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Posted: 11/25/2025 8:24:24 PM EDT
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PA has the 1-6X24 SFP ACSS NOVA Special Purchase Optic on sale. Just bought my second today. Phillipine made upgrade over the standard SLX. Lighter than Vortex Viper PST 1-6. |
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It says they’re discounted because the illumination wasn’t bright enough. That’s a big set back with that reticle if it’s not daylight bright. Anyone know how bad the illumination is? ETA: Still says it’s daylight bright in the description so I ordered one. Will report back since I like to consider myself fairly honest on illumination. If glass quality is better than the SLX, I have a couple beater rifles that could use a magnified optic either way. |
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ACSS PA-SP-1-6X24S-NOVA Primary Arms Special Purchase 1-6x24mm SFP Rifle Scope - Illuminated ACSS Nova Fiber Wire Reticle "Note: These Special Purchase 1-6X ACSS Nova riflescopes were found to have an illumination brightness that did not meet our expectations and are therefore being sold at a deeply discounted price due to this blemish." |
"All welchers should be removed from the EE".-Aimless
| I saw that but missed the brightness thing. I am now thinking this vortex strike eagle at 259 might be the better deal? Vortex strike eagle 1-8 |
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I bought my first Philippine made SP 1-6 Nova used. The fiber dot brightness and build quality are more than satisfactory. The 1x is just ok. The glass quality across all magnification ranges and reticle are very good. I have to use the lower fiber dot settings when peaking into the shadows of a tree line at dawn or dusk while hunting. Paying less than half and getting 80% of top tier performance is sport for poor folk.  " />
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Originally Posted By the-answer-is-42: The previous batch is not the same. Different reticle and not fiber wire. And not the same blem of illum. I searched around and they have done these Nova SP blems a couple times. User reports on the blems range from can’t be seen in daylight at all to perfectly bright. Photo and video does seem to show it’s luck of the draw on how bright of one you get. |
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Originally Posted By doty_soty: I had a few of the first runs of SPs including the Nova. I don’t slum it with such optics these days but for the price they knocked it out of the park and I’d still have said my Nova one was roughly PSTish in overall quality and dot brightness give or take. Probably made in the same factory. ScoPro was the only one in PI still making rifle scopes last I knew. I know Kenko had a PI based operation but their site has been down for years. |
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Originally Posted By -OdieGreen-: Probably made in the same factory. ScoPro was the only one in PI still making rifle scopes last I knew. I know Kenko had a PI based operation but their site has been down for years. Originally Posted By -OdieGreen-: Originally Posted By doty_soty: I had a few of the first runs of SPs including the Nova. I don’t slum it with such optics these days but for the price they knocked it out of the park and I’d still have said my Nova one was roughly PSTish in overall quality and dot brightness give or take. Probably made in the same factory. ScoPro was the only one in PI still making rifle scopes last I knew. I know Kenko had a PI based operation but their site has been down for years. Yeah they’re probably different parts but made the same place with a lot of overlap. Between the two I’d be tempted to go SP over PST since they’re so close but the SP is such a good buy. |
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Originally Posted By doty_soty: Yeah they're probably different parts but made the same place with a lot of overlap. Between the two I'd be tempted to go SP over PST since they're so close but the SP is such a good buy. Originally Posted By doty_soty: Originally Posted By -OdieGreen-: Originally Posted By doty_soty: I had a few of the first runs of SPs including the Nova. I don't slum it with such optics these days but for the price they knocked it out of the park and I'd still have said my Nova one was roughly PSTish in overall quality and dot brightness give or take. Probably made in the same factory. ScoPro was the only one in PI still making rifle scopes last I knew. I know Kenko had a PI based operation but their site has been down for years. Yeah they're probably different parts but made the same place with a lot of overlap. Between the two I'd be tempted to go SP over PST since they're so close but the SP is such a good buy. |
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TLDW: C_Does says it’s better than everything else around $500, including the PST, but loses out because it was discontinued. That was also at its original price of $400, not $230. Video has side by sides with the Vector Continental and PST and glass quality is visibly better. Mine gets here tomorrow so will try and do some first thoughts on it.  Low Budget SFP LPVO Comparison - Sub $500 SFP 1-6x24 |
