Higher end scopes.

May I suggest you consider a Burris Fullfield as well? They have several very nice models in the $200-300 range. I think their glass is just as good as Vortex and their turrets feel better to me.

Both are decent scopes for the money.

Oh, as to your question about optical quality.....

My only recent experience with Bushnell was an 18X Banner model. Dreadful garbage, IMO. Tore itself apart on the first range outing. The glass was ok at best, but the turrets were terrible- the reticle housing started to rotate in the tube and there was no way to disassemble it without destroying it. I ended up chucking it in the trash rather than bother getting it fixed under warranty- it was that bad.

I have a few old Japanese production Bushnells which are actually pretty clear.

Either the Burris or the Vortex will be leaps and bounds over the cheaper Bushnells, though of course Bushnell does have good scopes in their higher price ranges.

LOL, And I thought there was going to be a discussion on "High End" scopes. Most of my rings cost around $200.

Burris FF2/E1s are up there in terms of bargains as far as I'm concerned. Ive had really good service from Athlon optics as well, and have an Argos HMR that I like better than my Burris ffe1.

Txhillbilly said:

LOL, And I thought there was going to be a discussion on "High End" scopes. Most of my rings cost around $200.

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Only sets of rings I've had that were more than 60ish I've given away lol.
Good rings are also one of those things I think are worth investing in, but my limit are Warnes, Talleys etc. I do eventually wanna outfit my "dream" gun with something LIKE the Controls, but that will require more research.

I personally don’t consider a Crossfire or Copperhead much of an upgrade if any over a low-end Bushnell. Under $200.00 I’d go for a Fullfield II. I have never looked through an Athlon so can’t speak to them. I do trust LoonWulf’s opinion on optics though if he is on his meds and hasn’t been hitting his pineapple homebrew too hard.

Ive also found that my ability to focus thru optics is dependant on how much caffeine I've consumed.... so if we balance the Pineapple swipe, with a sugar-free RockStar, I have blearly purrfect vision.

Actually one of those things that surprises me is that the Diamondbacks, while ok scopes for the cost (imo) and made in the Philippines as many of the other scopes I like, just don't seem to be on par with the better stuff in their price range. It always rather disappoints when Im using one of my buddies guns (he has a few DBs) and just dont like them as well as the old Nikon Prostaff, or cheaper Sig Whiskey 3s....or even the Simmons lATV or the 6.5-20WTC. All Philippines made, and old tech comparatively.
I do wonder if its just my eyes tho.

It’s not your eyes IMO.

In the price range you are considering, spending a little more typically does come with a significant improvement in quality. It also typically does mean “spending a little more” actually means “spending twice as much.”

It has been many years since I have felt as though I was getting something worth what I paid out of a scope costing less than $250-400.

I'd spend $100 more and grab a leupold VX-Freedom.

I've had a few lower end Vortex's and they're not great.

I'll echo the Burris Fullfield suggestion. Very impressed with mine, I think I paid $180 or so. Primary Arms had a couple options under $200 that are decent. I've also been happy with Mueller optics for under $200, but their eye-box and eye relief are on the less forgiving side compared to to others. Not terrible, just noticeable. Finally, as someone else mentioned I trust @LoonWulf 's judgment on Athlon scopes and would give them a look. I do have a spotting scope from them and have been very impressed for the price but haven't tried one of their rifle scopes yet.

I've never paid more than $200 for a scope, I just don't NEED something more expensive for my uses and it allows more money for ammo.

Very generally speaking, when discussing lower end scopes, a bit of additional money does tend to buy a lot of extra quality.

FWIW....if I’m looking while I’m at the store, I try to find the farthest, darkest area I can find and try to discern details. Then, I focus as finely as possible and try to read the print on signs as small and far away as possible

Edit to add......I’d second the recommendation on the Burris. Ive only looked thru a few lower end Vortex and there would be better options for me.

And, they have cradles to hold the scope. I use those rather than holding the scope. That way i can concentrate on scope quality and not on trying to hold it still

redneck2 said:

FWIW....if I’m looking while I’m at the store, I try to find the farthest, darkest area I can find and try to discern details. Then, I focus as finely as possible and try to read the print on signs as small and far away as possible

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That's exactly what I did. Our BassPro is pretty dark inside. I made a point of looking at the light coming in through the windows to check glare as well. There was a pretty big difference between brands when taking glare into account even when brightness and contrast was pretty similar.

In many stores, the optics counter is across the store from the fishing poles. Look through the scope at the fishing pole rack - you’ll see how much the scope struggles to resolve light. Tight, parallel lines are easily recognized by our brains, so imperfections in transmission and resolution, and chromatic aberration will become very apparent.

I just bought a ff2 4.5-14x42, like it a lot it is almost as clear as my old vx3 not quite but close enough for its 200.00 price tag. The bx3 was over 500.00.

The Cabela’s close to me has an eye chart high up on the wall that’s across the store from the gun counter. They also have some rifle stocks with rubber grips on them to look through scopes with.

Sorry, but for $100-$200 you are not going to get a "higher end scope".

In fact $100-$200 gets you a decidedly " low end scope".

HIgh end scopes start at 4 figures. A $200 scope is the least expensive scope that I'd recommend. Not that price is everything, but the scopes that I prefer to use sell in the $400-$500 range. But there are several options priced right at $200 that I'd not feel handicapped using.

The Leupold VX-Freedoms start at $200 for a basic model. The Burris FF-II is a good scope that sells for around $200.

I used to consider the best Leupold scopes "high end". That was until I bought Zeiss Victory scopes. What I could do with a 3-9x power Leupold I could do with a 1-6x power Zeiss. Their optics are unreal. I now consider the Leupold line to be mid-level. But, the Leupolds cost $500-$1000 whereas the Zeiss' cost $2000+ so they darned well better be superior. The Leupolds are certainly good value and I own a 1/2 dozen of them (I just bought a Leupold handgun scope) but they are not high-end in my book. Zeiss Victory and Leupold Warranties are both lifetime, btw.