Rifle Scopes LE use of Vortex

[WIRC2011]

New member here... I searched pretty hard for this topic and found some posts but they were all a little older so my apologies if this has been brought up and I just missed it.

I was going to take an LE sniper course this summer but with the coronavirus going around I am not sure that will happen. Regardless I do plan to take it eventually. My question:

How do people feel about the PS-T Gen II for LE use? I have used one before and seems solid but I haven't really found the pros, cons, or legal issues relating to it compared to a more traditionally accepted scope like the MK4. Any advice would be great. Would be on a Remington 700.

 

[awonder]

Our guys are running them. Haven’t had any issues.

 

[fdkay]

Gen II should serve you well. It really depends on how you treat the rifle. If it is kept cased in a quality case, when not in use, you should be fine.

 

[phlegm]

You might do well to ask the instructors of the courses you're considering. They should be able to provide qualified feedback based on the skills and scenarios they teach.

For instance, someone who majors on taking a conventional position with a short action might differ from an instructor that includes moving vehicles, anti-materiel systems, and public venues.

 

[Pappakap]

When considering a scope for department use I would look into manufacturer discounts. Some of the American made brands offer LE incentives that really help departments stretch their budget.

 

[fdkay]

You might do well to ask the instructors of the courses you're considering. They should be able to provide qualified feedback based on the skills and scenarios they teach.

For instance, someone who majors on taking a conventional position with a short action might differ from an instructor that includes moving vehicles, anti-materiel systems, and public venues.

My experience has been, most of the LE/FBI instructors fall into two camps. Leupold and nightforce. Nothing really wrong there, but with the LE/Agency discount, it is hard to beat the PST II.
OP, also consider the sightmark 3-18 pinnacle. It is a very well made, Japanese optic.
When you contact the LE division there, you will be very happy.

 

[smithjd]

Vortex is VERY helpful to LE. They assisted a team I know swap out a variety of old scopes and mounts to a uniform setup including the PST Gen II 3-15. They have about a year on them now in fleet and are very happy. Vortex even assisted with some machining / mounting issues from a past gun plumber that redid the action mount holes rather than the mount itself (always work on the cheapest part...).
So it’s not just the cost, but the customer service as well.

 

[Sniperwannabee]

Vortex is a great choice

 

[beenjammin]

In the matches I shoot at, many of the more-veteran shooters with the vortex pst scopes on their plane-jane remington's make the "young whipper snappers" with their AI and S&Bs look silly.

Speaking from personal experience as a previous young whipper snapper....... a few members here are gonna get a kick out of this..

 

[S197]

New member here... I searched pretty hard for this topic and found some posts but they were all a little older so my apologies if this has been brought up and I just missed it.

I was going to take an LE sniper course this summer but with the coronavirus going around I am not sure that will happen. Regardless I do plan to take it eventually. My question:

How do people feel about the PS-T Gen II for LE use? I have used one before and seems solid but I haven't really found the pros, cons, or legal issues relating to it compared to a more traditionally accepted scope like the MK4. Any advice would be great. Would be on a Remington 700.

Are you asking how the corse instructor would feel or your department? A lot of departments won’t let an officer use personal equipment. If it is LE related get permission in writing....

 

[Mike4837]

You might do well to ask the instructors of the courses you're considering. They should be able to provide qualified feedback based on the skills and scenarios they teach.

For instance, someone who majors on taking a conventional position with a short action might differ from an instructor that includes moving vehicles, anti-materiel systems, and public venues.

I agree with this to a point. It depends on the instructor and class. If it's an in-house LE course put on by a state academy, their information may not be as helpful depending on their level of passion and experience in the arena. I've found many LE instructors or LE shooters are not passionate about making this a way of life. Many of them see it as a job they do once in a while, but consider themselves experts regardless.

 

[Mike4837]

New member here... I searched pretty hard for this topic and found some posts but they were all a little older so my apologies if this has been brought up and I just missed it.

I was going to take an LE sniper course this summer but with the coronavirus going around I am not sure that will happen. Regardless I do plan to take it eventually. My question:

How do people feel about the PS-T Gen II for LE use? I have used one before and seems solid but I haven't really found the pros, cons, or legal issues relating to it compared to a more traditionally accepted scope like the MK4. Any advice would be great. Would be on a Remington 700.