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I received my second Primary Arms SP 1-6 yesterday. The build quality and glass is much better than their Chinese SLX Nova. The SP illumination is brighter than I need for my application. The Nova reticle is simple and the glass crisp across all ranges. I will put a butler creek cap on the objective housing as it is has a thin sharp edge that can be easily chipped. My Vortex PST 1-4's have beveled inserts that protect this area. $239 shipped is a steal. This is easily a lighter weight competitor to the Vortex PST 1-6.  " /> |
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I just got mine and it’s a good day for testing as everything is covered in snow and I can barely look out a window without sunglasses on. Brightness: Is it as blooming bright as an Aimpoint? No. Is it bright enough that even in sunlit snow you will have absolutely no trouble telling where the dot is at? Yes. Setting 10 actually triggers my astigmatism looking at bright white snow. Setting 9 is probably my real world pick to match what I set my red dots at for sunny day use. This photo is very far from representing glass quality obviously, but it’s direct sunlight reflecting off snow which many illuminated optics have an issue with. I suck at reticle pictures but this is a good representation of very functional brightness in a worst case scenario. Both the snow and the dot are bright enough my phone camera sees flaring. Attached File 1X eye box: Very forgiving. Not quite as good as my Leupold 1.5, but no 1X LPVO physically can be, but it’s close. 6X eye box: It gets a little picky here but nothing to be concerned about if you do your part. Will explain more in depth below. Chromatic aberration: There is none, until you get outside of the peak exit pupil at high mag. At 5X and 6X if you’re not dialed in with your eye position, you will see a minimal amount, and only when looking at high contrasting back grounds. It’s about what a Sig Tango MSR is all of the time. Glass quality: Very good. I’d say this lines up well with the PST2 but that’s just going from memory. I forget how many yards it is, but I can read the mailbox down my street at maybe 60 yards on 3X. That’s something my Sig Tango, Primary Arms prisms, and my old SLX ACSS could never do. The Sig and SLX took full 6X to do it clearly, but keep in mind that was a Gen 2 ACSS and not the newest. That puts it up there with a Credo, ACOG, Arken, and Leupold VX3. At 300 yards the image still looks really good at 6X but the Credo edges it out, but not by a crazy amount. When you add in the eye box sensitivity with the CA, it loses points at 6X though. The 6X view is clearer than the Arken EP8 at 300 yards by a noticeable amount. At 50 yards the 1X is a little less than 1X, causing some barreling. If you flip it a sliver over it clears up. This would not be severe enough to cause any issue even if you leave it at full 1X, it’s me nitpicking. There is some pulling/fish eye evident at the edges right at the cusp of the objective shadowing out. You really have to push to the very edge of the 1X eye box to induce it though. Pretty typical of any LPVO though. Unfortunately they beveled inside the diopter/ocular instead of doing it on the outside, so you do see the ocular housing ring and don’t get that blend in with the world flat view at 1X. I’ll never understand why manufacturers still do this as it’s one of the easiest and most significant improvements you can do to an optic. Controls: The turrets aren’t loud but they’re very defined clicks, certainly towards the top in this range. The Arken EP8 turrets are better, but they’re also just flat good compared to about anything. I’d say the GLX even beats the Credo, and by a bit. The illumination dial has a very tiny bit of wiggle but well above anything else in this price range. You would never know if you’re not looking for it and the detents are strong but smooth. These do have off positions between each illumination setting, and the rubberized dial is very well done. Attached File The magnification ring is tight, but the throw lever is decent. They have it on the wrong side so it’s going to be poking your chest when at rest on a sling. The diopter is perfect tension, but this is probably the first optic I’ve needed to adjust for 1X. That could be the difference in 1X mentioned above, but it was minimal adjustment and that could easily be my eyes. Initial thoughts/TLDR: This thing is an insane deal for $230. If I needed anymore LPVO’s I’d be buying more of them. This is a solid $400 optic and probably the best you will get at the $200-$300 range and it’s not even close. It does have some imperfections, but they’re workable and only really present in specific circumstances. Buy one while you can if you’re looking for a budget/beater optic. Don’t go into it thinking you’re getting 80% of a PLX for a fraction of the cost, but this is definitely a significant step up from the common Chinese optics. |
