LEUPOLD VX6HD FRUSTRATION!!!!

I would love to know the innerworkings of the turret designs and why this is such a challenge for the manufacturers. Obviously, scalability and cost play an enormous role in the ability to QC, but truly, QC is a Band-Aid for erratic manufacturing/design practices. That's not a knock on the manufactures, it's just that I'd love to understand the complexity and challenges faced in this area. It's a thread doing the work for adjustment, so from that point of view, you would think that part of the mechanism is pretty straight forward and iron clad. It's the rest of it that's clearly the difficult part.
 
I had the same experience. Sent it back to Leupold 3 times and they always sent it back saying nothing wrong. I put a proven scope on the and problem solved. I replaced it with another Nightforce.

This is where I'm at. Leupold and Vortex have great CS but I'd rather being using an optic that didn't need it. Really hard to beat NF when it comes to reliability. I wouldn't mind running NF on everything.
 
I'm speculating but I thing the real good scoped only use metal parts in there turret systems or where it is critical that these things are needed. Also some where I seen a video which I think it was about night force and the harden precision spring part that they used that keeps the reticular in line, returning to zero, and allows it to be adjusted 1000's of times without and issue. Some scopes use harden plastic that just wears or can strip or fail. I had an ideal but I'm sure the companies would do the thing due to per priority information we can not bla bla bla. But it would be nice to see a cut away of the inner working guys of the turret inside the scope had just put it out there of all the big brands so consumers could make a good judgement decision on there purchase. It might embarrass some manufacturers and you might say wow that's what I'm going to buy for now on.
 
Just Get a Bushnell Elite scope in your desired magnification range.
I recommend the XRS3 in 6 - 36 x 56 mm. It has ED glass and excellent turrets and a good guarantee.

Above that try a NightForce ATACR.
 
It's so silly Leupold and vortex won't/can't build Scopes that are as simple and a
bombproof as a m quad 6x or 3+15 or 5-25 Swfa, or any nightforce. Why? Why?
Not sexy enough. Not 2-70 x 56mm with crazy tree reticles.
 
It's so silly Leupold and vortex won't/can't build Scopes that are as simple and a
bombproof as a m quad 6x or 3+15 or 5-25 Swfa, or any nightforce. Why? Why?
Not sexy enough. Not 2-70 x 56mm with crazy tree reticles.

Oh, they do make some good ones. The Leupold Mark 5 & Vortex Razor lines are pretty solid, in my experience (I won't own a Vortex that isn't a Razor & had better get an incredible deal at that). Of course, the prices for either start at ~$2k and can exceed $3k.

I really don't think it's sex appeal. Just functionality. End users demand more & more from producers & they are trying to integrate those demands.

The Gen III Razor is 6-36x, if they weren't ridiculously expensive i'd like to play with one.

The Mark 5 can be had in a 3.6-18x with should be very useful & they are a very compact scope. The PR1 MOA reticle is a very good design (IMHO), not as cluttered as a "Christmas Tree" & yet, not as completely useless as a standard duplex.

While Leupold's reputation for durability is and has been highly questionable for a LONG time; I may highly consider the Mark 5 vs the VX-5 or VX-6.




t
 
I would guess it's a trade off for weight savings. Most hunters don't twist dials like crazy and don't want a 40oz. scope. The multitude of hunters not on long range forums get a light 5hd or 6hd with great glass and great functionality for how they shoot and are happy as can be. I would guess most long range guys that get a Luepold 6HD over a comparably priced NF are just trying to save weight. I've heard it said there's no free lunch.
 
I would guess it's a trade off for weight savings. Most hunters don't twist dials like crazy and don't want a 40oz. scope. The multitude of hunters not on long range forums get a light 5hd or 6hd with great glass and great functionality for how they shoot and are happy as can be. I would guess most long range guys that get a Luepold 6HD over a comparably priced NF are just trying to save weight. I've heard it said there's no free lunch.

Great functionality? Perhaps you miss the entire reason for this thread. They fail, a lot. I will concede your point on glass, i've always liked Leupold glass. Now, i'm not trying to be an ***, just seems an odd thing to say on a nearly 6pg thread discussing how often Leupold optics fail.

