Give me the lowdown on this company, do they hold up?

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts
  • alaska_guy
    Bloodstained
    • Jan 2018
    • 43

    #16
    Thanks. I updated the subject. After watching my own review it does sound like I bashed vortex at the end, I didn't mean it to come across that way. I just believe in the market below $350 and specifically comparing 3x9 scopes there are much better options. My wife knows nothing about scopes and after I did the review I had her look through both scopes out of our back yard into the treed woods at 100 yards and she got frustrated because she couldn't see through the vortex diamondback easily and said "I am done looking through this stupid thing". That was at 3x power! So I don't think my opinion is that far off base comparing the same price point scopes. Unfortunately I don't own any other brand scopes and I am almost done selling off all my vortex scopes to re-gear up for next hunting season, so I can't really compare anything else in the video. Vortex has lasted me 5-8 years so that alone should say something.

    If you look at 7:00min in my video you will notice I cranked the power up to 9x and forgot. I was comparing the eye relief in the last section of my video of the Styrka at 9x power and the vortex was on 3x! Talk about drastic difference. Even turned all the way up the Styrka didn't get those weird black edges.

    This is what I personally look for in a scope in a matter of importance. I imagine everyone's personal preference is different.

    1. Durability and accuracy
    2. Construction and attention to detail
    3. Optical Quality sharpness
    4. Eye Relief
    5. Reticle

    If everything else in those categories is close to the same the eye relief is my deciding factor on what brand scope I choose.
    Last edited by alaska_guy; 02-08-2018, 08:22 PM.

    Comment

    • alaska_guy
      Bloodstained
      • Jan 2018
      • 43

      #17
      So I wanted to update everyone. I called my local gun dealer the next morning and asked them about their return policy on the scope or any scope. They said they would not allow me to return the scope once it had been mounted in rings. So for that reason I decided to return it. I ended up going with a Leupold VX3i 3.5-10 with the windplex in the CDS system for a whopping $100 more. I wish I could have tested it at the range, but I didn't want to take a gamble on a unknown china brand scope when I knew I could get a quality brand scope for not much more.

      If anyone is curious about scopes under $500 and light transmission this is a very good video. Go to the 6:50min mark if you just want to see the results. Last hunt with my father in law using his leupold VX3 and my Diamondback in 3x9 the light transmission results in his video mimick 100% what I experienced in low light.

      Comment

      • Tex Nomex
        Warrior
        • Dec 2017
        • 185

        #18
        Can't go wrong with that scope, especially at that price. How specific do you need to be with the custom dial info?
        "The best we can hope for concerning the people at large is that they be properly armed."
        -- Alexander Hamilton, The Federalist Papers at 184-188

        Comment

        • alaska_guy
          Bloodstained
          • Jan 2018
          • 43

          #19
          They require elevation, chrono information bullet info and weather. If you do not supply weather I believe the default is around 50 degrees.

          There are a lot of sites out there that you can click on a map where you hunt and it will tell you elevation/weather etc in that area over x amount of years. I looked into it before purchasing the scope. I will be putting this scope on my 6.5 creedmoor, setting 100 yard zero. Im not terribly worried due to the fact that it barely drops out to 300 yards. I believe its 7 inch drop at 300 yards using the 120grain GMX loads. If you were shooting something that didn't shoot as flat I would say the information would be more important and would personally advice borrowing a chronograph from the range if you don't own one yourself.

          Yeah, amazon had an insane sale for $330 last night. Its still a decent deal today @ $379.99 https://www.amazon.com/Leupold-VX-3i.../dp/B018YKYLBQ However, you can get it for $350 here. http://www.opticsagent.com/LEU-VX3I-...LEX_p_690.html

          Hopefully I don't get in trouble for posting sites... But Opticsagent.com always has great deals.

          Comment

          • Harpoon1
            Chieftain
            • Dec 2017
            • 1122

            #20
            Gonna throw these out there for anyone who may be interested in a decent "budget" entry level scope.