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Originally Posted By -OdieGreen-: I just got mine and it’s a good day for testing as everything is covered in snow and I can barely look out a window without sunglasses on. Brightness: Is it as blooming bright as an Aimpoint? No. Is it bright enough that even in sunlit snow you will have absolutely no trouble telling where the dot is at? Yes. Setting 10 actually triggers my astigmatism looking at bright white snow. Setting 9 is probably my real world pick to match what I set my red dots at for sunny day use. This photo is very far from representing glass quality obviously, but it’s direct sunlight reflecting off snow which many illuminated optics have an issue with. I suck at reticle pictures but this is a good representation of very functional brightness in a worst case scenario. Both the snow and the dot are bright enough my phone camera sees flaring. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/61399/IMG_4991_jpeg-3668394.JPG 1X eye box: Very forgiving. Not quite as good as my Leupold 1.5, but no 1X LPVO physically can be, but it’s close. 6X eye box: It gets a little picky here but nothing to be concerned about if you do your part. Will explain more in depth below. Chromatic aberration: There is none, until you get outside of the peak exit pupil at high mag. At 5X and 6X if you’re not dialed in with your eye position, you will see a minimal amount, and only when looking at high contrasting back grounds. It’s about what a Sig Tango MSR is all of the time. Glass quality: Very good. I’d say this lines up well with the PST2 but that’s just going from memory. I forget how many yards it is, but I can read the mailbox down my street at maybe 60 yards on 3X. That’s something my Sig Tango, Primary Arms prisms, and my old SLX ACSS could never do. The Sig and SLX took full 6X to do it clearly, but keep in mind that was a Gen 2 ACSS and not the newest. That puts it up there with a Credo, ACOG, Arken, and Leupold VX3. At 300 yards the image still looks really good at 6X but the Credo edges it out, but not by a crazy amount. When you add in the eye box sensitivity with the CA, it loses points at 6X though. The 6X view is clearer than the Arken EP8 at 300 yards by a noticeable amount. At 50 yards the 1X is a little less than 1X, causing some barreling. If you flip it a sliver over it clears up. This would not be severe enough to cause any issue even if you leave it at full 1X, it’s me nitpicking. There is some pulling/fish eye evident at the edges right at the cusp of the objective shadowing out. You really have to push to the very edge of the 1X eye box to induce it though. Pretty typical of any LPVO though. Unfortunately they beveled inside the diopter/ocular instead of doing it on the outside, so you do see the ocular housing ring and don’t get that blend in with the world flat view at 1X. I’ll never understand why manufacturers still do this as it’s one of the easiest and most significant improvements you can do to an optic. Controls: The turrets aren’t loud but they’re very defined clicks, certainly towards the top in this range. The Arken EP8 turrets are better, but they’re also just flat good compared to about anything. I’d say the GLX even beats the Credo, and by a bit. The illumination dial has a very tiny bit of wiggle but well above anything else in this price range. The detents are strong but smooth. You would never know if you’re not looking for it. These do have off positions between each illumination setting, and the rubberized dial is very well done. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/61399/IMG_4986_jpeg-3668615.JPG The magnification ring is tight, but the throw lever is decent. They have it on the wrong side so it’s going to be poking your chest when at rest on a sling. The diopter is perfect tension, but this is probably the first optic I’ve needed to adjust for 1X. That could be the difference in 1X mentioned above, but it was minimal adjustment and that could easily be my eyes. Initial thoughts/TLDR: This thing is an insane deal for $230. If I needed anymore LPVO’s I’d be buying more of them. This is a solid $400 optic and probably the best you will get at the $200-$300 range and it’s not even close. It does have some imperfections, but they’re workable and only really present in specific circumstances. Buy one while you can if you’re looking for a budget/beater optic. Don’t go into it thinking you’re getting 80% of a PLX for a fraction of the cost, but this is definitely a significant step up from the common Chinese optics. Great review. Thanks. |
| My SP 1-6 arrived yesterday afternoon. My first impression was good with the exception of the magnification ring. It is very stiff. I had a PA folding lever arm and replaced the OE SP fixed arm with it. The extra leverage helped . It also seems to get a little better with use. Time will tell. Brightness is still very bright, just not as bright as my SLX 1-6 Nova. It is at least "daylight bright" and almost RDB. I have no complaints. Glass is very good. Headed to the range today to put it through its paces. |
