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Rifle Scopes Vortex Viper PST alternatives

L

lamanna

Private
Full Member
Minuteman
Oct 23, 2006
3
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Hi all,
I've spent the last week researching scopes and I'm pretty close to buying a Vortex Viper PST 4-16x50 FFP EBR1 MRAD Reticle Illuminated. It's going on a .223 Tikka T3 Lite which will eventually be used for hunting but for the foreseeable future a 100m+ practice rifle. It's my first centrefire and I've never shot past 100 so I'm really keen to get into it. It's a lot of money to spend and I'm a bit apprehensive about spending it but I just can't find an alternative that meets my criteria.

My ideal scope would be:
  • Mil/Mil system
  • FFP
  • 2-4 low end zoom
  • 16+ top end zoom (A 3-25 would be ideal as I will be practising at a range and taking it hunting)
  • Zero stop
  • Some form of Mil Dot/BDC/EBR reticule
  • Turret caps/adjusters (the things you use to adjust mils without having to unscrew the cap.. did I get the naming correct?)
  • Not weigh something crazy (36 ounces)

The Viper PST is the only one that ticks all those boxes (I'm from Australia so I had rule out a few others). Most USA stores won't ship here (SWFA, Midway) but a local store has an unreal deal on the Viper at the moment (~$800 US.. only $100 more than the SFP version). Even if I can find a place to ship here, I'll get slugged taxes which around the $900US mark so it ends up costing $1300 or so. I'm not 100% sold on the scope as I feel it's my only choice and I'm forcing myself to buy it because of that. There's just nothing else that comes close to it. I had the Millet and Falcon Menace on my list and came mighty close to getting one... my reasoning was that I wouldn't make much use of or appreciate an expensive scope (being a newbie and all). I don't plan on competing and truth be told, hunting trips will be few and far between.

The other option I had on my list was a Bushnell Elite Tactical 5-15x40 which I can get for around $450US. From what I can tell it meets very little of my criteria but the price seems right. I can't find any information on it though like what zoom the mildot is accurate at and also what measurement the mildot is (a dot is .2mil? a space is 1mil?). There's other Bushnell Elite Tactical models too, the Bushnell Elite Tactical 4.5-30x50 and Bushnell Elite Tactical 2.5-16x42 but neither are mil/mil or FFP and they're actually more expensive in Australia than the Viper PST.

My concerns/questions are:
1.) Would you spend $800 on a scope for your first centrefire rifle that would only get light range work out to 500m and the odd hunting trip?
2.) Are there any scopes I've missed that I should look into?
3.) Should I just get a cheap anything with a mildot/bdc then get something awesome ($1500+) later when I get my .308 in a year or so?


Thanks for reading



[I joined almost 7 years ago to the day and this is my first post... that's some serious lurking!]
 
You can buy the nice scope now, and then move it to your .308 when you build it.

You will never regret good glass.

Have you checked with Sport Optics (www.sportoptics.com)? They give a VERY nice Sniper's Hide discount. And may be able to ship to you.

I have the Vortex Viper PST 6-24x FFP and really like it.
 
Yes. You won't regret it as it's a fine piece of glass for the money. Buy once as they say.

I do have one of Primary Arms proprietary 4-14x44 FFP Mildot scopes which I really like. I run it on one of my other rifles. It has very good glass for the price. What it does not have is illumination and zero stop but it does have .1 mil clicks and is mil-mil. For only $240 it's a real bargain.
 
Consider the new SWFA 3-15ffp as well.
 
The 4-16 PST will be really good for your purpose and will give you a taste of the features that the 3k scopes have. I own one myself, they are good when you are on a budget or the rifle just does not justify a 3k optic but you want to keep a standard set of features across all your scopes eg: MIL/MIL, Ilumination, ZS of sorts & FFP..... great really !!. The turrets are actually really good on the example I own, nice and tactile.
 
