Rifle Scopes 3-18 scope recommendations
- Thread starter Crowbag
- Start date
Just got behind a Steiner T6xi and was impressed. Turret feel was not great but repeatable.
Nightforce ATACR 4-16 have treated me good over the years. Beat theM to shit and they still run true.
Premier 3-15. Way ahead of its time and love the MTC
ZCO 4-20 is my favorite though. Everything just feels right.
Nightforce ATACR 4-16 have treated me good over the years. Beat theM to shit and they still run true.
Premier 3-15. Way ahead of its time and love the MTC
ZCO 4-20 is my favorite though. Everything just feels right.
For almost half the max price listed you could get a Burris XTRIIIi 3-18x50 at Liberty Optics. Put it in the cart for the final price.
NEW for 2022!! Burris XTR Pro and XTRIII
The latest exciting new series of scopes from the folks in Colorado are the new XTR III series. Incorporating a multitude of features that today's shooters and competitors want, these highly anticipated scopes promise to deliver the goods with a price tag that makes sense in today's economic...
www.libertyoptics.com
I agree with Rob. For under 2K I would take the XTR3 3-18 over a MK5, T5X, ect.
You may be able to find a used Kahles 3-18 or Minox 3-15 for around $2K. Both of those would be great deals but will be much harder to find.
The NX8 is poop, i would steer clear. If you can find a used ATACR F1 4-16 under 2k, that wouldnt be a bad choice either.
You may be able to find a used Kahles 3-18 or Minox 3-15 for around $2K. Both of those would be great deals but will be much harder to find.
The NX8 is poop, i would steer clear. If you can find a used ATACR F1 4-16 under 2k, that wouldnt be a bad choice either.
Vortex Razor HD II 3-18 x 50 can be had for under $1,500 new if you keep an eye out on deals.
Besides the weight.. it leaves nothing else to be desired.
Besides the weight.. it leaves nothing else to be desired.
The t6xi is a good scope in the 3-18. As stated turrets aren't super but very workable. The eyebox is forgiving as is parallax/DOF in my limited use.
The atacr 420/ZCO 420 are the best in this category. Optika6 has pretty good glass, but the turrets are massive and feels somewhat cheap-ish.
I have a nx8 2.5-20 and it's been good, glass is pretty good, small footprint and lighter than most, however it does still have a tight eyebox and poor DOF.
I'm not a fan of the mk5hd in the 3.3-18 as the glass quality in the 3 samples I've been behind aren't on par with the 5-25 mk5hd.
The atacr 420/ZCO 420 are the best in this category. Optika6 has pretty good glass, but the turrets are massive and feels somewhat cheap-ish.
I have a nx8 2.5-20 and it's been good, glass is pretty good, small footprint and lighter than most, however it does still have a tight eyebox and poor DOF.
I'm not a fan of the mk5hd in the 3.3-18 as the glass quality in the 3 samples I've been behind aren't on par with the 5-25 mk5hd.
Well the glass sucks compared to more modern optics for one, and the reticle is a bit dated.
The XTRIII is super hard to beat at that price point. As nice or nicer glass than the MK5 or NX8. MUCH better eyebox! Best FOV in its class.
Do you work there?For almost half the max price listed you could get a Burris XTRIIIi 3-18x50 at Liberty Optics. Put it in the cart for the final price.
NEW for 2022!! Burris XTR Pro and XTRIII
The latest exciting new series of scopes from the folks in Colorado are the new XTR III series. Incorporating a multitude of features that today's shooters and competitors want, these highly anticipated scopes promise to deliver the goods with a price tag that makes sense in today's economic...www.libertyoptics.com
Nope but bought a couple Burris Pros from Scott. He is on the site as @LibertyOptics if you had any questions.
I'd get a t6xi over the xtr3. The xtr3 turrets are blah, stiff parallax and mag ring with super aggressive gnurling. I have had and sold 3 xtr3, and I can say for sure the t6xi glass is better than the two 3.3-18 xtr3 samples I had.
Just picked up an xtriii non-illum for $899 at Europtic. Hard to pass up for that price.
I saw those the steiner looks very good too though.
XTR-III 3.3-18x50 SCR, or find a used Kahles K318i SKMR3. I run a K318i CCW RSW SKMR3 on my main hunting rifle. 
I wouldn't get the XTRIII without illumination. The illumination helps on some targets and also the reticle is a little thicker in the illuminated models.
I’ll find out when it gets here tomorrow but it has the SCR Mil in it which is supposed to be thicker than the SCR2.
That's another reason as I would want a tree reticle for holds instead if a standard style. If it works for you then it's a great buy but I'd spend a little more and get the illumination persoanlly.
Sounds like you should not take advantage of that great price
Nope I definitely should not. Just giving the OP somethings to think about before he spends his money though. Personally I would buy a 5.5-30 as I would use the higher end a lot more than the 2.2x difference at the bottom.
A 5.5-30 Burris?Nope I definitely should not. Just giving the OP somethings to think about before he spends his money though. Personally I would buy a 5.5-30 as I would use the higher end a lot more than the 2.2x difference at the bottom.
Yup but that’s me. If you wanted a 3-18x scope then stick with what you want.
The G2 Vortex Razor 3-18x50 was just recently on sale at DVOR for $1049.00 maybe only 2 or 3 weeks ago.
Yep... I have an XTR-IIIi 5.5-30x56 SCR2 MIL scope. The build quality is damn-solid, and the glass is very impressive for the price. The turrets feel nice, and the parallax is actually accurate. Highly recommend it.
Buy one that you can actually easily see the center of the reticle when set at 3x such as the Meopta Optika6 3-18x50 FFP RD MRAD1.
There's a really good review on this specific Meopta on YouTube by C_Does.
Doug at Cameraland is great to work with and gives very good deals over the phone.
This European made scope proves you don't have to spend a whole lot of cash in order to get a real decent good quality scope.
I made a purchase thanks all for your input, I went with a Steiner XT6i 3-18x56
Recommending T3 reticle is like telling all ur friends aids is cool, go out and get yourself some!
Which of these scopes is comparable to aids?
Anything with Tremor garbage in it!
The Nightforce NX8 2.5-20x FFP reticle is impossible to see on it's lower magnification ranges even with it's illumination turned all the way to it's max.
This reply was supposed to be directed to RKB Armory.
Why do you need it on low power? FOV at 6-8X and the milC or XT works just fine as a duplex for quick shots. Have the extra 5 seconds, spin the magnification to 10-12X and it's all usable there. The T3 at low power is like trying to look through panty hose, and not fishnets either I can see through those!
Anything Leupold, and anything with Horus or Tremor reticles. WHOREus reticles are overpriced shit, and they upcharge some scopes $800+ just to have their reticles in them. Complete joke.
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As you can see, some people are not fans of the Tremor / Horus reticles because they're always more expensive than other reticles. Which is why you have to buy it used
!
As an owner of the same optic, it is optically the best option in your price and mag range if you don't mind the shitty turrets. An ATACR is slightly better (marginally) but those are $300+ more when comparing new prices to new prices.
As you can see, some people are not fans of the Tremor / Horus reticles because they're always more expensive than other reticles. Which is why you have to buy it used
Still paying more used for a turd reticle.
Dial for elevation, hold for wind. KISS
Though it's not the "on sale" version, they fixed all of those issues in the illuminated model. And thickened up the reticle to boot. And lowered the price.
It’s all about perspective and intended use.
I got my XTRIII yesterday. Turrets are crisp, parallax is not stiff, the mag ring is stiff but adding a throw lever should help that issue.
The reticle is thin but it’s almost identical to the thickness of the LRTS it’s replacing which I’ve been hunting with for years and it’s not been an issue.
To me - is it perfect? No. Is it worth spending over $1k more because of those issues? No.
I had a $2k+ scope on this rifle previously and decided the performance gain wasn’t worth the cost. I have yet to miss a target because of my crappy $1k scope, haha. YMMV
I got my XTRIII yesterday. Turrets are crisp, parallax is not stiff, the mag ring is stiff but adding a throw lever should help that issue.
The reticle is thin but it’s almost identical to the thickness of the LRTS it’s replacing which I’ve been hunting with for years and it’s not been an issue.
To me - is it perfect? No. Is it worth spending over $1k more because of those issues? No.
I had a $2k+ scope on this rifle previously and decided the performance gain wasn’t worth the cost. I have yet to miss a target because of my crappy $1k scope, haha. YMMV
Not just because they think they’re better than everyone else, so they charge ridiculous upcharges for them, but their reticles are too damn busy for any sense of practicality, even in a competition setting.As you can see, some people are not fans of the Tremor / Horus reticles because they're always more expensive than other reticles. Which is why you have to buy it used
I also love the ZC 4x20.
Practicality, like people who shoot people in combat practicality?
Bitching about a $250-$300 reticle upgrade on $2K+ optic makes you sound poor.
Defending shitty reticle designs and the NFA makes you sound like a Fudd...
How about we not ruin this dude's thread because you wanted to act like a pedantic pissant. You can think I'm poor all you want, the poorer the better.
I have a couple Leupold MK5s and like them a lot for their purpose, but for 3-18s under $2K, look at Swarovski or Zeiss too… Huge step up in glass quality for not much more $$.
Ironically I was just mounting a new light on one of the uppers with one of the Leupy scopes (well, actually an older light moved from another upper that got a new light, LoL), and peeked through the scope. Frankly, I was a little shocked at how poor the glass quality seemed to me.
Not bad per-se, and good value for the money in my experience, but I’ve been shooting my bolt guns with nicer glass a lot more, and haven’t looked through that particular scope in over a year…maybe more. Once you get used to truly good glass, it’s hard to go back.
I never knew what I was missing before.
ETA: just saw your post where you went with the Steiner. Let us know how that works…I’ve never owned one but from what I’ve read they’re comparable to the Swarovski and Zeiss I mentioned. Might grab one for another rifle that needs an upgrade…
Ironically I was just mounting a new light on one of the uppers with one of the Leupy scopes (well, actually an older light moved from another upper that got a new light, LoL), and peeked through the scope. Frankly, I was a little shocked at how poor the glass quality seemed to me.
Not bad per-se, and good value for the money in my experience, but I’ve been shooting my bolt guns with nicer glass a lot more, and haven’t looked through that particular scope in over a year…maybe more. Once you get used to truly good glass, it’s hard to go back.
I never knew what I was missing before.
ETA: just saw your post where you went with the Steiner. Let us know how that works…I’ve never owned one but from what I’ve read they’re comparable to the Swarovski and Zeiss I mentioned. Might grab one for another rifle that needs an upgrade…
