Scope help, Sightron or stick with my Leupold

jsimonh

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 27, 2010
Messages
90
I currently have a Leupold VX3 8.5-25x50 LRT/M1 turrets Mil-Dot reticle, but I'm really looking at the Sightron 8-32x56 with the 1/8 moa dot reticle. The extra zoom, reticle, and bigger objective seems pretty appealing, but I don't know if it would be a move up or not. Mainly for 600-1200yd shooting. Thanks for any advice or opinions.
 
You will get both sides on this one because it is an opinion question. I have an opinion and I would give the Sightorn SIII a try, I bet you like it...... Just like all the other guys that I have sold a pile of the Sightron SIII scopes to. You can't beat the price for them either. The SIII's are a great value.
Check out the ones I have on my site, best price around> Best Price Sightron SIII 8-32x56mm
 
Tikka Lover is right, that you have asked an opinion question and you know what they say about opinions. But because I have Leupold scopes on my rifles and am about to recommend Sightron to you, hope my particular opinion has some weight.

All three of my rifles wear Leupold scopes.

8-25x50 MK4...

http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f53/my-260-mcr-59628/

6-20x50 MK4...

http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f53/my-300rum-mcr-70809/#post494570

4-14x40 VX3...(you have to read to the end to see the upgrade from VXII to the VX3)

http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f53/my-280-updated-32771/

The 260 is my 'main' rifle as it sees the most action. I use it for targets, varmints, deer, f-class and tactical competition. Because it is used in tactical competition, Leupold's TMR reticle cannot be beat. It is graduated in .5mils and at the endges it is graduated in .2mils. This allows you to precisely mil targets. What's more, the crosshairs of the reticle don't actually cross. There's a small gap. This is great because if you are shooting at a small target, like a groundhog, at longrange, your reticle will not cover-up the target.

I then put the same reticle in the other scopes so that when i transition from one rifle to the next, my scope picture remains the same.

So, if you have some interest in tactical competition where you might have to engage some UKD (unknown distance) targets and you have to mil them, Leupold with the TMR reticle is the way to go.

Many times I have been on a range or at a competition and heard guys bash Leupold for various reasons. My experience is that they are clear glass, great reticle choices and reliable/repeatable turrets.

If you are not interested in tactical competition though, it's tough to beat the Sightron SIII scopes. Their glass is clear (as good, if not better than Leupold), turret adjustments are reliable/repeatable and they have some great choices in reticles including mil-dot and MOA, although they put a small target dot in the center of their MOA reticles. I'm not a fan of the small dot as it can cover up small targets at longrange.

The best testimonial I have for the Sightron SIII scopes is that four out of five of my friends that are longrange hunters use SIII scopes. My one buddy that does not use SIII has US Optics on his rifles.

An additional point that makes the SIIIs attractive is their price. You get a great scope for ~$800. that is easily hundreds less than comparable competition from Leupold and Nightforce.

Sum it all up....

Shoot tactical competition = Leupold
Not shooting tactical competition = Sightron SIII
 
Sightron is the best value for the money available. Their glass is great and the ones I have track just as well as my Nightforce. In fact I'm going to sell my Nightforce and buy two more Sightron MOA scopes.
 
Well, my Leupold is gone and I have an 8-32x56 w/moa reticle on order through Tikka Lover. Can't wait to get it and see how it compares to all the other scopes I've had in the past. Thanks for all your insights.
 
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