Glass for 1200m recommendations?

M

Markit

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So I think I have narrowed down my choice to two optics for my 10TR custom build that I plan on using to a max of 1200m.

I have been looking for a year and seeing as how this next scope will be the one of the more expensive I have purchased I have been taking my time.

I have Bushnell Tactical Elite, Vortex and older Bauch and Lomb scopes on other accurate rifles but wanted to try something different for this build.

The two optics I have narrowed it down to are:

Leupold VX-3i LRP 4.5-14X50 and the Nightforce SHV 4-14x56 MOAR to which I will add an external larger custom target turret if I go that route.

While neither of these are that expensive when it comes to mid to long range glass, I am looking for durability and repeatability at a reasonable price point.

Both are FFP, come with MOA reticle and MOA turrets which is what I am used to for ranging and shooting, and both have good internal elevation (110 MOA for Leupold and 100 MOA for the nightforce) and the glass on both seems quite comparable, certainly much better than anything I own or have owned in the past.

I have never shot with either but from what I have seen on the Web both track well and pass the box test with users vouching for their durability.

The price is only about $100 difference with the Nighforce being the more expensive, then add $100 or so for the custom turret.

The only downside I see is the weight and length of the nighforce which is quite a bit heavier and longer.

Anyone with first hand trigger time behind both optics able to recommend one over the other?

Many thanks in advance,

Markit.
 
Your eyes must be better then mine. I need something higher end with about 30x-40x to get out there accurately. Some guys do it I guess but not me.
 
I don't think the NF 4-14x56 is FFP, I'm pretty sure only the 4-14x50 F1 is FFP. The F1 is a nice scope, I had one. Good glass, solid, held zero, nice turrets (albeit 5 mils/turn) and tracked perfectly. I have a review up here somewhere on the version with the Mil-R reticle. I shot it to 1000 yards routinely and occasionally out to a bit past 1200. I replaced it with a Bushnell HDMR2 as that had a few features that I realized I wanted for PRS matches. 14x will get you to 1200 yards, my current scopes go to 21x and it's pretty rare that I shoot above 16x. That being said, it never hurts to have some extra mag for when you want it.
 
I havent looked through either scope but wouldnt the reticle on a FFP scope be a little too large at maximum power and at your maximum desired range?
 
AP said:
I havent looked through either scope but wouldnt the reticle on a FFP scope be a little too large at maximum power and at your maximum desired range?
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They usually (FFP) take that into account and the reticle is designed to be used at higher mag. I have a 4-20 SFP and the center dot is .25moa at 100m on max. Buddy I shoot with has a 5-30 FFP and his center dot is .125moa at 100m on max.
Where the FFP become useless is lower mag as the reticle disappears...so a 5-30 is really only useable from maybe 10x or 12x up to 30x. I really don't know why they use such a large range... it's much more expensive to make a 6x range scope then a 3x range, so a 10x-30x FFP which would be useable from min to max makes sense. A 5-30 where the scope isn't useable from 5x-10x doesn't make sense to me.
And yes, if they made the FFP reticle visible at 5x, it would be so massive (thick) at 30x it would be unusable.
I still don't get the FFP fad to be honest, it does ranging with the reticle a wee bit more accurately then SFP scopes where you have to be at a certain power to range because you could be off by a minute or 2 if the power is not exactly on. Not such an issue now as SFP pretty much have the reticle set for ranging at max power these days. Was trickier years ago on a 5-15 where it had to be set right on 10x to be MOA/MIL or you had to do much more head math.
Anyway, if you are shooting at known long range target distances (700,800,900,1000, etc) you are better off with SFP. Best investment is Strelok+ or some other ballistic app regardless of scope choice. Physics don't lie, or guess, or forget #### lol. On the weekend we were shooting 700, 800, & 1000 and it was pretty windy. We were fine zeroed at 700, 800 doping, at 1000 we were missing our first few shots. Quick check on the phone app and the wind was blowing bullets twice as far to the right from 800-1000 as we were seeing from 0-800. Your brain says from 0 to 800 is 4moa windage, how can 200m (800-1000) be an additional 8moa...trust in the phone.
 
