[NorCalFocus]

I had this idea come to me and thought we could give it a try. The question "What scope should I get?" comes up here all the time. Now obviously what I'm running and what dude over there is running, doesn't mean a new shooter has to run it. But if we can have a database of what is used by those of us who have been shooting for a while and our thoughts of what we run, could really help out a new shooter. We have a diverse group of shooters here, so I'm hoping that as time goes on, we'll have a good range of prices, uses, and features.

I don't want this to turn into a discussion thread. I really would like to keep this thread just as a database. So if you want to contribute please copy and paste the format below into your thread. If there is something you thing I should add or take off, shoot me a PM and I'll take care of it. Please tell us what scope you have, the MSRP (not what you paid for it), the style of shooting you do with this setup, the gun its on, and some of the pros and cons in your opinion of the scope. If you want you can also include any pictures of the scope.

Scope:
MSRP:
Gun you use it on:
Style of Shooting:
Pros:
Cons:

 

[Rescue6]

Scope: Vortex Viper PST 4-16x50 FFP,
MSRP:$950
Gun you use it on:Rem 700 5R trued action, chamber reset etc.
Style of Shooting:all around
Pros:FFP, Illuminated
Cons: none yet

Scope: Vortex Viper PST 1-4x24
MSRP:$499
Gun you use it onaniel Defense M4V7
Style of Shooting:all around
Pros: Illuminated
Cons: none yet

 

[Tape]

Scope: Nikon Monarch 5X20-44SF
MSRP: $749.99
Gun you use it on: Colt AR 6721
Style of Shooting: Precision
Pros: Clarity is excellent, solid zero, lifetime warranty, comes with custom turrets.
Cons: I have not experienced any

 

[divingin]

Scope: Vortex Viper HST 4-16 44
MSRP: No clue
Gun you use it on: Rem 700 SPS Varmint
Style of Shooting: Bench
Pros: Nice optics.
Cons: Could probably use a bit more magnification (that's me, not the scope.) Magnification ring is pretty stiff.

jky

 

[Hypo]

Scope: Leupold VX-3 6.5-20X40mm EFR Target
MSRP: $750
Guns: CZ 452 Varmint in McMillan BR50 stock
Style: Rimfire benchrest and Silhouette
Pro: close focus down to 10 meters, nice glass, target turrets, I had never had glass clear enough to see mirage until this scope. Shooting house flies at 50 yards is possible with this gun scope combination and good ammo.
Con: 49 MOA of elevation travel total due to 25mm tube, second focal plane but for targets at known distance this is not an issue. Cost is more than I paid for the gun and stock.

 

[Hitman 4 Actual]

Scope: Nightforce NXS F1 3-15x50
MSRP: $2400
Gun you use it on: GAP Crusader
Style of Shooting: Bench
Pros: Illuminated, FFP, rugged, tracks perfectly
Cons: None so far

Scope: Vortex Viper PST 4-16x50
MSRP: $699
Gun you use it on: CZ 455 Precision Trainer
Style of Shooting: Bench
Pros: Illuminated, great warranty if needed, nice features for it's price point
Cons: SFP but chosen for a .22 because I wanted a more usable reticle at short distances

 

[Quackhead69]

Scope: Vortex Crossfire II 6-24x50 Dead Hold BDC
MSRP: $339
Gun you use it on: Howa M1500 Varmint .308
Style of Shooting: Anywhere, anytime, usually benching off bags.
Pros: An overall good scope for the $.
Cons: Will need more elevation adjustment to use the rifle to it's full potential. (I shoulda spent another $150 for more elevation adjustment in the Viper line, but I was a noob.)

 

[wigwamitus]

Scope: L&S Mk4 8.5-25x TMR Ill, sfp
MSRP: $1,599.99
Gun you use it on: .338LM bolt, .308WIN bolt
Style of Shooting: Day/Night, med/long range (400-1400yds)
Pros: 25x max magnification, good glass
Cons: 8.5x min magnification

Scope: L&S Mk4 6.5-20x TMR, ffp
MSRP: $2,124.99
Gun you use it on: .338LM bolt, .308WIN bolt, 7.62 MSR, .22LR MSR
Style of Shooting: Day/Night, med/long range (400-1400yds)
Pros: 20x max magnification, ffp (to get best image for night shooting), good glass
Cons: 6.5x min magnification

Scope: L&S Mk6 3-18 H58, ffp
MSRP: $3,249.99
Gun you use it on: .308WIN bolt, 7.62 MSR, .22LR MSR
Style of Shooting: Day/Night, short/med/long range (100-1400yds)
Pros: Short (11.9"), Light (23.8 oz), 34mm tube (100MOA elevation adjustment), good glass
Cons: 34mm tube requires different mounts, elevation knob requires squeeze to turn, hard to get clicks exact at night without looking

