Are vortex optics worth it?

[iclick]

good thing they have good warranty, good chance you'll need it.

I had 2 of them. Both failed to hold zero after around a hundred firings. One on a Weatherby 257 and the other on a 30 wsm. After dealing with their customer service over them I was skeptical. But sent them both in and when they finally came back they still had the same problem. Threw them in the trash and replaced them. Bought Leupolds and problems solved. It was just an expensive lesson learned. Optics need to have either Japanese, German or American lenses.

 

[RetiredSniper]

Vortex scopes are fine and the next best thing to the expensive Leopold and Nikon scopes. I have had one on my Howa heavy barreled hunting rifle for over 20 years with no problem and it holds zero from year to year to year!!!

 

[zmrt69]

I had the chance to peer through a Leupold Mark V monster at Bass Pro Shops recently. Don't remember the precise specs, but it was a $2000 scope. The salesman insisted that I have a look through a comparable Vortex model because, as he said, they are usually a couple / three hundred dollars less in that price range. There was really no comparison between the glass of the Leupold vs. the Vortex. Leupold was very crisp edge to edge while the Vortex was a little blurry around the perimeter of the field of view. My personal opinion, and everybody has one, is that the Vortex scopes are good value for your money in the lower end optics. But, I don't think there glass is up to the level of quality in Leupold's offerings at the higher end of the market. Of course, this is based on just the one shopping experience. But, the difference was that dramatic.

 

[Mc Fraser]

Does anyone here use any of the higher end vortex optics for their hunting rifles? If so, which one, and why did you choose it over other brands? (Leupold, Nightforce, etc.)

For my needs, at that price, I have far better options. I use Zeiss, Leica, NF and for lower end Leupold. I don't own any Vortex anymore.

 

[7070yshot]

good thing they have good warranty, good chance you'll need it.

They all do - I've sent back Leupold, Sig, Nightforce and S&B. No one is perfect. Vortex is fine depending on the situation and purpose

 

[7070yshot]

I had the chance to peer through a Leupold Mark V monster at Bass Pro Shops recently. Don't remember the precise specs, but it was a $2000 scope. The salesman insisted that I have a look through a comparable Vortex model because, as he said, they are usually a couple / three hundred dollars less in that price range. There was really no comparison between the glass of the Leupold vs. the Vortex. Leupold was very crisp edge to edge while the Vortex was a little blurry around the perimeter of the field of view. My personal opinion, and everybody has one, is that the Vortex scopes are good value for your money in the lower end optics. But, I don't think there glass is up to the level of quality in Leupold's offerings at the higher end of the market. Of course, this is based on just the one shopping experience. But, the difference was that dramatic.

I would agree In the sub1000 category. The higher end Vortex are all good too. I use them all. Vortex, Leupold, S&B, Nightforce and Sig. All have entry level, mid and high end. Except S&B they are really proud of everything

 

[wildcatgoal]

I have a Viper HS on my Tikka 270. The glass is best described as "usable" compared to my Zeiss Conquest V4 on my Montana Rifle Company 300 Win Mag and my Sightron Pinnacle (made in Japan) on my Bergara HMR Pro PRS gun.

If I had never used higher end glass, I would have a better impression of the Viper HS's glass, which is the same as the Viper PST. Comparatively, the glass is clear but colors are not realistic (they get dulled) and consequently it's not great for situations where the target is a similar color to dense surroundings. But... it's totally usable overall. The turrets on the Viper HS (which are capped) are excellent for a rifle used in the forest and have good tactiles. I paid $250 for my Viper HS on sale at OpticsPlanet or Midway (I can't remember) and for that price, I feel it's an excellent value.

Another way to compare it is, I would say the Viper HS glass is a few notches lower than the Nikon Black FX series, which I have many of and find to be the best value in scopes to have ever existed. Too bad Nikon left the business.

