Rifle Scopes The Arken Optics Thread (merged)
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Goodness, no one panic! Just a little website maintenance.
We have a lot of great stuff coming. Thanks to all that have stood beside us. Love the support, keep it coming.
V/r,
Mike Reilly
I hit the pay button early March and placed my order. I thought I had ordered a SH-4 MILRAD, but I quickly realized that I had ordered a MOA model. I emailed the folks at Arken to tell them about my senior moment and I received an email the following morning advising that the Order had been corrected. Pretty damn good CS, if you ask me. 12 weeks to go...
Just to speak to their CS, my experience has been top notch. I ordered my EP4 Feb 2020, and received it FIVE months later. I probably emailed asking for an update every month or so. I got a response within 24 hours every time, and generally corresponded four or six times when I would make my monthly contact. I don’t think I ever waited more than a day for a reply. I am just one person, with one purchase on record, but I did have an excellent CS experience with these Arken folks.
12/16/20 I ordered so expecting a shipping email here on April 16th. I hope so. Gophers are coming out and need it now.
Hang in there guys, hopefully it won't be too much longer...
FWIW, over 1000rds of 6mm creedmoor on my SH-4 Gen2 (I don't know who's got the highest round count on one of these, but I've gotta be up there considering how new to market they are, and how lucky I was to score one when I did), back and forth to the range at least ~20 times, no issues. I've had to re-zero it a few times now (switching loads and screwing on a new barrel), resetting the turrets and zero-stop: no stripped screws, nothing wonky at all to report.
I've had it out shooting to 1000yrds and beyond several times, sub-MOA @ 1000 every time, the "cheap Chinese" scope hasn't held me back one bit.
I actually had a chance to snag a Razor Gen2 4.5-27x56 for a really good price the other day (that's ultimately what I've been planning to pick up, with the Arken as a "placeholder" until I grab something "better"), but I decided to pass. The Arken has been good enough to where I honestly don't think a "better" (more expensive) scope would really do much for me at this point shooting-skills-wise, and I don't feel like I need it or need to be changing anything on my rig right now, especially going through the hassle of swapping scopes when the one that's already mounted and leveled is working great lol.
I hope you guys who've been waiting for what seems like forever get a clean and solid example like mine.
FWIW, over 1000rds of 6mm creedmoor on my SH-4 Gen2 (I don't know who's got the highest round count on one of these, but I've gotta be up there considering how new to market they are, and how lucky I was to score one when I did), back and forth to the range at least ~20 times, no issues. I've had to re-zero it a few times now (switching loads and screwing on a new barrel), resetting the turrets and zero-stop: no stripped screws, nothing wonky at all to report.
I've had it out shooting to 1000yrds and beyond several times, sub-MOA @ 1000 every time, the "cheap Chinese" scope hasn't held me back one bit.
I actually had a chance to snag a Razor Gen2 4.5-27x56 for a really good price the other day (that's ultimately what I've been planning to pick up, with the Arken as a "placeholder" until I grab something "better"), but I decided to pass. The Arken has been good enough to where I honestly don't think a "better" (more expensive) scope would really do much for me at this point shooting-skills-wise, and I don't feel like I need it or need to be changing anything on my rig right now, especially going through the hassle of swapping scopes when the one that's already mounted and leveled is working great lol.
I hope you guys who've been waiting for what seems like forever get a clean and solid example like mine.
I ordered 1 6-24x50 on November 22 or so and a 4-16x50 on the 26th of November.......just got my 6-24 last week Monday. Not sure on the 4-16.....not too worried, I’ll get it eventually.
Found Arken by way of the Cyclops reviews on YT
Seems like it might be a decent scope for the $$
I wonder where Arken has their Home base business location ?
From the last Cyclops interview I think I heard him say Texas ??
Anyhow my order is in for a 6-24 Mil looks like a June delivery date ??
Seems like it might be a decent scope for the $$
I wonder where Arken has their Home base business location ?
From the last Cyclops interview I think I heard him say Texas ??