Scope: L&S Mk4 3.5-10x TMR Ill, sfp
MSRP: $1,689.99
Gun you use it on: .338LM bolt, .308WIN bolt, 7.62 MSR, 5.56 MSR .22LR MSR
Style of Shooting: day/night, short/med range (100-600yds)
Pros: 3.5x min magnification, good glass
Cons: length 13.5 inches

Scope: V/O Rzr G2 1-6x MRAD Ill, sfp
MSRP: $1,999.00
Gun you use it on: 7.62 MSR, 5.56 MSR, .22LR MSR
Style of Shooting: Day/Night short/med range (25-500yds), hunting
Pros: good glass, short (10.1")
Cons: Heavy (25.2 ounces), knobs have covers

Scope: Eotech exps 1x, 3x dot Ill/nv ret, ffp
MSRP: $1,019.00
Gun you use it on: 7.62 MSR, 5.56 MSR, .22LR MSR
Style of Shooting: Day/night short range (25-300yds), hunting
Pros: parallax free
Cons: fogs up/freezes up in cold/precipitation

Scope: Armasight Apollo 1x, 3x, cross/dot Ill, ffp
MSRP: $5,634.00
Gun you use it on: .308WIN bolt, 7.62 MSR, 5.56 MSR, .22LR MSR
Style of Shooting: Night short range (25-300yds), hunting
Pros: Thermal, can be used as monocular or clipon as well as stand alone weapon sight
Cons: switch fails in precipitation

 

[Win94ae]

Scope: BSA Tactical Weapons Mil-dot/MOA, 6x24-50; TMD624x44-30SP
MSRP: $129
Gun you use it on: Howa 1500 30-06
Style of Shooting: Precision; field positions
Pros: Inexpensive
Cons: I'd rather it be Mil/Mil, and first focal plane; I set the zoom to 16x and use it as MOA/MOA. I'd rather have a more elaborate reticle; the plane mil-dots don't lend me to be as precise for windage and height holds, as I thought I would be.

 

[Arkansas89]

Scope: Nikon Prostaff 3-9x50
MSRP: $230
Gun you use it on: Remington 700 AAC-SD (.308) and Remington 760 Gamemaster (.243)
Style of Shooting: Remington 700 - target... Remington 760 - hunting
Pros: inexpensive, holds zero well, tracks well... Great for hunting
Cons: no target style reticles offered, no tactical turrets, no illumination, SFP, just no features in general... As stated, good hunting scope

 

[ponyboy96]

Scope: Steiner Military 3-12x50 Mil/Mil
MSRP: $2899 (purchased on closeout for $1100)
Gun you use it on: Remington 700 5R .308
Style of Shooting: What you got?
Pros: Very clear, accurate, rugged, great adjustments
Cons: I'm a noob, but wish it had more magnification.

 

[SatCong]

Burris XTR II 5-25X50. Has 34mm tube and 90 MOA adjustment for elevation. It's around $1,200. Did the trip at 1,000 yards and looks good at a mile.

 

[jibnast]

Scope: USO LR-17 MDMOA
MSRP: 2600 + or -
Gun you use it on:Custom R 700 in 243
Style of Shooting: Tactical/ Varmint Silhouette
Pros: EREK Knob, great glass,
Cons: Adjustments are IPHY

Scope: Busnell ERS 3.5-21
MSRP: 2000
Gun you use it on: Custom R 700 6.5 Creedmoor
Style of Shooting: Same as above
Pros: Good glass, great reticle
Cons: No Illumination

Scope: Nightforce NSX 5.5-22 x 50
MSRP: 1800 when I bought
Gun you use it on: Custom R 700 308 Win
Style of Shooting: FT/R
Pros: Glass adjustments, SFP(For style of shooting)
Cons:

Scope: Vortex PST 4-16 MOA SFP
MSRP: 700
Gun you use it on: 223 Costume Remington 700
Style of Shooting: Practice
Pros: Price for features

Scope: Nightforce NSX 3-15 MOAR SFP
MSRP: 1700
Gun you use it on: 280 AI
Style of Shooting: Precision Hunting
Pros: Glass
Cons:

Scope: ACOG TA31
MSRP: 1350
Gun you use it on: FN SCAR
Style of Shooting: 3 Gun
Pros: durability
Cons: its no Elcan

Scope: Nightforce NSX F1 3-15x50 MOAR
MSRP: 2100
Gun you use it on: Custom 6.5 Grendal
Style of Shooting: Coyote Hunting
Pros: FFP, Glass
Cons:

 

[deadshot2]

NightForce 12-42X56mm NXS

Cost me $1900.

Pros: Does everything I want and need it to do with excellent clarity. Extremely durable.

Cons: None (except cost )

Have less expensive scopes for every rifle I own but they are merely there in case I have to use one of them for an emergency. For all my sport shooting I merely move the NF from rifle to rifle. Seekins rings on the scope and EGW HD rails on the rifles. Logged settings for the new zero on each rifle.

When stored between shooting sessions it sits on my .308, ready to go.

