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Old September 23, 2017, 05:20 PM   #1
Nathan
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Long Range Scope Decision

Burris XTR ii 5-25 201051

Vs

Vortex PST II 5-25x50 MRAD

To me, these are very similar scopes. Both have, and I want:
Good mil turrets
Mil scale reticle
Side focus
>20 max power
Solid scope

I can find the Burris for $230 less...any thought on which way I should go?
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Old September 23, 2017, 07:21 PM   #2
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If it were me, I would go with the Vortex.

Are those your only two options? At those prices I would be looking at Leupold or IOR also.
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Old September 23, 2017, 08:31 PM   #3
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$1100 max.. new. Leupold is much more for the same feature set. IOR is the same as far as I see.
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Old September 23, 2017, 09:53 PM   #4
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NF SHV F1. Better than either of them. Or find a used NXS off Snipershide or 24Camp.
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Old September 24, 2017, 10:34 AM   #5
Don Fischer
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A thousand dollar's for a scope, WOW! I think at that price range I'd go for the Night Force. I don't l know that they are worth the money but people that have them say they are!
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Old September 24, 2017, 12:41 PM   #6
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For $500 more you can get the Athlon Cronus scope and it's a hell of a lot better scope than the two your looking at.
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Old September 24, 2017, 01:42 PM   #7
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SHV is SFP, so it is out.

Nightforce FFP start at $2000 ish....out

Athlon....tell me about these. It worries me when a no name pops into the optics discussion. Vortex, Burris, Leupold....I'm pretty sure the warranty will be there in 5 years.

Burris has a slight pull on me because Burris coatings work for my eyes...Leupold do not. I have had "every" scope on the counter before. Burris, Sightron, Nightforce work for my eyes. Vortex is OK, but not great. I believe that this is related to an individual's eye focus and color recognition.
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Old September 24, 2017, 02:05 PM   #8
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I have both and I like the Burris more than the Vortex. Crisper view and the zero stop is very simple.

I would wait until Black Friday and then shop around for the best price.
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Old September 24, 2017, 02:10 PM   #9
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I had a vortex pst 6-24x50, then bought a Burris Veracity 4-20x50. The Burris is clearer and brighter than the vortex. I sold the vortex and kept the Burris.

They also make the Veracity in 5-25x50. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Burris Veracity over a vortex PST if given the choice between the 2.
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Old September 24, 2017, 10:03 PM   #10
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No, the SHV F1 is not a SFP, scope, it is FFP, hence the F1 designation. I have the 4.5-16X50 and they've come out with a 5-20X50 now. They are available in both MOA and MIL reticles and turrets. The elevation turret is an exposed turret with Zeroset and the windage is capped. The optic was developed as an entry level NF for the PRS in conjunction with the RPR.

Also, none of the Optics originally listed hold a candle to the NXS series which for the most part are SFP.
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Old September 25, 2017, 01:03 AM   #11
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@saltydog235.....thanks for the follow up. I did miss that SHV F1....it is only available now in 4-14?? Or..in the 5-20 too?

What can you tell me about your SHV F1?

I looked at it online and 2 things worry me. First is eye relief...2.8-3.1" I'm putting this on a 300 WSM without a brake, yet. Second is giving up so much magnification. That is what I really don't like about my current scope. 12x is max....and it is SFP.
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Old September 25, 2017, 07:53 AM   #12
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The SHV is a pretty good scope. It isn't nearly as robust as my NXS but it isn't meant to be used in combat either. The MOA reticle I have is quite good even for hunting in low light. The illumination is controlled on a rheostat, turret adjustment is positive and crisp. Eye relief isn't bad at all, my .300wsm doesn't have as much recoil as some of my 30'06's do.

I'm pretty sure the 5-20X50 is out now, I have not seen one yet though. I looked at both the options you originally listed before the NF came out, I waited on the NF and glad I did, the other two pale in comparison.

