Rifle Scopes Vortex/Night Force

[Jonathan1849]

Working on getting fully certified as a shift sniper with my department. My current setup is a Bargara .308 chasis system. My current scope is a Vortex strike eagle 7-35x56 (I believe). Looking into the tremor3 reticles and have narrowed down to Night Force or Vortex. Ive tried posting in other groups but never seem to get logical answers. POU would be out to 500 absolute max, but during practice wouldnt mind going out farther. Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

 

[charnicus]

I’ll let the real snipers answer but what is your actual question?

 

[Jonathan1849]

The question is which scope to go with essentially. We supply our own built rifles amd with that said there is Vortex $2500 and night force $3-$3500. Working county salary isnt a rich mans game, so I want to ensure I get the best value that will give long service.

 

[hafejd30]

Keep in mind most Leo sniper shots are inside 100 yards. Just FYI when your looking at 7 as your base magnification. That’s a small FOV

A NF ATACR would serve you well

I really hate it when the Dept feels the need to have a certified sniper then makes you purchase all your own equipment. If you ever have to take “the shot” it will be on every news source and judged hindsight 2020 by a lot of people

Do they at least provide the ammo?

 

[Rob01]

The question is which scope to go with essentially. We supply our own built rifles amd with that said there is Vortex $2500 and night force $3-$3500. Working county salary isnt a rich mans game, so I want to ensure I get the best value that will give long service.

There is no Vortex that is $2500 unless you like overpaying. The Razor II is around $1600-1800. The AMG is around $2000. Also you need to look into LE/Mil pricing if you are an LEO.

You really need to look at reticles before choosing. Some that sound like a great idea might not be for you. Is your Strike Eagle now a 5-25 or the older 4-24?

 

[Jonathan1849]

Duty use, yes they provide ammo, other than that we buy our practice ammo. Which isnt saying much seeing as how we practice with duty ammo to ensure consistancy. 169 gr Hp BeaverTail about 30 a box pre-covid lol. Also their point of view is if we are able to supply better weapons than what would normally be issued they would prefer that. Also, the weapon would have to be returned on an shift by shift basis so there is no, "knowing your weapon inside and out" with that. Yes typical leo shots are 100yds but occasionally there have been times that when the snipers made a nest, mayitbe say a drug bust, and one is set out to over look the property, there have been times they observed 3 to 400 yards with the possibility of needing a shot. That is one reason I have gotton more fond of the Tremor3 reticle. I have have set shapes assigned to specific hashes to get a better idea on the distance Id need.

 

[Jonathan1849]

There is no Vortex that is $2500 unless you like overpaying. The Razor II is around $1600-1800. The AMG is around $2000. Also you need to look into LE/Mil pricing if you are an LEO.

You really need to look at reticles before choosing. Some that sound like a great idea might not be for you. Is your Strike Eagle now a 5-25 or the older 4-24?

Its the 5-25. And I have looked at reticles for about 4 to 5 months now. Tis why my determination is set between those 2 brands with the same reticle. And I have reached out to both on leo pricing, NF Responded first, if I decide to lean towards Vortex I may haggle them a little more for a leo price sheet.

 

[TangoSierra916]

Which Nightforce model are you considering? (if you're set on Tremor 3 I'd say nx8 or 7-35 ATACR)

A few questions for you assuming you're looking at the 7-35 ATACR from Nightforce and 4.5-27 razor gen 2 from Vortex both with Tremor 3:

- does weight matter to you?
- do you need locking turrets?
- do you need green illumination?
- do you need the ability to focus/parallax down to 10 ish meters?
- does overall scope length matter?
- do you need a quick focus eyepiece? (will others being using this rifle or only you?)
- does scope color matter?

 

[hafejd30]

Duty use, yes they provide ammo, other than that we buy our practice ammo. Which isnt saying much seeing as how we practice with duty ammo to ensure consistancy. 169 gr Hp BeaverTail about 30 a box pre-covid lol. Also their point of view is if we are able to supply better weapons than what would normally be issued they would prefer that. Also, the weapon would have to be returned on an shift by shift basis so there is no, "knowing your weapon inside and out" with that. Yes typical leo shots are 100yds but occasionally there have been times that when the snipers made a nest, mayitbe say a drug bust, and one is set out to over look the property, there have been times they observed 3 to 400 yards with the possibility of needing a shot. That is one reason I have gotton more fond of the Tremor3 reticle. I have have set shapes assigned to specific hashes to get a better idea on the distance Id need.

I hear you on that,

As a Leo I carried my own weapon as well. AR with a 1-4 as my patrol rifle. For the same reasons you stated. I did sit on perimeters on a few drug house type occasions etc.

In the country so longer shots could be needed, same as your scenario.

I’m no longer a Leo. But my ideal Leo “sniper” rifle just from what I’ve used would be topped with a NF ATACR 4-16 F1.

Proven scope. Good reticles. Red/green illumination. I prefer green. 4X for closer scenarios where you may want to see a larger area and 16X to get in closer to ID people/items. 16X power would be enough to help ID at 3-400 yards. Capped windage/locking elevation turret (don’t have to worry about turrets spinning in the dark or when removing from case)

I’d bet vortex Leo pricing is going to beat NF. But I’d still go NF if I was going to lay behind that rifle. I had several vortex PST’s the earlier model. One of which was on my patrol rifle. My bad luck with them soured me from using them

 

[Jonathan1849]

Which Nightforce model are you considering? (if you're set on Tremor 3 I'd say nx8 or 7-35 ATACR)

A few questions for you assuming you're looking at the 7-35 ATACR from Nightforce and 4.5-27 razor gen 2 from Vortex both with Tremor 3:

- does weight matter to you?
- do you need locking turrets?
- do you need green illumination?
- do you need the ability to focus/parallax down to 10 ish meters?
- does overall scope length matter?
- do you need a quick focus eyepiece? (will others being using this rifle or only you?)
- does scope color matter?