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Originally Posted By -OdieGreen-: I just got mine and it’s a good day for testing as everything is covered in snow and I can barely look out a window without sunglasses on. Brightness: Is it as blooming bright as an Aimpoint? No. Is it bright enough that even in sunlit snow you will have absolutely no trouble telling where the dot is at? Yes. Setting 10 actually triggers my astigmatism looking at bright white snow. Setting 9 is probably my real world pick to match what I set my red dots at for sunny day use. This photo is very far from representing glass quality obviously, but it’s direct sunlight reflecting off snow which many illuminated optics have an issue with. I suck at reticle pictures but this is a good representation of very functional brightness in a worst case scenario. Both the snow and the dot are bright enough my phone camera sees flaring. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/61399/IMG_4991_jpeg-3668394.JPG 1X eye box: Very forgiving. Not quite as good as my Leupold 1.5, but no 1X LPVO physically can be, but it’s close. 6X eye box: It gets a little picky here but nothing to be concerned about if you do your part. Will explain more in depth below. Chromatic aberration: There is none, until you get outside of the peak exit pupil at high mag. At 5X and 6X if you’re not dialed in with your eye position, you will see a minimal amount, and only when looking at high contrasting back grounds. It’s about what a Sig Tango MSR is all of the time. Glass quality: Very good. I’d say this lines up well with the PST2 but that’s just going from memory. I forget how many yards it is, but I can read the mailbox down my street at maybe 60 yards on 3X. That’s something my Sig Tango, Primary Arms prisms, and my old SLX ACSS could never do. The Sig and SLX took full 6X to do it clearly, but keep in mind that was a Gen 2 ACSS and not the newest. That puts it up there with a Credo, ACOG, Arken, and Leupold VX3. At 300 yards the image still looks really good at 6X but the Credo edges it out, but not by a crazy amount. When you add in the eye box sensitivity with the CA, it loses points at 6X though. The 6X view is clearer than the Arken EP8 at 300 yards by a noticeable amount. At 50 yards the 1X is a little less than 1X, causing some barreling. If you flip it a sliver over it clears up. This would not be severe enough to cause any issue even if you leave it at full 1X, it’s me nitpicking. There is some pulling/fish eye evident at the edges right at the cusp of the objective shadowing out. You really have to push to the very edge of the 1X eye box to induce it though. Pretty typical of any LPVO though. Unfortunately they beveled inside the diopter/ocular instead of doing it on the outside, so you do see the ocular housing ring and don’t get that blend in with the world flat view at 1X. I’ll never understand why manufacturers still do this as it’s one of the easiest and most significant improvements you can do to an optic. Controls: The turrets aren’t loud but they’re very defined clicks, certainly towards the top in this range. The Arken EP8 turrets are better, but they’re also just flat good compared to about anything. I’d say the GLX even beats the Credo, and by a bit. The illumination dial has a very tiny bit of wiggle but well above anything else in this price range. You would never know if you’re not looking for it and the detents are strong but smooth. These do have off positions between each illumination setting, and the rubberized dial is very well done. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/61399/IMG_4986_jpeg-3668615.JPG The magnification ring is tight, but the throw lever is decent. They have it on the wrong side so it’s going to be poking your chest when at rest on a sling. The diopter is perfect tension, but this is probably the first optic I’ve needed to adjust for 1X. That could be the difference in 1X mentioned above, but it was minimal adjustment and that could easily be my eyes. Initial thoughts/TLDR: This thing is an insane deal for $230. If I needed anymore LPVO’s I’d be buying more of them. This is a solid $400 optic and probably the best you will get at the $200-$300 range and it’s not even close. It does have some imperfections, but they’re workable and only really present in specific circumstances. Buy one while you can if you’re looking for a budget/beater optic. Don’t go into it thinking you’re getting 80% of a PLX for a fraction of the cost, but this is definitely a significant step up from the common Chinese optics. Solid review except no comment on the reticle? I must be one of the few that shoot beyond 25 or 50 yards, as I am more concerned about much longer distances, am barely ever using 1X, or worried about how bright the illumination is. I would prefer a mil reticle than BDC, and wind dots rather than that inverted tree. |
