Vortex PST Gen 2 Or another?

[_Will_]

I'm looking at scopes for my 20" AR-10. I went to my local Sportsman Warehouse with the intention of seeing if they had a 3x15x44 Gen II PST which they did not... So I tried a few Vortex scopes one of them was the PST 5X25X50 PST-5259, which seemed pretty nice and relatively clear as I read a sign on the opposite end of the store. I picked up a Crimson Trace Hardline 4x16x42 and wow... The clarity on the glass blew me away. Much brighter and clearer at higher magnification, nice eyebox. Then I did some reading.. It seems Crimson Trace and Athlon use Japanese-made glass versus Vortex which is either made Philippines or China? That being said my eyes weren't lying, at least I don't think they were. I'm still considering a 3x15x44 PST GEN II, would offerings from Athlon Ares BTR or Crimson Trace be an improvement over the Vortex glass? I know there's other things that make a scope such as turrents, tracking etc.

 

[FuhQ]

Not all Crimson Trace and Athlon scopes use Japanese glass...I'd do your research on which models do and don't. Go to the company's websites and see. If it doesn't say, call them or email them with your questions.

Also, I've heard of several turret failures on the PST Gen2's (a couple on here, even a thread or 2), so keep that in mind. I have tons of Vortex optics, I'm just saying, once again, do your research on ruggedness of every scope you are interested in before dropping $1K+ on a scope.

Most of the Vortex Phillipines glass is pretty decent...Better than most Chinese glass from a few years ago. Some of the Chinese HD glass is pretty good, honestly. But if you can get Japanese ED glass, then you will be a step ahead.

Also, keep in mind that glass isn't everything... If it doesn't track properly, then all that means is you'll be able to clearly see yourself miss.

Customer service quality and lifetime warranties are also very important factors when choosing an optic.

 

[Helislacker]

I'm looking at scopes for my 20" AR-10. I went to my local Sportsman Warehouse with the intention of seeing if they had a 3x15x44 Gen II PST which they did not... So I tried a few Vortex scopes one of them was the PST 5X25X50 PST-5259, which seemed pretty nice and relatively clear as I read a sign on the opposite end of the store. I picked up a Crimson Trace Hardline 4x16x42 and wow... The clarity on the glass blew me away. Much brighter and clearer at higher magnification, nice eyebox. Then I did some reading.. It seems Crimson Trace and Athlon use Japanese-made glass versus Vortex which is either made Philippines or China? That being said my eyes weren't lying, at least I don't think they were. I'm still considering a 3x15x44 PST GEN II, would offerings from Athlon Ares BTR or Crimson Trace be an improvement over the Vortex glass? I know there's other things that make a scope such as turrents, tracking etc.

NF SHV is far and away a better choice out of these options. This coming from someone who owns a PST Gen 2. They’re feature packed scopes with decent glass but aren’t great at retaining zero, which makes them inferior to the SHV in my opinion. IF durability and zero retention was equal I’d take the Vortex, but they aren’t.