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Posted: 5/2/2025 10:48:12 AM EDT
[Last Edit: TheShootingAnvil][Edited]
| I've been out of the loop in terms of optics and brands for a long time and I have absolutely no idea what brands to avoid, what brands are "bang for your buck", and what brands are high quality. There are tons of brands I've never even heard of these days. I've got some deer rifles that range in the $600 to $1000 price range, nothing super fancy or expensive, and I need to outfit them with optics. Leupold has always been what I've used in the past just for name recognition and reputation, but there seems to be so many different brands on the market now that I don't know if there are others I should be looking at. Even with the Leupold brand, I have only gone up to the VX3 tier for my most expensive rifles so I'm sure even with Leupold, I'm getting lower quality glass. But I live and hunt in heavily wooded areas so even the farthest I'm shooting would be 175 to 200 yards. So even the lower tier Leupold stuff has been more than sufficient for my needs. But if there are other brands on the market that might offer similar quality for a cheaper price, I'd definitely be interested in learning more. Thanks! |
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Originally Posted By 4570spacecowboy: Vortex and Arken optics. My hunting guns all have vortex on them. I’ve taken deer from 25 yds out to 200 with a vortex viper 2.5-10 Thank you. I have looked at the Vortex stuff and it seems like most of their stuff is geared for tactical, competitive, or precision shooting. It seems like they don't offer a basic duplex reticle in much other than their base line. But I'll go back and look again. It's been a while since I looked really closely at their website. And I've never heard of Arken. Must be another one of those newer brands (or least new to me). |
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Trijicon Huron. They are made in Japan fwiw. Pretty much all other options from other companies anywhere near the price range of the trijicon Huron or ascent line are made in the Philippines or China. Trijicon also drop test their optics and they are known for their durability. I own the 3-12x40 model. https://www.eurooptic.com/search?term=Trijicon%20huron |
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I know ARFCOM is a bunch of optics snobs, but at our shop we have sold hundreds of the Sig Buckmaster series of scopes. 1 has been bad. They retail from $99 to $139. We have sold probably 75-100 Leupolds. 1 of them was bad too. For the money the Sigs can't be beat! Arken is a relatively newcomer and a lot of their stuff is made in China but appears to be good stuff for the price. |
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Originally Posted By TheShootingAnvil: I've been out of the loop in terms of optics and brands for a long time and I have absolutely no idea what brands to avoid, what brands are "bang for your buck", and what brands are high quality. There are tons of brands I've never even heard of these days. I've got some deer rifles that range in the $600 to $1000 price range, nothing super fancy or expensive, and I need to outfit them with optics. Leupold has always been what I've used in the past just for name recognition and reputation, but there seems to be so many different brands on the market now that I don't know if there are others I should be looking at. Even with the Leupold brand, I have only gone up to the VX3 tier for my most expensive rifles so I'm sure even with Leupold, I'm getting lower quality glass. But I live and hunt in heavily wooded areas so even the farthest I'm shooting would be 175 to 200 yards. So even the lower tier Leupold stuff has been more than sufficient for my needs. But if there are other brands on the market that might offer similar quality for a cheaper price, I'd definitely be interested in learning more. Thanks! So what is your budget for each scope? How much power are you looking for? For 200 and under on a deer you could use a 1-8x and be fine but not sure what you were thinking. |
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Originally Posted By Duck_Hunt: Trijicon Huron. They are made in Japan fwiw. Pretty much all other options from other companies anywhere near the price range of the trijicon Huron or ascent line are made in the Philippines or China. Trijicon also drop test their optics and they are known for their durability. I own the 3-12x40 model. https://www.eurooptic.com/search?term=Trijicon%20huron This. The Arkens are way overweight. |
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Originally Posted By Rob01: So what is your budget for each scope? How much power are you looking for? For 200 and under on a deer you could use a 1-8x and be fine but not sure what you were thinking. I usually go with a 3-9x40. Sometimes if it's a caliber capable of longer ranges I'll go with a 4-12x40. |
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| Vortex PST or Razor or Leopold both great choices. My preferences: Not more than 15-18X max magnification. SFP I do dial ups (open elevation turrent, covered windage is ok but open is better. Prefer the reticle to not get overgrown at higher magnification. Illuminated simple reticle - Mil dot preferred. I can't stand busy reticles. |
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Originally Posted By Ike838: This. The Arkens are way overweight. Overweight, Made in China, and most that Ive messed with appear to be looking though dirty glass. Meh. Luppy, Sig, Trijicon, and vortex all have good budget scopes. Ive been running Swarovski for years but I am an optics snob. To be fair though I spend a good deal of time hunting every year so they do get used. |
Dont call it a comeback, Been here for years.