Most hunters who don't twist dials probably aren't the ones to visit LRH, or actually partake in long range shooting/hunting; not that that's a bad thing. Just different strokes for different folks.

I guess that's why you'll see scope offerings from 2-7x all the way up to 6-36x (perhaps beyond). Duplex reticles to "Christmas Tree" reticles & an unbelievable selection in between.

The questions you have to initially ask are "what do I intend to accomplish" & "How much do I HAVE to spend to get there".

As you said, there is no free lunch.




t
 
Great functionality? Perhaps you miss the entire reason for this thread. They fail, a lot. I will concede your point on glass, i've always liked Leupold glass. Now, i'm not trying to be an ***, just seems an odd thing to say on a nearly 6pg thread discussing how often Leupold optics fail.

Most hunters who don't twist dials probably aren't the ones to visit LRH, or actually partake in long range shooting/hunting; not that that's a bad thing. Just different strokes for different folks.

I guess that's why you'll see scope offerings from 2-7x all the way up to 6-36x (perhaps beyond). Duplex reticles to "Christmas Tree" reticles & an unbelievable selection in between.

The questions you have to initially ask are "what do I intend to accomplish" & "How much do I HAVE to spend to get there".

As you said, there is no free lunch.




t
Yes, I understand the point of the thread. The post I replied to questioned why Leupold couldn't match others reliability. For most shooters that set it and forget it, THEY feel like they have great functionality. That is the 95% of hunters Leupold is building the VX series for. They have the Mark 5hd series for the other 5%. I am guessing that functionality past the first revolution was the gamble making a light weight scope. Knowing how few shooters would actually utilize 2 turns on a CDS Leupold said the risk of reputation is worth the initial sales. The only real abuse they take for failures is on sites like this, also a small percentage of the market and they know they have defenders here as well. I would bet that failures in the VX line on scopes that don't get dialed past 500 yards (my imagined target VX user) are very, very rare.
 
I really like the fact that the low quality tracking scopes like Leupold and Vortex keep going up in price but the lower end bullet proof Nightforce scopes have barely changed. Crazy thet you can buy two or three good used NXS scopes for what those other manufacturers are selling some of their models for. I'll take a used NXS or SHV any day over the best of the best Leupold and Vortex scopes. If you don't dial, a Leupold is fine. I have seen many a Vortex bumped off POI without dialing. I feel like a broken record but I trust Nightforce with my life and only Nightforce. All the guys complaining about scope weight need to eat a few more salads and a few less cookies🤣😂.
 
Yes, I understand the point of the thread. The post I replied to questioned why Leupold couldn't match others reliability. For most shooters that set it and forget it, THEY feel like they have great functionality. That is the 95% of hunters Leupold is building the VX series for. They have the Mark 5hd series for the other 5%. I am guessing that functionality past the first revolution was the gamble making a light weight scope. Knowing how few shooters would actually utilize 2 turns on a CDS Leupold said the risk of reputation is worth the initial sales. The only real abuse they take for failures is on sites like this, also a small percentage of the market and they know they have defenders here as well. I would bet that failures in the VX line on scopes that don't get dialed past 500 yards (my imagined target VX user) are very, very rare.

I apologize for misunderstanding your post, the way I interpreted it really had me scratching my head!

You also make an incredibly valid point when you state that the "set it & forget it" crowd feel they have a great scope. I've seen many, many Leupold scopes that have maintained zero for years without issue. Of course, those are the ones that don't get dialed to extremes, constantly.... or dialed, ever.




t



t
 
I really like the fact that the low quality tracking scopes like Leupold and Vortex keep going up in price but the lower end bullet proof Nightforce scopes have barely changed. Crazy thet you can buy two or three good used NXS scopes for what those other manufacturers are selling some of their models for. I'll take a used NXS or SHV any day over the best of the best Leupold and Vortex scopes. If you don't dial, a Leupold is fine. I have seen many a Vortex bumped off POI without dialing. I feel like a broken record but I trust Nightforce with my life and only Nightforce. All the guys complaining about scope weight need to eat a few more salads and a few less cookies🤣😂.

I actually had several conversations with a LGS that offers scope mounting services. They've seen several of the low-tier Vortex actually shift the reticle when adjusting parallax.... wow!



t
 

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