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Originally Posted By sigman68: Solid review except no comment on the reticle? I must be one of the few that shoot beyond 25 or 50 yards, as I am more concerned about much longer distances, am barely ever using 1X, or worried about how bright the illumination is. I would prefer a mil reticle than BDC, and wind dots rather than that inverted tree. The NOVA is a MIL reticle, 1 MIL on the large hashes with 0.5 MILs in between. |
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Originally Posted By sigman68: Solid review except no comment on the reticle? I must be one of the few that shoot beyond 25 or 50 yards, as I am more concerned about much longer distances, am barely ever using 1X, or worried about how bright the illumination is. I would prefer a mil reticle than BDC, and wind dots rather than that inverted tree. It has MIL’s, windage, BDC, and torso range estimation. I really have no complaints. Only thing I might change is thicker posts for if the battery dies to make aiming easier. You can’t get all the reticle capabilities in one picture, but check out this link. There’s a ton of functionality for such a simple reticle. (Scroll about halfway down.) https://survivalstoic.com/primary-arms-slx-1-6x24-gen-iv-scope-review/ |
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Originally Posted By ducati650: My SP 1-6 arrived yesterday afternoon. My first impression was good with the exception of the magnification ring. It is very stiff. I had a PA folding lever arm and replaced the OE SP fixed arm with it. The extra leverage helped. It also seems to get a little better with use. Time will tell. Brightness is still very bright, just not as bright as my SLX 1-6 Nova. It is at least "daylight bright" and almost RDB. I have no complaints. Glass is very good. Headed to the range today to put it through its paces. I went to the range yesterday. It was a bright, sunny Florida day and the dot was bright enough for the conditions. I also had another setup with an SLP 1-6x24 NOVA. As expected, it was brighter than the SP. I ran it at 8/11 and 9/11 brightness settings as full brightness was too bright. To me, the SP seemed to fall between these 2 SLX settings. We shot strings of 6 steel knock-down plates with both setups, 1x and full bright on the SP and 9 setting on SLX. The times and accuracy were the same. The only thing II did not like about the SP was the stiffness of the magnification ring. I had replaced the OE lever with one of PA's longer, folding levers and it helped. The stiffness got a little better with use, so I am hopeful it will get even better with more use. |
| I love my Nova, the glass is great on them. Honestly, I would have to say the clarity is near on par with my Credo HX 1-6. |
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Great review. It is generally accepted that the PST 1-6 is about 80% the performance and quality of the Razor 1-6 at less than half the street price new. Cabellas currently has the PST 1-6 listed at $599. I bought my 2nd PA Special Purchase for $230 shipped. They are now listed at $339. After using the PA SP 1-6 first hand I would gladly select it over the PST and pay a little more if pressed. Lighter weight, slightly better reticle, price and included throw lever make it worth giving it a chance over the tested durability of the PST. Private equity has sucked the quality and value from most mass produced goods. The PA SP 1-6 is a rare exception. |
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Originally Posted By Capt_Destro: I own 2 Novas, my only complaint is the eye box really. Even on 1x it feels restrictive. So I was kind of surprised to see someone say this so I started messing around with mine. It does in fact have what I guess you could say is a dead spot. I had to mess around with placement but if you consider the eye relief at the peak FOV a percentage from shortest, about the 25-35% out area it gets a little more sensitive. I always mount my optics as far forward as they will go while maintaining peak FOV. Getting a sight picture at extended eye relief is doable while most optics shadow out at shortened eye relief. In this case that definitely matters more than some optics, but I think if you follow this rule the eye box is actually really good. TLDR: Move your mount a slot or two forward. |
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I got mine last week. Nicely made and pretty bright dot. I also like that it did not come in a giant box like most optics - much easier to store the smaller box. I outfitted it with Monstrum Pro Series flip up covers from Amazon. Nicer than the Monstrum regular series covers and only $1 more. Ones I bought. For objective:  
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Eyepiece:
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Looking to pick up a LPVO, leaning on a Vortex Viper PST 1-6x24 VMR-2MOA. What’s the bottom line on these PA’s now that the price is back up? Good to go or due to the illumination am I better off spending the extra for the Viper? |
Remember who we used to be…? When courage was absentee…?
