Toughest Long Range Hunting Optic?

[Rent Outdoor Gear]

John Porter rides backcountry on horses and shoots bigger animals than anyone here can dream of...what does he rely on?

If you wanna use your scope as a hammer then you need to rethink a lot of things. What if you drop your rangefinder? It's just as important as your scope for LR hunting.

He relies on the scopes that pay him to use them and helped start & sponsor his TV show. They might be awesome scopes, but I don't think his using them is necessarily an unbiased endorsement of their toughness. Huskemaw has some good scopes and some nice features. John is a guy I would definitely consider hiring as a guide any day. He's legit and certainly knows long range shooting. Just have to remember TV shows are often edited and the fails (misses) are often excluded. The fact he has stuck with Huskemaw does say something though. I can't imagine a guy like him using something he didn't fully trust.

I have had good luck with the Vortex Gen II Razor HD on my PRS rifle. It has taken its share of abuse and has a number of dents and dings and has spent the majority of it's life in horribly dirty/dusty environments. It tracks perfect and holds zero. It's also FOUR POUNDS... Not exactly hunting friendly. I think the extra weight must, in-part, be heavier walled tubing in the scope itself and perhaps use of heavier components internally. Good glass is often heavier too. They don't sponsor me. The locking turrets are a nice feature too. Doesn't do any good to hold zero if your turret gets spun. Capped turrets would be a step more reliable in that regard.

I would also trust a Nightforce with no hesitation if I could afford one.

I would recommend a one-piece mount like a SPUHR.

Also highly recommend using an action with the rail machined into it like a Defiance if your life depends on your system holding zero.

Last but not least, bring a backup optic... nothing is unbreakable and you never know when something bizarre like a horse wreck or a 4-wheeler crash or a simple slip/trip fall might damage even the toughest optical system in the world.

 

[RAGGED EDGE]

John Porter rides backcountry on horses and shoots bigger animals than anyone here can dream of...what does he rely on?

Most likely the ones with the blue elevation turret.

 

[Mackinaw BOB]

I have two nightforce NXS they get my vote

 

[Greyfox]

1-S&B PMII
2-Nightforce ATAC-R
3-Huskemaw Blue Diamond

 

[coueshunterstw]

What is the toughest long range rifle scope on the market? The one that can get the crap kicked out of it and never lose zero? The one that you would trust the hunt of a lifetime to? I know nothing is perfect, but if your life depended on this scope holding zero, what would it be?

I rode my Leupold down the mountain and put a nice gash in the tube. Shot my deer that afternoon never checked to see if it was off. That is the only scope I have treated so poorly.

 

[daka]

Hard not to think Nightforce

No need to explain further...
Beside NF, Leupold comes to that

 

[D-mon]

As said above, on the trip of a lifetime , I would have two scopes in some tough mounts like sphur, one optic mounted on the rifle, the other one pre zeroed, so that only a handfull of cartridges are necessary for rezero.

 

[X47guy]

If you wanna know what the toughest scopes are, check out a PRS match.

Our rifles are left in the dirtiest, dustiest, and some times the wettest conditions you are gonna find. Our scopes are constantly being banged against barricades, tossed around, and we dial 99% of our stages. We depend on reliability. Nightforce, Kahles, and Vortex Gen IIs take the top three. There isn't another shooting sport that is as rough on equipment as tactical rifle matches. Leupold has stepped up huge with the MK5. The 8s and 6s sucked IMO. A good ring and base set up is just as important as the scope. Spurh, ARC, Seekins, NF all make great rings. Hensoldt had a big tracking problem at one point. S&B have been known to shift. Every scope has the ability to fail, some just fail a whole lot less. If you want a fixed power scope, SWFA takes the win on those IMO.

 

[Kaptoe]

If I can bring a second full rifle I always do

 

[Litehiker]

YEP, SWFA in just about any model but especially the fixed 10X original.

i had a 3 - 15 x 42 and dropped it, it slid off a high log snd hit another on the ground, banged it in an ATV, etc. and NO problems.
Do not try a Bushnell, Leupold, Nikon, Burris, etc. on an air rifle B/C the forward recoil eventually loosens their lenses. Not so within SWFA.

Eric B.

 

[ButterBean]

I've never owned a NF or SWFA so I can't offer an opinion on either but a fellow LR shooter hunting friend swears by SWFA. Isn't the SWFA built to Military specs? (This doesn't mean it's better by any stretch of the imagination though)

The Original Tasco contract for the fixed 10X was built and used briefly by the military, I actually got behind one and seen them in use as well as in the armory while I was in, They are not a NightForce by any means but for someone like me and for the money I dont think they can be beat and as I've said before they are as tough as they come on a side note the 10X HD glass is on par with glass in twice its price range

 

[Starlite]

SOCOM just contracted with SIG for their Tango 6 recently didnt they?

Is that so. Interesting. I've been thinking of getting the tango6 with Rail and rings from NEAR Mfg. to put on a 338. I do like my current Sig BDX scope ( which does accurately shoot beyond 800 with a kestrel or Garmin 701 ). My scope and rifle are stored in a "military style" soft bag and ride in the back of the truck all the time. It's still holding true. Passed my tracking test just this October following over 100 143 gr pills. Despite it being an electronic scope I can still use it manually But not to the same range. However mounted on my 6.5CM I'd never take an animal out to the distance of this scopes electronic capability.

 

[idcwby]

I've seen on here where a lot people endorse the March scopes and being great scopes, but see no mention of them here. Why is that?

What little I've been around Nightforce, it's a great scope. My buddy did have one screw up on the zero-stop and he lost zero with it. So I think everything can have an issue at some point.

idcwby

 

[CoachChris]

SWFA SS