Which Nightforce

[Kimber7man]

Alternative idea:

Use a solid, bedded 20 MOA picatinny rail.

Buy one high powered scope for 1,000+ yard target shooting. Put it in a great set of rings.
Buy one lower powered scope for hunting. Put it in a great set of rings.

Mount the target scope, sight it in and use it 9-10 months out of the year.
Mount the hunting scope before hunting season, sight it in and take it hunting.

Done.

 

[Ckleeves]

Maybe Vortex should be on your radar. Did you look at the links including the tracking test? And what are you basing them not being durable? Crossfires and Diamondbacks? If you look at the Razors the durability and tracking are there.

The big razors weight a ton, and the Razor LHT can't be trusted much more then a PST or a diamondback. My wife's LHT lost zero from a side impact from tipping over on a 9" bipod. I was hopeful on the LHT because I had seen them take some abuse and not shift but after the baby fall and losing zero I remembered it was still a Vortex.

 

[Rob01]

The big razors weight a ton, and the Razor LHT can't be trusted much more then a PST or a diamondback. My wife's LHT lost zero from a side impact from tipping over on a 9" bipod. I was hopeful on the LHT because I had seen them take some abuse and not shift but after the baby fall and losing zero I remembered it was still a Vortex.

Have you tried the new FFP LHT? Different animal than the sfp. Also the AMG at 28 ounces is a choice too. It holds zero and tracks.

As mentioned the big Razors are heavy but the weight is up to the end user. Some of the scopes talked about here are around 39 ounces so not light weight by any means.

 

[Ckleeves]

Have you tried the new FFP LHT? Different animal than the sfp. Also the AMG at 28 ounces is a choice too. It holds zero and tracks.

As mentioned the big Razors are heavy but the weight is up to the end user. Some of the scopes talked about here are around 39 ounces so not light weight by any means.

I haven't owned a FFP LHT but from what I understand the guts are the same as the SFP LHT. They are nice scopes don't get me wrong but I'm just not convinced about the durability. The weight loss has to come from somewhere.

The AMG is a nice scope for sure. If they come out will a 4-20 ish version I could see owning one. The 6-24 is a little more power on the bottom then I like in a hunting scope. But I do wish they would expand that line. A 4-20 30mm tube AMG around 26 ounces would be a VERY nice hunting scope.

 

[floyd kittrell]

ATACR

 

[redchinviking]

I own Swsrovski scopes and multiple binoculars. Although the glass is great, their tracking leaves a lot to be desired.

Vortex might be okay in some cases, however, durability is no where near what I'm looking for.

I'm not looking at $3000 scopes because I want to save money or I'm looking for best bang for the buck.

Although they are heavy, I'm pretty set on a Nightforce. Pretty much leaning ATACR due to glass quality, eye box and parallax. NX8 interests me, as it is lighter, however, eye box and finicky parallax keep me away. NXS seems like a viable option, however, glass is 2 steps down and almost the same weight as the ATACR.

Still undecided on SFP vs FFP. See benefits of each for sure.

You pretty much nailed it. The NF line Atacr is of course, of the best for low level light and the highest level of quality for options (crisp clicks, tracking, durability, parallax, zero stop, and eye box). Although I'm waiting for them figure out a turret lock. Come on NF!
If weight climbs higher on your list for a mountain gun the nx8 comes in a close second to the 42mm atacr. I hunt high elevation hunts often and atacr 56 has been left at home. Eye box on nx8 does not bother me, but yes tighter.
Mark V is next for best bang for the buck in the upper class and I'm pretty dang happy with it.

IMHO Ffp only really matters if your holding/ranging shots in the reticle often…or intend to.

Not analysis paralysis…analysis bliss Scope shopping is fun. Eat it up! Enjoy the research!

 

[Shawn Carverelli]

My rifle builder has a 1/2 MOA guarantee so I expect the rifle to be extremely accurate, especially with hand loads.

Would I feel handicapped with 16x at 1000 yards?

what will you be shooting @ 1000 yards? A 10" kill zone on a big bull elk or prairie dog posing as a bowling pin giving you the

 

[BoomFlop]

I'm not sure I will ever take a shot at an animal at 1000 yards, however, I want the system capable. I would expect my shots to be 600-700 on antelope, deer and elk. I would like to become skilled enough for those animals out to 1000 yards and be able to aim accurately to make a clean kill.

