Rifle Scopes Not happy with Leupold VX5HD, now what?

Because he's spewing nonsense to peddle his brand just like he does all the time. Sunrise and sunset times and ambient light is fucking science and a matter of fact, not an opinion.

Short of being extremely close to the north or south pole and it being the right time of year, this is not something that is even remotely debatable. He's talking out of his ass and it's as simple as that. I've been to Boise and I've been to places that are more north than that, and they are not special where it gets light sooner in the morning or stays light significantly longer than the rest of the continental US. You've gotta to well up into Canada or Alaska to see that.


Dude, you've lived in Va and FL. Shut your pie hole. Twilight is a LOT longer up north (and no, Va ain't north)... Hell, it may as well be the UK, regarding light at sunset. It lasts a LOOONNNNNGGGGGGG time.
Have you looked at a fucking map? Idaho borders with Canada!!!!!!! Do you geography much?

And so what if he's a Burris fan boy? Everyone knows that. There's no need to act that way towards him just because you don't like him shilling for Burris. Just tune it out...
 
Wtf are you talking about. An inversion zone? Are you just making things up now? We rarely to never see inversions here.

No, Boise is not surrounded by large mountains.

"Rarely to never" meaning only every fall/winter? LOL

Just google search "Boise inversion zone".... And yes, Boise sits down in a valley with mountains surrounding it... which is what causes the inversion...

Maybe you need to go educate all the scientists since they're wrong.


boise inversion zone





Here's a video from Bogus Basin which is up in the mountains surrounding Boise and you can see the valley Boise is in along with all the other mountains that surround it. But yeah, I'm the one making stuff up:




 
Dude, you've lived in Va and FL. Shut your pie hole. Twilight is a LOT longer up north (and no, Va ain't north)... Hell, it may as well be the UK, regarding light at sunset. It lasts a LOOONNNNNGGGGGGG time.
Have you looked at a fucking map? Idaho borders with Canada!!!!!!! Do you geography much?

And so what if he's a Burris fan boy? Everyone knows that. There's no need to act that way towards him just because you don't like him shilling for Burris. Just tune it out...

Guess you missed the part where I said I've spent time up north, specifically Boise and that was my other top pick to move to but Florida won out, because fuck winter. I've been to every state except AK and HI, most I have been to multiple times.
 
Guess you missed the part where I said I've spent time up north, specifically Boise and that was my other top pick to move to but Florida won out, because fuck winter. I've been to every state except AK and HI, most I have been to multiple times.


And this excuses your behavior...how? Makes you an expert over someone that lives there 24/7, how?
 
And this excuses your behavior...how? Makes you an expert over someone that lives there 24/7, how?

Pardon me, I forgot that we live in a society now where you can't call someone on their bullshit. My bad.

Because of his discovery I'm sure we will see this on the news tonight how the science world has been turned upside down and time as we know it is wrong.
 
That's a good pic, looks about right. But does seem dark. Do you think you could see a scope reticle?

i could see in general

the issue really depends on animal vs backdrop contrast to me

a black pig, in some of those shaded areas zoomed below 10x...probably not well, but i could use the thick outter lines to get close enough to make a short to mid range shot decent

a light brown deer in the open areas, would be easier...this is where the deer i shot was, in the middle of the tan rocks i took the pic from

where i was on the hill, i probably had about 5 more min of being able to see the reticle with no illum looking down to the ground...i wasnt using illum at first, we waited about 15-20 min before i could get a good shot...clicked on the illum for the last 5 min or so just to make it easier on my eye, it was starting to wash out a little bit on the darker background areas
 
Last edited:
Please take pics with a phone (or other device which the time cannot be altered) in the picture tonight 30 mins, 20 mins, and 10 mins before sun set as well at sun set time, and then the same thing tomorrow morning? I'm going to ask my buddy in Garden City to do the same thing and we can compare.
 
Not stirring the pit with this bit...
Tomorrow mornings line up will be a Bushnell elite 3.5-21 DMR II FFP, Vortex Razor HD Gen II 4.7-27x56 FFP, Nightforce ATACR 4-16x42 F1 FFP, Nightforce NXS 5.5-22x56 NPR-1 SFP, I may throw in my Razor gen 2 1-6x at 6x bc its SFP and why the hell not. I figure that setting it at 6 and others at 6 might give something to compare to. More for shits and giggles.
 
