Ordered a bren 2 and thinking of jumping on the lpvo bandwagon. I think I am want either 1-8 or 1-10. I plan on the using the rifle for some benchrest shooting and maybe the odd 3 gun competition. I am willing to spend maybe up to 2500 but if something is cheaper than that and is quality I am open to that too. Any suggestions are welcome.
LPVO advice
- Thread starter mrsmitty
- Start date
I’ve run the gamut of low to high priced LPVOs and my favorite bang for the buck is the Vortex Strike Eagle 1-8. The 1-6 just doesn’t cut it, but the 1-8 is great value.
The other thing to keep in mind beyond price is reticle style, depending on your preferences.
The other thing to keep in mind beyond price is reticle style, depending on your preferences.
Reticles that work well for competition won't be ideal for bench rest and plinking, and vise versa. I just sold a 1-8 Strike eagle with the AR-BDC 3 reticle and picked up a Burris RT-6, cuz I prefer the Ballistic 5X reticle to the AR-BDC3. That and I found that I didn't really need 8 power for our matches, and the more finnicky eye relief that comes with higher magnification made it more of a hinderance than a benefit. Again, the opposite would be true for bench shooting. Or if you matches involve 300+m shots, then having that extra magnification would be invaluable.
I am in the same position - want an LPVO for a Bren 2. My preference is for a FFP scope.
I have thought about the Eotech 1-10x and it seems to get good reviews and punches above its weight, the only negative I keep hearing is that the doughnut of death circle is too large to be useful at 1X.
The Primary Arms PLX Compact 1-8x was recommended to me recently and it seems awesome, VERY impressive at 1x and I prefer the reticle over the Eotech, it is also crazy light for LPVOs in this range. The only downside on some reviews is that the centre dot / horseshoe is not bright enough for the brightest days.
I have a Trijicon 1-8X Accupower and it is my favourite LPVO to date but it is heavy.
All these optics are around the same price point ($2K).
The Vortex Razor 1-10x is by far the most pricey option and I'm not sure if it is worth the extra over the other options (it might be).
As an outside bet the Razor 1-6x gen 2 is supposed to be awesome with great 1x performance, a genuine daylight bright red dot and the gen 2 is a little slimmer than its predecessor. It is SFP though and there was someone on another similar thread I had posted recently who had a PLX Compact and a Razor, in the end they sold the Razor and got another PLX Compact.
I have thought about the Eotech 1-10x and it seems to get good reviews and punches above its weight, the only negative I keep hearing is that the doughnut of death circle is too large to be useful at 1X.
The Primary Arms PLX Compact 1-8x was recommended to me recently and it seems awesome, VERY impressive at 1x and I prefer the reticle over the Eotech, it is also crazy light for LPVOs in this range. The only downside on some reviews is that the centre dot / horseshoe is not bright enough for the brightest days.
I have a Trijicon 1-8X Accupower and it is my favourite LPVO to date but it is heavy.
All these optics are around the same price point ($2K).
The Vortex Razor 1-10x is by far the most pricey option and I'm not sure if it is worth the extra over the other options (it might be).
As an outside bet the Razor 1-6x gen 2 is supposed to be awesome with great 1x performance, a genuine daylight bright red dot and the gen 2 is a little slimmer than its predecessor. It is SFP though and there was someone on another similar thread I had posted recently who had a PLX Compact and a Razor, in the end they sold the Razor and got another PLX Compact.
Benchrest and 3-gun couldn't really be much more diametrically opposed, haha. I'm assuming you mean more like bench shooting, shooting groups at 100 kinda stuff? I have a couple LPVOs (Razor G3 1-10 and Bushy Elite 1-85SMRS) and I've looked through few different ones (Strike Eagle 1-6, some Leupy 1-4). It all kinda depends on which side of things you want to compromise most, bench shooting or speed (3-gun) shooting. Your best compromise is gonna be a higher mag LPVO (1-8/10) as the extra mag will help you shoot tighter groups at 100 but you have to pay for that glass to be clear at max mag. I can't speak to the Vudu 1-10 that some guys really like but the Razor 1-10 is noticeably clearer at 10x than the SMRS is at 8.5 which is itself clearer than the Strike Eagle at 6x and so on.
That higher mag also lets you stretch out your carbine quite a ways if you have access to longer range spots. I've shot the carbine with the SMRS on out to 625 yds reliably and the was shooting the Razor 1-10 at a target (2/3 IPSC) at 830 yards the other day standing off a tripod and hitting it. The high mag LPVOs really do let you stretch out the reach of a carbine, especially with an 18.5" barrel and heavier match ammo.
Realistically, most of the higher end 1-8/10 (NF NX8, Atacr, Vudu, Razor) should allow you to shoot groups about as tight as the rifle can(maybe 1.5 moa with match ammo?) at 100 so long as you tailor the target to the reticle. The Razor is also definitely bright enough to shoot it like a red dot at 1x in even the brightest daylight. That being said I've seen good reviews on the Vudu and I think it's more in line with your stated budget.
That higher mag also lets you stretch out your carbine quite a ways if you have access to longer range spots. I've shot the carbine with the SMRS on out to 625 yds reliably and the was shooting the Razor 1-10 at a target (2/3 IPSC) at 830 yards the other day standing off a tripod and hitting it. The high mag LPVOs really do let you stretch out the reach of a carbine, especially with an 18.5" barrel and heavier match ammo.
Realistically, most of the higher end 1-8/10 (NF NX8, Atacr, Vudu, Razor) should allow you to shoot groups about as tight as the rifle can(maybe 1.5 moa with match ammo?) at 100 so long as you tailor the target to the reticle. The Razor is also definitely bright enough to shoot it like a red dot at 1x in even the brightest daylight. That being said I've seen good reviews on the Vudu and I think it's more in line with your stated budget.
