Nightforce NX8 vs ATACR

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MartyK2500

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I am just looking for discussion and opinions with people who own/owned both of these riflescopes.

Myself actually own 1 of each.

NX8 4-32x50mm tremor3 reticle, on a 26’’ braked .308 rifle
ATACR 5-25x56mm MIL-R reticle, on a 26’’ braked 6.5 rifle

I am having an honest to god hard time seeing clearer in my ATACR than I am with my NX8.
I don’t crank zoom past 24 on the NX8 btw, as the eyebox gets tight on max mag.

Loving these tremor3 wind dots so much, I am actually considering trading my ATACR for another NX8.
Just wished they had went with a 56mm objective on the NX8.
I do also enjoy that the eye piece doesn’t turn with magnification on the NX8.

What do you guys think, is the ATACR that much better or are these 2 really in a tight race?
 
I'm curious to hear comparisons as I've just picked up a 2.5-20 NX8 with Mil-XT. I'll be comparing it to my Leupy Mk5 5-25s and Bushy XRS2s but sadly, no Atacr to compare it to.
 
In my experience there is no comparison in glass between the NX8 and the Atacr although I agree the rotating eyepiece would be the only negative I'd give the Atacr.

Tighter eyebox and fine focus on the NX8 but it certainly costs less $$.

@rugbydave i think you'll find the MK5 has much nicer glass.
 
SJAR
Glass is a very subjective debate.
But I have spent 1500+ rounds through my ATACR and 150 through my NX8.
In my personal mk1 eyeball, the NX8 doesn’t give much to the ATACR.

It may be glass it may be objective size, but on a cloudy day the ATACR will have a definite edge, on a sunny day not so much.
On the NX8, eyebox is only tight pass 24x, on 24 or under its just like the 5-22x50 NXS i used to own.

So I don’t know how to feel about these.
I’m either very impressed with the NX8 for it’s top performance at low price point, or either unimpressed with the minor performance gain the ATACR has for its much higher price point.

This of course, is all personal opinion and not fact!
 
SJAR said:
In my experience there is no comparison in glass between the NX8 and the Atacr although I agree the rotating eyepiece would be the only negative I'd give the Atacr.

Tighter eyebox and fine focus on the NX8 but it certainly costs less $$.

@rugbydave i think you'll find the MK5 has much nicer glass.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm quite curious to compare them side by side.
 
Now having owned all the above mentioned optics, Nightforce NX8 4-32x50, ATACR 5-25x56 and the Leupold Mark 5HD 5-25x56 I believe I can give some insight into this comparison. The NX8 to me is a great cross over optic. The glass is quite good and the controls are typical Nightforce. The elevation I find to not be as tactile as the ATACR. The only areas I find the NX8 lacks is in the very picky parallax and what can be a tight eye box, if the optic is not set up properly. The above statement of the NX8 being an 4-24 power optic or even a 26 power max optic is very true. I find that after 26 is when the image becomes quite dark/degraded when not in perfect conditions and that eye box shrinks considerably. For me the NX8 is at the right price point for its features. Now the NX8 vs ATACR is a different animal. I found the atacr to be quite easier to get behind at higher power as well as the controls to be much more tactile. The glass on the ATACR is quite good too but not leaps and bounds better then the NX8. The biggest difference to me between those two scopes is the forgiving parallax and nicer eye box on the ATACR. Now the Leupold Mark 5hd fits somewhere between the two I believe. The parallax is easier to set then the NX8 but not as easy as the ATACR. The glass I found to be better then the NX8 but not quite as crisp as the ATACR. Where the Leupold shines for me is in the weight and the locking elevation turret. I found this scope to be awesome for sighting in and confidence inspiring knowing that elevation won’t get bumped. The eye box on the Leupold I found to get a little tight past 22 power and the field of view at high mag to not be anything to write home about. I find the Mark 5HD competes more with the ATACR then with the NX8. But the size and weight with the illumination on the NX8 are why it is still on my rifles.
 
You are right,
Looking at my back yard, there is a DEFINITE parallax tolorance between the NX8 and the ATACR.

NX8 has a tight spot for parallax (bobing my head around the reticle, not optical clarity), the ATACR reticle doesn't even move much even when the image is blurry.

This was a good call thanks.
 
I have 4-32 NX8, 5-25 ATACR, and 7-35 ATACR all in Tremor 3, and each scope has a little different character.

I quite like the NX8, it is solid for the price point: Agreed on the tighter eyebox and parallax, and I'll add that the edge distortion is notable. You also lose travel, it only has 27mil of usable travel, where the ATACRs are closer to 32.

What I find with the 5-25 ATACR is that it is amazingly easy to see mirage with: it has insane depth of field. If you are seeing blur over a hot barrel, mirage baffle was more noticeable with this scope than any other.

Then the 7-35 which feels much closer to the NX8 from a mirage standpoint, has less depth of field than the 5-25, but notably better resolution than the NX8. Put them side-by-side and the ATACR really does shine.
 
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