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Originally Posted By TACTICAL: Looking to pick up a LPVO, leaning on a Vortex Viper PST 1-6x24 VMR-2MOA. What’s the bottom line on these PA’s now that the price is back up? Good to go or due to the illumination am I better off spending the extra for the Viper? Between the two I’d say it comes down to a few things. -At full price I don’t like the PA’s 6X sensitivity that causes chromatic aberration outside of perfect eye placement, but it’s still 100% useable. -The PA has the better reticle and my example at least is bright enough to contrast in any environments. -The PST II is about as heavy as the PA with a mount. |
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Originally Posted By -OdieGreen-: So I was kind of surprised to see someone say this so I started messing around with mine. It does in fact have what I guess you could say is a dead spot. I had to mess around with placement but if you consider the eye relief at the peak FOV a percentage from shortest, about the 25-35% out area it gets a little more sensitive. I always mount my optics as far forward as they will go while maintaining peak FOV. Getting a sight picture at extended eye relief is doable while most optics shadow out at shortened eye relief. In this case that definitely matters more than some optics, but I think if you follow this rule the eye box is actually really good. TLDR: Move your mount a slot or two forward. I think I only noticed it because I tried it out on a bolt action. On an AR/Semi Auto it isn't really an issue. Cycling the action on a lever gun or bolt gun is when the eye box issue is more noticable. |
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So kind of a long term update….. For $230, yeah it’s better than most anything at its price. I don’t like this thing though. That 6X eye box induced chromatic aberration is something I just can’t get over. While looking through trees the sensitivity/CA is so bad I couldn’t even tell where I was looking today. It looked like a 70’s psychedelic rock album cover. If you dial it down to 4X it’s absolutely great. But the BDC doesn’t work there. So while I wouldn’t return it, I’d add the big caveat that 6X requires you be within about a 2mm exit pupil to keep the image from falling apart. If you only shoot 6X from a bench you will likely have no problem. Prone or off hand though it gets dicey real quick. |
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After some extensive use I can say that my opinion on the Primary Arms scope has soured just a bit. I am having to adjust and fine tune the diopter between 1x and 6x. The 1x sweet spot is not easy to find and is somewhat under whelming. The illumination also triggers my astigmatism. This was my first Primary Arms scope and for $239 I have nothing to complain about. Found a great deal on a Vortex PST 1-6 gen II with mount and throw lever recently. The PA Special Purchase despite being lighter with excellent reticle is no PST gen II. |
| These are in a 24 hr sale back at the $239 price today for anyone interested. Absolutely amazing value in this scope at this price. I paid $339 and I’m still extremely happy with it. Sorely tempted to get another. |
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Originally Posted By Paulie771: These are in a 24 hr sale back at the $239 price today for anyone interested. Absolutely amazing value in this scope at this price. I paid $339 and I’m still extremely happy with it. Sorely tempted to get another. I missed this post but found out about the sale from this video.  Sunday Pop-Up Deal Alert |
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