Am I nuts? VX6hd 3-18×50 vs. G7 NXS 5.5-22

[bigbulls]

Might try one of these to save weight and still have reliability and a great hunting reticle.
https://www.zeiss.com/sports-optics...lescopes/conquest-v6/conquest-v6-3-18x50.html
https://www.zeiss.com/sports-optics...lescopes/conquest-v6/conquest-v6-5-30x50.html

 

[MTLIVIN]

Id look to other places to save the weight difference on the scope. I had an early version of the VX6 3-18 TMOA scope and that thing had some weird gremlins living in it. I couldn't get it to track for my life, yet a cheap vortex tracked perfectly when swapped out. I eventually went to the Huskemaw 4-16x44 on that rifle and its held up and tracked very good for 5 years now. That might be a good option to explore

 

[Another Casual]

Somewhat relevant experience here. I have the nightforce SHV on my target gun and the VX5HD on my hunting rifle. I prefer the glass on the VX5 in pretty much all lighting conditions and it tracks well in my experience. SHV had the the better reticle, although I find myself dialing more than holding. The turrets are great, lock at zero but easy to spin when it's time. That being said, if the rest of the rifle has heavy components (barrel, stock, etc) cutting from the scope won't necessarily give you a light gun, just a lighter gun. Food for thought.

As an aside, other than the zoom ration and the 6 including the lens caps, I didn't see much reason to go for the 6. I got my 3-15 VX5HD for around $700. If you can swing that and keep the NF, best of both worlds. Then when you breakdown and build a lighter rifle overall you've already got a great scope for it. I've got a 26" #2 barrel and manners eh6 and I'm sitting at 8 pounds ready to hunt and I love it.

 

[BoatTail]

I don't think you're crazy. I have three rifles with VX 6 Leupold scopes on them. When I first got into long range hunting, I purchased a rifle from gunwerks where they convinced me I needed a 10 lb rifle shoot long distance. Mine had their original heavy scope and a number five Barrel. I've never espoused to need for a heavy rifle and later moved to 8 to 8 1/2 pound rifles for hunting. In a hunting situation I found rifles under 9 lb, with a good rest, work perfectly for me out to 650 yrds with one shot kills, but I always shoot prone. I do try to get closer but often that is not possible in the open country of th west. As we get older, we start thinking about the extra weight we are carrying. 10 ounces is a lot of extra weight when we add it to other extra things we need to carry and becomes a necessary consideration. I say leave the heavy rifles to those with younger backs and legs and carry something lighter. I also like the locking turrets on the Leupold scopes. I know they're not going to move until I make a change. I found the custom dials, when properly validated, to be right on. The glass is clear with excellent eye relief and the weight compliments my carbon fiber barrels and McMillan Edge lightweight stocks. I say go for it, make the change.

 

[BrentM]

If anyone has an issue with a leupold not tracking I'd like to know why they didn't work with the warranty group and fix it. I have had nothing but excellent experiences with their crew in Oregon. I am not saying it is a better scope, I just happen to enjoy mine enough to consider another and possibly replace the NXS for lighter mountain hunting rifles. It is very true that saving weight elsewhere might be more productive because a clear, durable, and reliable scope are extremely important. This is my second year using the vx6 3-18x50 and so far I am happy with the overall performance of the scope. I still like the NF a little better but the rifle it the vx is on was a light weight chassis project. It does the job well.

My day pack, including bino pack is 35-40lbs with rifle. Ounces matter. Good glass is valuable. I don't think you'd be upset with the VX6.

 

[Timber338]

VX6HD 3-18x50 is about the best light weight long range scope available. VX5HD 3-15x44 is another great option if you really want to save every ounce.

these scopes have every feature you need, the locking turret is very clever and also very simple. Works great.

amazing clarity and low light performance.

last year during 1st rifle in Colorado I watched a bull across a big canyon with my Swaro 15x56 SLCs and would move back and forth to my scope for a touch of extra magnification.

Although the Swaro's were a touch clearer, the VX6HD was not far behind.

Ended up shooting that bull at 1130 yards. Being 12 miles from the truck I was pretty happy to have a relatively lightweight setup.

 

[ducky]

Wouldn't it be easier & cheaper just to go on a diet and lose 5lbs? I'd rather spend the money on lighter boots!