Anyhow my order is in for a 6-24 Mil looks like a June delivery date ??
So for guys who have looked through both the 6-24 and the 4-16 gen 2 optics, which one seems to be the better of the 2 optically? I'd like to have one of these for a rimfire and I'm prepared to just sit by and wait for it.
I doubt you'll find many that have actually looked and compared both side by side. They are both the same glass and any difference between the two will be objective. The only differences between them is length, magnification range and the lower mag 4-16 has a few Mils more travel.
Does anyone know of a good level that will be able to reach past the turrets? Lol damn turrets ARE huge, I bought one off of Amazon but it’s kinda hard to see. Thinking of M and K machining.
buy a level that attaches to the pic rail.
Amazon.com : MK Machining Billet Picatinny Rail Mount Level : Sports & Outdoors
Amazon.com : MK Machining Billet Picatinny Rail Mount Level : Sports & Outdoors
www.amazon.com
I put my 4-16 on my 21 pound 50 BMG and it survived well over 25 rounds before I put it on something else. Figured if anything would kill it a lightweight 50 would.
I ended up mounting the Arken level forward of the parallax turret. Tried to make sure it was in a place that wouldn't interfere with making adjustments. I shot a BR match with it for practice this past weekend and it worked out well finding the bubble.
Attachments
I have the Vortex Lo-Pro 34mm, works great... almost too sensitive really, total bitch to get mounted perfectly.
If I were doing it over again I'd maybe just pony up for one of the Flatline Ops levels... buy once cry once, but they cost 1/4 of what the Arken costs so it feels wrong.
No. Arken posted a recent shipping estimate chart in their forum. You order now and it will be past June until the "estimated shipping date."
People's wait times basically doubled from what Arken originally quoted folks (8 weeks has turned to 16-20 weeks).
Fuck, I just remembered I have one sitting in the back of my F250. Totally forgot about it. The wait was so long I bought a NightForce to put on my rifle and now I’ll need to build another rifle to put this on.
One of the ways they keep costs down is the 4x erector. Going 5x and over increases price
Ordered my first Arken today, SH4 6-24x50 MIL and a set of their rings for my 10/22 build. Shows a 3 week backorder, so if timing works out right, I should get my Kidd receiver and internals about the same time as well. Kidd is showing 7/23 on receiver/bolt shipping right now.
I look forward to comparing the Arken to some other scopes I have. Bushnell XRSII, DMRII, Match Pro and an Athlon Helos BTR. Really curious to see how it stacks up against the Match Pro more than anything since they have similar price points.
I look forward to comparing the Arken to some other scopes I have. Bushnell XRSII, DMRII, Match Pro and an Athlon Helos BTR. Really curious to see how it stacks up against the Match Pro more than anything since they have similar price points.
Nice! If they were in stock I'd have one now but a bird in the hand...so I'm thinking optika6 to try something different but I'll eventually try those massive turrets if they ever get the inventory caught up.
Don't hold your breath or count your chickens quite yet on that back order time table. I ordered the same rig on January 27th and just got notification of it shipping today.
What was the estimated backorder time back then in January?
*Edit. I saw your post from 3/31. 6-8 week lead time at that point. So 2 months turned into 5 months. Sorry to hear that. I guess we shall see what happens.
Not saying you'll wait 5 months, just saying not to put a lot of faith into 3 Weeks. I had multiple time slips from the time they started posting their "Estimated Shipping Date" Here's the shipping plan from their forum as of 6/21:
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BTW I like the 30mm Arken rings I'm using. My set is clean edged and w/o any alignment errors. Beefy and good looking too.
I ordered a 4-16 at the end of April and got it in less than a week. Just got lucky and they had them in stock.
Patiently awaited the 6-24 MIL for 21 or 22 weeks. Was pleasantly surprised so I decided to buy a 4-16 MIL which they must have received a shit load of as the wait went from foreva to 0-1 Week. I ordered on the 07 of May and was in my PO Box on the 10th and according to GMaps I live 3808 miles away from Sugar Land TX.
