The Official 1-4X Scope Thread

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  • BRASS

    Banned
    BANNED!!!
    Jun 29, 2012
    61
    Will try that. I want the axes to be perfect tho and don't have a vise or levels. I guess you can get lucky eyeballing when you secure the rings down...
     

    F-Stop

    Ultimate Member
    Feb 16, 2009
    2,484
    Cecil County
    Will try that. I want the axes to be perfect tho and don't have a vise or levels. I guess you can get lucky eyeballing when you secure the rings down...

    You can tack a string and some weight to wall to get vertical. Level rifle as best you can I guess I use levels and string.
     

    Kingjamez

    Gun Builder
    Oct 22, 2009
    2,042
    Fairfax, VA
    Well I broke down and ordered the Firefield 1-6. I am blaming KingJamez. Looking forward to getting it

    Cool! Give the reticle some good use before judging it. I first thought that it was just too thin at 1x, but after actually shooting it, I was surprised at how fast it was.
    I'm now using my FireField 1-6x on my SPR AR and my Vepr .308. I like the ability to range with the mil-hashes, even if they are a bit thick at 6x. After having the scopes for a while now, I still think the glass is good, even great when you consider it's a $150.00 scope.

    Take some time adjusting the eye-lens with both eyes open. It took some fiddling, but eventually I was able to tune the eye lens such that at 1x both eyes worked as one with a perfectly merged image on objects further than ~15 feet away.

    -Jim
     

    VWTurbo

    Ultimate Member
    Jun 18, 2010
    2,835
    Perry Hall
    Cool! Give the reticle some good use before judging it. I first thought that it was just too thin at 1x, but after actually shooting it, I was surprised at how fast it was.
    I'm now using my FireField 1-6x on my SPR AR and my Vepr .308. I like the ability to range with the mil-hashes, even if they are a bit thick at 6x. After having the scopes for a while now, I still think the glass is good, even great when you consider it's a $150.00 scope.

    Take some time adjusting the eye-lens with both eyes open. It took some fiddling, but eventually I was able to tune the eye lens such that at 1x both eyes worked as one with a perfectly merged image on objects further than ~15 feet away.

    -Jim

    As always - thanks for the input. I figure I will give this a try on my SPR while I save up some cash for something in the next price bracket and then move this to my SIG556 which at this time has no glass, just irons.
     

    mr bullseye

    bullseye
    Nov 1, 2012
    39
    New Midway
    in my opinion and what I shoot on my AR is a burris 3-9x40 with the smart drop red in it but the burris that you looked at in my opinion would do the best and if you want to have the tactical turrets on its simple, get on natchez shooters supply dot com and got go to optics accesseries and stoney point makes tactical caps that actually fit any leupold vx1 or vx3 scopes and all burris scopes for $28 each if you want the tactical turrets and the quality between nikon and burris in my opinion would be burris being the best to me far as drawing more light and clarity and zoom is just as much from what I'vw seen between mine so its more on preferrance but I'd get the burris and just get those tactical caps but send me a msg on what you think
     

    sailskidrive

    Legalize the Constitution
    Oct 16, 2011
    5,547
    Route 27
    in my opinion and what I shoot on my AR is a burris 3-9x40 with the smart drop red in it but the burris that you looked at in my opinion would do the best and if you want to have the tactical turrets on its simple, get on natchez shooters supply dot com and got go to optics accesseries and stoney point makes tactical caps that actually fit any leupold vx1 or vx3 scopes and all burris scopes for $28 each if you want the tactical turrets and the quality between nikon and burris in my opinion would be burris being the best to me far as drawing more light and clarity and zoom is just as much from what I'vw seen between mine so its more on preferrance but I'd get the burris and just get those tactical caps but send me a msg on what you think

    You must be related to Hemingway... ;)
     

    Forest

    The AR guy
    Jul 13, 2011
    985
    Do you guys typically boresight your AR scopes? The classic Bushnell boresighter will not work on the high AR mounts. I am mounting a Leupold VariX3 1.5x5 20mm on the Leupold Mark 2 IMS mount.

    I bore sight mine.

    By that I clamp the upper (sans BCG) in a Black & Decker Workmate. 50 yards from the door in my basement is a tree with a 4" gray dot painted on it.

    I look through the bore from the back of the upper and adjust the workmate as needed to center the gray dot in the bore.

    Once I've done that, I adjust the dot/crosshairs to the center of the gray dot. Then look back through the bore to verify the upper hasn't moved.

    When both align I'm done. Only takes a few minutes per upper, and I'm always on paper at 50Y when I get to the range.
     

    Blu Falcon

    Recon by Fire
    Aug 28, 2012
    454
    Colorado
    I ordered a Vortex Viper PST as well as an AIM Sports 1.5-4x30 Recon (chevron reticle variant) just to see how the latter compares to a more expensive and well regarded brand. I don't expect the cheaper scope to out perform the Vortex, but it might be worth considering for the budget minded shooter if it can hold its own with regards to function and performance.

    vortexpst14stavortexvip.jpg


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    Last edited:

    Blu Falcon

    Recon by Fire
    Aug 28, 2012
    454
    Colorado
    Initial impressions...

