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What is better than 5-25 PST Gen 2 in $650 price range?

This thread had me looking at the sightrons, but it seems the S-tac line comes with a different milhash reticle. I always liked their original milhash with floating dot as with the SIII line. Why did they have to change it? Why not offer that old reticle in the newer scope with the zero stop....
 
Twistid said:
Oh wow the venom is better than PST2? I didn't realize that, I thought the venom was a Chinese PST2
Click to expand...

No it's not. The list from bottom to top in his post. Bottom being Venom.
 
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"Great question! The main difference between those two optics is that the Viper PST Gen II will be a noticeable step up optically, offer an illuminated reticle and a mechanical zero stop. We did just put out a video explaining the differences between the Venom 5-25x56 and the Strike Eagle 5-25x56 and Diamondback Tactical FFP 6-24x50. Check it out here: "

From Vortex on reddit
 
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What about the Burris XTR2? I hate optics planet but they have them for $640

Odd it won't let me post the link so Google it.
 
Twistid said:
I'm on expert voice however the $650 PST2 linked on eurooptic is cheaper than EV pricing. What other brands/models were you referencing?

I'm also interested in a sub <$700 scope since my Arken EP5 arrived leaking gas/fluid. I took a gamble based on the shills and lost. Recommend avoiding Arken. Having said that can we please stop with Arken, let's keep this thread discussing legitimate options.

Sounds like the $650 PST2 seems like the best buy right now.
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You say it's leaking gas, but mine was the same way, and I'm pretty sure it's some sort of lubricant they used on the magnification ring. I've seen lots of scopes with that over the years coming from various places on the scopes, over many other brands, including Leupold, SWFA, Nikon, etc... I'm not convinced it's leaking.
 
I Bought one of the gen2 pst vipers in 3x15x44 from euro optic on close out and it is perfect for prs gas gun matches I also have a strike eagle 5x25x56 and a gen2 razor 4.5x27x56 I think the gen2 strike eagle is close to the viper but I give the edge to the viper gen2 I also think the reticle on the viper is more useable on low magnification than the strike eagle Plus I like the 10 mil per revolution . For the close out price its a no brainer .
 
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sparky702 said:
I Bought one of the gen2 pst vipers in 3x15x44 from euro optic on close out and it is perfect for prs gas gun matches I also have a strike eagle 5x25x56 and a gen2 razor 4.5x27x56 I think the gen2 strike eagle is close to the viper but I give the edge to the viper gen2 I also think the reticle on the viper is more useable on low magnification than the strike eagle Plus I like the 10 mil per revolution . For the close out price its a no brainer .
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You sure you have a 5-25 SE, because the SE is 10 mil per rev.
And the reticle is the same unless you have the ebr2c on the others.
Scope construction could degrade clarity or improve it. The long scope bodies are easier to get good clarity out of it.
 
I agree. I like mine a lot for that price range. I had it on my .22 and shot a bunch of matches with it and it tracked and held zero and there is a lot more dialing in .22 matches than centerfire.
 
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Rob01 said:
I agree. I like mine a lot for that price range. I had it on my .22 and shot a bunch of matches with it and it tracked and held zero and there is a lot more dialing in .22 matches than centerfire.
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That’s good to hear, I haven’t dialed mine a whole bunch, but it’s been great so far.
 
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Draftpick said:
Interesting that they think they are similar definitely a knock on the Burris if that is the case even with the xtr being similar in clearance price to the pst Gen 2
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I wouldn’t be surprised if they weren’t made in the same factory. Burris owns the factory in the Philippines with a Japanese partnership. but they contract to other companies. I heard that several years ago, could’ve changed by now.
 
texag0842 said:
What about the Burris XTR2? I hate optics planet but they have them for $640

Odd it won't let me post the link so Google it.
Click to expand...
I have bought multiple Burris XTR2 5-25x50 MRAD from Dvor (Optics Planet) for approximately $609 each and they are serving me well.
 
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Gohring65 said:
You sure you have a 5-25 SE, because the SE is 10 mil per rev.
And the reticle is the same unless you have the ebr2c on the others.
Scope construction could degrade clarity or improve it. The long scope bodies are easier to get good clarity out of it.
Click to expand...
yes I'm sure I have a strike eagle it along with the pst gen2 and gen2 razor all have 10 mil turrets
 
texag0842 said:
What about the Burris XTR2? I hate optics planet but they have them for $640

Odd it won't let me post the link so Google it.
Click to expand...
I hate optics planet too, but they are worth keeping an eye on. I bought a Gen2 Tango6 3-18 there a couple years ago for 650.
 
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Well i found the best if you can deal with a mildot reticle. Camera Land has a sale on Sightron S III 6-24 zero stop 650. With that you get better glass great tracking Japanese build. I am not a glass snob i think for the most part all glass is pretty good. But my Sightron, and Leupold Mk glass is much better than anything you will find in the 650 and below range .
 
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I would rather have a Sightron all day long (but the reticles are antiquated on the SIII FFP lines and I'm not into the STAC line).

Get the Vortex PST G2 and you'll be fine. I see those at matches ALL THE TIME and half the time the competitor is out-shooting people with Tier 1 optics. They don't have the clearest glass on earth (to me, a Nikon FX1000 has better glass) and they get eye box sensitive at higher power (>15x) but for the price you can get them at these days and the included reticle options, it's definitely a good scope option. The turrets are nice, too.

Some say the PST G2s aren't very robust. Okay. Fine. Vortex will fix/replace it. I love them but you can't say that about my Nikon Blacks anymore...
 
