Need recs for a good, low cost accuracy testing optic.......

[madangler1]

I am looking for a 6-24 or 5-25 type scope for the purposes of accuracy testing at 100 yards. I didn't want to spend $2-3k. I would keep the scope in a picatinny mount, so I can swap it between rifles (from a SCAR, to an AK, to an AR-15/10, etc etc). This is strictly for fun and punching paper at 100 yards, to see how tight I can group things.

Vortex makes a Viper 6-24x50 HST that checks many boxes, but I wanted to see what you all recommend. Primary Arms GLX has had mixed reviews. I'm willing to spend up to $2k if it is worth it.

I was thinking of second focal plane to make things easier on my eyes. A very large eyebox on high magnification is very important to me.

Thoughts? Let me know if I should just buy a Nightforce and call it a day lol

 

[B Man]

I’ll recommend a Meopta Optika 6.

 

[chevy_man]

Focal plane and eye box are design specific, they have nothing to do with each other.

I hated my hst.

I'd be looking at sightron.

SIII Long Range8-32x56

Built for precision target shooting applications up to and exceeding 1000 yards. The Sightron SIII 8-32x56 Long Range rifle scope delivers superior optics and accuracy when it counts.

sightron.com

I use an SII big sky with an 1/8th minute target dot. It's very good at bullseye type shooting. Great glass for the money

 

[Mike Islander]

10x42 fixed SWFA. $200 on sale, $300 regularly priced. Bulletproof. Mil quad.

 

[Lastsaint21]

Try the new Bushnell match pro Ed.. I was looking for the same kind of optic to put on my back up gun. I actually had to use my back up at regionals this weekend. The only thing that holds it back really is parallax has to be adjusted more than the scope on my match gun. It’s clear once you get it right..you won’t have to mess with that is you just shooting a 100 yards. As far as eyebox, I have never had a problem with it at all.. it’s like $699.00..

 

[308pirate]

10x42 fixed SWFA. 5x more mag than you need for 100 yards

Why do people make ridiculous statements like this one?

He wants to do accuracy testing. 10X is marginal for that. 15X is what I consider minimum and 20+ is ideal.

5X the minimum?

 

[supercorndogs]

Why do people make ridiculous statements like this one?

He wants to do accuracy testing. 10X is marginal for that. 15X is what I consider minimum and 20+ is ideal.

5X the minimum?

I suppose that would be a matter of opinion. In mine 10x is plenty for accuracy testing at 100y. What struck me as silly was referring to a fixed power scope as FFP. It could be correct, but completely irrelevant.

 

[fdkay]

You have a generous budget.
Sightron was mentioned, this is top of the line:

S6 5-30x56 ED FFP

When precision matters most, you can rely on the S6 Series FFP riflescopes to get you on target and keep you there. MOA and MIL reticles available.

sightron.com

They also have the PLR series which are worth a look.
There is also the likes of the Tract 4-25 and 4.5-30
Budget wise, it is hard to beat the Athlon Midas Tac, they are dandy scopes.

 

[Gohring65]

You have a generous budget.
Sightron was mentioned, this is top of the line:

S6 5-30x56 ED FFP

When precision matters most, you can rely on the S6 Series FFP riflescopes to get you on target and keep you there. MOA and MIL reticles available.

sightron.com

They also have the PLR series which are worth a look.
There is also the likes of the Tract 4-25 and 4.5-30
Budget wise, it is hard to beat the Athlon Midas Tac, they are dandy scopes.

I agree, find a Midas tac, there’s a couple used ones in the PX for a smoking deal. One guy has it marked down to 360$, there is absolutely nothing in that price range that will top it.

 

[Mike Islander]

I suppose that would be a matter of opinion. In mine 10x is plenty for accuracy testing at 100y. What struck me as silly was referring to a fixed power scope as FFP. It could be correct, but completely irrelevant.

Bad habit, as I've been referencing their 3x9x42 a lot. Fixed is actually built 2FP, and of course makes no difference.

Steal man what I said. It's plenty of magnification for accuracy testing...for some people.

 

[308pirate]

It's plenty of magnification for accuracy testing...for some people.

lol

OK

 

[chevy_man]

Why do people make ridiculous statements like this one?