            I've got a total of 4 of them now. Purchased two more back in mid December when I found them on Amazon for $129. Should have bought 10 of them! I first started using them on air rifles last year, they're designed specifically for them. For those unfamilair, a spring powered air rifle has a "regular scope" killing double recoil impulse. Think FAL! They can literally destroy very high quality, high end, supposedly tough scopes in short order. So, they should be able to stand up to the Grendel, no problem! OTOT, they have a lifetme warranty anyway.

            Assembled in the Philippines, have no idea where the glass is from. Having said that, the glass and controls are excellent for the price point. The resolution is as good as I've seen in this level of scope. It's bright, clear, "Japanese like" glass. This particular model has very useful, hunting friendly, MOA-hash reticle. Along with an AO adjustable parallax down to 8 yds.

            Downside, 1" tube and non-slippable turret caps. Which are pretty standard fare for this level of scope anyway.

            At $209, its still a pretty good value..........however.........if they go back down anywhere near $129 again, I'm going to back the truck up!
            Last edited by Harpoon1; 02-10-2018, 07:19 PM.

            Comment

            • Tex Nomex
              Warrior
              • Dec 2017
              • 185

              #21
              Originally posted by alaska_guy View Post
              They require elevation, chrono information bullet info and weather. If you do not supply weather I believe the default is around 50 degrees.

              There are a lot of sites out there that you can click on a map where you hunt and it will tell you elevation/weather etc in that area over x amount of years. I looked into it before purchasing the scope. I will be putting this scope on my 6.5 creedmoor, setting 100 yard zero. Im not terribly worried due to the fact that it barely drops out to 300 yards. I believe its 7 inch drop at 300 yards using the 120grain GMX loads. If you were shooting something that didn't shoot as flat I would say the information would be more important and would personally advice borrowing a chronograph from the range if you don't own one yourself.

              Yeah, amazon had an insane sale for $330 last night. Its still a decent deal today @ $379.99 https://www.amazon.com/Leupold-VX-3i.../dp/B018YKYLBQ However, you can get it for $350 here. http://www.opticsagent.com/LEU-VX3I-...LEX_p_690.html

              Hopefully I don't get in trouble for posting sites... But Opticsagent.com always has great deals.

              Do a review when you get your custom dial. I'll watch.
              "The best we can hope for concerning the people at large is that they be properly armed."
              -- Alexander Hamilton, The Federalist Papers at 184-188

              Comment

              • Keef
                Warrior
                • Jun 2017
                • 296

                #22
                Any one heard of nikko stiriling. 1-10x scope about 500.00



                They also make a 3-30x!

                Comment

                • VASCAR2
                  Chieftain
                  • Mar 2011
                  • 6219

                  #23
                  Nikko Stirling is the Company that has partnered with Legacy Sports International and is the optics sold with the Howa bolt action rifles. I read Nikko Stirling is a Japanese Company but I don’t know if all their scopes are manufactured in Japan.

                  I don’t know if Nikko Stirling actually has any manufacturing capability or is just a trade name and the scopes are obtained from the same or multiple sources.

                  Comment

                  • LRRPF52
                    Super Moderator
                    • Sep 2014
                    • 8569

                    #24
                    Originally posted by Keef View Post
                    Any one heard of nikko stiriling. 1-10x scope about 500.00



                    They also make a 3-30x!
                    The only other company I know of that has ten factor magnification is March Optics, one of the main things they're known for.

                    March Optics is made in Japan, and is top-tier glass comparable to Zeiss, Hensoldt, and S&B.

                    I wonder if Nikko Stirling was influenced by March when making this scope, because it has the same basic form factor as the March 1-10x24.

