Scope upgrade

[H2oPumper]

I have a Ruger Hawkeye in a 280 Rem with a Leupold VX-I on it. My price point is sub-$300. The Redfield Revelation and Revenge have caught my eye a bit, but I'm no where near set on one of those. I have two first generation Nikon Pro-Staff's and a Burris Fullfield II on other rifles and they are all better scopes for what I'm seeing. All my scopes are 3-9x40's and my primary hunting is open farmland in South Dakota (<500 yards) and heavy woods in northern Minnesota (<300 yards). How are the new generation Pro-Staffs and the new Redfields, as well as other options?

 

[jim243]

Take a look at this, decent glass and actually a good scope.

Jim

http://www.opticsplanet.com/millet-tactical-riflescope.html

 

[Abel]

For the money, the new Leupold VX-2 is where I would look. I have a new Redfield and it is nice, but if $300 is your price point, go VX-2.

 

[browningguy]

I've bought a couple of the Weaver Grand Slam's and Classic Extreme's over the past several years whenever Natchess has them on sale and they seem to be the best glass for the money I have seen.
Example scopes:

http://www.natchezss.com/Optics.cfm...ail&brand=WE&prodID=WE800706&prodTitle=Weaver 2.5-10x56 Classic Extreme Riflescope Ill. Dual-X Reticle Matte

http://www.natchezss.com/Optics.cfm...ail&brand=WE&prodID=WE800477&prodTitle=Weaver 4.5-14X40 Grand Slam AO Riflescope Ballistic-X Reticle Matte

 

[floorit76]

I have a Revolution on my 700. It is a very nice scope for the money, or it was when I bought it. I gave $175 nib, but it looks like they have gone up lately. It is great as a set it and forget it scope. But if you plan on dialing in your drop every time the zero setting is cheesy and nearly worthless. And no aftermarket knobs that I have found will fit. The Revenge series has much better adjustment knobs and zero indicator. But in any case mine is bright and clear. If you can afford better, I might go for it. But a "cheaper" scope and a few more boxes of ammo is always a temptation.

 

[Sock Puppet]

I have one of the Millets posted above, and it's a better scope than the price suggests. With that said, it's very heavy and wouldn't be a consideration on a hunting rig for me.

I recently purchased my first Vortex Viper and it's a very impressive scope. While I haven't yet had time to put it through it's paces, all of the reviews/testimonials suggest it's one of the best in it's price range. the 3-9-40 is right at your budget. Certainly take a look at one before buying; I think you'll be impressed.

 

[redneck2]

I just got a Natchez catalog the other day. They had some Burris refurb scopes at pretty good prices. IIRC, a Black Diamond in 8x32x50 was just over $400, so the power you're looking for should be in your price range. Black Diamonds are extremely good IMO. On the Accurate Shooter (6mm BR) site, they were ranked "best buy for the money"

 

[jmr40]

The Redfields you are looking at would be a lateral move at best, maybe a slight downgrade depending on when your current VX-I was made. The current VX-1 is a slightly better scope than the VX-I you currently have. If you really want to get a significantly better scope go up to the current production VX-2. They sell for $299 with a standard duplex reticle.

Nothing else is a significant improvement over what you already have unless you increase your budget to $600 and even then the difference is very slight.

 

[H2oPumper]

Has anyone tried a Burris E1? I'm pleased with the Fullfield II I have on a 7mm-08, even with the oddity of the whole eyepiece turning to adjust the power.

 

[steveo452]

At $300.00 I,d go with the VX2 and be done with It.

 

[matrem]

The Redfields you are looking at would be a lateral move at best

,
Yep. As I understand, Leupold now makes Redfields & I strongly doubt they're making them any better than their own original brand.

Has anyone tried a Burris E1?

No experience with "E1", but my experience with Burris suggests that their scopes that compete with Leupold in price, are about as durable but have inferior optics.