As price goes down, you definitly start making compromises, but i knew the shortcomings beforehand, so i'm ok with it
I'm not worried about any Vortex glass from the PST line up. But I avoid the bottom end of every optics company. The gen 3 razors are legitimate alpha class optics.
A good buddy's has a gen 3 1-10 razor on a X95 and a 1-8 Accupower on a different scary gun. The Accupower was nice, but the Razor is really darn nice. It's the closest to a good red dot that I've seen so far at 1x, and the glass is really good.
I've had good luck with mid-range Athlon and Delta optics, they're worth considering if you don't mind Chinese products.
The Apex 1-10 Edge has my attention right now. Very curious to hear how it compares to the Vudu etc. I'm probably gonna wish I had gotten in on that pre-order, my Rival has been a pleasant surprise.
A good buddy's has a gen 3 1-10 razor on a X95 and a 1-8 Accupower on a different scary gun. The Accupower was nice, but the Razor is really darn nice. It's the closest to a good red dot that I've seen so far at 1x, and the glass is really good.
I've had good luck with mid-range Athlon and Delta optics, they're worth considering if you don't mind Chinese products.
The Apex 1-10 Edge has my attention right now. Very curious to hear how it compares to the Vudu etc. I'm probably gonna wish I had gotten in on that pre-order, my Rival has been a pleasant surprise.
I am kinda leaning towards the primary arms plx compact 1-8, apex edge 1-10, vortex razor gen 2 hd 1-6. I also considered a nightforce nx8 1-8 since I have a soft spot for nightforce but the reviews of it are pretty bad.
I wouldn't want a LPVO for benchrest and weight is a concern for piston guns if intended to use in comps, ar15 is dominant in the sports for a good reason. So here are my choices:
Under 2500:
SAI 1-6
PLXc 1-8
Under 3000:
K16i
Best of the Best:
March shorty 1-10 *there should be a gen 2 at the end of this year and might be the only viable choice for benchrest due to adjustable parallax
Under 2500:
SAI 1-6
PLXc 1-8
Under 3000:
K16i
Best of the Best:
March shorty 1-10 *there should be a gen 2 at the end of this year and might be the only viable choice for benchrest due to adjustable parallax
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I hunt only and just grabbed a 20” barrel 308 I wanted to do lpvo set up on and research got me to a Trijicon TR25 1-6 with German #4 green dot and am happy so far. Was squeaking out .6” ctc groups at 100 yards prone on a bipod and ammo testing day so it’s got the precision as the center is fairly fine, and then the heavy bars look to work for any speed work. In bright daylight the dot is a little above ambient so not super useful unless you go over an animal or darker target but as soon as things dim at early and late light the dot comes alive, the tritium they put in this is something else, two triangles in fiber optic window glow blue at night bright enough you'll never not know where your gun is in the tent etc. So I also killed a deer with it at about 175 and loved it. I remember when I got on the deer that it just looked incredible and could pick the hair I wanted...took the heart out as if by instinct. The glass quality is outstanding at any magnification. It’s downsides appear to just be if you really want super bright dot in peak daylight and it doesn’t have elevation solutions.
However it appears to have same turrets as the 2.5-10 or 12 that Kenton spins up speed dial turrets for so I’ll be going that route and checking it’s tracking and rtz but Trijicon has a good rep here so should be solid. I like that the turret clicks take some effort, which means no dust cap hunting a possibility, and at 24 moa per rotation even with a 100 zero will still get the 308 and 168 eldm out past 750 which is way past where I’ll play on big game but could work out for range fun and coyotes.
Watch YouTube’s on the TR25, some great ones out there, its at top of class for image, eyebox, and if features/reticles work for you then add to list. Some review vids with mildot duplex and some with the German reticle also. I’m familiar with mildot duplex in 3-9 accupoints and love it and regular duplex but so far I’m thrilled with this scope and the German reticle in it. This is looking like the best option for my hunting from muzzle to 500 with possible camp defence. Appears the speed is covered and ability to do precision. And peak daylight is ideal conditions where the fine center won’t be a hinderance anyway. Peak hunting time the class clarity with that tritium adding in dot illumination is next level as the fine with illum is awesome. The long term downside is after 10 years the tritium may be weak and have to send in for new tritium? I can’t test the reticle at lowlight fiber optic input until that tritium quits, might still be enough fiber optic input for hunting illum needs, it’s amazing on the 3-9 accupoints as I have one with dead tritium (no glow at night) but the fiber optic illums the dot to 15 min past legal or before legal so it’s a non issue. I’m looking for something worry about and in reality I don’t think I’ll ever have an issue even after tritium dies.
and yeah, top of class seems to be those vortex razor gen 2 or whatevers, but most guys are throwing these on AR's and doing competition shooting or really into range work/defensive setup and want big bright dots or whatever....thankfully there's still some thought for hunting use also as it's an ideal magnification range from these modern lpvo's, and remember that when you have clarity of image then that's like adding magnification in terms of usefulness and extending your distances with confidence...6x across brands is not the same thing in the real world
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Mystic Precision
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Summerland, BC
Will be receiving my Athlon Helos BTR g2 1-10 next week.
For the money, performance of other scopes in this lineup have been performing really well for me and many others I compete with.
The 6-24X56 has become my goto...
Jerry
For the money, performance of other scopes in this lineup have been performing really well for me and many others I compete with.
The 6-24X56 has become my goto...
Jerry