                    I'm also seeing that is has an NSN, which is odd. First I've seen of that.
                    NRA Basic, Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, RSO

                    CCW, CQM, DM, Long Range Rifle Instructor

                    6.5 Grendel Reloading Handbooks & chamber brushes can be found here:

                    www.AR15buildbox.com

                    Comment

                    • alaska_guy
                      Bloodstained
                      • Jan 2018
                      • 43

                      #25
                      I will report back on the Leupold after I get it mounted up and decide on my final load. I contacted Vortex today and spoke with Tim and he basically told me the same thing I already knew. The eye relief on the vortex scopes isn't all that great compared to other companies out there. He did suggest I look into the PST Gen II as its supposed to provide more eye relief, he said the same thing with the Crossfire II series. So just in case someone else has the same issues I have with vortex those might be some options. I'm sad to finally give up with Vortex... But for the hunting I do with my clothes changing drastically due to weather conditions and mounting the rifle quickly they just wont work for my type of hunting. For bench resting or target shooting they are great as you have all the time in the world. I also explained the low light performance that seemed lacking compared to other scopes I have looked through while hunting and they believe their low light is great and don't see a need for a redesign. I am sad to leave them, but unless I get back into target shooting again they aren't the right fit for my current needs.

                      Comment

                      • LRRPF52
                        Super Moderator
                        • Sep 2014
                        • 8569

                        #26
                        Originally posted by alaska_guy View Post
                        I will report back on the Leupold after I get it mounted up and decide on my final load. I contacted Vortex today and spoke with Tim and he basically told me the same thing I already knew. The eye relief on the vortex scopes isn't all that great compared to other companies out there. He did suggest I look into the PST Gen II as its supposed to provide more eye relief, he said the same thing with the Crossfire II series. So just in case someone else has the same issues I have with vortex those might be some options. I'm sad to finally give up with Vortex... But for the hunting I do with my clothes changing drastically due to weather conditions and mounting the rifle quickly they just wont work for my type of hunting. For bench resting or target shooting they are great as you have all the time in the world. I also explained the low light performance that seemed lacking compared to other scopes I have looked through while hunting and they believe their low light is great and don't see a need for a redesign. I am sad to leave them, but unless I get back into target shooting again they aren't the right fit for my current needs.
                        What Vortex scope do you have?

                        You really need to indicate the product line and limit your experience to that, rather than assigning the issues you're having with the entire company.

                        I haven't seen any of this with Viper, Viper PST, PST Gen II, or Viper HST. They have very forgiving exit pupil, with longer eye relief, exceptional low light performance for sub-$1000 scopes.

                        Do you have a Diamondback? Don't expect any issues you're having to not exist with any other $200 scope.

                        There's a reason why many of us will never buy a $200 scope, because they simply will not offer basic performance for a hunter in quick shot or low light conditions.

                        My first PST, which I still have, has 4" of eye relief, very generous exit pupil (easy to acquire), and good low light performance.

                        It also has demonstrated excellent return-to-zero and reliability across sub-freezing to 100˚ weather, in the rain, sleet, snow, and dust.
                        Last edited by LRRPF52; 02-15-2018, 08:53 PM.
                        NRA Basic, Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, RSO

                        CCW, CQM, DM, Long Range Rifle Instructor

                        6.5 Grendel Reloading Handbooks & chamber brushes can be found here:

                        www.AR15buildbox.com

                        Comment

                        • CastorTroy
                          Warrior
                          • Mar 2015
                          • 133

                          #27
                          Shot a long range match this weekend with my PST2 on a Bergara B14 BMP in 6.5 Creedmoor. Weather started out at -3F. Scope performed great, with hits out to 1100.



                          Comment

                          • Tex Nomex
                            Warrior
                            • Dec 2017
                            • 185

                            #28
                            Originally posted by CastorTroy View Post
                            Shot a long range match this weekend with my PST2 on a Bergara B14 BMP in 6.5 Creedmoor. Weather started out at -3F. Scope performed great, with hits out to 1100.

                            https://i.imgur.com/y5uPJSc.jpg
                            Love the Bergara. I want one. Shoot as good as she looks? What's the weight?
                            "The best we can hope for concerning the people at large is that they be properly armed."
                            -- Alexander Hamilton, The Federalist Papers at 184-188

                            Comment

                            • CastorTroy
                              Warrior
                              • Mar 2015
                              • 133

                              #29
                              Originally posted by Tex Nomex View Post
                              Love the Bergara. I want one. Shoot as good as she looks? What's the weight?
                              I'd guess 14lb loaded. It is a fantastic rifle, shoots great

                              Comment

                              • alaska_guy
                                Bloodstained
                                • Jan 2018
                                • 43

                                #30
                                Originally posted by LRRPF52 View Post
                                What Vortex scope do you have?

