VX5HD Horror Stories True???

[nobody]

Happy Monday 'Sliders!

As the post above, I'm curious if all the horror stories are really true. I had a Viper HSLR 4-16x44 SFP on my 7 mag for a couple of months and traded it off for a VX5HD in 3-15x44 CDS ZL2 on Saturday. I never really loved the Viper, and a coworker had the Leupold that he was willing to part with in exchange for the Viper and a bit of cash. All in all, between what I paid for the Viper and the cash I gave him, I've got about $500 invested in it. So I felt like I got a pretty good deal! I've been using a VX3i on my Creedmoor for about 4 or 5 years now with zero complaints or issues so I was excited to have something with similar bloodlines on my other rig. Mounted it Saturday in Warne Mountain Tech rings on a 20 MOA rail and went out yesterday to sight it in. Sighted right in and shot a couple of 0.75" groups. I was happy! And then came the internet...

I'm not planning on redeeming the "coupon" for the free CDS dial, I'm just going to use it as a regular exposed elevation turret. But I'm curious, I've read lots of horror stories about tracking issues with these in the past 12 hours or so, are they really as bad as they seem? To me, if they really sucked as bad as the internet makes it seem, Leupold would be out of business already. Do the VX5's and 6's really have that many issues with reliability and durability? Do they really actually randomly lose zero all the time and adjust randomly? Or are there people out there who use them who still actually use and love them? I'm starting to wonder if I made a mistake and didn't really get an upgrade like I thought!

EDIT: I know the VX5HD isn't a dedicated PRS style rig, I'm mainly just trying to decide if I made a bone-headed move by trading about $500 between the Viper and Cash for the Leupold. Money is tight and the VX5 SHOULD be better than the Viper I would think, but maybe I'm up in the night. Eventually I want to go to a Blue Diamond or something similar, but with starting a family and re-roofing the house this year, it may be a couple years before I can do that so I'm just trying to decide if the VX5 will work as a medium-term solution. If not, I guess I'll figure something out!

 

[Shooter264]

The answer to your question is no. Leupolds hold zero just fine and will track accurately. With any scope manufacture, they can produce a bad one now and again but the overwhelming majority of them are fantastic scopes. I’ve got approximately 20 animals on the VX5 in the last 3 years and countless dead rocks and steel targets. Distances from 200-1100 yards. I’ve yet to experience a loss of zero and lack of tracking. I’ve had leupolds in the past that didn’t track exactly .25 moa as advertised but I’ve had similar issues w NF as well as the 1/3 moa huskemaw’s. Everyone is capable of producing a bad scope but as with every other top scope manufacturer they are the exception rather than the norm.

 

[wind gypsy]

To me, if they really sucked as bad as the internet makes it seem, Leupold would be out of business already.

People have to use them and understand how to recognize and diagnose issues for that to happen. I'd bet 95% of owners dont dial elevation with them and or wouldn't suspect the scope if it lost zero.

Think of it this way.. the average hunter doesn't even know if their scope is set up properly and had the gunshop kid mount and boresight it for them without even being present. They probably shoot less than a box of ammo annually through their hunting rifles. You think they'd ever even know if there was a tracking/zero retention issue? And they go to the range every year to "sight in" their rifle.

IMO you took a step up in reliability from the viper. I just think people think that because a VX5/6 has exposed elevation turret it's supposed to act like a heavier scope actually designed for dialing corrections. My gut feeling is that it probably isn't less reliable than the majority of the other sub 20 ounce scopes out there, they just dont stack up well to the heavier options.

 

[Kyle Wheeler]

I bought a VX5 and wonder the same thing. Supposedly the guy I bought it from said it tracked well to 1200 so it gives me some confidence. Glass is excellent. Haven’t stretched it out yet.

 

[nobody]

People have to use them and understand how to recognize and diagnose issues for that to happen. I'd bet 95% of owners dont dial elevation with them and or wouldn't suspect the scope if it lost zero.

Think of it this way.. the average hunter doesn't even know if their scope is set up properly and had the gunshop kid mount and boresight it for them without even being present. They probably shoot less than a box of ammo annually through their hunting rifles. You think they'd ever even know if there was a tracking/zero retention issue? And they go to the range every year to "sight in" their rifle.