 

[davidu]

I guess it's just hard for some folks to answer a question without taking shots at the company or other scope manufactures.
Like poster Handskill's Zeiss comment. Really. I have three Zeiss v6 5-30 scopes. So you are going argue the quality of Zeiss's Schott glass.
There's different lines of scopes at different price points that serve different purposes.
Compare a Leupold vx5 to a Vortex pst gen 2 , I have both, in the $800+|- range and there are differences that could be significant depending on what's important to you.
I've had a whole lot of scopes over 50+ years of hunting. My Vortex Viper pst gen 2 is the only one sent back. Great customer service. Vortex found nothing wrong. I use purple Loctite on all my rings and torque to 15-16 in/lb
Vortex suggested I put the tube in a bind using Locktite. After cleaning the threads and remounting, the scope performed as it should. Does that mean Vortex's tube wall thickness leaves something to be desired? Maybe.

 

[Mike D Texas]

You are making an assumption that isn't based on any kind of fact. I sold Vortex products for several years (among other sporting goods) and I can remember only a couple of customers that claimed to have had to return their Vortex product and all of them were satisfied with the speed that their optic was repaired or replaced. Of all of my Vortex scopes I've only returned the Razor which was certified as working properly - and they were right, it was my mount that was the problem.

Don't forget, optics can fail due to manufacturing issues or improper use. I've seen some pretty bad installation jobs over the decades that I've been shooting (as both a Range Master/Range Safety Officer, and a retail salesman) and some inappropriate scope choices (like a rimfire scope on a 300 Win Mag or the many rails that didn't fit the receivers properly). Whenever somebody says that a well known brand is bad I always ignore their remarks unless they provide some kind of proof. We all have brands that we've had issues with that cause us to not want that brand any more. I wont buy a Sightron for that reason and I wont even buy a Leupold binocular any more because I've two in a row that failed, but I'm sure we can all agree that the consensus is that this isn't the norm for either of these brands and that doesn't mean that these products aren't a reasonable buy for others, I just have a personal bias against them just like you have against Vortex products.

I can speak from personal experience with Vortex. I've owned the original Vioer series, the first gen PST and the Crossfire scopes. Every single one of them had to be returned to Vortex at least once. The main issue I have had is scope flare. The Crossfire glass quality was sub par but I understood that going in. I also had a Strikefire 1-8 on a budget AR that I had to send back too.
So for me they are batting 1000.
So my experience is based on actual experience.

 

[GuroChris]

I have a Vortex Razor HD Gen II on my primary hunting rifle. Been there for years and fired in the neighborhood of 1500 rounds in that setup. I have had zero issues with it. Suits my purpose just fine, although it is a bit heavy.

I notice that most of the complaints I see about Vortex scopes seem to involve the low and mid tier lines. I can't recall seeing many problems reported about their higher end lines.

No product or company is perfect, all you can do is your due diligence and make the best choice you can. That applies to everything.

 

[DDWing]

Does anyone here use any of the higher end vortex optics for their hunting rifles? If so, which one, and why did you choose it over other brands? (Leupold, Nightforce, etc.)

Vortex optics are a great value, for a great optic, with superb customer service and warranty. I own three of the top end scopes and have never had a single issue with either. I'm in the process of building another 6.5 Grendel in the AR platform, and it will get a new vortex installed on it also.

 

[mpayne]

Last year I got a pair of Vortex UHD 12X50 binos, went out on the deck to have a look around. I ended up seeing the nuts on a humming bird @ 1000 yards as it flew by!

 

[Barehandlineman11]

Few of my buddies are vortex guys not anymore when I killed a bull before dark they couldn't see all in all not bad optic for its price but there is much better

 

[nksmfamjp]

I have had about 5 Vortex scopes.

2 red dots are still performing fine.

A 2-8 Diamondback HP broke. Reticle came loose. They replaced with a Strike Eagle 1-8 and even tossed in a throw lever. It has been great so far.

i have a Viper HS 4-16x44 on a 6.5x55. I really like it, but magnification is a bit much. That is said because I used the BDC at 360ish yards, but that was too much power for deer at that range. Still a good scope. To do it over again, I think a 3-18x FFP would be better. Still, it is bright, clear, well focused and simple. A good scope to me.

I also have a PST Gen 2 5-25x. I traded a Burris XTR II for that. I like the reticle better and the glass seems a bit clearer, but I'm not going to over emphasize this like some do.

i have used a Razor. I didn't like the one I used, but I couldn't get it focused right to my eye. This was about 10 years ago. I like the new ones, except the weight.

Leupold makes a fine optic and they generally win the weight contest! I'm not sure optics are as good based on my experience. I also am not sure this is a big difference.