I'm trying to find options for a long range big game rifle that I also shoot steel with (currently comfortable at 600 on game and just started hitting steel at 1000+ last summer). Looking for the following:
FFP
3ish to at least 10x, prefer 12 or 15
Capped or locking windage
Reticle for holding wind at a minimum
MOA (I shoot and hunt with a group that all still uses MOA)
Adjustable parallax preferred
24 oz or so, lighter is better
~$1k
Scopes I know of that check most of these boxes:
-Bushnell LRHS - discontinued, hard to find (especially in 3-12 and especially especially in MOA).
-Leupold Mk5 3.6-18, on the upper end weight and outside price range
-Athlon Helos 2-12 - not sure about glass or tracking/reliability, as it's a $500 scope. I have an Ares that I've been generally happy with, but that's a couple steps up the line.
-Athlon Midas Tac 4-16 is MIL only
Honestly a Razor LHT or Leupold VX-5HD would check all my boxes if they were available in FFP.
I heard rumors of a FFP Razor LHT, but obviously nothing confirmed. Vortex tech guy said they have been getting lots of requests for such a thing but didn't spill any beans.
Guy I talked to at Leupold was pretty dismissive, his answer was that FFP was too expensive to produce at that price point. I realize it's a little bit apples and oranges but there are a ton of $500 to $1k FFP scopes coming from Athlon, Vortex, Bushnell, Burris, etc. Not sure what to make of that conversation.
My Ares 2.5-15 would be great if I could cap the windage and drop 4-6 oz. I've really enjoyed being able to turn down magnification and spot impacts at 8x on 500 yard shots that I haven't been able to do at 15x with a hunting weight magnum. With illumination the reticle is for me still very usable at low magnification. Having wind holds at any magnification is something I've gotten used to and really don't want to give up.
What am I missing? Everyone seems to love their LRHS and LRTS and Mk5's for mid to long range western hunting, why aren't there more mid priced options in this category? You can't swing a dead cat without hitting a mid priced, 28-32 oz FFP tactical scope with huge turrets or a 20 oz SFP hunting scope that needs to be cranked to max magnification to use the wind holds, but this niche has almost nothing.
Or is there a reason I'm not appreciating for why I shouldn't be wanting this scope? I'm absolutely open to hearing why I'm an idiot for thinking this is what I need.
Thanks!
FFP
3ish to at least 10x, prefer 12 or 15
Capped or locking windage
Reticle for holding wind at a minimum
MOA (I shoot and hunt with a group that all still uses MOA)
Adjustable parallax preferred
24 oz or so, lighter is better
~$1k
Scopes I know of that check most of these boxes:
-Bushnell LRHS - discontinued, hard to find (especially in 3-12 and especially especially in MOA).
-Leupold Mk5 3.6-18, on the upper end weight and outside price range
-Athlon Helos 2-12 - not sure about glass or tracking/reliability, as it's a $500 scope. I have an Ares that I've been generally happy with, but that's a couple steps up the line.
-Athlon Midas Tac 4-16 is MIL only
Honestly a Razor LHT or Leupold VX-5HD would check all my boxes if they were available in FFP.
I heard rumors of a FFP Razor LHT, but obviously nothing confirmed. Vortex tech guy said they have been getting lots of requests for such a thing but didn't spill any beans.
Guy I talked to at Leupold was pretty dismissive, his answer was that FFP was too expensive to produce at that price point. I realize it's a little bit apples and oranges but there are a ton of $500 to $1k FFP scopes coming from Athlon, Vortex, Bushnell, Burris, etc. Not sure what to make of that conversation.
My Ares 2.5-15 would be great if I could cap the windage and drop 4-6 oz. I've really enjoyed being able to turn down magnification and spot impacts at 8x on 500 yard shots that I haven't been able to do at 15x with a hunting weight magnum. With illumination the reticle is for me still very usable at low magnification. Having wind holds at any magnification is something I've gotten used to and really don't want to give up.
What am I missing? Everyone seems to love their LRHS and LRTS and Mk5's for mid to long range western hunting, why aren't there more mid priced options in this category? You can't swing a dead cat without hitting a mid priced, 28-32 oz FFP tactical scope with huge turrets or a 20 oz SFP hunting scope that needs to be cranked to max magnification to use the wind holds, but this niche has almost nothing.
Or is there a reason I'm not appreciating for why I shouldn't be wanting this scope? I'm absolutely open to hearing why I'm an idiot for thinking this is what I need.
Thanks!
