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Rifle Scopes Long Range Hunting Optic

Bear9350

Sergeant of the Hide
Full Member
Minuteman
Oct 12, 2019
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In the process of putting together a new hunting Rifle and looking for optic options. So far haven't been able to find quite what I am looking for.

Below is the list of wants in have for this optic. Let me know options and opinions on models that you think might fit well.


MRad reticle
SCR style reticle
Locking exposed elevation turret
Capped windage turret
30 mm tube but could be a 34 to get some of the other desirables
About 3-12 magnification
About 50mm objective
Likely SFP but could be FFP
 
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Think the new vortex hunter line would be your best bet in 30mm

The 4-16 HST is pretty close to what I'm wanting. Would be nice if the max magnification was a little lower so the reticle sub tensions were correct closer to 10 or 12 instead of 16.
 
The new vortex LHT, Leupold Vx5hd or mk5, Nightforce NSX 2.5-10.

Not positive on the vx5hd being available in Mrad.

I actually just stumbled upon the Razor LHT line and it is the closest I've found to what I am wanting so far. That option looks promising.
Leupold has a couple options that are close if only they had a milrad reticle.

I haven't looked into the Knightforce options much yet. I will take a look at them.
 
I like the NXS 3.5-15 as an all around scope on a "long range" hunting rifle if a few extra ounces are not a deal breaker.
 
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I've been really happy with my Sig Sauer Whiskey 5 (3 - 15 x52)
 
I have the Vortex Razor HD LH on my 7mm mag hunting rifle that I bought a few years back and it is a nice hunting scope. 3-15, 30mm rings and I believe a 42mm objective. The new LHT that they came out with looks interesting.
 
I like the NXS 3.5-15 as an all around scope on a "long range" hunting rifle if a few extra ounces are not a deal breaker.
Just did some research and either the 2.5-10 or the 3.5-15 looks like they would fit my needs well.
 
In the process of putting together a new hunting Rifle and looking for optic options. So far haven't been able to find quite what I am looking for.

Below is the list of wants in have for this optic. Let me know options and opinions on models that you think might fit well.


MRad reticle
SCR style reticle
Locking exposed elevation turret
Capped windage turret
30 mm tube but could be a 34 to get some of the other desirables
About 3-12 magnification
About 50mm objective
Likely SFP but could be FFP


Check this new option out from Vortex :)
 
The Tract Toric 4-20x50 with MRAD reticle looks very close to what you’re asking, if you can live with the 4x.
 
SWFA are real popular on Rokslide. Would be worth posting the question there too maybe.
 
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Don’t think they have locking turrets on the 3-15...


the mk5 would be an interesting choice as well. If you want ffp. Without knowing caliber and range you wanna shoot it will be harder to answer. Between the nxs, new vortex, or mk5 one of them should do well.


I will being moving my mk 5 to my 300wm. Its a bit heavier, but I could see an elk with one 20 mins before legal shooting time at about 600-700 yards. I had some advantages with the mountain face on the sunrise side and i couldnt tell horn count but I could see the outline moving. Ultimately I was able to start moving in the dark to close the gap and get into a better position. great Glass is valuable but it really depends on how far you are shooting and what style of hunting you are doing to drive your decisions. It was also nice being able to go to 18x for horn count (4 point min) then settling back closer to 10x for my shot.
 
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You haven't specified a weight or price limit, there are dozens of scopes that would likely fit your purpose with weight and price being the main deciding factors.

The Vortex LHT would be a good option, as would the Leupold VX5/VX6hd.
The mentioned Bushnell LRST seems to have a very good reputation.
 
In the process of putting together a new hunting Rifle and looking for optic options. So far haven't been able to find quite what I am looking for.

Below is the list of wants in have for this optic. Let me know options and opinions on models that you think might fit well.


