Nikon Buckmaster VS Leupold VX2

Bondo

Bondo

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Location
Richmond BC
Hello all,

I am a fairly new hunter, took 2 white tail last fall. I had originally purchased a Savage .270
It was not the smoothest rifle I have ever handled, and the mag kept falling out. It came with an absolutely horrendous Bushnell 3-9 x 40mm scope.

My good friend and mentor lent me his Ruger MKII with an older Tasco "I forget the model however it was 50mm"

I sold my Savage and it's scope went on my .22

I purchased an immaculate 20+ year old Stainless Ruger MKII from a great guy in Manitoba in .300 Win Mag ( like 10 rounds through it )

Now I need to scope it and I have read all I can on the forums and the 'Net.

Leupold is the King, I get that

The white Tail I took were at less than 100 yards, scope was on 3x power

I do want to hunt Elk, not really Moose

I do Notice the difference between a 40mm and 50mm scope as they were both taken very early in low light

I will be purchasing a 50mm scope. Most likely a 4-12x50mm

My Question :

Is the Leupold VX2 at 2.5-10x50mm worth the extra 200$ - 300$ over the Nikon Buckmaster/Monarch?

I do not care about click adjustments and extras/options. When I venture into the bush I want to be able to kill what I am hunting without advanced Mathematics. In BC most kills are under 200 yards so I dont need any fancy 600+ yard reticle and windage etc etc. We have too many damn trees ;)


I would love opinions from Nikon owners as well as Leupold.

When I buy something I only want to buy it once and will be a lifelong scope for me.

Thanks all,
 
I suspect the bushnell 40mm scope you compared the 50mm tasco to was an unfair comparison. For the most part I'd say a 40mm objective on a hunting scope is plenty - especially as you mentioned shots will likely be under 200yds and I find most time in hunting it rarely leaves low magnification. I have a vx2 leupold and find it to be an excellent hunting scope that you will be happy with for a lifetime of hunting. I find it lacks a little when I'm trying to punch tiny groups out on paper, but it is very good for hunting. I especially like the generous eye box and eye relief on them. I've only looked through a buddy's nikon prostaff and it also seemed to be a decent scope, but don't have much to offer beyond that.
 
Well I can give you my opinion based on experience. Firstly a 40mm will be sufficient for all your hunting needs. The differece between a cheapie and a quality scope is astounding and a 40mm Leupold or Nikon will probably be as good as the 50mm tasco and probably better.

Both nikon and leupold seem to build a pretty decent product. I have a few Leupolds but no Nikons. i do however have Nikon binocs.

Here is where I can tell you what the true difference is. Leupolds canadian warranty depot is Korth Industries located in Okotoks. I have sent them 2 binocs and 2 scopes in the past for both warranty and custom stuff. Turnaround about 2 weeks and great to deal with. When you call them the person you talk to is very good and you can actually talk to the person who works on your stuff.

Last spring my nikon scope leaked in one tube so i sent them to there warranty depot (cant remember where it even was). I sent them in may and they were not back for hunting season in August. I called and talked to gosh knows who. i was forced to buy a pair of redfield binocs for hunting season. When my nikons finally did come back they sent me a cheaper inferior model. When i called in after the 5th call finally got a rep and he said my model was discontinued so they replaced it with new ones. I said I was not very happy with the replacements and felt they were a lower quality model then my originals. He said i could upgrade for $75. I said listen closely and you will here what nikon binocs sound like when they hit the garbage can (I dug them out later and gave them to my 5 year old). Not impressed by nikon at all.
 
I have several of the nikon scopes from the Monarch down to the Pro Staff, now I'm not tough on my gear, I have always felt they are excellent value for the money. I have also always felt that VX 1, VX 2, were more expensive than they were worth. IMHO. FS
 
Bondo said:
Thanks for the Input guys, I had forgotten about the Lifetime Leupold warranty.

Something to think about
Click to expand...

My friend has often sent his Leupolds in for work.He had to send his VXII back 3 times in the last 2 years, twice they gave him a brand new scope. On the other hand I have never seen anyone so hard on stuff as this guy. If it can be broken he is sure to find a way to do it.
 
Just a quick clarification on the Nikon warranty. Lifetime warranty on all riflescopes and we have service centers in Vancouver, Toronto or Montreal.

For the OP, Buckmaster has been discontinued in favor of the new Prostaff 5 series. Only a couple of major changes. Everything is now a 4x eyebox and we've added zero-reset turrets to them. Still 92% light pass through in a great quality scope at a reasonable price.
 
Fassteel said:
I have several of the nikon scopes from the Monarch down to the Pro Staff, now I'm not tough on my gear, I have always felt they are excellent value for the money. I have also always felt that VX 1, VX 2, were more expensive than they were worth. IMHO. FS
Click to expand...

I had noticed the same thing. I'm wondering if they are worth the extra$$

That being said though, there must be a reason most every serious hunter I know has a leupold on their rifle ( the tasco was on a backup rifle )

When I buy something I buy it ONCE

I'm not rich, however I will pay more for something I won't have to replace
 
Nikon Travis M. said:
Just a quick clarification on the Nikon warranty. Lifetime warranty on all riflescopes and we have service centers in Vancouver, Toronto or Montreal.

For the OP, Buckmaster has been discontinued in favor of the new Prostaff 5 series. Only a couple of major changes. Everything is now a 4x eyebox and we've added zero-reset turrets to them. Still 92% light pass through in a great quality scope at a reasonable price.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the clarification Travis,

I am an amatuer photographer and have always used Nikon SLR and DLSR camera's. I love the Nikon lenses and know they are good optics.

Thats why they are in the running for the Scope, I know Nikon knows glass
 
Canuck525 said:
My friend has often sent his Leupolds in for work.He had to send his VXII back 3 times in the last 2 years, twice they gave him a brand new scope. On the other hand I have never seen anyone so hard on stuff as this guy. If it can be broken he is sure to find a way to do it.
Click to expand...

I'm not that rough on gear, however I am also not that gentle. It's a tool and will be used as one. Not babied and pampered, but not outright abused either
 
And thanks to all for the input on 40mm

There seems to be a large price premium on 50mm and if 40mm is sufficient that works for me. I'll also look into 40mm scopes

Cheers,
 
I am actually looking to pickup a new scope myself, i spent a good 2 hours looking at lebaron and sail the other night. As far as the glass goes I think the Nikon looked best (over the bushnell, redfield, leupold's i looked at) and the price point was excellent as well. I think I will be picking up the Nikon.
 
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