Rifle Scopes Leupold VX3 vs Sightron SIII

[MikeMcCasland]

Hey Guys,

I've just completed building a new Savage/Shilen .260 Remington build, and I'm looking to top it with some new optics. It will primarily be a bench gun spending time at 100-700 yards, but may see 1-2 white tail trips a year.

I'm looking for something in the 6-20ish power range, with around 100MOA of internal adjustment. I've got a Vari-X III mounted on a .223 bench gun that I absolutely love. I would buy another, but it doesn't have enough adjustment internally, and it's got the standard hunter turrets.

In the past I've had a VX3 8.5-25x50LRT on a 300 RUM that was a good scope, but it started "boiling" and getting a bad mirage at anything past 20 power in less than perfect conditions. I also felt my older Vari-X III has better optical clarity, with just as precise adjustment.

I had all but settled on a new Leupold VX3 6.5-20x50LRT with a fine duplex reticle, but I've tried to keep an open mind and look at alternatives. To me the Leupold is a constant, a bench mark, and solid glass. That being said, I can't help but think it's slightly overpriced for what you get.

Over the past few days, I've been frantically searching for feedback & reviews on scopes in this relative price range ($700-$1000) with these features.

I've noticed the Sightron SIII series seems to be getting a good bit of publicity on several forums, and I wanted to get some feedback from those that have used them. I have seen them compared to Leupolds, NightForce (BR series mostly), and other high end optics. In most cases the reviews seem to indicate they are better than the Leupold and "on par" with a NightForce BR scope.

I don't have a Sightron dealer close to me, so I was hoping I could get some feedback from those of you with an SIII and other high end optics. What would you do?

 

[wyobill]

Re: Leupold VX3 vs Sightron SIII

I have a s3 6-24 with a 1/4 dot reticle,it is pretty clear and tracks well but if i had it to do over again i probably would buy a vx3.I recently purchased a new mark 4 and i definetly prefer it to the s3.

 

[MikeMcCasland]

Re: Leupold VX3 vs Sightron SIII

Hey Wyobill,

Thanks for the reply! How old is your SIII? As I understand it, there was a change made which in 08/09 that made a big difference in quality.

 

[head2h2o]

Re: Leupold VX3 vs Sightron SIII

I don't have experience with a VX3 to give you a side by side comparison, but I don't think that you will be disappointed with the SIII. I had one of the 8-32 models. It tracked perfect and the glass was very good in it, especially for the price point. The only reason that I got rid of it was because the reticle was a target dot as opposed to a ranging reticle that matched the turret. I also prefer exposed turrets. Both of these issues have been taken care of with the models that are coming out. I would not hesitate to buy another.

 

[lennyo3034]

Re: Leupold VX3 vs Sightron SIII

I have an SIII 6-24 (newer model) and have compared it to both a mark 4 and nightforce. The SIII has an advantage in clarity/resolution over the mark 4, but I actually liked the cooler colors of the mark 4 vs the warm colors of the sightron. When compared with the nightforce, we came to a split decision on clarity and all 3 of us thought it was the same coloring. Seeing as how both are made in japan, we "assume" its the same glass since we couldn't really tell much difference.

 

[wyobill]

Re: Leupold VX3 vs Sightron SIII

My s3 is the newer varation purchased last year.