onetwentyish
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- East Central AB (AKA Northern Texas)
This. If you can squeeze it in, DO IT.
1-4 Scopes, What does everyone use? Good, bad, and ugly
- Thread starter z71camaro
- Start date
This. If you can squeeze it in, DO IT.
mebiuspower
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Morontario
The ones for sale on EE are around ~$1900.
"Good, bad, and ugly", you ask...
Good, I don't know yet. I cheaped out and bought bad and ugly.
I bought a HiLux 1-4 in May 2013.
I broke the HiLux in June 2013. No I didn't, but the o-ring sealing the ocular lens popped out, causing a fog.
Got a warrantee. Same problem a few months later, same seal, same fog.
Got a warrantee.
Currently, no fog, but... I can adjust 2moa with a result of 20moa. Doesn't always happen, just when it wants to piss me off.
It's on a gun with a 2 stage trigger. When trigger resets you can watch the reticle wiggle, like a hula doll.
1x is closer to 1.5x.
Can anyone confirm the Votex PST 1-4, is a true 1x?
Good, I don't know yet. I cheaped out and bought bad and ugly.
I bought a HiLux 1-4 in May 2013.
I broke the HiLux in June 2013. No I didn't, but the o-ring sealing the ocular lens popped out, causing a fog.
Got a warrantee. Same problem a few months later, same seal, same fog.
Got a warrantee.
Currently, no fog, but... I can adjust 2moa with a result of 20moa. Doesn't always happen, just when it wants to piss me off.
It's on a gun with a 2 stage trigger. When trigger resets you can watch the reticle wiggle, like a hula doll.
1x is closer to 1.5x.
Can anyone confirm the Votex PST 1-4, is a true 1x?
mebiuspower
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Morontario
It weights just as much as my NF 1-4x on Larue mount. When you compare weights remember to add the weight of the scope mount.
- Location
- Ottawa, ON
Trijicon TR24G. Love it.
onetwentyish
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- East Central AB (AKA Northern Texas)
I picked up my Elcan Specter DR 1-4x for $1566 shipped and insured. Lightly worn with only a few marks.
Elcan Specter DR. Won 3gun match first time using it. Super duper high quality glass and daylight red dot.
Drool....Elcan are the bomb.
Very nice set up.
Cheers!!
CaptainKellog
Regular
- Location
- Calgary, Alberta
I ended up getting a Mueller Speedshot 1-4x scope for about $220, and after getting frustrated with a cheap set of scope rings (would have needed lapping to fit properly), I bought a Leupold IMS Mark 2 one-piece mount for $110. The Mueller is great and has a daylight visible red dot that does not go fuzzy for people with astigmatism, as it is an actual etched black dot that gets lit up, not like a conventional red dot. This also means if the battery dies, you still have a dot to use. Eye relief is decent, quality seems very good, and the glass is very good. The only negatives are that the zoom ring and illumination knob are very tight to turn, and the reticle is just an etched dot, so no BDC or crosshairs to help with ranging.
Now having said that, I have had the opportunity to look through some high end scopes, and you can definitely see the difference in visual quality between an entry level scope and a high end scope. The sharpness, clarity, brightness, and lack of the black scope ring are amazing on the Swarovski Z6i for instance.
Based on what I've looked through, here is how I'd rank my favourite scopes for each budget:
Entry level: (sub-$500)
Mueller Speed Shot
Nikon M223 (not illuminated)
Burris Tac30
Bushnell AR Optics
Vortex PST
Leupold VX-R Patrol
Mid range: (around $1000)
Trijicon TR24G
Meopta K Dot
Leupold VX-6
Money no object: ($2000 plus)
S&B Short Dot
Swarovski Z6i
Elcan Specter DR
This list is by no means comprehensive, just my opinion of ones I've been able to look through. I've never gotten to play with anything by Nightforce, Kahles, IOR, US Optics, etc, but those are all elite level optics companies that would be worth a look as well. As others have mentioned, people tend to say the Elcan Specter DR is too heavy, but compare it's weight against a Swarovski Z6i and a decent one-piece mount. They will weigh almost exactly the same. Then compare it to say a Vortex Razor HD Gen 2 and one-piece mount, and the Elcan is actually LIGHTER!
Now having said that, I have had the opportunity to look through some high end scopes, and you can definitely see the difference in visual quality between an entry level scope and a high end scope. The sharpness, clarity, brightness, and lack of the black scope ring are amazing on the Swarovski Z6i for instance.
Based on what I've looked through, here is how I'd rank my favourite scopes for each budget:
Entry level: (sub-$500)
Mueller Speed Shot
Nikon M223 (not illuminated)
Burris Tac30
Bushnell AR Optics
Vortex PST
Leupold VX-R Patrol
Mid range: (around $1000)
Trijicon TR24G
Meopta K Dot
Leupold VX-6
Money no object: ($2000 plus)
S&B Short Dot
Swarovski Z6i
Elcan Specter DR
This list is by no means comprehensive, just my opinion of ones I've been able to look through. I've never gotten to play with anything by Nightforce, Kahles, IOR, US Optics, etc, but those are all elite level optics companies that would be worth a look as well. As others have mentioned, people tend to say the Elcan Specter DR is too heavy, but compare it's weight against a Swarovski Z6i and a decent one-piece mount. They will weigh almost exactly the same. Then compare it to say a Vortex Razor HD Gen 2 and one-piece mount, and the Elcan is actually LIGHTER!
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Iv'e owned the ELCAN Specter DR 1-4x, excellent scope and the best glass around, now I am using the ACOG TA31CH 4x (no 1x) which I personally like better for Service Rifle.
The glass is also very high quality but the ELCAN glass has a small slight edge and better eye relief. The ACOG for myself is better for precision at longer distances with the cross-hair reticle.
Both have similar BDC and are calibrated for 62gr, either way you cant go wrong! If you really want the 1-4x feature then go for the ELCAN.
Down the road I can always add a red dot on top of my ACOG then its in the same price range as the ELCAN.
The glass is also very high quality but the ELCAN glass has a small slight edge and better eye relief. The ACOG for myself is better for precision at longer distances with the cross-hair reticle.
Both have similar BDC and are calibrated for 62gr, either way you cant go wrong! If you really want the 1-4x feature then go for the ELCAN.
Down the road I can always add a red dot on top of my ACOG then its in the same price range as the ELCAN.
onetwentyish
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- East Central AB (AKA Northern Texas)
So what did you have to do to get it running again? I tried it easter of '13 and it would jam like crazy.
CaptainKellog
Regular
- Location
- Calgary, Alberta
This has actually ended up being a very nice informative thread with lots of input by people who have actually used these scopes. There is a similar one over at AR15.com if you have a lot of free time to do some reading. http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_3_18/421244_.html
I think it would be cool to do a similar thread each for Iron Sights, Red Dots, Fixed-power Optics, and High Magnification scopes! (Or maybe there already is in the Optics forum, I haven't looked)
I think it would be cool to do a similar thread each for Iron Sights, Red Dots, Fixed-power Optics, and High Magnification scopes! (Or maybe there already is in the Optics forum, I haven't looked)
That sucks. I've got a High-Lux 1-4x that I've been using for the last 2 years at classes and 3 gun with no issues.
I have two of them and I actually like them a fair amount. Hopefully they hold up. Also a bit strange from the other post that the reticle was bouncing around considering it's etched onto the glass not a wire reticle. I've only ever seen wire reticles bounce around when broken.
