Vortex Viper HD Bincoulars and Spotting Scope Review, by Glendon Mullins

[Glendon Mullins]

Your review helped a lot!

thank you that means alot to me, being kinda new to the whole writing articles and hunting out west ordeal lol

 

[WVridgewalker]

I've been looking at these binos for awhile now. I appreciate your input!

 

[MTCHIRO]

anyone have a comparison between the viper and the razor spotter. I have the viper and i am not too happy with it looking at animals long distance.

 

[Gary58]

The Razor is a better optic. I have the new generation Razor in 27-60x85 and just bought a Kowa 883. I will be comparing them in the next few weeks.w Most scopes are quite usable until you get closer to their max magnification.

 

[paproctor8]

I have these and love them! Honestly hard to see the difference compared to Swaros most of the time.

 

[dkhunter02]

PM incoming

I would also be interested in you thoughts between the Viper & Razor 10x42s

 

[Gators23]

I’ve been trying to decide on some new binos for this year, have been heavily considering the Vipers. This review definitely helps!

 

[bigripper]

awesome

 

[mbrady3]

Just got a pair of vipers to go out west for my 1st hunt. From wisconsin so I naturally leaned toward the local product, glad to read your review of them though. Nice write up!

 

[Jdancedc]

Great review, thanks!

 

[Chevynbow]

I’ve used the 20-60x85 Vipers for ~5 yrs, I’m actually on my second one due to the center locking detent giving out after a lot of use, Vortex replaced immediately.

 

[Glendon Mullins]

Great review, thanks!

thank you!!

 

[D16er]

PM incoming

I am also curious, Ive been beating my head on the desk trying to decide which one to go with. Your input will be greatly appreciated.

 

[Kindigs]

I’ve had 10x42 vipers for 2 years now. I really like them. And vortex customer service of great if you ever need it.

 

[Dkpack99]

Nice write up. I picked up a used pair and absolutely love them!

 

[Michael54]

My first out west trip i was severely underglassed. Luckily the guide realized it pretty quickly and loaned me his spare vipers. I liked them so much i bought my wife a pair for christmas and just "borrow" them for when i go out west. Living in western pa I never have really needed them. My scope seemed to accomplish more than the binoculars would. Out in the great wide open though not having the right glass could have ruined my trip.

 

[McCormack]

In case anyone is interested, I spent some time in the Vortex showroom at their distributorship comparing my 10x42 Maven C1's against the Vipers. My C1's are nice and sharp, but to my eyes they lack a bit of contrast and saturation. The Viper's sharpness was about the same as the C1's, but they did have a bit better contrast and pop, and for me it would be worth the extra money to own the Vipers over the C1's.

I spent some time with the 10x42 Razors, and they were were sharper than the Viper's and had noticeably better contrast and saturation. The also handled better than the Vipers. I would be very happy owning a pair of Razors.

I've also done a comparison between my 10x32 Sightron III ED's and Diamondback 10x32 HD's at the showroom. Sharpness was about the same between the two, maybe a slight edge to the Diamondbacks, but the Sightrons had better contrast and saturation. There was a bit of slop in the Diamondback's focus wheel; the Sightron's focus wheel turns smoothly with no play.

 

[JigStick]

I just had the following 10x42s side by side outside for a comparison. The Vipers, Zeiss Terras, Nikon Monarch 7s, Leupold BX4s.

The Nikons were a surprise. I liked the clarity and brightness a lot. But felt the focus wheel was a bit sloppy and was unsure on customer service. Regarding the Leupolds....dual bridge designs don't feel comfortable in my hands. The glass, diopter adjustment, and focus wheel felt good with good range of motion.

That left me to choose between the Vipers and Terras. The glass on the Terras was very good IMO. Clarity, sharpness, and brightness all were a step up that the Leupolds Im replacing. The Vipers were about the same but I felt the color/whites "popped" a little more than the Terras. Ive had this expierence before looking through Vortex optics. The image always seem to pop more to my eyes, even compared to my NF scopes.

I ended up with the Vipers. It was a tough call, but the performance between them all was so close. It came down to how they all felt in my hands, how much travel the focus wheels had, and warranty.

Once I settled don the Vipers I decided to compare them to the Razors and Zeiss Conquests. Jumping from $500 to $1000 glass made a difference. The Razors were shockingly light to hold which I liked. The glass on the Conquests was fantastic. If I had an extra $500 laying around I think I would of ended up with those.

 

[robby denning]

I just had the following 10x42s side by side outside for a comparison. The Vipers, Zeiss Terras, Nikon Monarch 7s, Leupold BX4s.

The Nikons were a surprise. I liked the clarity and brightness a lot. But felt the focus wheel was a bit sloppy and was unsure on customer service. Regarding the Leupolds....dual bridge designs don't feel comfortable in my hands. The glass, diopter adjustment, and focus wheel felt good with good range of motion.

That left me to choose between the Vipers and Terras. The glass on the Terras was very good IMO. Clarity, sharpness, and brightness all were a step up that the Leupolds Im replacing. The Vipers were about the same but I felt the color/whites "popped" a little more than the Terras. Ive had this expierence before looking through Vortex optics. The image always seem to pop more to my eyes, even compared to my NF scopes.

I ended up with the Vipers. It was a tough call, but the performance between them all was so close. It came down to how they all felt in my hands, how much travel the focus wheels had, and warranty.

Once I settled don the Vipers I decided to compare them to the Razors and Zeiss Conquests. Jumping from $500 to $1000 glass made a difference. The Razors were shockingly light to hold which I liked. The glass on the Conquests was fantastic. If I had an extra $500 laying around I think I would of ended up with those.

Great feedback. Thanks


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Michael54]

I just had the following 10x42s side by side outside for a comparison. The Vipers, Zeiss Terras, Nikon Monarch 7s, Leupold BX4s.

The Nikons were a surprise. I liked the clarity and brightness a lot. But felt the focus wheel was a bit sloppy and was unsure on customer service. Regarding the Leupolds....dual bridge designs don't feel comfortable in my hands. The glass, diopter adjustment, and focus wheel felt good with good range of motion.

That left me to choose between the Vipers and Terras. The glass on the Terras was very good IMO. Clarity, sharpness, and brightness all were a step up that the Leupolds Im replacing. The Vipers were about the same but I felt the color/whites "popped" a little more than the Terras. Ive had this expierence before looking through Vortex optics. The image always seem to pop more to my eyes, even compared to my NF scopes.

I ended up with the Vipers. It was a tough call, but the performance between them all was so close. It came down to how they all felt in my hands, how much travel the focus wheels had, and warranty.

Once I settled don the Vipers I decided to compare them to the Razors and Zeiss Conquests. Jumping from $500 to $1000 glass made a difference. The Razors were shockingly light to hold which I liked. The glass on the Conquests was fantastic. If I had an extra $500 laying around I think I would of ended up with those.

Nikons customer service isnt bad at all. I rode a monarch scope down a hillside below my house 3 years ago. Sent it in, they sent it back. It was about a 30 day turnaround if i remember right. It was definitely faster than a leupold that wouldn't hold its zero that year. 2016 was a bad year for me with scopes lol.