He wants to do accuracy testing. 10X is marginal for that. 15X is what I consider minimum and 20+ is ideal.

5X the minimum?

On the lower power you need a very good target.

I prefer 25x minimum, and of all the stupid things the larue targets (free PDF on their website) is what I shoot my best groups on. The nice large cross and squares are really easy to keep the reticle in the same spot every time.

I also live where there's low humidity and low temps. I'm not fighting mirage so I can shoot groups with a fixed 45x without issue.

 

[CaptNemo]

Check Euro Optic's Used & Demo section there's always something interesting in there.

 

[madangler1]

Bad habit, as I've been referencing their 3x9x42 a lot. Fixed is actually built 2FP, and of course makes no difference.

Steal man what I said. It's plenty of magnification for accuracy testing...for some people.

Not for me. I'm -7.5 D with astimagtism. Very sensitive to eye box issues when wearing my glasses or contacts for that matter.

and yes I know focal plane and eyebox are not the same thing. however, second focal plane optics tend to have larger eye boxes and are easier to get behind. Makes me wish I would have never sold my 4-16x50 Nightforce SFP scope. Was easier to get behind on 16x than my current Kahles. I just hate the diopter adjustment, which I have to adjust slightly if I shoot with glasses vs contact lenses.

When I shoot my Kahles 3-18, I'm always on 15-18x when trying to punch paper at 100-200 yards for small groups.

Agree with Euro Optic demos. Thanks for the recs everyone. Please keep them coming.

 

[carbonbased]

Why do people make ridiculous statements like this one?

He wants to do accuracy testing. 10X is marginal for that. 15X is what I consider minimum and 20+ is ideal.

5X the minimum?

I’m going with 308 here.

I get it if you are interested in becoming more accurate with a certain set of gear, for whatever reason.

But to really see what a rifle can do? As opposed to (a constrained) you? I dunno, 10x (and esp 5x) has got me scratching my head.

Personally, I’ll take 25x+.

 

[Scopeye]

For accuracy testing on a $2000 budget, I'd most certainly recommend certain countries of manufacture such as Japan such as LOW (but NOT from Japan Optics/JOL), Europe, and USA.

Listed by price highest $$$ to lowest $$$ and by their *sale* prices.

Vortex Razor G3 6-36x56 Japan $1800-$2000

Nightforce NX8 4-32x50 Japan $1600-$1800

Burris XTR PRO 5.5-30x56 USA $1400-$1800

Tract Toric ELR 4-25x50 Japan $1275-$1350

Athlon Cronus BTR G2 4.5-29x56 Japan $1045-$1299.99

Meopta Optika 6 5-30x56 Europe Czech republic $799.99-$849.99

Athlon Ares BTR G2 4.5-27x50 China $565.49-$568

Athlon Midas Tac 6-24x50 China $450-$470

Athlon Midas BTR G2 4.5-27x50 SFP China $450-$470

I had the most repeatable reliable tracking results with these specific Chinese Athlons compared to the many other Chinese scopes sold by other brands regardless of price. The image quality on these Athlons were also better than the rest of their competition from all other brands tested including recently the Bushnell Match Pro ED.

I'd also recommend the Sightmark Presidio 5-30x56 China for $314.99 with newly design engineered turrets and zero stop however I haven't ran one through the ringer myself yet. It's already been compared to the Bushnell Match Pro ED 5-30x56 by a very trustworthy friend and optics affectionado who is currently running both of them side by side.

Almost all of these scopes I mentioned have a lifetime warranty including their electronics except for Nightforce 3 years and Bushnell one year if actual warranty is an important factor in regards to your decision when buying.

 

[chevy_man]

One thing I'm noticing is lots of recommendations on "tactical" scopes, because that's 99% what we do here.


There's a lot more out there to shoot groups with.
If you want to test accuracy and then toss it in a drawer for next time, why pay for the best turrets, reticles, and illumination? Especially in a category where glass isn't as important as the rest of the package?

This is why I defaulted to a simple reticle, in a simple scope, with solid glass.

I'm the guy that has a .22lr lever gun with a ffp mil tree 2.5-10. But I've also discovered that a simple 6-24 or 8-32 with a fine crosshair is really, really hard to beat at fixed distance.