Vortex scopes - opinions

Pickles said:
I'm a Leupold guy through and through.

To be honest I've never looked through a Vortex, but...........I keep reading about these scopes ####ting the bed and the fact that people are happy that they exchange them over the counter.

I'd be happy if I never had to use the warranty.
Click to expand...

Yup...


1ShotKing said:
Here's the Vortex story as I see it. They are made in foreign countries, China, Korea, Japan, etc. The cost to produce there is lower than here in North America. That's one of the major reasons their prices are so attractive. Also, they pack their optics full of features that make also make them attractive to the consumer. Then their warranty is so attractive, and it is able to be offered due to their low cost of production. There are two ways to look at the warranty. Option A: Vortex trusts their product so well they are guaranteeing it for life. Issues will be few and far between, with little replacement. Option B: Vortex trusts their success/fail ratio enough that they are able to sell a product with this warranty knowing full well that scopes will fail but since they are selling enough at a certain profit margin they can afford to replace the product "no questions asked". IMO their stance is option B. I bought Leupold instead of Vortex. I knowingly paid more for a similar product, and it did have slightly less features. These features were not of great importance to me (illumination, zero stop) so it didn't impact my decision. This is my opinion, based on quite a bit of research. This is why my rifle wears a Mark 4 instead of a PST.
Click to expand...

100%...


Cpt.Flan said:
I had 2 Viper PST FFP. ( 4-16 and the 6-24 )

Both had problems. One the reticule was canting as I was turning the zoom ring. They other one did not track properly.

Both got returned and I sold the NEW ONES they sent me back.

I did not want to take another chance. Nothing pissed me off more then an expensive piece of equipment letting me down on a range trip...
Click to expand...

Exactly what happened to me...twice!!!


Moral of the story, never again! You might have better luck with a cheap scope from Canadian Tire, or maybe even your local flea market! Buy once, cry once. I know that it may be easy to say, but if you can't afford a good optic, save up a bit more and wait a bit longer...it will be well worth it. I made the Vortex mistake 3 times, as I always gave 'em the benefit of the doubt. Had a SPARC fail on me at the range, along with 2 Viper PSTs...the warranty covered the units. Sold all 3, saved up a bit more, and purchased a NightForce. Nuff said...
 
Last edited:
L
strider007 said:
Yup...




100%...




Exactly what happened to me...twice!!!


Moral of the story, never again! You might have better luck with a cheap scope from Canadian Tire, or maybe even your local flea market! Buy once, cry once. I know that it may be easy to say, but if you can't afford a good optic, save up a bit more and wait a bit longer...it will be well worth it. I made the Vortex mistake 3 times, as I always gave 'em the benefit of the doubt. Had a SPARC fail on me at the range, along with 2 Viper PSTs...the warranty covered the units. Sold all 3, saved up a bit more, and purchased a NightForce. Nuff said...
Click to expand...

No optic is 100% defect proof.
What would piss me off is if I spend $2000 on an optic and there are issues with the optic.
Yes, it does happen but lucky it did not happen to me.
 
I've had good luck with the three vortex vipers I have. two of them have been beaten fairly hard on hunting rifles over the last 3-4 years, with no problems so far.
 
DILLIGAF said:
More like failures, Nothing to do with buyers remorse....
Click to expand...

Are you more disappointed that you had a bad experience?
( sad that a $1000 scope didn't work?)

Or are you disappointed that you had to pay more?

I am very happy with my $1000 scope, it works perfectly.
Now the day it breaks I will exchange it and sell it for $900 and holy ####, I will have paid $100 for a scope that worked perfectly for 1year and counting.
 
3 bad experiences with Vortex. so you can say i'm disappointed.

Now I run a Specter Dr and a Sightron S3....

So I truly believe you gotta pay to play....
 
DILLIGAF said:
3 bad experiences with Vortex. so you can say i'm disappointed.

Now I run a Specter Dr and a Sightron S3....

So I truly believe you gotta pay to play....
Click to expand...

That is what they want you to believe.

I have great respect for quality items, but you have to look at more that face value.

Like I said before, vortex is a zero risk investment,

I can outfit three guns for the price of one S+B scope, and I can replace all of my optics should the unfortunate happen.... Until it does, they track, and are accurate for my needs.
My life does not depend on them...

