Rifle Scopes Swaro z6i 1-6 vs Razor Gen II 1-6

[clmayfield]

I bought my first AR a little while ago and am looking for a day-bright scope that acts like a red dot at low mag and gets me a little more mag for distance. This is primarily for varminting.

Comparing the scopes, the Swaro is obviously more expensive. It has slightly more FOV and is a full 9 oz lighter (important bc my rifle is already a little overweight).

I was wondering if anyone had any experience comparing these side by side. The new mil reticle for the Vortex has probably sealed the deal for me, but I was wondering how forgiving the eye box is on the Swaro vs the Razor and whether anyone has noticed if one is "faster" than the other.

Thanks!

 

[Bevan]

the Vortex is insanely heavy while the Swaro has an insanely shitty feature set. Tough choice.

 

[Redmanss]

I'm looking at the Khales K16i (future 3-Gun optic for me) and you might want to also. Pricing is slightly less than the Swaro but still up there, has some nice reticle selections and weight just under 17oz.
[MENTION=55505]BigJimFish[/MENTION] just updated his SHOT thread with info on them: http://www.snipershide.com/shooting...-shot-2014-coverage-kahles-2.html#post2950665

I have a Leupold Mark 6 on one rifle and it's another great option, especially if you want the ability to easily dial your elevation.

 

[pepper 2111]

I looked through a razor a few days ago. Simply amazing. Very generous eyebox, i saw no shawdowing. Ive never seen a swaro though

 

[Rob01]

I used the Vortex this past year in 3 gun and it's an excellent scope. Great glass, great FOV at 1x but is heavier as you mentioned. The eye box is great. Pop it up infront of your eye and it's right there. Red dot works great and is big enough to see and get on target quick but not so big it obscures the target.

I have only looked through a Swarovski and they are an excellent scope but at almost twice the price of the Razor.

 

[clmayfield]

Swaro has an insanely shitty feature set. Tough choice.

How so? Please explain. Thanks!

 

[smschulz]

I have the Swaro and it is the clearest of any I own.
I have a S&B, MK6, NF's and USO's.

 

[Chris@InterstateGuns]

the Vortex is insanely heavy while the Swaro has an insanely shitty feature set. Tough choice.

How so? Please explain. Thanks!

Ditto I would like to hear this as well.


Now that Kahles has adjusted its pricing, it's an option as well. For a more price concerned buyer, the 1-5 Kahles is going to be a great option.

 

[Baranx4]

I was just at the Harrisburg sportsman show and looked through a lot of glass. It's hard to imagine anything clearer than a swaro z6, and how much light it gathered. I was surprised how much clearer it was over a s&b police marksman. It was nice that the same reps were doing both glass and were very helpful. Other surprise at the show was how bad the zeiss terra glass was.

 

[Opticsspecialist]

I like the vortex a lot, other than the weight, it's a fantastic optic. as for the swarovski, it's light, the BRT-I reticle works pretty well, i've had 3 gun shooters and trainers use it, I had a customer take it to some dmr school about 2 years ago. i have a lot of customers fielding both, and both are pretty highly regarded. someone else mentioned the kahles, now that the price is a little more reasonable, it's a great option as well. hard to go wrong whatever you choose, just check weight and reticle option and let that be your guide

 

[delixe]

I'd suggest you check out the Bushnell SMRS 1-6.5.
Daylight bright inverted horseshoe, available with mil or BDC reticle.
Glass is pretty damn good, super forgiving eyebox.

 

[clmayfield]

Still curious about the bad Swaro feature set. I am likely going Razor, but still curious.

 

[DT1]

Still curious about the bad Swaro feature set. I am likely going Razor, but still curious.

I'd imagine he's referring to the bulky, limited illumination control. It's a large switch on the top of the eye bell, gives you three brightness settings on the dot; bright, medium and off. The Kahles illumination control is fully adjustable and is located opposite the windage turret. Much better design.

The Swarovski is still the standard by which 3-gun scopes are measured, but the Kahles K16i is a better built option with equal, if not better glass clarity. If you're on a budget and don't mind the bulkiness, the Vortex Razor 1-6x is hard to beat.

 

[boomfab]

I'd imagine he's referring to the bulky, limited illumination control. It's a large switch on the top of the eye bell, gives you three brightness settings on the dot; bright, medium and off.

Yeah that's incorrect. I have 3 Z6i's. The illumination is fully adjustable for intensity.