To directly answer your question, the PST gen 2 is the absolute bottom of the line where I would trust the optic. I don't have experience with it myself, but my current issued optic is a gen 1. I don't trust it, but I know the gen 2 has some nice upgrades. The only legal issues you could face is if the optic was off because of a mechanical issue when you took a shot which technically any optic could have. Optics have come a really long way since the Mk4 and there are great choices.

 

[Foxtrot2November]

Being Law enforcement. Call Leupold and see what the discount % is on the Mark5. Might be worth seeing

 

[clcustom1911]

Our guys are running them. Haven’t had any issues.

???

This.

OP,

It doesn't sound like you're a sniper at your department per se... just doing a course. Unless I misunderstood what you initially posted. You should ask your department's team leaders and see what they think, policy on personal equipment, etc.

If they have no restrictions, then go for it. Do a tall target test, box/tracking test, etc to give you some kind of qualified warm and fuzzy.

I have a Gen II PST 3-15 on my personal rifles (6.5 Creedmoor and 7mm RemMag) zero issues at all. Tracks, returns to zero, etc etc. After just a shade under 1000 rounds of 7mm RemMag, it's still trucking right along.

 

[G-Max]

New member here... I searched pretty hard for this topic and found some posts but they were all a little older so my apologies if this has been brought up and I just missed it.

I was going to take an LE sniper course this summer but with the coronavirus going around I am not sure that will happen. Regardless I do plan to take it eventually. My question:

How do people feel about the PS-T Gen II for LE use? I have used one before and seems solid but I haven't really found the pros, cons, or legal issues relating to it compared to a more traditionally accepted scope like the MK4. Any advice would be great. Would be on a Remington 700.

Five of the guys on our sniper team are running PST Gen II 5-25’s (Department issued on Remington 700 LTR’s) They have been in use for about two years and have had zero issues to date.

 

[JeremyV]

I’ve owned and used the pst gen2 and it’s definitely a decent scope not in the same class as a LEUPOLD mark5 or vortex razor but capable! If it were my job though I would spend the extra on a nicer optic. Like others have said LEUPOLD has a good LE program.. I haven’t really been a LEUPOLD fan till I got a mark5

 

[GoolsbyMD]

I get, I assume, the same discount as the LE guys and I ended up going with the Leupold Mark 5HDs as I couldn’t really find a Vortex at the same price for roughly same tier scope. Sure there’s expertvoice, gov-x but they have long lead times. If your buying multiple def give them a call.

 

[Alex Jay]

I get, I assume, the same discount as the LE guys and I ended up going with the Leupold Mark 5HDs as I couldn’t really find a Vortex at the same price for roughly same tier scope. Sure there’s expertvoice, gov-x but they have long lead times. If your buying multiple def give them a call.

Another one is GuideFitter. The 5-25 Viper PST Gen2 is about 800 or so on there.

 

[DOA]

I get, I assume, the same discount as the LE guys and I ended up going with the Leupold Mark 5HDs as I couldn’t really find a Vortex at the same price for roughly same tier scope. Sure there’s expertvoice, gov-x but they have long lead times. If your buying multiple def give them a call.

For Vortex, give Scott at Liberty Optics a call.

 

[NewsShooter]

New member here... I searched pretty hard for this topic and found some posts but they were all a little older so my apologies if this has been brought up and I just missed it.

I was going to take an LE sniper course this summer but with the coronavirus going around I am not sure that will happen. Regardless I do plan to take it eventually. My question:

How do people feel about the PS-T Gen II for LE use? I have used one before and seems solid but I haven't really found the pros, cons, or legal issues relating to it compared to a more traditionally accepted scope like the MK4. Any advice would be great. Would be on a Remington 700.

Much better than most LE scopes I've seen being used, personally I'd want a razor to ensure durability. There's a 3-18 in the PX for a good price

 

[Arctic Cowboy]

I use a gen 2 pst on my backup prs rig, but I’ve had two of them go bad during hunts so my patrol rig has a Nightforce on it. I know some guys have had good luck with the pst but IMO I wouldn’t trust it in a real world shoot. A razor? Definitely.

 

[Sierra770]

For Duty Bolt gun, the Razor is the only one in the Vortex line that I would use.

 

[Jcreid06]

Just finished a basic class a couple weeks ago. We had 13 students. 1 student ran an old Mark 4, 1 had a mark 5, 1 razor and the rest ran nightforce (a couple atacr, shv and nxs)

Only vortex I’d run on a work gun is the razor, but they are heavy. The NX8 and Mark5 are a lot lighter and can be had with an LEO discount for a really good price.