroed a Vortex scope at my house on a gun that would shoot 20 shots into a half inch, put it in the car, driven 4 hours to the match and had to move the zero 2 clicks after checking zero on the zero board. Now, on matches with no zero board, it will make a difference. Also, one shot over the course of an entire season will lose you a golden bullet. Yeah, any equipment issue can cause you to lose and a scope that shifts zero is on the list. The list of stuff that can cause your zero to move is quite long. However, when you can consistently shrink a small group by 50% or more just by swapping the scope and you can remove the problem of a shifting zero just by swapping the scope, it would seem the scope is the issue.

Also, most people in the comp world have been checking tracking for years. Most scopes track accurately now and even more (nearly all) track consistently. Also, losing zero is on a spectrum. Some scopes hold zero unless dropped or really bounced around, some won't even hold zero under normal use, some won't hold for a car ride, and some, like a typical NF or Trijicon, will hold zero through some abuse. That's to say nothing for barrel to action fitment, bedding, base, rings, action screws, etc that can also cause problems.

This is all true.

Also, none of it matters for PRS or else NF would be on every rifle. That's my whole point. As long as you are shooting in an environment where you can track your zero shot-to-shot, it does not matter if your scope can pass the RS drop eval. You don't need it to. Other things are more important in the game. Not hunting, the game you're playing.

 

[Hydra6]

All true to an extent. Bad shooters always blame gear though and always think they can buy points.

I have a solid rifle and haven't had to slip a turret in 3 years, but if I handed my entire setup to a new or poor shooter to shoot a match, after 4 stages of abject failure 90% of them would be questioning and complaining about the gear.

Most people can't shoot well enough to notice a 1-2 tenth shift, but everybody thinks they can.

Every guy who pulled a shot 4 tenths left on the final stage with the match on the line will convince themselves it was an equipment failure long before they admit their nerves got to them.

Junk scopes fail constantly, and guys using scopes that fail drop evals win matches left and right. Both are true.

For hunting, yes it's mandatory to have a scope that doesn't move. For PRS, $2k on ammo will buy you way more points than $2k on a scope.

I shoot a lot of PRS - one of the local pros a few weeks ago had one of the biggest names in PRS scopes shift 3 inches of zero at 100 yards after riding in a side by side. Multiple top pros have moved from big name scope brands due to wandering zeros.

I have good luck so far with my Vortex Razor G3 but if I get a zero shift at an event then I am moving on. I moved to a Nightforce ATACR 7-35 on my PRS22 rig after wandering zero on another brand scope.