 

[adfisher]

Zeiss Conquest 6.5 x 20 MC mil #43 reticle
R-5 308
$ 900.00
dead on tracking
very clear
down side it is a FFP extra step in when measuring


Shepard P-2, 3-5 x 10
$700.00
clarity- fair not great
down side, BDC reticle very busy. OK for hunting, limited on ammo used.
had it on LTR 308

Millett 10 X 56
$300.00 Took it on trade
Mil Dot, large turrents easy to read
tracking dead on
down side focus knob very large(workable)
LTR rem 308
impressed so far, will see how it holds up.

BSA 6X24
R-5 223
Junk is still junk at $149.00
You can have the greatest most accurate rifle and buy junk and all you have is junk.

 

[bobo06]

Redfield battle zone. 6-18

 

[waveslayer]

NF BEAST
H-59 reticle
With Desert Tactical (Tech ) unimount.
cost?... a lot
Mounted on everything, Desert Tactical SRS .338 Norma all the way to AR's.
Works like a charm. I sold all my other scopes and just use this, no loss of zero, as long as you use a torque wrench each time on the mount. I only kept a Swarovski for my hunting rigs

 

[mike.h]

Scope: NF NXS 8-32x 56 MOAR
MSRP: ~$2000.
Gun you use it on:R700 .308
Style of Shooting: bench, L/R
Pros: it’s a nightforce,
Cons:


Scope: NF NXS 5.5-22x50 MOAR-T
MSRP: $1900.
Gun you use it on: DPMS SASS .308
Style of Shooting: bench, L/R, plinking
Pros:
Cons:



Scope: BSA sweet 22, 3-9x
MSRP:$150.
Gun you use it on:Ruger 10/22
Style of Shooting: plinking
Pros:works as advertised, turrets adjust for bullet weights, etc, for an inexpensive scope it’s OK.
Cons:

Scope:Burris eliminator III 4-16x50
MSRP:$1300.
Gun you use it on: (right now)crp-18 .223
Style of Shooting: bench, plinking, vermin
Pros:hunting scope, built in rangefinder , is a hoot to shoot.
Cons: really big, heavy and expensive. optics are fair to good,

the double edge sword is that everybody wants to look through it, and the built in rangefinder never ceases to amaze. It’s a lot of fun,


Scope: Weaver T series XR 36x
MSRP: $575.
Gun you use it on:Savage :-( mark II 22lr
Style of Shooting: Bench, trainer
Pros: Nice turrets, pretty good glass, It’s a nice unit. I like this scope because you can watch the little 40 grainers lobe in at 100yards. And because of this, it helps teach trigger follow-through.
Cons:Fixed 36 power, 50 yd minimum focus, it’s a limited use scope.

Scope: Old Leopold 3-9x40 duplex
MSRP:$300-350. ???
Gun you use it on:30-06 deer rifle
Style of Shooting:hunting
Pros:this is a great old scope, very good glass and very rugged, Leopold gold ring quality.
Cons: the only con would be that’s it’s dated

 

[NorCalFocus]

Redfield battle zone. 6-18

Please follow the format for this thread. With this post no one even knows what you like about it.

 

[Rob01]

Scope: Vortex Razor II 4.5-27x56
Street price: $2499
Gun you use it on: Have two. One on my GAP 6.5 Creedmoor match rifle and another on my GAP .308 practice rifle. Another on the way for my Rhino Arms DMR rifle.
Style of Shooting: Long range Precision Rifle matches
Pros: Great glass, FFP, power range, locking knobs, durability, clickless zeroing for perfect zero, zero stop, 113 MOA of internal travel, excellent reticles, illumination, comes with sunshade, VIP Warranty
Cons: none for me but some say the weight

Scope: Vortex Razor 5-20x50
Street price: $1350-1600
Gun you use it on: Crescent Custom .308
Style of Shooting: Long Range Precision training rifle
Pros: Very good glass, FFP, zero stop, clickless zeroing, good reticles, 125 MOA of elevation, illumination, durable, comes with sunshade and scope level, VIP Warranty
Cons: None

Scope: Vortex Razor II 1-6x24
Street price: $1300
Gun you use it on: Have 2. One on Seekins Precision SP3G rifle and another on a Rhino Arms 3 Gun upper
Style of Shooting: 3 Gun
Pros: Great glass, huge FOV at 1x which is true 1x, fast reticle in the JM-1, good power range, very durable, VIP Warranty
Cons: none

Scope: Vortex PST 2.5-10x32
Street price: $799
Gun you use it on: POF .223 upper
Style of Shooting: general shooting
Pros: good glass, FFP, low profile, good knobs, VIP Warranty
Cons: Not as robust as the more expensive Razors but still a good value

Changed MSRP to street price as MSRP isn't the best way for people to figure optics price as it can be quite different from street price. Example, my 1-6x Razor II is street price around $1300 but MSRP on Vortex site is $1999. Someone seeing $1999 might be scared off and not look to see the real street price.