Good to know. They look well made and are supposed to be billet, so that's a plus. Not to side track, but I normally like to use Warne horizontal split Maxima rings, but they don't make them in 34mm. My Howa has EGW Keystone rings, which seem to be adequate for the price point.
They ship very fast when they're in stock. It took less than a week from ordering to delivery (OH) for me.
I mentioned this in the 4-16 thread I posted -- great scope for the money, especially tracking and turrets. I've taken mine out to 1200 recently with a 308. The glass isn't $3000-tier but it's really all anyone needs for backup rifles, entry level, etc. or if you can't afford to put a NF on every rifle (who can?). It is a good alternative to many of Vortex's lines and can compete with the PST Gen IIs IMO.
I picked up a Leupold MK5 HD on the PX yesterday to help get to the next level. You can see hits and misses clearly with the Arken but higher end scopes make it possible to see the very fine details, bullet trace, fight mirage, etc.
I mentioned this in the 4-16 thread I posted -- great scope for the money, especially tracking and turrets. I've taken mine out to 1200 recently with a 308. The glass isn't $3000-tier but it's really all anyone needs for backup rifles, entry level, etc. or if you can't afford to put a NF on every rifle (who can?). It is a good alternative to many of Vortex's lines and can compete with the PST Gen IIs IMO.
I picked up a Leupold MK5 HD on the PX yesterday to help get to the next level. You can see hits and misses clearly with the Arken but higher end scopes make it possible to see the very fine details, bullet trace, fight mirage, etc.
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I liked my Athlon Helos BTR gen1 for 50-100 yard shooting, up until I shot at 200 yards with it. I couldn't see the .22 holes that were outside my splatter target and on the white backer I was using. I could see them with my Bushnells, even the Match Pro. The Athlon just doesn't have the image quality (sharpness?) that is needed at that distance. I still have one sitting on my daughter's Tippmann rifle, but that could change down the road.
I've got a couple EGW rails and rings in a cart. The stuff seems legit and they are about the only game in town right now for a 0 MOA rail for RPR rimfire
The internet seems eerily quiet considering all the backorder shenanigans some had to endure... I figured by now there'd be at least a few guys on forums shouting it out there how they waited forever and their scope is a piece of crap?
I have one of the early SH4 Gen2's, probably their first run I'm guessing, and I honestly wonder if this run was built with better components, more care or something because it was early in the production cycle? Or I'm wondering if the one I have was somehow "cherry-picked" or something because I got it from a retailer that sells other precision rifle brands too (Anarchy Outdoors)?
Mine doesn't look or perform like a $400 scope.
I have one of the early SH4 Gen2's, probably their first run I'm guessing, and I honestly wonder if this run was built with better components, more care or something because it was early in the production cycle? Or I'm wondering if the one I have was somehow "cherry-picked" or something because I got it from a retailer that sells other precision rifle brands too (Anarchy Outdoors)?
Mine doesn't look or perform like a $400 scope.
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I've been going back and forth between the Arken SH4G2 and Razor HDG2 for a while now trying to decide what to run, just finding it really interesting and a little crazy how close they are when you forget about their price tags. Honestly comparing them against each other head to head, again, without considering price, and based off the particular Arken example I have, if the other ones out there are as good as mine, I think comparing them against any other scopes below the Razor's tier (less than $2000 MSRP) is pointless, it's better than all of them, full stop (and it isn't even close really).
IMO the SH4G2 is almost equal to the Razor HDG2. But, really though, for maybe 80-90% of the shooters out there who don't shoot out to 1000 yards regularly, they might as well be be the same scope.
I can only find 2 areas where the Razor HDG2 really distinguishes itself, and I couldn't really figure it out or notice see it until I mounted the Razor up right after the Arken back to back, on the same gun: depth of field and mirage/trace. *(Well, really 3 things...)