 

[kansas]

A lot of the top 3gun shooters use the Swaro but will tell you that for the money difference the Razor will do everything you need. However you aren't shooting 3gun so the weight is important. I've not had the chance to look through the Swaro but am very impressed with my Razor. The great thing is it sets enough farther forward that it is extremly fast to get on target. I couldn't believe how much faster it was than my 1-4 Burris but every bit as easy as a red dot. If you want to read side by side comparisons go to Brian Enos Forums and look in the Multi Gun section. Lots written about both plus all of the others.

 

[DT1]

Yeah that's incorrect. I have 3 Z6i's. The illumination is fully adjustable for intensity.

Yes, it is adjustable using the dual push buttons on the bulky switch mechanism. I was referring to the Micky Mouse switch that gives you two brightness settings and turns the dot off. The switch is fragile (see below), mine's broken off twice from grounding my AR in a dump bucket during matches. Kahles and Vortex are much better designed with respect to adjusting the brightness of the dot.

 

[clmayfield]

I'd imagine he's referring to the bulky, limited illumination control. It's a large switch on the top of the eye bell, gives you three brightness settings on the dot; bright, medium and off. The Kahles illumination control is fully adjustable and is located opposite the windage turret. Much better design.

Thanks for the clarification. It is stuff like this that I can't just learn by reading the marketing materials for each scope.

 

[Chris@InterstateGuns]

Have you head any reports of issues since the genII redesign?

 

[gose]

Have you head any reports of issues since the genII redesign?

I own two Z6is and have shot quite a few 3-gun matches and this is the first occurrence I've ever heard of, so I doubt this is a common problem.

I've used and abused both of mine and they're pretty dinged up by now, but I havent had any issues so far. As a comparison, I broke three Meopta K-dots in two years, so I'm a believer

 

[Chris@InterstateGuns]

Thanks gose. We sell tons of the z6i's and that was the first I've heard of that issue. Appreciate the follow up.

 

[lifebreath]

... while the Swaro has an insanely shitty feature set.

I too would love to be informed. I own the Gen II and it rocks for its intended purpose. I use it on my 3-gun rifle. The dot is perfect, and the holdover subtensions are mil-based (1/2 mils) with wind-hold marks. Glass is bright and clear with wide FOV. I've never heard anyone who owns one complain about its "shitty feature set."

 

[CSTactical]

Whatever one you get you will love the. The Vortex is extremely well made and they just came out with more reticles.

NEW to the market and we have them in stock.
RZR-16004 Razor Gen II HD 1-6x24 VMR-2 mrad
RZR-16005 Razor Gen II HD 1-6x24 VMR-2 MOA

The Swaroski is extramural good outstanding glass, great image all they way to the edge, the illumination system rocks, very well made, and really light. The same goes with the Kahles but I feel the Kahles is a little nice on the optics and the choice of reticels is a lot better. The NEW Kahles 1-5x looks very promising also.


Mike @ CSTACTICAL

 

[jevan126]

I have the Swarovski Z6I brt and this is without a doubt the best GLASS I have ever looked through. Yes it is expensive but well worth the money, it can be used as a red dot scope with illumination up close and can get you out to 600+ yards when needed. It is super light, built tough, and no other scope has the Clarity that the Swarovski has, close but not the same. I have had it for 2 years and could not be happier and when I am ready for some long distance shooting I will be buying another Swarovski. I don't think Swarovski gets enough credit in these forums, I have 3 friends who use Swarovski scopes and they all love them too.

 

[stompbox]

I also have a Swaro Gen 2 Z6i 1-6 BRT and 2 Vortex Razor GenII 1-6's with the JM reticle.
I use them primarily for 3-gun competitions and while the Swaro does have superior optics I find myself grabbing a rifle with the Vortex for most of the matches that I attend.
Both have good daytime visible red dots for hosing close range targets, but when it comes to 6" to 10" plates out to 600 yards I find the Vortex's BDC reticle faster and covers less of the target than the Swaros thicker reticle. I am not fond of the dots at 2 and 4 mils in the Swaro, they are too big in my opinion and can obstuct the target.Another thing that I prefer about the Vortex is that the magnification increases in power when rotated clockwise, the Swaro increases when rotated counter-clockwise. This is just more familiar for me when running through a 3-gun course, since almost all of my optics have a clockwise rotation to increase power. The swaro is the only scope I have that work the opposite way.
As with everything, use whichever one suits your needs. You can't make a bad choice with these two optics.