IMO you took a step up in reliability from the viper. I just think people think that because a VX5/6 has exposed elevation turret it's supposed to act like a heavier scope actually designed for dialing corrections. My gut feeling is that it probably isn't less reliable than the majority of the other sub 20 ounce scopes out there, they just dont stack up well to the heavier options.

See this I understand. And I get what you're saying about the proper setup. Working at Sportsman's, about 90% of the guys there shouldn't be anywhere near a gun vise and a Fat Wrench!

I feel like I really did get a step up in reliability too, it just freaked me out to see so many people hating on the VX5's and 6's. I'm not gonna be running a PRS match, it's a hunting rifle, and I just expect it to perform well enough for that purpose. If it tracks off by 1/2% or so and I missed an elk at 800, I would think that my own human error played more into the miss than the tracking error in the scope. I would think it would track more than accurate enough for extended range hunting, but maybe I'm dumb?

 

[nobody]

The answer to your question is no. Leupolds hold zero just fine and will track accurately. With any scope manufacture, they can produce a bad one now and again but the overwhelming majority of them are fantastic scopes. I’ve got approximately 20 animals on the VX5 in the last 3 years and countless dead rocks and steel targets. Distances from 200-1100 yards. I’ve yet to experience a loss of zero and lack of tracking. I’ve had leupolds in the past that didn’t track exactly .25 moa as advertised but I’ve had similar issues w NF as well as the 1/3 moa huskemaw’s. Everyone is capable of producing a bad scope but as with every other top scope manufacturer they are the exception rather than the norm.

This is what I'm looking for, real world experience. Like I said in my reply above, I would think that if it slightly tracks off and I missed an elk at 7 or 800, my own human error has a higher likelihood of causing the miss than the fact that it tracked off by 1/4 minute at 800. But maybe I'm up in the night? I love the glass and the size and the weight. And I LOVE the deal I got on it too! This makes me feel a bit better.

 

[BRTreedogs]

Some track true then loose zero say a 2moa shift then still track true. But 2 moa zero shift is 20 at 1k
Here is a Mk5 that couldn't cut it.

 

[nobody]

Some track true then loose zero say a 2moa shift then still track true. But 2 moa zero shift is 20 at 1k
Here is a Mk5 that couldn't cut it.

Thanks for sharing this, very interesting. Have you ever used or owned one? Any personal experiences with issues with them?

 

[Crowmangler]

I've had one on a Christensen 7mm RM for a few years & love it. No issues with either tracking or losing zero. Glass is excellent & love the fire dot.
FWIW I've only put appx 100 rounds through it & only shot it out to around 350 yards so far.
Hopefully there won't be any issues in the future. A warranty is useless on the mountain.

 

[BRTreedogs]

Thanks for sharing this, very interesting. Have you ever used or owned one? Any personal experiences with issues with them?

No personal experience.
I've read the reviews. And I do believe they are at a solid 80% plus rate of working. But I plan my entire life around hunting and failure would completely melt me down. Just not worth the risk.
Even if they are only at a 5% failure rate there are so many good options with a less then 1% failure rate idk why you'd risk it..
Vx5 hd are $1200- $1400
Check out a ziess v4 or v6, NF nxs, athlon, maven, tangent.

 

[wapitibob]

My Leupold jumped 2', twice, and never tracked worth a damn. Couldn't give me another one.

 

[SuperDUECE22]

ZERO issues with mine, you should have zero problem sleeping at night after you traded out a viper to a VX5HD

 

[BRTreedogs]

You can get a like new demo v4 from red hawk for around $950
Do some research and see if you see any un happy peeps using that scope.
Just not sure why you'd chance it.
A couple ounces?
Just poop every more and get rid of that pound and pack a reliable scope.

 

[nobody]

No personal experience.
I've read the reviews. And I do believe they are at a solid 80% plus rate of working. But I plan my entire life around hunting and failure would completely melt me down. Just not worth the risk.
Even if they are only at a 5% failure rate there are so many good options with a less then 1% failure rate idk why you'd risk it..
Vx5 hd are $1200- $1400
Check out a ziess v4 or v6, NF nxs, athlon, maven, tangent.