 

[EchoM70]

In my opinion and opinions vary greatly, around the $300 range for a 3-9x40 you just can't beat a Vortex Viper. Compared to what you're looking at in the same range the Viper just offers more. The glass is best in class beating out the VX-2, again IMO. Finger-adjustible 1/4 MOA audible click-turns, and a lifetime warranty/customer service that outshines even Luepold. Who knew that was even possible???... The only bad thing I can say is the eye relief is a little short, around 3.2"-3.5".

If you were to look at something in the $400 range I would recommend a Nikon Monarch 3-12x42SF. Monarch has some good glass and good eye relief and sports features that would usually cost you an extra bill or two. Another good $400-$500 range scope to look at would be the Sightron SII Big Sky. They're rock solid, perfect tracking and amazing glass. Beyond that the Zeiss conquest line and the Luepold VX-3 (drastically better than VX-1/2, again IMO) is what I would look at.

I know you said your top dollar was $300, but glass is something you should never skimp on, with scopes you really get what you pay for (usually.) If you can save a little more and get you something that you'll be happy with the rest of your life, you won't regret it, I can assure you. All of the scopes I just mentioned except the Nikon offer amazing lifetime warranties, why not take advantage of that?

 

[adelbridge]

I second the Vortex Viper but sadly if you pit the Viper against the Leupold VX-I in a Pepsi Challenge I doubt you would notice much of a difference. After you pay for ammo and range time to sight in new scope and deal with the hassle it is never worth it. If you are shooting paper during normal daylight hours there is no reason to upgrade unless you want to step up in magnification.

 

[Sniper66]

I have a lot of scopes, mostly Leupolds, but have owned or do own Nikon, Burris, Redfield, and Weaver. My brother has all those, plus Weatherby and Picar. The best of the lot is Picar, but you can't buy them any more. The best scope I have is my newest Leupold a VX-3 3.5-10X. It really is a fantastic scope... amazingly clear site picture. As adelbridge says, with most scopes you won't notice a lot of difference in most shooting situations, but as I get older, I am much more sensitive to slight differences. I took a Redfield off of my favorite .22 and replaced it with a Leupold VX-III 2.5-8X. I don't kill any more squirrels than I ever did, but I don't have to squint and be annoyed. When I am just looking through the scope to identify objects I can't see so well with the naked eye...then the difference can be really big. That becomes more the case when shooting p-dogs. Think I'll give that Viper Vortex a try since I am buying a 22 Hornet and will need a new scope

 

[hardluk1]

What do you find not right with the leupold you have now. Do you just need more power range. Just don't fool your self to thinking that basic luppy is still not a quality hunting scope.

 

[jmr40]

The most scope for the money right now is the VX-2. Leupold has recently upgraded their entire line and the current VX-2's compare very favorably with some $600 scopes. For $300 you get a lot of scope. You would literally have to spend at least $600 to see even a slighty better scope. Spend $50 less and you will likely have only 1/2 the scope. If you have a $300 budget this is a no brainer.

 

[WYOMan]

I have the Burris 2-7X35 Fullfield E-1 on one of my rifles and I like it. It's nice not having the whole eyepiece rotate to change magnification. It's very clear all the way to the edges, and the image is crisp and bright. The reticle is nice too. It's really worth more than they charge for it. I have a Burris Black Diamond on my F-Class rifle, and 2 IOR's as well, and the E-1 didn't disappoint. SWFA has them right now in 3-9 X 40, and 3-9 X 50 for $298.

 

[xerxesthecat]

I'm a big fan of leupold, zeiss and swarovski, and have a good number of them. I have had other scopes, but didnt keep them for long. For the money you want to spend I concur with the VXII people, unless you want to buy a better -used- scope from GB or ebay. Now, for what its worth, this is what I've found: in low light, the zeiss conquest (just a little more at $399) on my daughter's rifle IS BRIGHTER in low light than the vxIII on my rifle. and probably a little sharper and clearer in normal light as well. this is a side by side (in the treestand on different days) actual evaluation watching deer, looking for antlers, finding an animal in eastern woodland brush, switching the rifles back and forth, etc; not just blather from 'some article I read'. I wont even mention the high dollar zeiss/ swaro scopes that are the next thing to night vision optics...everybody already knows they are excellent, and expensive.