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Originally Posted By hotrod1010: Faced with the same decision I just bought a Leupold Freedom 4x12x40 for a Browning A Bolt in .243 for $449. And a Leupold VX3 HD 4x14x40 for a Ruger Gen II in .223 for $499 on a hot deal from Academy. I am satisfied with my choices. The VX-Freedom line looks like a good choice. My choice would be a 3-9x or 4-12x model. |
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I'm very happy with my new Burris Signature HD. I feel its as good or slightly better than my VX-3i scopes. Nice clear glass, definite parallax adjustment. Simple to use reticle. Pop up locking turrets with zero lock. I spent a couple days last week using it on prairie dogs in several lighting conditions and could easily see and focus on dogs out over 800 yards with 15x. Was able to dial elevation and return to zero dozens of times and it was spot on. |
F$$K CANCER!!! RIP Jeff Reed.
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Trijicon accupoint or credo HX in 2.5-10x56 will work way better in low light than about anything other than nvg/thermal… check out the pupil size… Edit: just saw your budget, probably not gonna find a new accupoint <600s… maybe used. Leupold generally has good glass for the price range and is usually far lighter than the competition. I’d just look for a deal on whatever leupold you can afford. |
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I have this on a 308 savage axis rifle It's a fantastic scope for the $ Vortex Optics Diamondback HP Rifle Scope 4-16x 42mm Side Focus Dead-Hold BDC Reticle Matte https://www.midwayusa.com/product/2420373744?pid=373744 |
PROUD AMMOSEXUAL
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Originally Posted By ScottyPotty: I like the vortex viper 2.5-10x44 $250 at midway. I have them on a lot of different rifles. I grabbed one of these Viper HS scopes from Midway a couple weeks ago. I have yet to mount it on a rifle so I can't truly rate its performance in the field but as far as looking at objects in the distance in both bright sunlight and dusk, I think the picture stays pretty clear and detailed even at 10X. Especially for a $250 scope, of which I have several scopes in the $200-400 price range. |
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Originally Posted By BMANSAR15: I grabbed one of these Viper HS scopes from Midway a couple weeks ago. I have yet to mount it on a rifle so I can't truly rate its performance in the field but as far as looking at objects in the distance in both bright sunlight and dusk, I think the picture stays pretty clear and detailed even at 10X. Especially for a $250 scope, of which I have several scopes in the $200-400 price range. Originally Posted By BMANSAR15: Originally Posted By ScottyPotty: I like the vortex viper 2.5-10x44 $250 at midway. I have them on a lot of different rifles. I grabbed one of these Viper HS scopes from Midway a couple weeks ago. I have yet to mount it on a rifle so I can't truly rate its performance in the field but as far as looking at objects in the distance in both bright sunlight and dusk, I think the picture stays pretty clear and detailed even at 10X. Especially for a $250 scope, of which I have several scopes in the $200-400 price range. That's a good one. For his hunting needs - heavy woods with longest shot bring 200y - most any LPVO would do. Luckily, LPVO is kind of all the rage just now. Another good choice would be the Vortex Venom 1-6x24. In those shorter shots it's nice to have the wide view available. |
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Originally Posted By Leadlined: That's a good one. For his hunting needs - heavy woods with longest shot bring 200y - most any LPVO would do. Luckily, LPVO is kind of all the rage just now. Another good choice would be the Vortex Venom 1-6x24. In those shorter shots it's nice to have the wide view available. Doable, but the biggest downside to a LPVO is light transmission. If you’re shooting at dawn or dusk, the small objective will really be a disadvantage. |
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Originally Posted By bluedog82: Doable, but the biggest downside to a LPVO is light transmission. If you’re shooting at dawn or dusk, the small objective will really be a disadvantage. Originally Posted By bluedog82: Originally Posted By Leadlined: That's a good one. For his hunting needs - heavy woods with longest shot bring 200y - most any LPVO would do. Luckily, LPVO is kind of all the rage just now. Another good choice would be the Vortex Venom 1-6x24. In those shorter shots it's nice to have the wide view available. Doable, but the biggest downside to a LPVO is light transmission. If you’re shooting at dawn or dusk, the small objective will really be a disadvantage. Especially in the woods, where is it dark half an hour before outside the treeline. Honestly, being as objective as possible here, an LPVO is the worst choice you can make for almost any type of hunting. In thick woods a red dot would be a better choice. I get it that they're "the hot thing" right own and everyone want one because all the "cool guys" have them, but the compromises necessary in order to get a 1x pseudo-red dot with a bad eyebox make