I understand what you're saying, I was just curious if trading out the Viper HSLR I had prior was an upgrade. I traded a $500 optic for a $1200 optic, LITERALLY traded it. I didn't spend $1200, I had a guy who I work with who worships Vortex and was willing to trade out his new in box VX5HD for the Viper. On paper, to me, it was a no brainer based on that alone.

I'll look at some of the ones you mentioned for sure, I just mainly was curious if it was really as horrifying as people make it seem like. Some threads make it sound like if you fart near the VX5's and 6's they spontaneously combust and blow up in your face. I was interested in the trade because money is tight (starting a family and re-roofing the house this year) and I thought the VX5 would allow me to get a significantly better optic without forking over tons of cash. But maybe I'm wrong!

 

[nobody]

ZERO issues with mine, you should have zero problem sleeping at night after you traded out a viper to a VX5HD

What have you had yours on? How long have you been running it? I'd eventually like to upgrade to something better, but for basically $500 between the scope I gave him and the cash I threw in, I feel like this is a lot of bang for my buck in the mean time.

 

[BRTreedogs]

Well yeah id say you made a fine trade.
Mount it up and shoot it is the only way to tell.

 

[nobody]

Well yeah id say you made a fine trade.
Mount it up and shoot it is the only way to tell.

Sorry I wasn't trying to come across ungrateful or dismissive, I just am trying to figure out if I actually did end up with a step up, or if I ended up with more of a "lateral" move across the quality spectrum. If I really do need to just pony up and go with a Huskemaw or something, I'll figure it out. I just didn't want you to think I had spent $1200 on it, because that skews everybody's perception of the situation! If I had $1200 laying around for a scope, it definitely wouldn't have gotten spent on a VX5HD. Thanks for the feedback!

 

[nobody]

Your best bet is to check out your own scope for yourself. There's folks out there with scopes that have errors and never know it; and there's also folks that have solid scopes but will blame the scope for shooter error, mounts, ammo, etc.


I've had a 3.6-18 Mk5. Tracked 100% on a static tracking board. Also shot a ton of itty bitty groups on paper and 1 MOA sized steel plates to 1,000+ yards on a lightweight 7mm rem mag. I packed it for one hunting season as well. No problems with tracking, return to zero, or zero retention. I wouldn't put a lot of weight into a vague, cagey statement about a possible loss in zero that couldn't be confirmed or repeated.

Yeah my plan is to do some testing this summer. I just got the rifle for Christmas this year (Howa 1500 7MM Rem Mag). I worked up a good load for it over the winter, so I'll be doing some summer verification. I've also got a couple of factory loads that shoot REALLY well through it, so I'll have plenty of time to be sure. But so far it sighted in true and easy yesterday and held zero for about 15 rounds and a few groups. Every adjustment value was true, and I even buzzed the turrets up and back between shots while shooting groups and it shot to the same POI as before. Obviously it's not much yet, but it seems promising.

It's just crazy to me how many problems they seem to have. Maybe it's law of averages, Leupold moves more scopes than Huskemaw or Nightforce. Maybe they all have the same failure rate, but there's just more Leupolds on the market so it seems like they fail more. It's just odd to me. I know lots of guys that use them exclusively and NEVER have issues, but the internet tells a different story. Just trying to get a real feel from guys who use them and have a track record, thanks for your input!

 

[wind gypsy]

The viper 4-16 models in particular are garbage IMO (glass quality and reliability) so you ended up with a nice trade up.

I wouldn't choose to use a vx5/6 but that doesn't mean that many thousands of people dont use them successfully.

 

[ID_Matt]

I've had one on a Christensen 7mm RM for a few years & love it. No issues with either tracking or losing zero. Glass is excellent & love the fire dot.
FWIW I've only put appx 100 rounds through it & only shot it out to around 350 yards so far.
Hopefully there won't be any issues in the future. A warranty is useless on the mountain.

So like 4 minutes of total tracking?