MRad reticle
SCR style reticle
Locking exposed elevation turret
Capped windage turret
30 mm tube but could be a 34 to get some of the other desirables
About 3-12 magnification
About 50mm objective
Likely SFP but could be FFP

Bushnell LRTSi is your huckleberry. In either 3-12 or 4.5-18. Would be a mistake to not include it in your short list.

John
 
You haven't specified a weight or price limit, there are dozens of scopes that would likely fit your purpose with weight and price being the main deciding factors.

The Vortex LHT would be a good option, as would the Leupold VX5/VX6hd.
The mentioned Bushnell LRST seems to have a very good reputation.

Weight and price aren't really going to be my deciding factors. Much more concerned with the finding something with the criteria I listed or close to it. Finding something close to that is really narrowing it down a good bit.

I'm not really concerned with weight at the moment. I'm thinking around 35oz and under. Most of the optics with the criteria I'm looking at are already well under that.

Budget is maxed out at $2500. Again, nearly all the optics I've seen matching my criteria are under that.
 
I've seen a few people recommend the VX5 or VX6. Looks like the only mil option is the VX5HD 3-15x44 CDS-ZL2. It fits into the short list pretty nicely though.
 
Bushnell LRTSi is your huckleberry. In either 3-12 or 4.5-18. Would be a mistake to not include it in your short list.

John
That Bushnell does look interesting. I would prefer a SFP I think. Most of the use will be in the open bit there will be some use in timber/ swamp were a quick shot may be needed. I think a FFP reticle would be lost in that situation.
 
I've got an "old" SIG Tango4. It's 3-12x44, FFP, mil/mil (with plain MRAD reticle), weighs 24 ounces. The turrets are good, don't know that they're the turrets you want though.

The SIG Whiskey5 is SFP, weighs in at the 25 ounces and goes 3-15x44, also mil/mil.

Don't know where SIG stands - don't see them get much discussion, but they're out there as options. Hard to find mil/mil, I feel like, in a hunting optic. A shame, really.
 
Was just looking at those. They are definitely the front runner. Kind of wish the 50mm had the option for the MRad reticle too but a 44mm objective would work well enough I think.

I got the 50mm version and freaking love this scope. I wish the red dot was slightly brighter, but it is just good enough. The clarity and eye relief is great! I am very happy with this scope.
 
I think the Leupold Mk5 3.6-18 that has been mentioned by others is a great choice. I have 2 of them, with the illuminated TMR reticle on my hunting rifles. I’ve used them in CO and MT for elk and mule deer, and whitetail in the southeast. The illum TMR basically looks like a old school duplex on low power. I’ve had no trouble making moving shots on game at or near 100 yards on 3.6x. I also like the 18x for observation and LR steel practice.
 
That Bushnell does look interesting. I would prefer a SFP I think. Most of the use will be in the open bit there will be some use in timber/ swamp were a quick shot may be needed. I think a FFP reticle would be lost in that situation.

That’s what the illumination is for and Bushnell does it right.

John
 
I got the 50mm version and freaking love this scope. I wish the red dot was slightly brighter, but it is just good enough. The clarity and eye relief is great! I am very happy with this scope.

Good to know. I've got a little time before I need to make a purchase so I will be looking for reviews on glass quality and tracking.
 
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That’s what the illumination is for and Bushnell does it right.

John

I don't want to have to rely on illumination. I know at some point the batteries will be dead when I need it. There are a couple good quality SFP options in contention that I don't think I need to consider FFP options.
 
I don't want to have to rely on illumination. I know at some point the batteries will be dead when I need it. There are a couple good quality SFP options in contention that I don't think I need to consider FFP options.

Sounds like you’ve made up your mind on SFP but if it matters, the reticle on the illuminated LRTSi is noticeably bolder than the non illuminated model. I’ve killed several critters with mine at last legal light and never turned the illum on to do it. That being said, I like having it should I need it.

John
 
I’ve never turned on the illumination on my Mk5 while hunting. The illuminated TMR reticle is thicker than the non illuminated. However, I’ve also killed deer at last legal light with a Mk5 5-25 with CCH (non-illuminated) and could make out the reticle just fine.
 