Weight doesnt matter
I dont need locking turrents
Green or red illum not picky
I dont think id need the actual scope to focus that low. 50 yard would be bare minimum that Id possibly need.
No others would be shooting my rifle,
Color? No, doesnt matter at all

 

[Jonathan1849]

I hear you on that,

As a Leo I carried my own weapon as well. AR with a 1-4 as my patrol rifle. For the same reasons you stated. I did sit on perimeters on a few drug house type occasions etc.

In the country so longer shots could be needed, same as your scenario.

I’m no longer a Leo. But my ideal Leo “sniper” rifle just from what I’ve used would be topped with a NF ATACR 4-16 F1.

Proven scope. Good reticles. Red/green illumination. I prefer green. 4X for closer scenarios where you may want to see a larger area and 16X to get in closer to ID people/items. 16X power would be enough to help ID at 3-400 yards. Capped windage/locking elevation turret (don’t have to worry about turrets spinning in the dark or when removing from case)

I’d bet vortex Leo pricing is going to beat NF. But I’d still go NF if I was going to lay behind that rifle. I had several vortex PST’s the earlier model. One of which was on my patrol rifle. My bad luck with them soured me from using them

I want to really really like vortex, thats one reason I was looking at the razor gen 2 as I believe that is one of the US made models. So i was hoping that would give tge Atacr a run for the money.

 

[hafejd30]

The razors are popular scopes. Mine were PST’s. Never used the razors

The 5-25 atacr would fit the bill nicely as well if you go the NF route

A lot of Dept by us were using MK4 Leupold at the time. MSP guys had 4.5-14 on their rifles. I’m not a fan of Leupold but this was before the Razor or ATACR. The NF NXS were the go to then if you wanted reliable optics

 

[aard3]

I had to supply my own AR when I was on duty... sucks, but small department... so I know the feeling.

Vortex Razor Gen II is a great scope, and you can goto Liberty Optics to get hooked up with great pricing on it. It's heavy, but basically bomb proof. You DO NOT need to spent 3K on an optic (Vortex also has an Leo discount program, but I found liberty optics basically matches that price)

When I took our departments sniper course, Vortex LOANED me a scope for free because I needed it quickly. I liked it so much I bought it... That's the type of customer service they provide.

If you want to go the NF route, sign up for ExpertVoice and get a Night Force Discount that way.

I'm no longer an LEO, but I shoot Razor Gen II in PRS and have been totally happy with them.

 

[Jonathan1849]

I had to supply my own AR when I was on duty... sucks, but small department... so I know the feeling.

Vortex Razor Gen II is a great scope, and you can goto Liberty Optics to get hooked up with great pricing on it. It's heavy, but basically bomb proof. You DO NOT need to spent 3K on an optic (Vortex also has an Leo discount program, but I found liberty optics basically matches that price)

When I took our departments sniper course, Vortex LOANED me a scope for free because I needed it quickly. I liked it so much I bought it... That's the type of customer service they provide.

If you want to go the NF route, sign up for ExpertVoice and get a Night Force Discount that way.

I'm no longer an LEO, but I shoot Razor Gen II in PRS and have been totally happy with them.

I just looked them up and emailed them. Hopefully Ill get a response here soon on their overall priceing for those two options

 

[DeadZeppelin]

I've used the NF ATACRs for work, and own a couple Vortex Razors.

If I was buying my own optic like you are, I'd opt for the Razor. I don't feel like you are giving anything up getting the Razor, and your money will go a lot farther with the Razor IMO.

That being said they are both phenomenal scopes.

 

[M8541Reaper]

Hop over to the Mil/LE forum. There’s a recent thread about optics for the role and a lot of great info.

Nightforce gets my vote, but not the 7-35 just due to the observation range FOV concerns. The 4-16 ATACR is a great optic that tracks, durable, and proven. I’d stay away from T3 and look more at the Mil-C or even the Mil-R. If you really want a grid-style for whatever reason, take a look at the Mil-XT.

Hit up NF and get enrolled into their mil/le program.

Stay safe

 

[Davesnothere]

I had to supply my own AR when I was on duty... sucks, but small department... so I know the feeling.

Vortex Razor Gen II is a great scope, and you can goto Liberty Optics to get hooked up with great pricing on it. It's heavy, but basically bomb proof. You DO NOT need to spent 3K on an optic (Vortex also has an Leo discount program, but I found liberty optics basically matches that price)

When I took our departments sniper course, Vortex LOANED me a scope for free because I needed it quickly. I liked it so much I bought it... That's the type of customer service they provide.

If you want to go the NF route, sign up for ExpertVoice and get a Night Force Discount that way.

I'm no longer an LEO, but I shoot Razor Gen II in PRS and have been totally happy with them.

I thought NF had its own LEO/mil program. Well, I know they do. Expertvoice has the Vortex. Never in stock.

 

[EscapeVelocity]

For sure hit up nightforce for their LEO discount, and look at the NX8. Very versatile. I've never had an ATACR but I'm sure they are great too.

 

[Davesnothere]

Just for grins. Wby Vanguard Wilderness with Athlon Midas. 240 Wby mag.