Which Scope That Has Passed the Evaluation Has the Best Eyebox?

[CoHunter1991]

Which scope that has passed the evaluation and has the best / forgiving eye box? I have heard a lot of complains about the NX8 eye box but they seem rock solid durability wise.

 

[dårlig jeger]

Swfa 6x

 

[mj23polaris]

As owner of 2 nx8s one 2.5-20 and 4-32 ffp’s and shot comps and hunted with both. Eye box isn’t an issue if you have good fundamentals and don’t shoot every shot on max power. The 4-32 shines from 13-22x and the 2-20 is like 10-18x imo. Mount the scope on max power and check eye relief on prone and like a sitting position. Should be able to find a sweet spot where even on max power and a good cheek well eye relief is good. Then when using lower mag the eye relief is much more forgiving.

The mantra the nx8 has bad eye relief is IMO a misconception from bad setup. Is it as good as my Zeiss s3 6-36 no but it’s totally usable and shouldn’t deter anyone from buying one.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[JohnJohnson]

I've found that the Maven RS1.2 has a very forgiving eyebox. I'd bet dollars to donuts the ATACR 4-16 has a forgiving one too, given it's a 4x erector ratio in a 34mm tube.

 

[CoHunter1991]

Yeah i do like my Maven RS1.2 eyebox as well but it is nothing compared to my Leupold VX5. Definitely curious about the SWFA SS gen2.

 

[TheM1DoesMyTalking]

Swfa 6x

I'll second that. The fixed power SWFAs are really easy to get behind. The fixed 6X is just that much more forgiving than the variable power 3-9X or 3-15X SWFA set to 6X, along with a wider FOV. All my experience is with gen 1 SWFAs.

I don't think NX8s have a bad eyebox, especially on lower magnification. The eyebox on any scope is going to shrink as you increase the magnification.

Based on evaluations in this sub-forum I have read that the Minox ZP5 5-25 has about the best eyebox around, but I've never looked through one.

 

[chutinlead]

I've found that the Maven RS1.2 has a very forgiving eyebox. I'd bet dollars to donuts the ATACR 4-16 has a forgiving one too, given it's a 4x erector ratio in a 34mm tube.

I can confirm that scope has a very forgiving eyebox.

One of the ways you can get an idea is to look at the exit pupil size on the specs. If the exit pupil is larger than the pupil of your eye, you have some wiggle room or "eyebox". Average pupil size is 2-8mm going from a bright room to complete dark. The 4-16 ATACR has an exit pupil from 10.3-2.7mm going from max to min power.

The SFP NX8 2.5-20 is worse than the FFP and only has an exit pupil of 5.7-2.5mm. That means at dawn/dusk if your eye is fully dilated, you will have to be perfectly centered behind and the image through the scope will be dimmer. So like @mj23polaris mentioned if you have a good setup it's ok up until the very darkest part of the day. The FFP NX8 low mag exit pupil goes up to 7.1mm and is more forgiving and the 4-32 is a bit better than that.

 

[chutinlead]

Based on evaluations in this sub-forum I have read that the Minox ZP5 5-25 has about the best eyebox around, but I've never looked through one.

It has an exit pupil of 12-4.4mm so that would track.

 

[JohnJohnson]

The erector ratio versus the scope tube diameter is another way to take a guess at eyebox. If you pack a high erector ratio into a smaller tube the eyebox will suffer. NX8s are an 8x erector ratio in a 30mm tube diameter. Realistically once the ratio goes over about 5-6 in a 30mm tube, things start getting tight.

 

[Alpha Echo]

Keep in mind that exit pupil is objective lens diameter divided by magnification, which also explains why higher magnification leads to a less forgiving eyebox, going by the exit pupil statement above.

Likewise, exit pupil impacts low light performance--the larger the exit pupil, the better the optic performs in low light, all other factors being held constant. That said, larger exit pupils only matter to a point. An exit pupil that is larger than your pupil will not add any low light performance. Humans' pupils get smaller with age. I've read that kids have exit pupils of approximately 7mm in the dark (your pupils dilate, or get larger, in the dark, and smaller in the daylight). As adults, our dilated pupil size is more around 4mm (again what I've read, I am not a doctor).