Gohring65 said:
My strike eagle 5-25 seems pretty nice
The helos gen 2 6-24 looks promising
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My two strike eagles just arrived today. They are really nice! Just came down from two TTs and a ZCO for more affordable optics, affordable being 12k sitting around not being used 90% of the year. Glass quality to me is real nice for how much the strike eagles are and the Predator 4 I bought.
 
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My shooting partner likes the PST2. We mounted a new PST2 on his new MPA rifle. I was unimpressed with the PST2 "zero stop process" - seems overly complicated to me (especially compared to the Vortex Venom). I had my 223 trainer with the "Dvor special" Burris XTRII and my B14R with the Vortex Venom on hand to compare. I am happy to spend my money on the Burris XTRII and the B14R.

Would be interesting to see if Vortex would comment on how the "new" Vortex Strike Eagle and Venom have impacted the PST2 sales - I suspect that PST2 sales are hurt by SE/Venom.
 
I've played with a lot of mid range/low range scopes, and always come back to own a Strike Eagle. It seemed to have set the bar in this price range, much like the first Midas Tac when it arrived on scene before it. I've had at least 4 SE and never had a problem, despite lots of dialing. I should have kept all 4 before scopes are like currency in my never ending quest to try new scopes.
 
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I vote for the pst gen 2 because for me personally, most of the scopes mentioned here will look the same to me, but what pushes me over the edge is watching "impact shooting" in south africa abuse the shit out of the vortexes and they keep on going. Alllllllll the optical quality and super high speed tracking is completely WORTHLESS if you drop your rifle or bang it and it breaks the scope, or loses zero from the impact. I see so many people judge all the scopes attributes but rarely if ever touch upon how LONG will a scope retain those attributes for. If it's a bench queen fine, but if you use this scope pretty good in the field it needs to be not only durable, but retain zero if you drop it by accident. Vortex has proven that to me through those torture tests. If you're on a hunt, and half way to another shooting position your rifle falls down while leaning on the tree and you can't reconfirm zero, and you've lost trust in it, the entire hunt was for nothing. If that happened to my vortex, I'd still take a shot with it, and that's why I buy them.
 
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Basic user said:
I vote for the pst gen 2 because for me personally, most of the scopes mentioned here will look the same to me, but what pushes me over the edge is watching "impact shooting" in south africa abuse the shit out of the vortexes and they keep on going. Alllllllll the optical quality and super high speed tracking is completely WORTHLESS if you drop your rifle or bang it and it breaks the scope, or loses zero from the impact. I see so many people judge all the scopes attributes but rarely if ever touch upon how LONG will a scope retain those attributes for. If it's a bench queen fine, but if you use this scope pretty good in the field it needs to be not only durable, but retain zero if you drop it by accident. Vortex has proven that to me through those torture tests. If you're on a hunt, and half way to another shooting position your rifle falls down while leaning on the tree and you can't reconfirm zero, and you've lost trust in it, the entire hunt was for nothing. If that happened to my vortex, I'd still take a shot with it, and that's why I buy them.
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My experience was the exact opposite when 2/3 crapped out under 50 rounds. I’ve also personally seen several others crap out as well in the pst and golden eagle lines.

Excellent customer service though
 
hafejd30 said:
My experience was the exact opposite when 2/3 crapped out under 50 rounds. I’ve also personally seen several others crap out as well in the pst and golden eagle lines.

Excellent customer service though
Click to expand...
agree, saying vortex is durable makes me shirk hard

I really think the earlier poster's suggestin of the xtr is the win here given price, glass and reliability. Burris optics are like tanks and the glass is way way above the belt for the price
 
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The XTR 2 price was for the sand color. I really need it in black. If I could find that $599 price in black, I would definitely go that route. 34mm tube.
 
Rockymountheel1 said:
The XTR 2 price was for the sand color. I really need it in black. If I could find that $599 price in black, I would definitely go that route. 34mm tube.
Click to expand...
$5
457-2.jpg
 
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I found some XTR II’s that say Blem that are in my range. They have SCR reticle. The PST Gen 2 I’m looking at has EBR-2C. Is the glass in the PST much better than the XTR II? And will the Blem just be some cosmetic defect, nothing to do with glass or function?
 
Rockymountheel1 said:
I found some XTR II’s that say Blem that are in my range. They have SCR reticle. The PST Gen 2 I’m looking at has EBR-2C. Is the glass in the PST much better than the XTR II? And will the Blem just be some cosmetic defect, nothing to do with glass or function?
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It will be a cosmetic blemish. Maybe not even noticed initially. Burris has a forever warranty as well if there’s any issue. I sent in a 10+ year old E1 because it had a fingerprint looking smudge on the internal lens. Never bothered me but had it laying around and asked Burris what it would take to fix it. They fixed it free. No questions asked. No receipt needed

The glass on the 3-15 shines on the XTRII. 4-20 gets a touch dark at 18-20. I’ve owned both those. The 5-25 is supposed to be worse at top end

I’ve owned 3 vortex and many Burris scopes. I’ve never had an issue with the Burris. Viper PST I’ve had parallax crap out and elevation knob crap out. So I choose Burris just based on reliability alone
 
If I could get an XTR for same price as a PST I'd buy the XTR all day. That's just me!

If you want a tree reticle, though, you'll have to go with the PST. You'll be happy with either.
 
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Choose based on features, weight, fov, reticle etc. I don't think there's a wrong answer. For me it would be the PST gen II which is a tad shorter, lighter and better FOV. *If price was the same*
 
Last edited:
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Gohring65 said:
In terms of robust durability. Burris xtr2 is a tough scope.
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I really want to try one, and they're only $899 on CameraLand NY today, but I don't really want to drop that much right now. Plus, it's not a christmas tree reticle... And I don't know if it comes with a zero-stop. That's what's holding me back. I've considered refunding my EP5, and then using that towards it... I don't know... 🤷🏼
 
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