Also, I have seen many many S+B and night force scopes break under real use, so my money will go toward something that presents little risk to me.
 
Daver_II said:
That is what they want you to believe.

I have great respect for quality items, but you have to look at more that face value.

Like I said before, vortex is a zero risk investment,

I can outfit three guns for the price of one S+B scope, and I can replace all of my optics should the unfortunate happen.... Until it does, they track, and are accurate for my needs.
My life does not depend on them...

Also, I have seen many many S+B and night force scopes break under real use, so my money will go toward something that presents little risk to me.
Click to expand...

Your life may not depend on it, but your hunt might and that's too much unnecessary risk for my tastes. Some of us use our scopes off the range.
 
Daver_II said:
That is what they want you to believe.

I have great respect for quality items, but you have to look at more that face value.

Like I said before, vortex is a zero risk investment,

I can outfit three guns for the price of one S+B scope, and I can replace all of my optics should the unfortunate happen.... Until it does, they track, and are accurate for my needs.
My life does not depend on them...

Also, I have seen many many S+B and night force scopes break under real use, so my money will go toward something that presents little risk to me.
Click to expand...


Hey man, whatever works for you is fine. It sounds like you have your game plan working for you, and that's great.

Me, on the other hand, I was getting tired of wondering if my Vortex optic was gonna' crap out on me while I was using it...whether it was while at the range/competition, or simply out hunting. Instead of the thought of my scope failing on me being the last one on my mind, it ranked pretty high up there along side my thoughts of how my outcome for that day was going to be. And the reason I always had that in mind is because it happened to me more than once...day's done. Sure, they have a great warranty...but the down time is brutal. 6 weeks for return shipment of my failed optic...twice! I gave them the benefit of the doubt more than once, and they definitely took care of me...their customer service was great. But after the third warranty claim, I began losing confidence in Vortex's products...that was enough for me.

I appreciate the fact that one can outfit 2 - 3 firearms with Vortex optics for the price of one NightForce or S&B, as you stated. However, I grew tired of waiting for my scope to return. What is the point of continuously owning a product that you have no faith in? At least that was, or should I say "IS" the case with me. I've moved away from the Vortex brand and their $1000 lifetime warranty. I am very pleased with my NightForce optics, and will continue to purchase their products until I see them no longer fit my personal uses. But until that day comes, I will look no further...

To each their own. Just my 2 cents...
 
Fair enough, I am not disagreeing with many of you.

I will report back when my scopes fail... So far. I have 2000 + rounds through them and no failure yet.
 
Ill be very honest with you.....Vortex is shyt!! I had 3 all broke on me,was soo pissed off i never even went for warranty on the last one,Will never EVER buy there product again. Now all my guns wear HD5,schmidt and bender and NF Will never have to worry about warranty work!!
 
strider007 said:
Brother, I'm happy for you...and I'm being serious! I wish that I had the same results with mine as you are having with yours. I hope they never give you any problems...
Click to expand...

Thank you. I hope for the best too.


Perhaps people should compare their optics at price point vs features.

A $1000 optic can't stand up to a $3000 optic... The same way a kia can get transport you with power windows... And so can an Audi..
 
OP here... thanks for all the varied responses and opinions! Exactly what I was looking for, some real-world experiences.
Like I said originally, I have lots of Leupold scopes. I think I'll continue to favour them for most of my hunting rifles.....but I did just buy a Swarovski for my next hunting/target rifle (coming), so I could experience something a step up. (?).
 
I've had Vortex scopes for about 2 yeas now, and about 1/3 of them had to be returned for canting reticles. When I zoom up, it would cant right, and vice versa. The PST line has been very good for me, the others not so much. My 2 cents.
 
popcan said:
OP here... thanks for all the varied responses and opinions! Exactly what I was looking for, some real-world experiences.
Like I said originally, I have lots of Leupold scopes. I think I'll continue to favour them for most of my hunting rifles.....but I did just buy a Swarovski for my next hunting/target rifle (coming), so I could experience something a step up. (?).
Click to expand...

Lol yea this thread brought on a life of its own.

Leupold fans vs vortex fans.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom