MF'nLeadFarmer
Unregistered
Hey all I'm brand new to the AR world as well as to the 6.5G. I'm looking at building an AR lower and putting a J&T Distributing 24" bull barrel upper. I primarily want to shoot from a bench for fun/ accuracy. I will eventually but with this rifle also. I'm looking at optics and have $300-$400 to spend. I was looking at:
Leupold VX II 3x9 40
Leupold Mark AR 3x9 40
I want to stay with Leupold as I live here in Oregon and take comfort in knowing they're near if I need them. Any other suggestions?
Will the Mark AR's 5.56 specific settings even work with the 6.5? Thank you.
I would look at the vortex viper line in 2.5-10x.
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12-26-2011, 01:38 AM
(This post was last modified: 12-26-2011, 01:42 AM by VASCAR2.)
I have the Leupold Mark AR 3 X 9 X 40 mil dot and the instruction state this scope can be used with either 5.56, 7.62 or other calibers. The instructions explain how to use the mil dot and how to sight in for your caliber. I like the mil dot plus the ability to dial in the range if I have time. I think this is a good scope for the money plus I like the size on my flat top 16" carbine. I'm using a RRA cantilever mount with thumb screws. The only thing I was surprised is the 40 MM objective does not gather the light as much as my 2.5 X 10 scope with 50 MM objective even though this is a cheap Famous Maker scope.
I decided if I was going to be hunting in low light/night I might switch optics and put on my Vortex Strike Fire red dot so I keep the red dot which I sited in for my 6.5 Grendel in my gun case.
MF'nLeadFarmer
Unregistered
Anybody know anything about this mount? I was also looking at the Burris AR pepr. I like that the Burris mount is available with QD mounts. I like that the S.A.L.T. Is capable of mounting 30mm and 1".
http://swfa.com/Leupold-3-9x40-Mark-AR-R...44574.aspx
The mount is suppose to be really good and made in the USA. I almost bought one a few weeks ago but they didn't have them in stock so I went with the burris.
MF'nLeadFarmer
Unregistered
Thanx all! I'm pretty stoked on the Mark AR. I eventually want to get a different optic for shooting steel at 1000. This 3x9 will suit me just fine for varmints and the paper monsters I want to use it for.
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Leupold makes good scopes, but you might consider alternatives where as the turrets match the reticle, such as a mil/mil setup.
A Weaver 3-9x with 0.1-mil clicks from MidwayUSA, or a Bushnell fixed 10x with 0.1-mil clicks, are appealing mildot scopes in the designated price range.
Drifter
I've got a Leupold VX-III 2.5-8X36(paid $300 nib) on my Grendel and happy with it. That said I just bought a Vortex Viper HS 2.5x10xX44(paid $320 nib) to replace it for three reasons, 1)44mm objective more light, 2)10x to hopefully improve my groups, 3)30mm tube for additional adjustability.
Bye the way, Welcome to the Horde
MF'nLeadFarmer
Unregistered
http://swfa.com/Vortex-4-16x44-Viper-HS-...48287.aspx
http://swfa.com/Vortex-65-20x44-Viper-30...13285.aspx
I like the price point and the extra mag on the second one. Can anyone speak to the actual differences of the 3 models of viper glass i.e. viper, viper hs, viper pst? I've read the discriptions but it all just sounds like marketing speak. Are the "plain" vipers "shock proof". I won't be skull dragging for 3 miles with this rifle but I would like to know that if this thing was dropped or knocked against a tree, that it won't self-destruct because I was too cheap to spend and extra $100.
I was all in on the Mark AR but talked further to a buddy with an R15 with the Nikon equivalent and he said the BDC might be difficult and irritating to translate to 6.5G. Is it January yet? I can't wait to build this thing.
^ I'm with him. I'm still thinking about a Vortex Viper but confused on the series I want. I was told in my other post to go with HS since it will be mainly used for hunting but it has 1/2 MOA elevation clicks. I've never had a scope other than 1/4 clicks so I don't know how I will like that. I'm in no rush, guess I'm in the same boat as MF'n, got everything except a barrel which will be here sometime in January so I still have a few weeks to choose wisely.
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Just mounted a Rapid Z-1000 on 24" AA AWS/Shilen barrel and all crosshair work perfect out to 600 yd. Had no time to shoot any farther. Just a little more than what you want to spend. Was using a Vortex Viper 6.5 x 20 and enjoyed that 250.00 scope from Cameraland.
Idk what he went with but I bought the 20" because it will be used for hunting 200-300 yards and stretched at the range just for fun to around 500-600 yards. It will be a little over a 2 month wait for the my barrel if it comes in mid January. When I ordered I was told the 16's and maybe the 18's were on hand but I had already told myself I wanted the 20" and didn't care, 2-3 months isn't bad anyway. Gives you time to research other parts more and maybe even wait for sales.
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might want to look at primary arms scopes...good for them money, I love mine on my grendel.
I've compared them and I'm sure he has as well. What I think we are both wondering is, is it worth $200-400 price difference between the series. Is it just the different features you are paying that much for or is better material used in higher price ranges.
I want to say that the glass is a little better on the HS and PST over the plain viper. The difference in PST a.nd HS is just features like target turret for windage, illuminated reticle and EBR ritcle on the PST
MF'nLeadFarmer
Unregistered
http://swfa.com/Vortex-4-16x44-Viper-HS-...48287.aspx
Ok I'm thinking this one now. I like the glass with 6.5 but don't think it'll have enough low end magnification. I wish this thing had target turrets (which I know can be had at a later time), and a mil-dot reticle. Also the weight is a little on the hefty side. I was looking at a sight tron and the buy in is a little too rich for my current budget.
Also I would like the swfa salt mount but it doesn't seem as though they sell it sperately. Worse case I'll get the Burris pepr. The pro is that it can be had with a QD mount. The pro for the swfa mount is that it has inserts from 30mm to 1".
Apparently there's a guy at the Portland gun show who carries vortex only. I'm going to see if I can do some side by side comparisons with the regular viper and the hs.
I can't say enough good things about the Vipers and Viper PST's for the price. I had a Viper 6.5-20x44 Mildot that a friend bought off me, and I still wish I had that scope really. The glass is more than decent, and they retain zero and track well through extreme temperature shifts and pressures. I used mine in the high desert in summer conditions in Utah, to sub-zero temps at sea level with high humidity in Finland, and it still prints the same group at 100m after working with it out to 700m.
I didn't even know they had a Viper HS in that price range for the 4-16x44. That's a tough scope to beat really.
I also have a 2.5-10x44 Viper PST that is great, and my next purchase will be a 4-16x50 PST for the .260 Rem AR10. The turrets on Vortex Viper PST's are great, plus they have zero-stop.
