Ar optic

[larrykendellwebb]

I know this is a question asked by many gun owners. I bought a vortex viper which i was goin to use on my 30/30 but sold the rifle. I mounted it to my ar and went out this weekend. Although the scope is a great scope at 3 ×9×40 it's not a good ar scope...im looking for something thats good up to 500 yards. I am merely a plinker since i have no land to hunt on
Thanks in advance for your time and opinion

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[BigBoss0311]

Strike eagle 1-8 in a bobro mount.

 

[grasshopperglock]

I use two scopes on ARs. The 450 bushmaster has a Weaver Classic K6. The 223 carries a Nikon Prostaff 4-12x40. I've switched scopes between rifles.

I personally am more accurate with the Weaver. Even with the Nikon cranked up, I can't shoot the stick pins holding the paper target up. I can with the Weaver. If I crank down the Nikon to the same power as the Weaver. My shot groups improve.

Seems on the higher powers above six. I overly concentrate on keeping the cross hairs still. I miss. At 6, the crosshairs move significantly less and I concentrate better on the target. I enjoy the fixed power weaver the most.

Food for thought.

 

[FireInTheWire]

I'm a big fan of my Sig tango4 1-4x24 with a one piece warne mount.They have bdc reticles for 5.56/7.62/ 300blk. It also has MOTAC which I like and it's also ffp. The center horseshoe is illuminated so at 1x I run it like a red-dot, then you can zoom into 3x-4x and see more reticle for your drop hold over. I kinda run it like a 2 in 1 scope. It's useful for hunting day and night. Just in case hunting ever comes you way.

.02

 

[larrykendellwebb]

I'm a big fan of my Sig tango4 1-4x24 with a one piece warne mount.They have bdc reticles for 5.56/7.62/ 300blk. It also has MOTAC which I like and it's also ffp. The center horseshoe is illuminated so at 1x I run it like a red-dot, then you can zoom into 3x-4x and see more reticle for your drop hold over. I kinda run it like a 2 in 1 scope. It's useful for hunting day and night. Just in case hunting ever comes you way.

.02

Ive got a warne skelonized one piece if i can find a scope in its scope ring size

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[Dawico]

3-9 isn't bad for an AR scope. Good compromise for short and long range shots.

 

[easy rider]

I have to agree with Dawico, but I do like having a scope I can also have a true 1X for closer,25 yards or under, therefore I use what BigBoss suggested, the Vortex Strike Eagle 1x8. it has a lighted reticle that can be used much like a red dot.

 

[FireInTheWire]

3-9 isn't bad for an AR scope. Good compromise for short and long range shots.

This is true too. I run an 3x9-40 on my 556 coyote ar.

 

[Younggun]

It really depends on the use. Just about any scope can work with the proper mount.

I'd go with one of the 1-4/6/8 offerings. You don't need a lot of magnification to shoot 500 yards but I can help with target identification or small targets.

Hunting scopes tend to add a lot of bulk. My or may not matter.

Doesn't sound like low light shooting will be an issue, but need to take it in to consideration if it will.

Do you plan to crank turrets for holdover or use a BDC style? Lots of 1-4etc scopes have BDC reticles that approximate the impact for most milsurp ammo out to 500 or 600 yards or meters.

A good solid scope in the $300-$400 range would be the SWFA SS. Simple reticle layout and good tracking on the knobs of wanted. A fixed 10X would allow shooting beyond the effective range of the average AR. Probably more suited to a bull bbl target rifle with fast twist and 20" bbl.

For a range gun or something that's intended for shooting 25-500 yards, I'd lean heavily towards a 1-8X on a carbine.


Feel like I need more ARs now.

 

[TheDan]

I've shot prairie dogs out to 500yds with a 3-9x40 before. Granted, prairie dogs are dumb and will just sit there staring at the puff of dirt your last shot made while you try again.

 

[easy rider]

I've shot prairie dogs out to 500yds with a 3-9x40 before. Granted, prairie dogs are dumb and will just sit there staring at the puff of dirt your last shot made while you try again.

View attachment 130168

Nice paint job!

 

[jdcalve]

MRO/Aimpoint out to 200, 1-4x or 1-6x for 2-500.

SWFA makes a reasonable 1-4 that hasn't been mentioned yet.

 

[larrykendellwebb]

It really depends on the use. Just about any scope can work with the proper mount.

I'd go with one of the 1-4/6/8 offerings. You don't need a lot of magnification to shoot 500 yards but I can help with target identification or small targets.

Hunting scopes tend to add a lot of bulk. My or may not matter.

Doesn't sound like low light shooting will be an issue, but need to take it in to consideration if it will.

Do you plan to crank turrets for holdover or use a BDC style? Lots of 1-4etc scopes have BDC reticles that approximate the impact for most milsurp ammo out to 500 or 600 yards or meters.

A good solid scope in the $300-$400 range would be the SWFA SS. Simple reticle layout and good tracking on the knobs of wanted. A fixed 10X would allow shooting beyond the effective range of the average AR. Probably more suited to a bull bbl target rifle with fast twist and 20" bbl.