Looking at them static next to each other, and not running them for real, there are some things I actually do prefer about the Arken that may be better for modern PRS/NRL-type shooting like: (just my tastes here maybe) the Arken's VPR reticle is way more "open" and less fatiguing to look through then the Razor's (though in-general the EBR-7C is as good or better than anything out there), I feel like it makes it easier to spot impacts/splash, and I feel like most shooters receive more benefit from less clutter than they do from those rare occasions where you really use all those extra lines. IMHO there's no reason to always be looking through a "screen door" if we don't need to, but then I'd prefer to run a German #4 over a Horus or a Tremor, so that's just my taste I guess. I also have grown to prefer the Arken's turrets with the big wide clunks instead of "tick-tick-tick" and 8mils per revolution: I'm getting older and my eyes aren't getting any better and the Arken is just plain easier to read, big numbers are good.
On the gun, the Razor does show its pedigree, not saying one can't shoot the Arken and get the same results, because I've done it, in my experience the Arken's glass is good out to 1250+ yards, and really the glass between the two looks real similar. But, with the Razor it just feels like the difference between an SD and HD TV (if there are any SD TV's still out there for guys to know what I mean), it just seems more 3D and HiFi, the difference isn't huge, IMO it's closer to "Princess and the Pea" territory than real capability, but yeah, it's there, and it does look better. Mirage and trace is a different deal entirely with the Razor vs the Arken: the Arken cuts through close-in mirage better than most, and does allow one to read a fair amount of it downrange too through the glass, but you only have too look through the Razor for few seconds before your eyes relax and reveal what's really happening downrange, it "sees" through close-in mirage (like coming off a hot barrel) better and longer, yet downrange it allows one to see multiple layers of mirage which really does help with wind calls IMO. Also, bullet trace pops out compared to the Arken, it can almost look like a smoke trail for a second with the Razor sometimes when its really humid.That's pretty much the "it" right there that the Razor does better: it allows one to see the stuff that's mostly invisible better.
Is that worth the extra loot? IDK, depends on one's tastes I guess, I'm starting to think it is for me, but if I couldn't afford the more expensive scope I wouldn't feel bad or under equipped at all.
* The #3 the Razor has is its track-record/piece of mind: the Razor has been out for years and there are a lot of them out there that have been run hard, and had multiple owners, on all kinds of different guns, and in all kinds of different weather., and you almost never hear of them taking a dump. And if they do, I've heard Vortex will go as far as to overnight you a loaner if you've got a match or are in a jam where you need a scope.
Like it or not, all of us on the Arken train are beta testers to a certain degree, just are, there aren't enough of them that have been put through the shit out there... so far so good, so for most it's no big deal considering the performance per dollar.
But, as one gets deeper into the game to where they're dropping ~$300 in entry fees, and then another ~$500-600 for gas/hotel/food/supplies, ~$??? ammo, to shoot one of the bigger 2-day matches... that track-record/piece of mind thing becomes a bigger deal, and considering how expensive this hobby can get, there is a point where spending a little more for stuff that's proven makes real sense.
For 99.9999% of those just getting into long range the Arken is a no brainer.
For someone going on to their 3rd barrel in less than a year, IDK?... one of these is going in the PX soon, still not sure which, and it might come down to a coin-flip, they're that close:
IMO the SH4G2 is almost equal to the Razor HDG2. But, really though, for maybe 80-90% of the shooters out there who don't shoot out to 1000 yards regularly, they might as well be be the same scope.
I can only find 2 areas where the Razor HDG2 really distinguishes itself, and I couldn't really figure it out or notice see it until I mounted the Razor up right after the Arken back to back, on the same gun: depth of field and mirage/trace. *(Well, really 3 things...)
