Re: Other Vortex Razor 1-4 owners please chime in
RANGE REPORT
made it out sat morning for some cold and windy range time, especially for SC. Had several scopes that were being zeroed that day using a 50 meter zero with the preliminary sight in planned for 25 yards. POI needed to be about .5-.6" low for a 50 meter zero according to my bulletflight calculations
We put a brand new
Nightforce 1-4x24 NXS with the
compact mil dot against the
Vortex Razor 1-4x24 with the
EBR 556 reticle The nightforce scope was exactly a week and 2 days old since my bud received it from Larue. Both scopes were mounted in the Larue LT104 mount. For the duration of this review the Nightforce rode on a Colt 6940 16" carbine and the Vortex topped a Colt 14.5" factory upper matched to an SBR RRA lower. The pictures below depict the Razor atop a LWRC PSD for fun only, so take that with a grain of salt, just playing potato head with the stuff. At any rate, nightforce was roughly sited in from a previous range session and vortex was only mounted in the mount. Off to the 25 yard line and in about 5 rounds, we had the razor on target.
Before you read this, you should know that my friend purchased the NXS because I recomened it to him. this was about 2 weeks before I picked up the razor. We chose to steer clear of the FC2 reticle because of its 2MOA center dot. The purpose of this scope was going on a 300-600 yard gun. So here we go........
GLASS: RAZOR WINS
Well this was certianly a surprise when you put these two sopes beside one another. . in full disclosure, my previous experience with Nightforce scopes have been the 3.5-15 or 5.5-20 long range scopes used in F-class type shooting. This was my second outing with a compact nightforce, the first being a quick range session after mounting it up on my friends rifle. This was my first ever experience with a vortex optic. Vortex touts this scope as being stuffed with HD glass (high density / extra low dispersion) glass but I was a skeptical and thought it was more a selling point. Also, I know from years of photography that you get what you pay for in glass, focal length, aperture, and construction. Nightforce scopes have always surprised me when compared to the leupold and other mid range optics. The class is crisp and clear and certain features seem to pop out when you looking through them. Whien we mounted up the compact NXS, the glass looked great but the reticle was hard to find (more on that below). When you look through the Vortex, the entire field of view seems to come alive. Edge to edge, the glass makes everything clearer, brighter, with the perfect amount of contrast, at that's at 1x. At 4x there is no lose of clarity its almost like watching a 3D movie. Both my shooting buddy and I agreed that the glass in the Razor was superior to the NXS. You guys are gonna think im nuts, and maybe the NXS we have is a dud, but the razor made the sight picture out of the NXS seem dull
RETICLE: RAZOR WINS
The biggest surprise of the day for the both of us was how washed out the NXS compact mil dot was. After working the ocular bell to adjust the reticle several times, the crosshair was still very fine. This sucked because the "see through" crosshair in the NXS was a selling point. The illumination was not visible in the 10:00AM sun at any setting. We struggled with finding the reticle in the scope all morning. The Razor was a completely different story. Being in the first focal plan, it starts out small which is faster than I thought. When you crank it up to 4x its loses all the business and is very usable. For some reason I really like the 1.5x and 2x setting on this scope. The reticle seems a litte bigger and more usable at these settings. However, at 1x this scope is MUCH faster transitioning between close targets that I previously thought.
NXS on the brightest illumination setting 1x. (apologize for the terrible pics and flare)
Razor on the brightest illumination setting 1x
Razor on brightest illumination setting 4x
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CONSTRUCTION[/span]: NXS wins because the compacts are made stateside
Personally, I think that both of these scopes are built and designed extremely well. I like the styling and size of the NXS way better. It seems more streamlined and not as bulky. The Razor weighs 3.2 more ounces than the NXS which isn't much but when you combine the weight and actual size, the RAZOR is a little chunky.......for lack of a better word.
Turrets: NXS WINS
This NXS came with the capped .25 MOA turrets and the Razor came with the exposed, standard .25 MOA turrets. The Nightforce has good positive and audible clicks. They give you a tactile and audible signature that you adjustment has been made and you can do this without having to move the gun or take your eyes from the scope if the caps are removed. The turrents on the Razor don't need to be locking because they were the hardest turrets I have ever adjusted. Althougth the elevation and windage adjustments are marked clearly to allow quick / easy adjustment, both turrets took A LOT of force to move them. I don't know if something was wrong with my scope or not, but they were very hard to move. They were positive, but for every adjustment I had to reposition to adjust. its not the same click you hear with the NXS but more of a tactile only response. Tracking was accurate and spot on with both optics which is great. They both do what you tell them to with no issues. Personally, Im a big fan of the .250 MOA adjustments. Im used to them and it gives me the flexibility I like. Due to the size and ease of adjustment the NXS was easier to me. I do love the indicator mark on the RAZOR though
Illumination: RAZOR WINS
For this review it was hands down the razor. It the almost noon sun (bright clear day) the illumination was visible at each power setting. Now its not going to be like an aimpoint / eotech / acog illumination but bright enough for picking up targets 25-100 yards @ illumination on 11. Very cool
Razor 1x illumination on 11
Aimpoint T1 on its highest illumination for comparison
The NXS's reticle was just barely daylight visible and this was a huge disappointment. Actually the illumination in this scope is usless unless its dawn / dusk or inside in a dim environment. Maybe the FC2 reticle sucks in more light but this was a huge disappointment to myself and the new NXS owner. talk about feeling like heel, recommending this based on prior experience with other nightforce scopes and encountering this afield...............ooops. Both scopes were sporting fresh batteries as well for the test.
ZOOM RING: RAZOR WINS
The zoom ring on the razor was pretty sweet. the 1, 1.5, 2, 3, and 4 magnification settings have a rear facing indexing marker combined with the small fiber optic tube to identify what power your own. The zoom ring swings freely and rubber coated ring is a nice tough. Offers a positive purchase, smooth rotation, and quick adjustment. The NXZ's zoom ring is smaller and somewhat stiffer and adjusting it was a little more of a pain. This is another example of Vortex putting a lot of thought into a portion of the design that I think will pay dividends.
One interesting lesson I learned about the razor is when the battery CR2032 battery is low it only works on the 11 setting. I thought something was wrong with the scope before I changed it and bam. much brighter with tons of adjustment. There is a big difference between the 10 and 11 setting as well. Looks to me that Vortex put some effort into the 11 setting to get a much more usable daylight lite reticle.
CONCLUSION:
Both agreed on Sat. that the Razor's image quality, clarity, and good reticle (and growing on me every outting) make it a better choice dollar for dollar. I really wish it was made in the US because thats important to me. Whatever the case, the razor has just about everything going for it you could imagine. Personally, I would like to play with a second focal plane version with the Viper PST 1-4 reticle using this glass and some turrets that were easier to adjust. I just can't say enough about this glass. Its been a couple years since I had a Schmidt & Bender in my hands and although I remember it be ultra clear (and heavy) I don't feel comfortable making a comparison. Would like to do the road though. I certainly thought the Nighforce would have surpassed the Razor or at the very least held its own, but for everyone there sat, the razor surpassed it in just about every category. Also, when I called Vortex to ask about a possible reticle swap when I first got the scope, they said they didn't have enough reticles or the setup to do that right now. But they were VERY helpful and kind on the phone. I got the feeling that they would help me if there was a problem. I like that as well from a company. I haven't called Nightforce with a question before so I can't speak of the their customer service.
If I can get my hands on a Viper PST 1-4 x 24, I wlil do a side by side of them as well. If you have any questions, shoot me an email
hope this helps somebody down the road. Look for more reviews when budget allows:
Afield:
