Looking For Opinions - Vortex VIPER PST GEN II

[peeplwtchr]

Hi All-

Thinking of buying this scope, anyone have any experience with it? If so, what did you think?

https://vortexoptics.com/viper-pst-gen-2-5-25x50-ffp+reticle-EBR-7C~MOA

Thanks

 

[Walkalong]

At the sale prices they can be had at, they are a very good value IMHO, I have two. I have shot PRS matches and NRL-22 with them. They track well, clicks are audible and nice (Have a tiny bit of play when set, so does my XRSII, but it doesn't affect shooting). The parallax will adjust down to 25 yards so they work well for .22 LR.

https://www.eurooptic.com/Vortex-Viper-PST-5-25x50-EBR-2D-MRAD-FFP-PST-5257.aspx

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1020648416?pid=872076

 

[Mk-211]

They're nice, have one sitting in the box, sold the 7mm upper it was on.

Have to agree with Walkalong about the scope, might not be top tier but they hold their own.

The price has come down from when they first hit the market. Look for a reputable dealer that's having a Christmas sale.

 

[Peakbagger46]

I have a FFP PST 4-16 on my only longish range rifle. It’s decent and tracks well. Optical quality and eye relief leaves some to be desired on 16X though.

 

[Varminterror]

The PST GII market took a massive hit when Vortex brought out the Strike Eagle FFP and Venom. The comparison of features among these 3 can be pertinent for some shooters, but it seems most folks report that they can’t tell the difference in glass clarity, color truth, aberration, or resolution… I haven’t had the 3 side by side yet to decide for myself, but I can watch recommendation trends and buying trends easily enough - and the reduced price on the PST GII’s is an indicative consequence.

It doesn’t seem, at this $650 ballpark, the Viper PST GII’s would remotely be a bad idea… I wouldn’t sweat the comparative dollars among the 3, personally.

 

[Theinkman]

Have this same scope on a .22-250 used for prairie dog shooting. Paid around $699 for mine several years ago and consider it money well spent. I would buy one again.

 

[Walkalong]

My buddy Jeff went with a Strike Eagle for his .22 LR NRL-22 gun because he wanted the 34MM tube, glass is very good, definitely comparable to the Gen II. I haven't looked through a Venum.

 

[sevt_chevelle]

I've got the 3-15 version, I really like it.
Not a big fan of strike eagle I think the PST scopes have better glass and more forgivable eyebox.

 

[C-grunt]

Pretty dang good for for the money. Buddy has the 5-25 on his Bergara HMR.

You can definitely get nicer scopes once you go above the 1200 dollar mark, but under that, it might be the best. It's better than the Nikon FX1000 Black that I have and the glass was noticeably clearer than the Burris XTR-II.

 

[peeplwtchr]

Thanks everyone - Good enough for me, this scope it is! Which rings do you all use, Vortex? It's going on this gun if it makes a difference. I believe it has a 20 MOA rail if that makes any difference: https://www.savagearms.com/content?p=firearms&a=product_summary&s=57557

 

[Varminterror]

Which rings do you all use, Vortex?

Vortex PMR rings, made by Seekins, are phenomenal for the money (not to be confused with Vortex Pro rings). Burris XTR Signature rings with posi-lign inserts are another good option for low cost - with the added feature of being able to add angle to be able to maximize your reach.

 

[Walkalong]

I just bought a set of MDT "Premiere" rings to mount my Burris XTR III on a .22 rifle, I like them.

 

[Robert]

I run the 3-15 version on my AR308. I like it so far. It is crisp and clear, but the illumination is not daylight visible. I should have got the MOA instead of the MRAD... But that is just me grousing about having to learn a new system.

 

[sisyphus]

if you can't afford the extra $150 for a Credo HX SFP, the Viper is an excellent choice

 

[IALoder]

I have 2 of them, one on my 6.5 CM, one on 7mm RM. Both "long range" rigs. Been pretty darn good scopes, especially for the money! Dials repeat every time, decent eye relief, good glass, been to 1500 yds quite a few times with both. I'd not hesitate to get another.

 

[peeplwtchr]

Just got the scope and I could see a hiker's face on top of a mountain about 2k yds away, very clear. The illumination is excellent, tight precise adjustments. Sport Optics has a no shipping no tax deal going on, so saved a bunch too, $1180 with Vortex Pro rings and 2 day shipping.

 

[JmacD]

It pays to look! This thread answered a question I was gonna ask. Lol

 

[Megawatt maker]

I have the exact same scope. The eye relief at high power just plain...sucks....to be plain.

Outside of that, everything else about it is very very good for the money.

 

[Walkalong]

The eye relief at high power just plain...sucks....to be plain.

In all fairness, all scopes suffer this to an extent, now I'll have to check it out against a couple of others and see how it compares, because I don't remember it being awful.

 

[JFrank]

My buddy Jeff went with a Strike Eagle for his .22 LR NRL-22 gun because he wanted the 34MM tube, glass is very good, definitely comparable to the Gen II. I haven't looked through a Venum.

Does the strike Eagle get darker as the power increases ? I’ve found my Golden Eagle to be quite frustrating in that department as well as a deteriorating image quality above 40x

 

[Walkalong]

I don't know, all I did was look through it at whatever power it was on, likely in the 12/14 range. 40X? that is pretty demanding of glass.

 

[JFrank]

I don't know, all I did was look through it at whatever power it was on, likely in the 12/14 range. 40X? that is pretty demanding of glass.

Not these days, 40 x is bare minimum. I think the HD glass has some coatings and filters that just tend to get dark. I don’t know why ..

 

[Walkalong]

Not these days, 40 x is bare minimum

I don't know about that, 40X takes much better glass/coatings than 20X.

 

[JFrank]

I don't know about that, 40X takes much better glass/coatings than 20X.

I have no experience with coatings or lens beyond what can be googled or talked about but I do know my GE went dark and the IQ is poor for my purposes for long range BR.

 

[Varminterror]

Does the strike Eagle get darker as the power increases ? I’ve found my Golden Eagle to be quite frustrating in that department as well as a deteriorating image quality above 40x

No, but the Strike Eagle is not a super high magnification scope either as is the Golden Eagle. You must have better eyes than mine to get all the way to 40x in a Golden Eagle, that’s an exit pupil of only 1.3mm! I can sneak a little below 2mm, but usually 2mm is my cut off where I’ll notice the “dimmer switch” start sliding darker and darker with almost any scope. But not many non-benchrest models actually ever go that small, and the Strike Eagle is the same, 25x out of a 56mm is 2.24mm exit pupil, so it really can’t get to that tipping point.

The Leupold Competition scopes are the ones which blow my mind: 45x45mm, that’s 1mm exit pupil, all of the time! I’d be screwed.