  • Like
Reactions: redneckbmxer24
I can play too! Here in southwest GA, my Garmin tells me that SR is 0739. Happy to take a snap if I'm smart enough to remember. More importantly, how does one get a buck to relocate with specificity? There's a nice youngin' that'll look really good this coming winter (or next) that spends most of his time in a no shoot area. Damn near had to shoo him off the running path this morning.

ETA: five minutes left of legal shooting light tonight and I cannot see a damn thing. Maybe a non-issue since I'd be hard pressed to acquire a reasonable shot on game in these conditions. Sadly, cannot figure out how to turn auto brightening off on my phone's camera. If I were shooting right now, my choices would be illumination or guessing.
 
Last edited:
I do ALOT of low light/ no light hunting. For me, I can not personally use a non illuminated FFP reticle any less than 8x at night. The reticle is just too small in the FFP scopes I've used in the past. Everything from Razor gen 2, ATACR, etc. We have a scientific research permit that allows us to spotlight deer from a vehicle. So what we end up doing is driving around and spotlighting for their eyes. Most of our "spotlights" are actually smaller lights with around 200-250 lumens in a diffused beam. Then we hold the light off to the side, (they run off if your light is too bright, and/or your light is directly in their eyes) and are actually using the peripheral light to take the shot. This is about as low light as you can get without going to NV or thermal. We are set up with thermal and NV, but even though we are legally allowed to use it at night according to our permit, we may not be allowed to use it according to the contract.

So, that has nothing to do with my original post, but I would agree that FFP and low light do not mix well in most situations.
WTH is a scientific permit lol

Heard of crop damage and over population cull permits. Never the “scientific permit”
 
WTH is a scientific permit lol

Heard of crop damage and over population cull permits. Never the “scientific permit”

We have a scientific research permit that allows us to hunt after legal hours, with night vision, thermals, spotlights, suppressors, no caliber restrictions, etc. It also allows us to hunt from vehicles. They are very limited and take alot of work to get. We have 2 Doctors on staff. One is a DVM and the other is a Virologist. We also have 3 biologists. The permit allows us to use the above mentioned methods to take or manage a herd. Once we have taken the animals we draw blood for lab tests, take tongue snips, pull any ticks we find, and all of that is tested for contagious pathogens. As we clean the animal we are checking for adhesions, and other signs of general health to include grading of internal organs. Once the animals are checked throughly, they are then donated to a contracted processor to be turned into meals for the local area food bank to feed the homeless. The labs are then checked locally, sent off to a second lab on the west coast for double checks, then over to a 3rd lab up north for the same testing. All results are independent and none of the results are compared until all results from the 3 labs are back. That information is what allows a transparent and thorough investigation into transmissible and non transmissible Zoonotic diseases. This includes CWD, TB, and others.
 
WTH is a scientific permit lol

Heard of crop damage and over population cull permits. Never the “scientific permit”
Never mind. As far as the illumination thing, there is a crap ton of other stuff to shoot while you’re out there. Hogs, possums, skunks, yotes, medium size cats, beaver. Illumination is a must for me with and ffp or thin sfp.
 
Last edited:
LMAO, are you guys really arguing over how dark it is in each others neck of the woods?

Well, unfortunately that's what its turned into. I asked for recommendations on a light weight mountain rifle scope. Preferably SFP. That turned into a pissing match of how FFP is just as good in low light bc there is always enough light to see a FFP reticle even in low light.....
I tried getting it back on track earlier but there were still too many panties in a wad, so yeah... Here we are.
 
