Rifle Scopes Think I prefered the way things were before...

[Anchor Zero Six]

there were soo many viable scope options!

Things were SOOOO much easier when your choices were limited and fell neatly within a given price range and feature set.

Spent the last three weeks researching my next optic and finaly have cash in hand. Sadly I'm no closer to a decision now than I was when I started.

Vortex PST or Razor
SS HD
NF
Loopy (new offerings are stepping up things for these guys)
Bushnell HDMR
IOR

Too many choices really makes it hard to narrow it down and I for one wish we could just go back to a time when your choice was Loopy then NF then USO then PR/SB. Made things rather easy as pricing seemed stepped in 300-500 increments and feature differences were rather definitive as well.

Damn you free market! I curse you and your options!

Sorry guys theres really no question asked here as I refuse to post another "What optic should I get" thread.

I found an odd bit of humor in the frustration of deciding on an optic as I recalled a time not that long ago when choices were limited and the decisions were much easier to make. We as a shooting comunity are living in rather priveliged times to have so many options.

 

[Pointman308]

Re: Think I prefered the way things were before...

I feel your pain brother.

 

[Opticsspecialist]

Re: Think I prefered the way things were before...

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Anchor Zero Six</div><div class="ubbcode-body">there were soo many viable scope options!

Things were SOOOO much easier when your choices were limited and fell neatly within a given price range and feature set.

Spent the last three weeks researching my next optic and finaly have cash in hand. Sadly I'm no closer to a decision now than I was when I started.

Vortex PST or Razor
SS HD
NF
Loopy (news offerings are stepping up things for these guys)
Bushnell HDMR
IOR

Too many choices really makes it hard to narrow it down and I for one wish we could just go back to a time when your choice was Loopy then NF then USO then PR/SB. Made things rather easy as pricing seemed stepped in 300-500 increments and feature differences were rather definitive as well.

Damn you free market! I curse you and your options!

Sorry guys theres really no question asked here as I refuse to post another "What optic should I get" thread.

I found an odd bit of humor in the frustration of deciding on an optic as I recalled a time not that long ago when choices were limited and the decisions were much easier to make. We as a shooting comunity are living in rather priveliged times to have so many options.


</div></div>

it's tough having a lot of options, the best advice anyone could give is get behind each scope, and find what you like, different eyes see things differently. find what works best for your purpose, and run with it, also take some other things into consideration, like benefit vs cost, is this system new or proven? i have a hard time with some of the newer scopes that boast incredible specs, but released products in a few months that took better companies years to perfect, and sell it at a lower cost.

get out from behind that computer and get behind some scopes buddy

 

[Anchor Zero Six]

Re: Think I prefered the way things were before...

Agree but easier said than done as alot of these are not items one can simply go to Cabellas and check out.

To Date I have owned 3x USO (Still have one), A few Loopies, 2x PR, 3x NF. Buddy has that gigantic 40MM tubed IOR but Vortex Razor, HDMR and SS HD are not so readily available for comparison. So for situations like this I do rely on the reviews done by members of this forum.

 

[Opticsspecialist]

Re: Think I prefered the way things were before...

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Anchor Zero Six</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Agree but easier said than done as alot of these are not items one can simply go to Cabellas and check out.

To Date I have owned 3x USO (Still have one), A few Loopies, 2x PR, 3x NF. Buddy has that gigantic 40MM tubed IOR but Vortex Razor, HDMR and SS HD are not so readily available for comparison. So for situations like this I do rely on the reviews done by members of this forum.





</div></div>

i hear ya there, but one thing to also consider that we have a huge community here, and someone near you is likely to have this stuff, so set something up with them.

another thing to consider is reviews are done in a short time and things can be over looked, such as performance over the life of the product, you might not be able to wear something out in a week, but you might in a year.

last thing is i'm always skeptical of things that seem to good to be true. if a company spends years developing a product and get it to market, and another makes the same thing or something similar in a few months, i usually assume just what we are all thinking, it was rushed and though it might cost less, it isn't going to be as good or it isn't going to have a long useful life. same thing can be said about a cheaper product that leaps in from of where existing technology.

 

[Pointman308]

Re: Think I prefered the way things were before...

This guy speaks true widsom. Dont sacrifice your dime to test new products, let the professionals do it for you.

 

[Pigman]

Re: Think I prefered the way things were before...