 

[gilk1]

If you want to get good at shooting LR, get 223 (75gr bthp) and a fixed 10x and practice shooting 6-700yds. Shoot a lot, miss a lot, learn a lot.

No use shooting out the barrel in your overbore 7mm.

 

[gilk1]

If you want to get good at shooting LR, get 223 (75gr bthp) and a fixed 10x and practice shooting 6-700yds. Shoot a lot, miss a lot, learn a lot.

No use shooting out the barrel in your overbore 7mm.

 

[Trooper1]

I have the ATACR 4-16x50 SFP on my 280 Ackley. The 4-20x50 FFP is also an excellent optic. I chose the 4-16 SFP, as my personal long distance limit is less than 600 yards. I prefer the SFP for hunting, and was Concerned with loosing the crosshairs in timber as you stated. Consider how much shooting you realistically will be doing at 1000 yards. Do you really need that much optic? For a hunting scope, I think either of your two choices would be more than sufficient.

 

[GREATSCOTT!]

All of my hunting scope choices are based on:
- Durability
- Twilight capability
- Tracking
- Low weight

Scopes that have checked all those boxes under $3k:
- Vortex Razor AMG
- Zeiss V4 6-24x50
- Zeiss V6 5-30x50
- NF NX8 4-32 SFP

The AMG has not underperformed in any situation. All are situated in Spuhr rings, and have been heavily abused across the country. There are no durability issues with three of them on magnums so far. The only thing I might disagree with is its FFP and they are a little light on elevation range for ELR cartridges.

Don't be pizzed: the Zeiss are my favorite scope to look through whether I'm banging steel during the day or dropping big bucks in the deepest twilight hours. They are just brighter than the rest of the listed above. I don't know how they did it, but their brighter. They have flawless tracking, they're light, and they have taken as much a beating as the AMGs have. I'm a self-aware scope snob, and the Zeiss are my favorite hunting rifle. With both Zeiss models, at 16x, I can still see my reticle and object shapes, including antlers within the last 3 minutes of twilight. Only issue is with the crippled elevation adjustment range of the V6 5-30 (60 moa); however, inside 1200 yards that scope will lob it in with pinpoint accuracy. Not an issue with the V4 6-24 with 80 moa of gain.

The NX8 SFP is great in almost all areas with the exception in twight conditions. Anything over 16x in the last 10 minutes of light is unusable to my eye. The last 5 minutes of light I cannot see anything with discernment. Regarding the eyebox, I've never understood this complaint. First, if diligence is used correctly setting up the diopter to your eye, the eyebox is not a realistic issue. Second, if the shooter is firing at targets requiring over 25x, then great care in their setup behind the scope for the shot is required anyways.

 

[StanleyActual]

@nksmfamjp the scopes you mentioned along with many others would probably be perfectly fine. However, since I am building my dream rifle, I want to get the best I can reasonably get. I am looking for great glass, forgiving eye box and reliability in both tracking as well as ruggedness. I haven't ruled out the NX8 line, however, I'm concerned with the many complains on the eye box.

I have considered the ZCO, March and some others. They however, are slightly more than I feel I need/want to spend.

The Leupold Mark 5 was on my short list as well. I am not sure on FFP and have read about some issues of loss of zero.

Thanks!

Not sure your budget but theres a used ZCO 4-20 on Snipers Hide rn for $3300. That's the best price I've seen on one and they're worth every penny. Head a shoulders above any optic I've ever run from NXS to ATACR's, Khales etc. I was in the same dilemma and couldn't decide between a Mk5, NX8 or an ATACR so decided to splurge and go ZCO and glad I did. I run a ZCO 5-27 on my 7RM now

Optics - ZCO 4-20 MPCT2

ZCO 4-20 MPCT2 - $3300. Super clean, excellent condition. Comes with original box and all goodies that came with it new. Price is firm (low ball offers will be ignored) and includes shipping to the CONUS. Paypal FF or add 4% for fees. No trades please.

www.snipershide.com

NF NXS 3-15's on everything else but NF are heavy so I'll be swapping them out for the Leupold Mk5's 3.6-18x44's on my hunting rifles.

If going NF, I'd probably opt for the NF ATACR 4-16x44. Saves you a little weight with the smaller objective lens and it's plenty mag for what you're wanting to do

 

[ECHOLS28]

NX8 eye box worked just fine today @575yd