Nightforce or Mark 4? PLEASE help me decide!

[yobuck]

over the last 35 years ive used unertle, leupold and the old bausch&lomb, which is like a unertle except it is varieable power.
anybody whos honest will admitt to screwing up returning to zero.
it is usually caused by carelessness, or too many fingers from too many people.
its a good idea to count up from the bottom to your zero and mark it with tape on the scope.
that way when in doubt, bottom it out and count back to your zero.
another simple solution is to make a gauge by wittling a popsicle stick.
mark one end e. the other w. and just wind back to the gauge.

 

[long action]

I know this is going to get me branded as a infidel, maybe even a Democrat.

I mainly hunt large hogs at long ranges, and very dark conditions. I own Leupolds, NF's, and Horus Visions. The best I have found for my needs is the Burris Black Diamond. The Night Force came in with a nice big inspection sticker on it. When I turned on the reticle light it was so bright you needed a welding hood. After breaking out my watch makers kit to adjust the rheostat, no adjustment. Full bright or nothing. Just a mere $56.00 for shipping and insurance fixed that problem. I put white out on that big inspection sticker, and use it for a click chart.

I am handicapped, and have a lot of time on my hands. I have spent many hours looking through scopes at black buckets I have set up in my pasture. Hands down the Burris Black Diamond is the winner against all the contenders. The Horus vision is a close second.

 

[Buffalobob]

I know this is going to get me branded as a infidel, maybe even a Democrat.

We know you are really Rush Limbaugh high on prescription drugs.

 

[Westcoaster]

I have a NXS 3.5-15x50 with the NPR2 reticle, very good scope. I chose this over Leupold and have no regrets. From my eyes the NF has it all over Leupold optically - nothing wrong with Leupie, just that these are better.

Downside is it's a little heavier and bulkier than a lot of other scopes. I pack this around on my hunting rig all day, often in steep ground without issue though.

Saving for another right now to replace another Leupie...

 

[diderr]

My rig is running a Mark IV. I love it. It returns to zero every time, even If I go from bottom moa to max moa. My only issue is not enough MOA for my needs. I'm starting to take the 300 WSM farther that intended for that cartridge. With a badger 20 moa base I get about 56 minutes. Leup has 65 tot, and NF has 100 tot.

Right now I kind of wish I bought a NF 5-22x50; just because I have the "how far can I possibly shoot" bug right now. But I love my Leup, It has never let me down.

NF vs. Leup? I would say dependant on what distances you'll be shooting, and how deep your pockets are.

 

[yobuck]

diderr.
your problem is not in your scope, but rather the fuel tank of the cartridge youve chosen.
but beyond that id be curious as to what type of optics your using that would allow you to see hits at your desired distance.

 

[noone]

I don't own any Nightforce scopes, but the fellows I shoot with who own them speak highly of them. I own two Leupold Mark 4 scopes. 4.5-14x50 TMR reticle, and a 6.5-20x50 mil dot.

The zero stop isn't a big deal. I have figured out how to make zero stops for all my Leupold scopes. I set them up so that they go about 10-15 clicks past the 100 yard zero, or what ever distance I want the zero stop set for. It takes about a half hour for me to make the zero stop for each one...cost is about 40 cents each..maybe less.

So if a zero stop is a big factor, don't worry about it, as they are easy to make. Both scopes have plenty enough adjustment to get you to 800 yards. See if you can do a side by side comparison of the optical clarity and go from there.

 

[MontanaRifleman]

I don't own any Nightforce scopes, but the fellows I shoot with who own them speak highly of them. I own two Leupold Mark 4 scopes. 4.5-14x50 TMR reticle, and a 6.5-20x50 mil dot.

The zero stop isn't a big deal. I have figured out how to make zero stops for all my Leupold scopes. I set them up so that they go about 10-15 clicks past the 100 yard zero, or what ever distance I want the zero stop set for. It takes about a half hour for me to make the zero stop for each one...cost is about 40 cents each..maybe less.

So if a zero stop is a big factor, don't worry about it, as they are easy to make. Both scopes have plenty enough adjustment to get you to 800 yards. See if you can do a side by side comparison of the optical clarity and go from there.

Please do tell us more... How do you make zero stops?

 

[noone]

OK, here is how I did the zero stops for my Leupold scopes. It is so simple I am surprised Leupold or someone else doesn't offer something like them.

Essentially, all you are making is a thin spacer that goes between the bottom of the readout knob, and the top of the scope underneath the readout knob.

At the local hardware store I bought a copper 3/4x1/2 pipe reducer. The 3/4 inch end just fits perfectly over the Leupold sight adjustment tower. Use a hacksaw to cut off a thin piece of the copper tube, usually between .1 and .02 inch. I have had to cut them thick then use sandpaper on a table, or a file and just rub the piece on it until it is the correct thickness. It is odd and fortuitous that this piece fits so perfectly.

To get the correct thickness will depend on where you zero your rifle, and how much down elevation is left under the turret. The less elevation left, the thinner the spacer that you will make. I would suggest starting out at around .07 inch thick and see if your adjustment turret will fit back on without any resistance on the allen screw that tightens the reading knob onto the turret. If there is any resistance to tightening the allen screw, the spacer needs to be thinner. Keep making it thinner until the screw goes on with no resistance.

You will need to allow between 10-22 clicks after zero to get it right. I made a couple that went just to zero, and they often jammed up and wouldn't allow proper adjustment. I found that I had to put in some slack to keep things working correctly. When properly made, your scope knobs get turned all the way to the bottom, then just come back up 10-20 clicks to the zero..

Like I said, it is so simple I'm surprised no one markets various sized shims to go under the turret for this purpose. Perhaps one of the companies that makes this sort of thing will take this idea, make the shims and sell a package of 5-10 different thicknesses. Then maybe they'll send me something to say thanks for the idea...

If I didn't explain it correctly, let me know and I'll try to clarify any hard to understand parts.