Another that fits in that league with similar pricing and features would be the Weaver Tactical 3-15x50.
Weaver 3-15x50 Tactical 30mm Rifle Scope
It is FFP and illuminated mil/mil. For your usage I'd probably still steer towards the PST mainly for weight savings and the zero stop, though the Weaver does have great glass and is a little cheaper. Not sure who distributes them to Aus though.
 
There's a chance it might break (do a search and check out the thread a few weeks back about people griping about how many quality issues there have been). With that being said, that is a risk that is a lot easier to take if your are in the US and shipping is only $15. Outside of the US, and shipping it back to Vortex in the event it breaks, is something you should consider as well.

Being in Australia, I personally would go for a used Nightforce 3-15x since it has one of the better reliability track records. You can pick one up for $1100 to $1300, but it'll be SFP, on the heavier side, and won't have the 16x min you want.

The SWFA's are the real direct competitor to the Vortex, but since they don't ship to you, I think the only option would be to find one used.
 
Purchased a Vortex PST 6 x24 x 50 FFp from cameraland listed on there Deal of The Day section great price and very happy with it.....dont know if they ship outside the US
 
Thanks for the feedback guys. I did some more searching and came up with a few more to add to the list.... mainly the Weaver Tactical. I watched a video on their turret locking and it looks perfect. The 4-20 version is ideal but it only comes in Mildot... the 5-15 comes in Enhanced Milddot (EMDR) which looks interesting and would probably prefer. It's insanely expensive in Australia though so I need to find a willing store in the US.
 
Sharpshooter_87 said:
A 4-16x50 or 6-24 ffp pst would be gtg, the 6-24 has better glass
Click to expand...

The 6-24 is better glass but doesn't work great for hunting, if that applies. I keep it on 24 most of the time for target shooting. But I've moved if off and put the 2.5-10x32 on for this year's deer season for good reason. There's another option for you, the Vortex PST 2.5-10x32 FFP is definitely better clarity than the 4-16 and 6-24. Unless you need more magnification...it's easier to spot bullet holes at 100-200 yards with the 6-24 of course.

Edit: Ah, I see you need 16+ mag, nvm. But I love the 2.5-10x32 better than at least 1 of my kids.
 
what would be an alternative to the pst 2.5-10x32 mrad that is so hard to get ahold of? looking for same price point, options, weight, and low end magnification
 
Rockhopper said:
what would be an alternative to the pst 2.5-10x32 mrad that is so hard to get ahold of? looking for same price point, options, weight, and low end magnification
Click to expand...

I dont think there is another option at that price point.
 
Interestingly enough I have looked through two 4-16 PST FFP's now, a friend got one and the glass did look a little worse after 10-12x and my own which does not. I was expecting it to given what I had read here. But keep in mind that despite the glass looking a little hazier at the higher end it is still good enough to see targets a long way out. It would not stop you from making a shot at all. My friend also had only ever looked through $100 scopes and a couple from the early 80's (cheap leupold 3-9) and he was blown away by how good the glass was on his PST. I told him dont ever look through a SB, Kahles etc.
 
I love my weaver 3x15 edmr....but I have also read horror stories here about warranty issues being solved.
Scope for scope I would choose the weaver over the vortex..but I am concerned if and when the day comes I need service I'll wish I'd bought a vortex....tough call.
 
I think any scope with a range finding reticle is covered under ITAR. Therefore, I don't think any dealer could ship it to you from the US without an export permit. I could be wrong, but that is what I was told.
 
22dasher said:
I love my weaver 3x15 edmr....but I have also read horror stories here about warranty issues being solved.
Scope for scope I would choose the weaver over the vortex..but I am concerned if and when the day comes I need service I'll wish I'd bought a vortex....tough call.
Click to expand...

those Weaver's are great scopes, and I believe, they are often overlooked when discussing optics in this price range. I think the Weaver Tactical glass is close to SWFA's HD glass...very bright and crisp.
 