I got the 50mm version and freaking love this scope. I wish the red dot was slightly brighter, but it is just good enough. The clarity and eye relief is great! I am very happy with this scope.
How bright is the dot compared to a Leupold Firedot?
 
If you are set on SFP look at the vortex LHT. Great value for a light weight hunting rig.
 
How bright is the dot compared to a Leupold Firedot?
I can now answer my own question. I own a VX6HD in 4-24 (varmint hunter reticle) and 3-18 (impact 29 reticle), and I just got the Vortex LHT 3-15x50 with the G4i reticle.

Granted, I don’t own the Firedot reticle, but in this comparison the Leupold’s Illuminated reticles are much brighter than the Vortex.

But it doesn’t matter. The G4i dot is plenty bright for low light hunting. Also, my sample has a nicely defined dot. Someone else on the site seems to have gotten a sort of fuzzy dot. That G4i reticle is super cool and really easy to pick up.

@koshkin stated somewhere that the Firedot is Illuminated via fiber optic, and the LHT reticles are illuminated etching. He explained that this was the reason in brightness difference. One is not necessarily better than the other.

I’m not sure if my VX6HD reticles are fiber optic illuminated like the Firedot.
 
Perhaps my input can be of some help. I have always had similar needs to you typically wanted to stick to SFP as it was mostly for hunting and figured if I needed the reticle, I could dial it to max. I have run scopes like the viper hst, pst gen 1, zeiss hd5(multiple) and leupold vx6hd as a sample of some of the nicer sfp scopes I have had, used and still use. With recommendations from multiple forums, I decided to pick up an LRTSi as a ffp scope for my crossover hunting/range gun.
Both my vortex have long ago been sold. Was not impressed with the optical quality, or build quality. The CA was brutal and I though resolution was lacking in the ones i had. The zeiss function well for the hunting applications I use them for. The leupold vx6hd was my jump into something a little higher end and I found the glass was impressive. Comparing it side by side to a zeiss v6, my eyes liked the leupold better. The leupold was also cheaper and had more features. Problem with the scope is it doesn't track the best and if you do your research, I'm not the only one who thought that.
When I got the lrtsi 4.5-18x44 my overall impression was that it was every bit the scope of the leupold and I got it for well under half the price. It was better than the zeiss hd5 during the day, but lagged behind a bit in low light. Still plenty good through legal light conditions.
The vx6hd still has slightly better glass and gets noticeably better at lowlight. But that is about the only thing that the leupold wins on. The LRTSi has a better reticle, better turrets, better parallax and power adjustment rings and build quality. It comes at a bit of a weight cost as well, but it is still well under your max weight.
The best part about the lrtsi is the reticle is very useable at lowest power at last light still. With illumination on, the reticle pops and I have had zero problems in low light, beside the face that the lrtsi lags a little in low light to the zeiss and leupold. Knowing what I now know, I would own a lot more lrtsi. It has a functional ffp reticle at all powers, tree useable at all powers and doesn't get cluttered. It has me wanting more bushnell offerings in the future and is only a matter of time.
First post here and wanted to thank you guys for all the useful information over the years and wish I had joined sooner.
 
Leupold Mark 5hd all day but if you want top tier glass go with a schmidt and bender pm2 with locking turrents and the msr ret
 
In states with illumination laws has anyone encountered an issue with this? Is simply taking out the batteries sufficient or does it have to be completely absent from the optic?
 
In the process of putting together a new hunting Rifle and looking for optic options. So far haven't been able to find quite what I am looking for.

Below is the list of wants in have for this optic. Let me know options and opinions on models that you think might fit well.


MRad reticle
SCR style reticle
Locking exposed elevation turret
Capped windage turret
30 mm tube but could be a 34 to get some of the other desirables
About 3-12 magnification
About 50mm objective
Likely SFP but could be FFP
Night force NSX With a 30 mm tube they are a little cheaper than ATACR with the 34 mm tube