We have a scientific research permit that allows us to hunt after legal hours, with night vision, thermals, spotlights, suppressors, no caliber restrictions, etc. It also allows us to hunt from vehicles. They are very limited and take alot of work to get. We have 2 Doctors on staff. One is a DVM and the other is a Virologist. We also have 3 biologists. The permit allows us to use the above mentioned methods to take or manage a herd. Once we have taken the animals we draw blood for lab tests, take tongue snips, pull any ticks we find, and all of that is tested for contagious pathogens. As we clean the animal we are checking for adhesions, and other signs of general health to include grading of internal organs. Once the animals are checked throughly, they are then donated to a contracted processor to be turned into meals for the local area food bank to feed the homeless. The labs are then checked locally, sent off to a second lab on the west coast for double checks, then over to a 3rd lab up north for the same testing. All results are independent and none of the results are compared until all results from the 3 labs are back. That information is what allows a transparent and thorough investigation into transmissible and non transmissible Zoonotic diseases. This includes CWD, TB, and others.

Interesting. Thanks
 
I hunt in central MS with a fairly high hog population and run a 5X25 ffp scope, I turn my reticle on when I get set up an do not turn it off till I get back to my buggy. At 35 to 50 yds pigs are unmistakable and have pulled the trigger on a many a pig before and after legal shooting hours(completely legal) and that wouldn't have been possible without a illuminated reticle. would I have had to use a lighted reticle with a SFP scope?( probably not) I think its all personal preference and what you fell and have the most confidence in, as for me I will only run FFP lighted reticle but from @Birddog6424 pics I am really looking forward to seeing a lighted reticle version of the 3rd gen Burris. @19dsniper have you looked at the mark5 3.6x18? I have thought hard about giving this scope a try but not sure I want to spend that much extra for illumination.
 
Despite Birddog's devout loyalty to Burris, I have to side with him on this one. (And for the record, I'm not a real big Burris fan.)

If it's so dark you can't see the reticle...well, it's likely past (or not yet) legal shooting time. IDK, are you guys that say you need it, hunting in heavy timber or some type of terrain that blocks light?

The light gathering capabilities of high end scopes these days is phenomenal...
In SC we get an hour prior to sunrise and hour past sunset for deer hunting. Depending on moon phase you can see a little longer but I like an illuminated reticle on my hunting scopes. Although my preference is just a dot illuminated in the center of the crosshairs.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MarinePMI
I hunt in central MS with a fairly high hog population and run a 5X25 ffp scope, I turn my reticle on when I get set up an do not turn it off till I get back to my buggy. At 35 to 50 yds pigs are unmistakable and have pulled the trigger on a many a pig before and after legal shooting hours(completely legal) and that wouldn't have been possible without a illuminated reticle. would I have had to use a lighted reticle with a SFP scope?( probably not) I think its all personal preference and what you fell and have the most confidence in, as for me I will only run FFP lighted reticle but from @Birddog6424 pics I am really looking forward to seeing a lighted reticle version of the 3rd gen Burris. @19dsniper have you looked at the mark5 3.6x18? I have thought hard about giving this scope a try but not sure I want to spend that much extra for illumination.

I actually looked into it alot. I really like the magnification range, size, and weight. I'm just kinda turned off by leupold right now. I had problems with a Vx3i a few years ago. They eventually made it right on the 3rd try and sent me a new scope. The first one I had wouldn't track straight up and down. It would track up and right. Alot right! They sent me a replacement once they had it in hand and inspected it. The replacement they sent me would fog up real bad and I sent it in a few months later for purge. I noticed it about 2 weeks after I got it back, but I was so disappointed in leupold that I now had another headache to deal with, that I didn't do anything with it for a while. So #2 went to them and they fixed it. I sold it after that and was kinda bummed with the quality slipping. So I was actually really hesitant to try this Vx5hd. So honestly, maybe I'm being so critical of them because I've had problems in the past, but expected them to up their QC over time. Honestly, I appreciate your recommendation and I've weighed the cons of the MK5, I just dont know if I really want to try another Leupold after all this. I may give it another try.
 
  • Like
Reactions: skeet16
I run a Mk 5 5x25...they're on a totally different level than the rest of the Leupold's. People forget that the Mk 5 is based on everything they learned (the hard way) on the VX-5 and Mk 6 lines...

You really should (if you get the chance) find one to look through. I was honestly surprised and impressed by the Mk 5 (and I'm a big Vortex Gen 2 Razor fan).
 