I haven't used mine much lately though. I put a new 4-16X50 Trijicon on my .300wsm and then bought a Sako in 7mmRM to go with a S&B Stratos I picked up. My name is Mark and I have a gun/optic problem.
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Old September 25, 2017, 08:22 AM   #13
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Of the two, the Burris is a better choice (as others have already detailed, better glass is the biggest difference). If it is in the price point you want, you can not get a better value than the Burris XTRII line.

Sure, NF makes a little bit better scope with the same feature set, but the price is a good chunk more.
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Old September 25, 2017, 10:08 AM   #14
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The SHV F1 is like $100.00 more than the XTRII unless you have a LEO/Military discount. Look at sites that sell used and trade ins, you'll see a lot more Vortex and Burris' of those same models than you will any NF. Ask yourself why that is? It's quality all around. Buy once cry once.
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Old September 25, 2017, 11:48 AM   #15
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You'll also see more NF than S&B and more S&B than Hensoldt.
The resale of scopes, listed on big retailer websites indicates nothing more than someone not wanting to take a huge loss on their scope. Most of the high end scope are sold from individual to individual. "Trade in" value is always going to be crap compared to private sale.

Do yourself a favor OP, try for yourself before you buy. Nobody here can tell you what will work best for you. Me personally, I wouldn't ever consider buying a Nighforce. If talking that kind of money, I'd hop right over NF and go straight to Schmidt & Bender or Hensoldt.

Like has been said, Buy Once, Cry Once.
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Old September 25, 2017, 01:56 PM   #16
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Except S&B and Hendsoldt start at $2400.00 unless you can find a demo or used optic, not $1100-1300 that the NF SHV lines start at. The NXS can be had for $1400-1800 normally. And I have two NF, two Trijicon, 1 Kahles, and one S&B Stratos. For hunting, the S&B is heads and shoulders above all of them, it's just awesome. The Kahles is second, just a solid low light optic. The Trijicons are third and not far behind the Kahles if at all. Finally the NF as hunting optics go.

However, shooting range targets out a far poke, the order is fully reversed except flopping the Kahles and S&B (neither of them are set up as LR scopes but the #4 reticle is better than the #1 reticle). I'd second the getting behind as many as possible argument, that's how you know.

NF isn't for everyone but, with the exception of the Razor line, everything they produce is superior to Vortex's optics and Burris produces nothing to compare with NF at any level. Honestly, you really need to match the scope to what you are going to do with the rifle 90% of the time. If hunting, I'd stay away from complex reticles and spinner turrets, it's a hassle and can bite you square in the rear. If it's banging steel/punching paper or some stationary application then by all means get one you can dial in on, that is a lot of fun.
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Old September 25, 2017, 06:01 PM   #17
Nathan
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If this was a pure hunting rifle, noe of these scopes would be ideal...

This is a ~15lb long range rig. Savage 12 BVSS 300 WSM that shoots .75 moa typically. Looking to set up for 600+ targets and steel.

It will see some long range western hunting again, but not soon. If the SHARE act goes through, I can see a suppressor on it for recoil reduction and dispersing the sound.

The people who say Nightforce is way better are probably right. Im looking to get:
FFP
Good turrets
Zero stop
Reasonable weight and strength
Mil scale reticle and mil turrets
Reliability
Dusk to dawn usability

at about $1000. Not arguing that Night force is better, just a lot more. I found the Burris at $968 and the Nightforce looked like $1250 everywhere....I'm I looking in the wrong places?

Last edited by Nathan; September 25, 2017 at 06:08 PM.
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Old September 25, 2017, 06:30 PM   #18
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If the difference is about $300, I would spend the extra and get the Nightforce!

If you haven't looked through one yet, find a local store that has one or three or four on your list and compare them. Seeing how you're looking for a long range scope, look at what the guys shooting long range are using. You'll find that most of them are using NF scopes on their rifles.

I've had the NF scope on my .50 now for about 17 years and have never had an issue with it. They're rock solid and can take abuse, mine took a good hit when my .50 slid off the bench it was on. I put it back up on the bench, chambered a round and hit the 600 yard target I was shooting at.