What I don't know is whether a human who has pupils that dilate "more" like a child, for example, automatically has an easier time getting behind a scope (ie a given eyebox is more forgiving if your pupils dilate more, and the optic has a large enough exit pupil to take advantage of your large pupil size).

 

[Shortschaf]

I can offer the ones off this post and then a few others not directly compared:

S

Thread 'ATACR vs Maven vs Tenmile vs LRHS2 vs MK5HD'

Jul 17, 2024

Optical comparison of

• Nightforce ATACR 4-16x42
• Maven RS1.2 2.5-15x44
• Trijicon Tenmile 3-18x44
• Bushnell LRHS2 4.5-18x44
• Leupold MK5HD 3.6-18x44

I also had a mk4 12-40 spotting scope and an SWFA 10x42 on hand that I included as a reference










I used this resolution chart:



Scoring was done like so:




RESOLUTION
I have to admit this was hard to finish. All optics were so close to one another you would probably never notice in a hunting environment. Parallax and the eyepiece were adjusted several...

• Shortschaf
• Replies: 21
• Forum: Optics

• 

Not directly compared in that first post, but scopes I have owned briefly:
The 3-12 Klassik eyebox is good/great
The 3-9HD is great. Closest to the ATACR from memory
swfa 10x is tightish to fair
swfa 3-15x is fair
3-9 Huron good

Splitting hairs some. I think the swfa 10x and tenmile 3-18 were the only ones I noticed in a negative way during use. 3-9hd and ATACR were the best, but maven and LRHS2 are close behind. Which is pretty great given the Maven is a 6x erector

 

[Formidilosus]

Which scope that has passed the evaluation and has the best / forgiving eye box?

Minox ZP5 5-25x- and it’s not even close.

I have heard a lot of complains about the NX8 eye box but they seem rock solid durability wise.

The NX8 eyebox issue is greatly overblown. They are just fine.

 

[CoHunter1991]

Anyone compare the eyebox in the Maven RS1.2 to the SWFA SS Gen 2 in the 2.5-15 range? or the Credo? are they better than the NX8

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

SWFA 6X both Gen 1 and Gen 2 are no fuss killing scopes that are very easy to “get behind”.

If you want “the best” it’s the Minox ZP5 which is really not even fair for the other scopes on “the list”.

 

[chutinlead]

Keep in mind that exit pupil is objective lens diameter divided by magnification, which also explains why higher magnification leads to a less forgiving eyebox, going by the exit pupil statement above.

Likewise, exit pupil impacts low light performance--the larger the exit pupil, the better the optic performs in low light, all other factors being held constant. That said, larger exit pupils only matter to a point. An exit pupil that is larger than your pupil will not add any low light performance. Humans' pupils get smaller with age. I've read that kids have exit pupils of approximately 7mm in the dark (your pupils dilate, or get larger, in the dark, and smaller in the daylight). As adults, our dilated pupil size is more around 4mm (again what I've read, I am not a doctor).

What I don't know is whether a human who has pupils that dilate "more" like a child, for example, automatically has an easier time getting behind a scope (ie a given eyebox is more forgiving if your pupils dilate more, and the optic has a large enough exit pupil to take advantage of your large pupil size).

I have also read that your pupils don't dilate as far as you age, but one thing that does make them dilate more even for more aged eyes is adrenaline. So that buck fever isn't all bad

 

[CoHunter1991]

SWFA 6X both Gen 1 and Gen 2 are no fuss killing scopes that are very easy to “get behind”.

If you want “the best” it’s the Minox ZP5 which is really not even fair for the other scopes on “the list”.

wow that good. thats good to know. is it true for only the ZP5 or the RS models also?

 

[Ryan Avery]

ZP5 by a mile!

 

[Dobermann]

wow that good. thats good to know. is it true for only the ZP5 or the RS models also?

I haven't tried them, but the Minox RS offerings are quite different mag ranges than the ZP5.

Some have also commented that the ZP5 is better than their LR, despite them having the same mag range and objective.