I know exactly how you feel, I'm in the same boat as you right now.

 

[Anchor Zero Six]

Re: Think I prefered the way things were before...

Applying that logic it really only leaves NF as an option. I honestly dont think thats the only viable option of the ones listed.

-NF proven track record of long term use with Mil, LE and competition shooters. They DO NOT release products untill ALL of the bugs are worked out (Where is the 22x FFP?). CS seems good but slow but thats not a huge concern if they seldom need repairs.

-Vortex is well reputed not without flaws but solid CS to correct issues

-Loopy is hit or miss but reports on the latest seem positive and again good CS support (MADE IN THE USA)

-IOR has a solid rep but it seems each Gen has some early growing pains again CS to correct seems positive

-HDMR and SS while relativly new I have a good guess that whoever is actually making them may have done some scope building before.

Anyways this thread wasnt about comparing optics there are plenty of threads that do that already. My point was/is that its nice to be able to even have this discussion as a few years ago it wasnt an issue because the game field was pretty small for our specific niche of shooting sports.

 

[Jeeprider]

Re: Think I prefered the way things were before...

It is frustrating and you're right over the past few years the market has been inundated with pretty amazing scopes. I was in the same boat you were. I was racking my brain to try and figure out what would be the perfect fit for what my needs are. Also the fact that a few of the scopes you listed have painful wait times didn't make matters any better. I will say this I missed out on a few awesome shooting days and hunting trips because of my indecision. Sometimes ignorance is bliss and the more you know the more complicated your decisions become. These are big money investments, but you can rest assured you can probably get a decent amount of your money back if the particular scope you choose isn't meeting your demands. I have had S&B's, Nightforce, SS HD and Vortex PST and Loopys. The brands I stuck with in the end is S&B and two SWFA SS HD 5-20. If you're looking for an amazing FFP scope go with the SS HD. I had the Vortex PST 6-24 in FFP mil/mil and in my humble opinion it was no match for the SS HD. I honestly don't need a company built on amazing customer service. A good scope to me is solid and doesn't need to be sent back for tuning or a replacement. Mind you any scope can have issues, but I do hear an awful lot about Vortex's amazing customer service. Kinda says something to me. Just food for thought.

 

[ChielScape]

Re: Think I prefered the way things were before...

Try this.
Make a table with the features you want in a scope (no matter how little you do) and put those on the horizontal axis.
Put the names of the scopes on the vertical axis.
Now give points to how well the scopes match the features you want. Sometimes it's either a yes or no, you could say 0 or 10 (on a scale to 10) for those, while other features (glass quality for example) can be anywhere in between. For some features you have to look through the scopes, the others can be found in the product description.
Once you've given points to each of the scopes, decide which features are the most important, giving the features themselves a rating between 0 and 10 as well. Now multiply the total feature rating with the scope specific feature rating to get a percentage. (multiplying two scales of 10 gets you a scale of 100)
Then add up the percentages (and divide by the number of features if you want to keep working with percentages) and buy the scope that scores the highest.

That shouldn't take much time to do and you'll be able to sleep at night knowing you bought the very best scope for your application within your budget.

 

[Anchor Zero Six]

Re: Think I prefered the way things were before...

LOL. I make Excel sheets all the time and have suggested it to others as well.

Problem solved just got a good deal from a trusted member on a new (to me) scope.

As often the case what can be found in the SH exchange made the decision a bit easier.

 

[LibertyOptics]

Re: Think I prefered the way things were before...

You're right, options have exploded, and so has FUD about what scope to get.

I hear every week the same lament, that there is nowhere to go to see all the top options side by side. Even if you can, it's usually indoors, which, while possibly being useful, isn't where you shoot.

That's where your dealer comes in.

A good, honest, experienced dealer who looks after your interests vs their bottom line can be a tremendous asset. Fortunately, there are some here who have an excellent reputation for customer service and satisfaction. Ask lots of questions, do your research, inquire about a return policy (most often not a problem for new, unmounted scopes within a specified period of time).

The key is to set out with what you desire in a scope, what is most important to you? Optics? Tracking? Reticle? Ruggedness? Weight? Price? Features? Warranty? Etc


What you lose in not being able to see the scopes first hand (still the best option though) you can mitigate with clearly defining your needs and sideboards and consulting with a good dealer.

Good luck,

Scott