Their glass is probably in the top 5 in the industry, not to mention how good they are in tracking and being able to repeat it all the time. So, you won't be disappointed in spending the extra money for one.
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Old September 25, 2017, 07:11 PM   #19
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If you get to look at a NF side by side with a Burris, take it outside and turn it up to 25x rested, set the parallax and take a look. While I am a huge Burris fan, you will see a slight difference favoring the NF. But turn it back to 20x and you will have a hard time seeing any difference. I run the 4-20 XTRII on both of my precision rigs and could not ask for better performance. But then, in the matches and conditions I shoot, I don't need more than 20x to shoot out to 1200 yards with my .243Win and .260Rem.

If you look at the list of what people are shooting in major matches from almost 2 years ago, it is almost all Vortex in the lead. A lot has changed since then and the XTRII has taken a big chunk (as has Steiner) and the NF is actually down a bit. Look at the fall S&B took over a 3 year span...

http://precisionrifleblog.com/2015/1...-and-reticles/

The landscape changed a lot, but Vortex is still out front with Burris and Steiner knocking off several of the lower represented brands as they come into the PRS/Precision space.
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Old September 25, 2017, 08:36 PM   #20
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I went through this last year when looking for a new scope for my FN Special Police. After considering a number of different scopes I went with the Vortex Viper PST FFP and have been happy with it. I like the MRAD reticle and reticle turrets as it matches up well. The final selling point was the strong lifetime warranty and from reviews I've read they stand by it without question.

I'm currently waiting on a Viper PST Gen II for a Ruger Precision Rifle that hopefully will be in shortly.
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Old September 26, 2017, 08:10 AM   #21
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Burris has a forever warranty...just won't need to use it as much as with a Vortex.
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Old September 26, 2017, 10:25 AM   #22
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Quote:
Burris has a forever warranty...just won't need to use it as much as with a Vortex.
Could be the case, though I haven't had any issues. When looking I did run across a few reviews on Burris that indicated warranty work was rejected due to the user's "abuse" of the scope. Vortex has a video saying they don't care what the problem is, they will fix it without questions. Reviews back that up. Was the tipping point for me.
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Old September 26, 2017, 11:38 AM   #23
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Burris forever warranty even takes care of accidental damage by the customer. I heard about some intentional damage, but that is not an issue for most. I had a buddy drop his rifle over a cliff with my scope he had borrowed, told them that, they gave me a new scope.

https://www.burrisoptics.com/customer-service/warranty
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Old September 28, 2017, 08:37 PM   #24
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Nathan,Unless you are planning on ranging targets with the reticle,you don't have to limit yourself to a FFP reticle. I shoot both FFP and SFP reticle scopes on my Long range rigs,and prefer SFP mainly because the reticle size stays the same thickness throughout the magnification range of the scope. Glass clarity-Tracking-Repeatable adjustments are more important to me.
I have 4 of the Sightron SIII 6-24x50 scopes in SFP,and I shoot out to 1200 yards with them. The tracking is spot on,they all repeat excellent,and the glass is very good.
My Swarovski PH 4-16x50 is FFP as is the new IOR Valdada Recon 4-28x50 that's on my new build,but they are in a different class of optic than you're looking to spend.

Nightforce glass has never impressed me in the NSX series,the Sightron SIII glass is better,IMO. They are built like tanks though!

The Athlon Cronus has a big fan base on Accurate Shooter and Sniper's Hide. I put an Athlon Midas SFP 4.5-27x50 on my 260 AI build,and it has been a pretty good scope so far. The glass is close to the Sightron SIII glass,it tracks good,and repeats good. For a $600 scope,it has a lot going for it.
They also have a new FFP scope under the Cronus line,the Ares line. They are priced in your price range at $850. You might want to check them out if FFP is what you want.
There's plenty of video's on YouTube on them.
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Old September 30, 2017, 02:50 PM   #25
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I recently purchased a new Vortex PST Viper 6-24x50 FFP EBR-2C MRAD Gen I for $699. I like it. But from what I've read the Burris XTR has the better glass. But I like the Vortex warranty that fix it not matter what happens to it. My Razor HD has the best glass of any scope I own. More money of course.

Last edited by ed308; September 30, 2017 at 02:57 PM.
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