Hitzy said:
They usually (FFP) take that into account and the reticle is designed to be used at higher mag. I have a 4-20 SFP and the center dot is .25moa at 100m on max. Buddy I shoot with has a 5-30 FFP and his center dot is .125moa at 100m on max.
Where the FFP become useless is lower mag as the reticle disappears...so a 5-30 is really only useable from maybe 10x or 12x up to 30x. I really don't know why they use such a large range... it's much more expensive to make a 6x range scope then a 3x range, so a 10x-30x FFP which would be useable from min to max makes sense. A 5-30 where the scope isn't useable from 5x-10x doesn't make sense to me.
And yes, if they made the FFP reticle visible at 5x, it would be so massive (thick) at 30x it would be unusable.
I still don't get the FFP fad to be honest, it does ranging with the reticle a wee bit more accurately then SFP scopes where you have to be at a certain power to range because you could be off by a minute or 2 if the power is not exactly on. Not such an issue now as SFP pretty much have the reticle set for ranging at max power these days. Was trickier years ago on a 5-15 where it had to be set right on 10x to be MOA/MIL or you had to do much more head math.
Anyway, if you are shooting at known long range target distances (700,800,900,1000, etc) you are better off with SFP. Best investment is Strelok+ or some other ballistic app regardless of scope choice. Physics don't lie, or guess, or forget #### lol. On the weekend we were shooting 700, 800, & 1000 and it was pretty windy. We were fine zeroed at 700, 800 doping, at 1000 we were missing our first few shots. Quick check on the phone app and the wind was blowing bullets twice as far to the right from 800-1000 as we were seeing from 0-800. Your brain says from 0 to 800 is 4moa windage, how can 200m (800-1000) be an additional 8moa...trust in the phone.
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The added low mag range on FFP scopes increases your field of view when scanning for landmarks to get on target. Comes in handy sometimes. FFP also makes it possible to hold for both wind and elevation when shooting multiple targets at different ranges irrespective of what magnification you're at. 0.2 mils on the reticle is always 0.2 mils, not just at max mag. It's just a faster system for targets at multiple distances/ukd.
 
Thanks all for the input.

Was hoping someone had time behind both tubes.

Love the demand to “justify”. ��

Fricken hate it when people ask why someone else has something or does something.

Nosey left leaning .......
 
I have the nightforce shv ffp. It lives on my 300wsm for hunting season and my 223 right now for dirt rats. I have shot out to 1300 yards on steel with my 300wsm with no difficulty seeing the target or making corrections. I have used the scope to call shots for other shooters at distances over 1800m where i couldn't see the hits with my 6-24 vortex pst. The glass is nice and clear and that helps eliminate eye strain on prolonged shoots like with my 223.

I have a friend that has a leupold vx3 and for a hunting rig i think its a great scope but for the 1000 yard plus and tactical shooting I prefer the Nightforce, i might be bias having shot alot of nxs' and i own a beast. If you can handle both, take them outside the store and spot license plates or signs to compare clarity. I would rather have perfect glass over zoom ratio.

Another option in the Nightforce is the 5-20 sfp, it is a great scope and cheaper than the 4-14 ffp. I like the magnification on it but find the ffp much better for dirt rats.
 
Magmalis said:
I have the nightforce shv ffp. It lives on my 300wsm for hunting season and my 223 right now for dirt rats. I have shot out to 1300 yards on steel with my 300wsm with no difficulty seeing the target or making corrections. I have used the scope to call shots for other shooters at distances over 1800m where i couldn't see the hits with my 6-24 vortex pst. The glass is nice and clear and that helps eliminate eye strain on prolonged shoots like with my 223.

I have a friend that has a leupold vx3 and for a hunting rig i think its a great scope but for the 1000 yard plus and tactical shooting I prefer the Nightforce, i might be bias having shot alot of nxs' and i own a beast. If you can handle both, take them outside the store and spot license plates or signs to compare clarity. I would rather have perfect glass over zoom ratio.

Another option in the Nightforce is the 5-20 sfp, it is a great scope and cheaper than the 4-14 ffp. I like the magnification on it but find the ffp much better for dirt rats.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this.

I think this settles it for me and nightforce it is.
 
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