My take on it is lighter gear is easier to carry. It doesn't hurt to loose 5lbs, but that doesnt change the way the gear feels when you carry it.

I spent a few years in the airborne infantry in the early 90's, where boots and a pack were my primary form of transportation from A to B. I never once wished I was lighter so I could carry my gear easier, all my gear was close to 75 lbs. I struggled a lot less at 170 and 15% body fat than the smaller guys, and when I cut my body fat to around 11% I gained 25 lbs. I can tell you carrying all my gear with an extra 25 lbs of body mass played hell on my joints, and once you gain that extra mass you can't go back.

If I had the light gear in the beginning (1992) that I retired with in 2017, my career as airborne infantryman might have been a lot longer. There is a point when return on investment chasing ounces isnt worth it. However, if you can afford to pay the price for light gear your body will thank you more in the long run, even more so if you're able to combine it with weight loss.

 

[RYEWSKY25284]

I'm considering selling or trading my Niteforce G7 NXS and moving to a Leupold VX6hd 3-18×50. My G7 currently sit atop a GW LR1000 in 7rm. I love this setup and its proven to be very accurate, durable and repeatable. The motive for going to leupold is to reduce overall weight of rig by 10 ounces. I will also be swapping out the McMillan stock in favor of new GW Clymer stock to further reduce weight of rig.
Will I be happy with the change? I primarily hunt mule deep in the backcountry. I limit shots on game to 500yrds but frequently shoot steel and rocks out to 1000. Thanks so much for your thoughts!
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Wow! Nice Mulie. Imo I'm not a big fan of making changes to a rifle that shoots well, is accurate and I'm comfortable with. Every time I've tried it, seems I always regret it and, it's very costly.

 

[naja302]

I'll take the nightforce if you decide to sell it assuming it has the G7 reticle!

 

[Carl McCants]

I have an ATCR, VX6, AND SWARO X5. All are great scopes, The Swaro, has way better light gathering ability when it gets dark ( still legal shooting time) and a lot lighter. However, I tend to hunt with my VX6 more, just the whole set is lighter (because of the rifle, not scope) and I usually carry a climber into the woods ( and not shooting very far).

 

[landonm]

Lots of options there. I'd personally go for the Leupold Mark 5 3.6-18 over the VX6. Turrets are far superior! Ultimately, I think you'd be far better off doing a new GW build and either keeping the current build as-is as a backup, or selling it to offset the cost of the new build? Our new ClymR stock is killer, but pair it with an updated action, carbon barrel, and a Mark 5 would get you into the 8lb range scoped. Whole different world!

 

[73driver]

Wouldn't it be easier & cheaper just to go on a diet and lose 5lbs? I'd rather spend the money on lighter boots!

Lighter boots and weight loss might help with leg fatigue but not sure how it helps with upper body/arms?

 

[Raudy707]

I did the exact same thing with both my NF scopes and replaced with VX-6 HD scopes to save on weight. Love my decision every day. I feel the Leupold's actually have better glass, work superior in low light conditions and they have tracked perfectly in rugged back country conditions spot on for the past 3 years. Not sure why some people think going from a $2000 scope to $1600 scope is such a huge difference. Sure as heck isn't a Ferrari to a Yugo. If you get a chance find a buddy that has one and test it out. You won't be dissatisfied. I've got 3 rifles I've swapped out and 10k rounds down 7 different barrels and I've had 0 issues. Good luck and happy shooting!

 

[bearcat2]

I've never owned a Nightforce even though they are built an hour from me and I've had employees tell me they can get me a great deal on one. Really nice scope, but they are a boat anchor! My long range rifle is heavy, never actually weighed it but I figure around 12-13 pounds with scope and bipod. I don't really want to add most of a pound to that. I run a Leupold Mk IV 4.5-14 and would like to compare it one to a Nightforce at low light. I always like all the Nightforces I've looked through or shot (as long as I didn't have to pack them) but I had a client with one last year and his buddy had a bottom line Leupold 3x9x40 with one inch tube. We were comparing at first light and when I could see plain to see horns through my Stiener Nighthunter binoculars both of them would have been really lucky to see an animal. While the NIghtforce was better at light gathering it was just a very slight noticeable difference between it and the cheap Leupold while my binoculars were like night and day. I think my Mk IV gathers light much better than that, which shocked me because I always thought the Nightforce would be at least as good if not better. But I've never actually gotten to compare them side by side at low light.