I really appreciate the advice. I shot a friends vortex few days ago. Was able to keep it tight but struggled with sun glare and image quality at 100 yards. My eyes and sun location maybe more of the problem than the scope. I hope better glass will fix some of this. Im going to look at the 5 scopes You and Ben mentioned and start narrowing it down.
I’m with Alex; have never bought a Leupold above a VX3HD, or have had VX3s since the came out; still have those optics and have never had an issue. Get a good top of the line VX3HD, get what you need in options for how you will hunt and make a selection. If hunting, a VX3HD with a boone and crockett reticle is my choice; less or no dialing for shooting to 550. If you are gonna play PRS and hunting then something with a dial cap. I have not had the experience yet where I could not see an animal within 300 yards due to light collection using a VX3 model and glass, so not sure where $1500-2000 glass comes into being a requirement for hunting. Lots of options though.
good luck
Regarding that Vortex experience—that company has so many different lines and they source from all over the globe, so depending on which model your friend had—it would make a big difference. Some of them are truly terrible. The only Vortex glass that comes close to these others we’ve been talking is the Razor HD series and to a lesser degree (certain models of) the newer Viper HD are decent too, but most of the rest is junk in comparison.
By contrast, any of those European models (where the starting price point is already $1,000+) which I mentioned are in another class altogether. The glass in them is so crisp and clear, and all generally have excellent low light performance, so that isn’t usually the deciding factor anymore. In this price range, it is hard to go wrong as long as the optic ticks the boxes you want in terms of focal plane, reticle selection, total weight, etc.
Leaning to the updated Swarovski Z5i+ 3.5-18x50 P L BT. Going to look Thru Carters friday, seems to be his favorite scope. Struggling with reticle choice. 4W-I vs BRW-I Hunt is in the fall so figure will have time to learn whatever by then.
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