I share 22Dasher's sentiments exactly, I have been very impressed with my weaver tac 3-15 EMDR. I was fully planning to buy a vortex pst 4-16 FFP and I am glad I chose the weaver. The color and resolution alone is head and shoulders above my coworkers 4-16 PST, so much so he has tried to swap several times:D I'm tempted but I do like my weaver.
 
Keep it under a grand and buy from the US. I can't remember the last time i bought a scope in Australia.
 
Burris Extreme TACTICAL series is the only addition I could make to the above list
of medium priced scopes. They have a 3X12 and 4 X16, I have the 3X12 and it has been
Just as reliable as my Weaver, Bushnell, and PST. (no FFP yet)
 
lamanna said:
My ideal scope would be:
  • Mil/Mil system
  • FFP
  • 2-4 low end zoom
  • 16+ top end zoom (A 3-25 would be ideal as I will be practising at a range and taking it hunting)
  • Zero stop
  • Some form of Mil Dot/BDC/EBR reticule
  • Turret caps/adjusters (the things you use to adjust mils without having to unscrew the cap.. did I get the naming correct?)
  • Not weigh something crazy (36 ounces)



]
Click to expand...


If you're looking to keep the price down you should look into the falcon menace 4-14x 44 illuminated version. The price tag on it is around 400 but for the money the features can't be beat.
 
mate, i'm across the ditch, was looking at vortex as well, but too many seem to fail on here, so my no 2 scope now comes in FFP sightron 6-24x50 and made in japan! have a look at there range s3 at 4scopes.com they send over seas. and also look at liberty optics, Scott will look after you too.
i see the march dealer in AUZ as well but a lot more coin.
 
I am one of those who had warranty issues with the Weaver. Now I have posted this before, but for a rehash, its a very good scope! Glass is great, mechanics were on and it held zero and tracked dead nutz on! Issues were that it was on a duty rifle and my gear gets used hard. I had an issue with the zero set and had a bear of a time getting CS and then a LONG ass time waiting for it to come back. I put it on my back up gas gun and back in the truck of the cruiser and more hard field use. A few months later I had another malfunction with the windage turret and again the CS run around and I am still waiting for it back. So for a range gun its great but I am not sold on its use in a tactical capacity, Like all things I may have the lemon but the CS was still an issue for me. Now my SS 5-20 had less then useable illumination so I called SWFA. In a week I had a replacement that has been perfect, that is CS. I also have a Vortex Razor, but so far never had an issue, and hear nothing but great things about the Vortex CS. Also for the record NF is tops as well!

Sully
 
After far too much thinking I've gone with the Weaver Tactical 3-15x50mm. It was terribly confusing when researching the scope because of its variations not being well documented. Basically, the 3-15x50mm comes in Mildot with MIL adjustments, Mildot with MOA adjustments and EMDR (Enhanced Mildot Reticule) with MIL adjustments. The EMDR model also comes with illumination which is not obvious unless you pay special attention to the Weaver site (and backed up by you guys in this thread).

I chose the MIL adjustment version and the EMDR. The EMDR was a big selling point... I really like the small lines between the dots and I especially liked the hollowed out dot rather than a solid black one. That's all based on what I could see from screenshots so I'll reserve judgement until I physically look through it. I desperately wanted the 4-20x50mm model but they only offered it in Mildot (with both MOA and MIL adjustments). I'll be dirty with myself if that EMDR is rubbish because I'll be doing a lot of target shooting and that 20 magnification would've helped.

The biggest selling point for the Weaver was the price though. Opticsplanet is having 10% off until end of the month so I think it came to roughly $715US shipped which is about $750AUD. The cheapest I could get the Viper PST for was $850 AUD shipped. It's hard to say if the Viper is worth the extra money without comparing the two models side by side so I just went with instincts.

I probably would've skipped past the Weaver had it not been mentioned here, so a big thanks to all in this thread!
 
You'll love it!
I also wanted a 4x20.....why they don't offer it in emdr is beyond me!!??
 
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