Looking at them static next to each other, and not running them for real, there are some things I actually do prefer about the Arken that may be better for modern PRS/NRL-type shooting like: (just my tastes here maybe) the Arken's VPR reticle is way more "open" and less fatiguing to look through then the Razor's (though in-general the EBR-7C is as good or better than anything out there), I feel like it makes it easier to spot impacts/splash, and I feel like most shooters receive more benefit from less clutter than they do from those rare occasions where you really use all those extra lines. IMHO there's no reason to always be looking through a "screen door" if we don't need to, but then I'd prefer to run a German #4 over a Horus or a Tremor, so that's just my taste I guess. I also have grown to prefer the Arken's turrets with the big wide clunks instead of "tick-tick-tick" and 8mils per revolution: I'm getting older and my eyes aren't getting any better and the Arken is just plain easier to read, big numbers are good.
On the gun, the Razor does show its pedigree, not saying one can't shoot the Arken and get the same results, because I've done it, in my experience the Arken's glass is good out to 1250+ yards, and really the glass between the two looks real similar. But, with the Razor it just feels like the difference between an SD and HD TV (if there are any SD TV's still out there for guys to know what I mean), it just seems more 3D and HiFi, the difference isn't huge, IMO it's closer to "Princess and the Pea" territory than real capability, but yeah, it's there, and it does look better. Mirage and trace is a different deal entirely with the Razor vs the Arken: the Arken cuts through close-in mirage better than most, and does allow one to read a fair amount of it downrange too through the glass, but you only have too look through the Razor for few seconds before your eyes relax and reveal what's really happening downrange, it "sees" through close-in mirage (like coming off a hot barrel) better and longer, yet downrange it allows one to see multiple layers of mirage which really does help with wind calls IMO. Also, bullet trace pops out compared to the Arken, it can almost look like a smoke trail for a second with the Razor sometimes when its really humid.That's pretty much the "it" right there that the Razor does better: it allows one to see the stuff that's mostly invisible better.
Is that worth the extra loot? IDK, depends on one's tastes I guess, I'm starting to think it is for me, but if I couldn't afford the more expensive scope I wouldn't feel bad or under equipped at all.
* The #3 the Razor has is its track-record/piece of mind: the Razor has been out for years and there are a lot of them out there that have been run hard, and had multiple owners, on all kinds of different guns, and in all kinds of different weather., and you almost never hear of them taking a dump. And if they do, I've heard Vortex will go as far as to overnight you a loaner if you've got a match or are in a jam where you need a scope.
Like it or not, all of us on the Arken train are beta testers to a certain degree, just are, there aren't enough of them that have been put through the shit out there... so far so good, so for most it's no big deal considering the performance per dollar.
But, as one gets deeper into the game to where they're dropping ~$300 in entry fees, and then another ~$500-600 for gas/hotel/food/supplies, ~$??? ammo, to shoot one of the bigger 2-day matches... that track-record/piece of mind thing becomes a bigger deal, and considering how expensive this hobby can get, there is a point where spending a little more for stuff that's proven makes real sense.
For 99.9999% of those just getting into long range the Arken is a no brainer.
For someone going on to their 3rd barrel in less than a year, IDK?... one of these is going in the PX soon, still not sure which, and it might come down to a coin-flip, they're that close:
The EP4 is also their higher end model. So now it makes me wonder where the EP4 fits in if the SH4 gen2 is as good as you're seeing it.
+1 when you factor in your time, your travel, lodging, match fees, and ammo. The gear itself is actually pretty cheap. So most people just jump into the alpha glass Kahles, NF, ZCO territory. If you can afford it, and you're basically only paying a $200 rental fee as the resale is so high on those. I bought this ZCO for $3300 used. I will get to enjoy it for years, and if I ever do stop shooting, I will sell it for probably $3100. And I get all the hours behind alpha glass for $200 rental fee.
The painful waits of the past are gone. I didn't know they made fire hoses that big, lol. Very much humbled, grateful, and excited.
The 6-24's will be in stock here in the next few days. That means we've caught up and will have inventory moving forward!
@HeavyDrop appreciate you sticking it out with us.
V/r,
Mike Reilly
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Good to hear, I've been extremely happy with my 4-16. It's incredible how well it stacks up against scopes 4x the cost. You guys are going to kill it once the logistics issues get worked out.
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