  • Like
Reactions: skeet16
I run a Mk 5 5x25...they're on a totally different level than the rest of the Leupold's. People forget that the Mk 5 is based on everything they learned (the hard way) on the VX-5 and Mk 6 lines...

You really should (if you get the chance) find one to look through. I was honestly surprised and impressed by the Mk 5 (and I'm a big Vortex Gen 2 Razor fan).

Dont take this the wrong way, but I was impressed with the Vx5 when I looked thru it. Like I said, i was impressed with the weight, glass, color rendition, CA, etc. It was even good in low light. I just wasn't impressed with the QC.
I may try and borrow one from a buddy. He lives 3 hrs away, so not super easy to do, but I'm sure he would let me borrow his MK5. I've heard good things about them. I've also heard good things about the VX5. Lol.
 
Yeah, I hear you "Once bitten, twice shy" and all that. That being said, it was pretty well talked about here years ago, about all the issues the VX-5's had (hence why, until the Mk5, Leupold got no love on the Hide). I'm betting (obviously) that you didn't see those threads before buying the VX-5 (which is really unfortunate).

Anyways, good luck on the scope you have decided on. Hopefully, it'l treat you better than the VX-5 did.
 
I had no idea until you said it. I have read some pretty good reports on rockslide about them, but hadn't done much digging on here as I've been a way for a while. That's what I get for not researching first on the hide.
 
Despite Birddog's devout loyalty to Burris, I have to side with him on this one. (And for the record, I'm not a real big Burris fan.)

If it's so dark you can't see the reticle...well, it's likely past (or not yet) legal shooting time. IDK, are you guys that say you need it, hunting in heavy timber or some type of terrain that blocks light?

The light gathering capabilities of high end scopes these days is phenomenal...

Dudes going into heavy timer with their 5-25 FFP scope, makes about as much sense as screen door on a submarine. IMO.

The only time I have ever used illumination was so I could see my reticle against a black target.
 
Bought a VX5HD 2-10x a week ago for a 336 I have. Glass seems clear, will have to check it as the sun goes down one day and see how it does.

Couple things I was disappointed in though -
The Matte finish is like powdery and was ashy white when I got it. Like it had baby powder all over but it wasn't. It was barely large enough to sit in the foam in the box it was shipped in and I was afraid at first the finish had been rubbed off but it was just ashy. Also, the Leupold rings I bought to go with it were a charcoal grey - like a bad blue job - color, not the normal matte black. I called Leupold and they said both were to be expected, normal for new rings from them, and just rub the ashy-ness off the scope. I am dumping the rings and will never buy Leupold rings again if that's the expected coating. If it's noticeably worse on lowlight than my other scopes I'll be selling it as well. While the glass is pretty clear to me and I don't have a trained eye for IQ, compared to my Athlons, Vortex, Kahles, and Nightforce, I am not impressed with this Leupold at all and my 20yr old Vari-X III seemed to be better quality overall.
 
Can I get back the 10 min it took me to read this thread?

1579820255284.jpeg
 
  • Like
Reactions: isofahunter
As mentioned, they automatically adjust the aperture settings (flash/no flash) that skews what it would look like to the human eye. Hence why internet posted photos of glass clarity (etc) are taken with a grain of salt.
 
Its 2 totally different situations to use a FFP reticle in the midwest in the fields and here in the east in the timber. At daylight or just a little after here in the east, that FFP reticle on 3x is non existent without illumination.. The woods stay darker longer and that's when alot of the game is moving at first light, not 30 minutes after.. The rifles start firing literally AT daylight here during whitetail rifle season.. But to be honest, where I'm at you dont really need a FFP scope to kill whitetail deer so its moot..
 
I can shoot MUCH later on the farm up in NoDak than I can here in Illinois. I still prefer illumination.

Also for you picture people, whip out the digital camera, set it to manual, and decide what settings you want to use for comparison. Stop the cell phone BS.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 19dsniper
I can shoot MUCH later on the farm up in NoDak than I can here in Illinois. I still prefer illumination.

Also for you picture people, whip out the digital camera, set it to manual, and decide what settings you want to use for comparison. Stop the cell phone BS.
Lol who has a camera that isn’t on their phone