For a range gun or something that's intended for shooting 25-500 yards, I'd lean heavily towards a 1-8X on a carbine.


Feel like I need more ARs now.

I figure my budget will be 400 to 500. The scope i was using didn't have a ffp, thsy could have beem some of my issues with being able to see my actual point of aim on the target. It could be im a Novice...lol

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[Vaquero]

I figure my budget will be 400 to 500. The scope i was using didn't have a ffp, thsy could have beem some of my issues with being able to see my actual point of aim on the target. It could be im a Novice...lol

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It could be due to lack of experience.
That being said, run what ya got.
Trigger time can't be bought.

 

[FireInTheWire]

I figure my budget will be 400 to 500. The scope i was using didn't have a ffp, thsy could have beem some of my issues with being able to see my actual point of aim on the target. It could be im a Novice...lol

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The setup I informed about ran me $620 out the door. Just fyi
Was the scope you were running just have a duplex reticle with no bdc marks? If your just target shooting... I'd keep it the way you have it and start playing around with shooting some dope. I thoroughly enjoy ranging, figuring out my drop and dialing up to the correct range. Just a thought...

 

[larrykendellwebb]

The setup I informed about ran me $620 out the door. Just fyi
Was the scope you were running just have a duplex reticle with no bdc marks? If your just target shooting... I'd keep it the way you have it and start playing around with shooting some dope. I thoroughly enjoy ranging, figuring out my drop and dialing up to the correct range. Just a thought...

The viper scope i have is a dead hold /bdc 3x9x40

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[Younggun]

The setup I informed about ran me $620 out the door. Just fyi
Was the scope you were running just have a duplex reticle with no bdc marks? If your just target shooting... I'd keep it the way you have it and start playing around with shooting some dope. I thoroughly enjoy ranging, figuring out my drop and dialing up to the correct range. Just a thought...

I enjoy the same, but it only works if the scope has high enough quality internals to allow precise tracking and return to zero.

Most hunting scopes don't. Not sure about the hunting line from Vortex.

 

[FireInTheWire]

I enjoy the same, but it only works if the scope has high enough quality internals to allow precise tracking and return to zero.

Most hunting scopes don't. Not sure about the hunting line from Vortex.

This is very true... I'm honestly not familiar with vortex scopes. I run Burris and Sig's. All my scopes zero-stop except for one and I have it sighted in at 200yrds so I can go to 300yrds or 50yrds without much fuss.

larrykendellwebb I checked your scope out and it does not have zero-stop. Nice scope though... its got great reviews for the price. Like YOUNGGUN said... you gotta have zero-stop to shoot dope. It's a nightmare to try without it. I apologize on over looking this aspect.

 

[larrykendellwebb]

This is very true... I'm honestly not familiar with vortex scopes. I run Burris and Sig's. All my scopes zero-stop except for one and I have it sighted in at 200yrds so I can go to 300yrds or 50yrds without much fuss.

larrykendellwebb I checked your scope out and it does not have zero-stop. Nice scope though... its got great reviews for the price. Like YOUNGGUN said... you gotta have zero-stop to shoot dope. It's a nightmare to try without it. I apologize on over looking this aspect.

Well i greatly appreciate all your point of views. Im looking on ebay and other place to get a new one. Ill take my time to find the right one for what i need.

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[Younggun]

I shoot a Viper PST on my .308 and it tracks just fine, but it's made for it. Vortex are great scopes for the money. Not the best or the worst in general but very good in their market with a warranty nobody else can tough.

With tracking the real issues is after adjusting up 10moa, will it adjust back down exactly 10moa. Or did it move up 10moa in the first place. Most hunting scopes adjust well enough to zero but the internals aren't made for constant adjusting and returning.

The zero stop is definitely helpful, especially if you have to turn more than 1 revolution on the knob. A BDC reticle will probably allow you to get close enough to try out some longer distance shooting and although they often aren't caliber specific and even then not tuned to a specific load you can learn where to hold and have a reference point. I'd shoot with the scope you have and then decide what you like, don't like, or would prefer. Hunting scoped tend to have a thicker reticle because crosshairs can be hard to see in hunting situations. Target scopes tend to have thin reticles for more precision but at the cost of lower visibility. Illuminated reticles offer the best of both worlds but at the penalty of higher costs.

No perfect answer. It's best to decide what is most important to you and work down the list from there. For most people that will start with a budget which you have set.

From there, if tracking is most important then you can narrow to scopes with good, reliable tracking on the turrets.

If you prefer not to twist knobs then the next important factor will probably be reticle style. BDC tuned to approximate ballistics or some version of mil-dot/mil-hash reticle?

If you will be shooting targets that are very small or have low contrast then glass quality/magnification will move up the list of priorities. If not, then average quality glass will likely suite you fine and the money invested in higher quality glass can be put towards other aspects of the scope.

With a budget there will always be a compromise. Sometimes compromising too much in one area can make investment in other areas irrelevant for your intended use.

I used to think choosing the right scope was a simple process...now I think about it way too much.