    So far the AIM Sports scope is working without issues. Not as clear as the Vortex, but still very good. There's about 3 small dust (?) particles can be seen when viewing through the scope, but hardly noticeable and not a total deal breaker. The etched chevron reticle is very nice and the red, green and blue illumination all work great. Not sure what the blue illum is good for, but it gets fuzzy in low light conditions, whereas the red and green remain nice and crisp regardless of brightness settings. If it were up to me I would prefer the third illum option be amber instead of blue. It's a little heavier, somewhat more bulky and slightly longer than the Vortex. Locking turrets are a plus, clicks seem to be precise when adjusting for windage and elevation (1/2 MOA adjustments). The zoom ring boasts a very nice and smooth action from low to high mag. Flip-up caps fit nice and tight. This looks and feels like a very solid scope. It looks great mounted on the rifle. I replaced the included mount with a QD Burris P.E.P.R. and they mate very well. The only other thing I would prefer is a true 1x low mag as opposed to 1.5x. Overall, a very impressive package for what you pay for. I would highly recommend this to anyone on budget.

    The Vortex is a better package overall, as to be expected of a $500 scope. The glass is superior (as it should be) and the reticle is very nice. A bit lighter than the AIM Sport and more aesthetically appealing when mounted on the gun. However, major points have been deducted due to illuminated reticle having flickering issues. Replaced the battery and it's still present. Tapped on the battery cover and it appeared kick back on. Not what I expected to find on a scope at this price point. To be continued...
     

    Kingjamez

    Gun Builder
    Oct 22, 2009
    2,042
    Fairfax, VA
    Blu, Tap the objective end of your AIM scope on a telephone book and see if that solves your dust issues.

    As to the Vortex, call Vortex, they will take care of you without any trouble at all. A huge selling point for them is there exceptional customer service and warranty.

    -Jim
     

    Blu Falcon

    Recon by Fire
    Aug 28, 2012
    454
    Colorado
    Blu, Tap the objective end of your AIM scope on a telephone book and see if that solves your dust issues.

    As to the Vortex, call Vortex, they will take care of you without any trouble at all. A huge selling point for them is there exceptional customer service and warranty.

    -Jim

    Jim, I'm not too worried about the dust particles. They can only be seen if you really look for them, and there's only about 3 visible specks tops. Nevertheless I appreciate the tip.

    As for the Vortex, I resolved the issue myself. I guess I didn't tighten the battery cap down enough. I tightened it down as far as it would go and the flickering stopped. She's a keeper.

    The AIM Sport is surprisingly a very nice scope. I really like it a lot and I'm surprised at the amount of scope you get for the money. I chose the chevron reticle variant because I'm familiar and comfortable using it considering I've been shooting with ACOGs for a number of years in the military. A few things I would improve is incorporating a coin slot in the battery cap, a zoom lever, 1x rather than 1.5x low mag, and an amber illumination option as opposed to blue. Other than that it really is a nice inexpensive optic. I'm not sure I'd trust it in a SHTF situation, but it would more than suffice as a range toy, plinking or even as a back up unit to keep in the kit bag. I figured that if the cheap Primary Arms 1-4 can receive such universal praise I don't see why this wouldn't surpass expectations at about the same price point. If you happen to see these being sold at a gun show I recommend giving it a look. I ordered this through Mounting Solutions Plus using a 10% discount code.

    The Vortex is a very nice scope. Although I came into this assessment biased towards the chevron reticle, I found myself really liking the the TMCQ MOA reticle a lot. In fact I would go as far as to say that I actually prefer the TMCQ and semi-circle/dot. When the PRI front sight is flipped up, which is still viewable even though it's blurred, the TMCQ reticle is nearly perfectly centered within the front sight ring. I've read complaints about the illumination washing out in bright daylight conditions even on the highest illumination settings, but it doesn't bother me. The reticle shows up black and it's still very usable. On overcast days like today the illumination is perfect to my eyes, and that's with the lowest day time setting. Most are already familiar with the Viper PST feature set, so I'll just stop there. The Viper PST was purchased through Midway using a $30 off discount code.

    AIM Sports 1.5-4x30 (Chevron/ Arrow)

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    img5394ip.jpg


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    img5382j.jpg


    Vortex Viper PST 1-4x24 (TMCQ MOA)

    img5411r.jpg


    img5408u.jpg


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    img5407m.jpg
     

    HT4

    Dum spiro spero.
    Jan 24, 2012
    2,728
    Bethesda
    However, major points have been deducted due to illuminated reticle having flickering issues. Replaced the battery and it's still present. Tapped on the battery cover and it appeared kick back on. Not what I expected to find on a scope at this price point. To be continued...

    I had the same issue. Tighten the battery cover more. It takes more force than you would think.
     

    J.T

    Ultimate Member
    Jul 23, 2012
    1,081
    MD
    Blu,
    Do both scopes co witness with the BUIS?? is your rear BUIS deployable with the scope mounted that far back?

    Thanks
     

    HT4

    Dum spiro spero.
    Jan 24, 2012
    2,728
    Bethesda
    Blu,
    Do both scopes co witness with the BUIS?? is your rear BUIS deployable with the scope mounted that far back?

    Thanks

    I don't think that's possible with a scope (even a 1x)... thus the QD mounts.
     

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