it lackluster at doing hunting scope things. For a true hunting scope you want a big objective lens, good glass, reasonable weight, good reticle, turrets/dialing is up to you but I prefer exposed elevation if not both exposed, as long as they're locking. Midway has some really good deals on some Vortex scopes right now, some of those would be decent options. At that price point I think your best choice is going to be as much Leupold as you can afford or perhaps something from Burris. As long as you can find one with a good reticle and the rest of the features you want you'll be fine, even the Freedom series are fine, workable scopes. If voting for one scope and it is staying on one rifle for good with one load, I'm voting for as much VX series as you can get and send your data in to get a CDS turret for your load. Range, dial, click. (Some of the Vortex scopes come with a custom turret option too,though I'm not sure which ones.) |
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Originally Posted By GUN2: Trijicon accupoint or credo HX in 2.5-10x56 will work way better in low light than about anything other than nvg/thermal… check out the pupil size… Edit: just saw your budget, probably not gonna find a new accupoint <600s… maybe used. Leupold generally has good glass for the price range and is usually far lighter than the competition. I’d just look for a deal on whatever leupold you can afford. I’ve got several scopes three or four times the price and for strictly hunting I still turn to their 2.5-10’s |
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I finally sprung for a SWFA SS 3-9x42HD after debating on it forever. It’s a FFP with a mil reticle, weighs about 20oz and the size is reasonable. I personally don’t like huge honking scopes on my hunting rifles if I plan to carry them at all. Having shot it a bit, I’m quite pleased with it and would buy it again if I had the chance. Note: parallax is fixed but people say it doesn’t much effect shootability. |
| To me vortex gives a lot of bang for the buck. Of course the more you spend the nicer stuff you get. The viper line is great for 99% of applications, they can be found for sub $500 regularly. Take a look at the vortex razor LHT. LHT can be had for around $1000 on optics planet currently. LOW glass, to me everything you practically need with nothing you dont, very lightweight. |
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Originally Posted By doty_soty: I’ve got several scopes three or four times the price and for strictly hunting I still turn to their 2.5-10’s Originally Posted By doty_soty: Originally Posted By GUN2: Trijicon accupoint or credo HX in 2.5-10x56 will work way better in low light than about anything other than nvg/thermal… check out the pupil size… Edit: just saw your budget, probably not gonna find a new accupoint <600s… maybe used. Leupold generally has good glass for the price range and is usually far lighter than the competition. I’d just look for a deal on whatever leupold you can afford. I’ve got several scopes three or four times the price and for strictly hunting I still turn to their 2.5-10’s They’re super clear and bright, and PSA still has the credo Hx 2.5-10x56 on sale for $650! Plus, you can order custom BDC cams for $100… |
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Instead of focusing on brand, set a budget and a set of priorities. The only real demand short range hunting puts on scopes is light transmission. My hunting priorities shake out like this: 1. Light transmission: Most younger people's pupils dilate to 6-7mm, older people's can stop at 5mm or so. As light fades, magnification helps with target ID. However, if the scope's exit pupil is smaller than your pupil, you'll start losing light transmission. For example, if you want at least 6x for target ID, the objective lens has to be at least 36mm. The next big factor is lens quality and coatings. This is going to be really hard to test in low light until after you buy the scope. It's usually best to assume you get what you pay for. Remember that a lot of people never shoot in low light, particularly at low contrast targets like an animal in the woods. Pretty much all scopes look good in the middle of the day lined up on a high contrast target. 2. Illuminated reticles: I strongly prefer them. If it's not Illuminated, thick stadia near the center help. 3. Weight: I like light scopes. Reducer lenses for 1x, big magnification ranges, big tubes, first focal plane, and illuminated reticles all add weight. Many of these features aren't of much use in a short range hunting scope. 4. Capped turrets: I like them. It's only a matter of time before you move a turret accidentally. Hopefully, you notice it before you shoot. Today, I'd buy Leupold for low budget, Trijicon mid, and Swarovski high, but there are plenty of good hunting scopes available. |
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In the $400 range the Trijicon Huron and ascent options are tough to beat. They are durable and made in Japan. Most if not all others in their price range are either not durable or made in China or the Philippines. If I was going to go cheaper than that - some of the Burris fullfields are known decent set and forget hunting scopes. |