                                You really need to indicate the product line and limit your experience to that, rather than assigning the issues you're having with the entire company.

                                I haven't seen any of this with Viper, Viper PST, PST Gen II, or Viper HST. They have very forgiving exit pupil, with longer eye relief, exceptional low light performance for sub-$1000 scopes.

                                Do you have a Diamondback? Don't expect any issues you're having to not exist with any other $200 scope.

                                There's a reason why many of us will never buy a $200 scope, because they simply will not offer basic performance for a hunter in quick shot or low light conditions.

                                My first PST, which I still have, has 4" of eye relief, very generous exit pupil (easy to acquire), and good low light performance.

                                It also has demonstrated excellent return-to-zero and reliability across sub-freezing to 100˚ weather, in the rain, sleet, snow, and dust.
                                I currently only have the 3x9 diamondback BDC scope. However that should be sold soon. I plan on sending it to votex first so they can perform whatever service they can and then hoping to get $100 for it... However, prior to this past hunting season I owned their 3x9 Diamondback, 1.75-5 x32 diamondback, their 6x24 pst, their 4-16 HS. Like I said, I have sold them all so I can't really do any comparisons. I can say after I looked through a neighbors new Crossfire II in 4-16 on his 300 blkout it wasn't great, but it wasn't as bad as my old diamondback... His scope didn't have any of the issues my diamondback has. My oldest scope was at least 8 years old (PST) and my newest scope was about 5 years old (Diamondback). I called and spoke to Tim at Vortex, explained my issues, explained how I use their scopes and he pretty much agreed with everything I said about them except he stood behind their low light performance. If you don't believe what I am saying go to a big box store, use a ruler and find where the furthest out you can move the scope on a ziess as an example and still see perfectly fine through the reticle, then do the same with the same price vortex in the same power. Tim didn't argue with my on this point and he agreed they needed to work on it. He said sending the scope in more than likely wouldn't fix any of the issues wrong with it and its just a known issue with their design until you buy their new Gen II series. Unless Vortex new scopes are drastically better they just don't work for the type of shooting I now do. I haven't looked through their Gen II series yet, but that's what he suggested. These scopes were all fine when I was doing bench rest shooting but their eye box and eye relief has much to be desired for hunting applications for quick shot placement. I wasn't trying to bash them, but they really do need to work on that horrid black ring. I have owned a bunch of their scopes through out the years and when I was mainly doing bench shooting they were fine if you can live with their eye box. After I switched to hunting and comparing side by side to other brand name scopes there are just better options for the price point. I don't need the fancy reticles, the 24x power and all the bag wiz gadgets when I hunt. If you want or need all of those features Vortex is a very good choice as they cram a lot into their scope package. I need a scope that does very well in low light with clear glass and has a forgiving eye box. I can shoot consistently out to 300 yards with simply shouldering the rifle and pulling the trigger and that's about the farthest I have ever needed to shoot when hunting and it can be done on 6x pretty easily. When I couldn't see through my scope no matter how I shouldered or moved my head this last hunting trip that was all she wrote.

                                I have had ZERO issues with my vortex holding zero or tracking. It literally came down to their optical quality. I am getting older and I just thought my eyes were playing tricks on me at first and just getting worse, but after confirming with other people that I hunt with they all agreed the scopes I owned looked bad. Granted, I was comparing them to swaro, ziess, leupold, nightforce etc. I will admit I was pretty frustrated when I came back from the hunt as I missed an opportunity on one of the biggest bulls I had ever seen in that hunting area so in haste I sold all but the one optic so I atleast had something left. It made the most sense to sell the ones I was likely to get the most money out of first. My plan was to buy zeiss but I didn't get near what I thought I would for the used optics so my price point has come down to about the $400 price point to replace my scopes. With a lot of the population being Military where I live and they get 40% off Vortex optics the market is soft.

                                Hopefully that clears things up.

                                Comment

                                Working...
                                X