scope shopping

so i will be soon shopping for new scopes. 1 for my 30-06 and 1 for my little browning lever action 22.

30-06…….i’ve narrowed it down to either a leapold 3 x 9x 40 or a vortex crossfire II or the diamondback. i am being told there both good quality, vortex has the best warrranty in the market right now but i do not intend to drive over it either.

the browning…….here i am a little up in the air about, not sure what brand,type i should look at and any opinions i would welcome. same with the 06 scope.

i will with most certainty be getting them at the cabelas in rogers because i have gift cards for there.
so…..any advice??? fire away!!!

I’ve been happy with vortex. I’d suggest diamondback HP or tactical over the crossfire…but any of those you listed will be just fine for your typical MN/WI hunts IMO.

Vortex makes nice optics and its a bonus that they’re based in Wisconsin. Warranty is great too. I don’t have a scope but I’ve got a set of binoculars that I’m satisfied with.

I think you should consider Nikon for the 30-06 rifle scope too. The Monarch series is incredible.

“I think you should consider Nikon for the 30-06 rifle scope too. The Monarch series is incredible.”

Nikon has not made rifle scopes for more then a year now. They eliminated it from there product line.

Leupold on the .30-06. I’ve had a VX-3 2.5x8x36 on my Ruger .30-06 for years. It is still bright, adjusting ring moves smoothly and holds zero.

Put a full size scope on the Browning .22. The Vortex Diamondback 1.75-5X32 seems like a good value. I don’t own any Vortex scopes but have shot friends’ guns with them and was impressed.

Leupold’s service is amazing.. I wouldn’t count them out and the vx-3 is much better quality than the Crossfire or the Diamondback.

Bob Ford wrote:

Nikon has not made rifle scopes for more then a year now. They eliminated it from there product line

Are you kidding me?! News to me.

There’s still some available at Cabelas website. Maybe it is leftover stock. Some are on sale too.

gim wrote:

Bob Ford wrote:
Nikon has not made rifle scopes for more then a year now. They eliminated it from there product line

Are you kidding me?! News to me.

Great news. When Nikon forfeited consistency in their glass, all quality went to the road side. Brand recognition is the only thing that carried them for years. Pathetic when you grab 3 new scopes out of the boxes and you see three different levels of clarity. Junk!

Vortex diamond, Burris, and leopold would serve you well. The Burris and vortex customer service and warranty are awesome

IMO it is impossible to go wrong with Leupold. Across their whole linup there is nothing but very good, great, and even better. I’ve never had the slightest issue with a Leupold scope or binoculars. My only experience with Leupold’s warranty is that they repair anything that is defective, period. If it’s your fault (and often it is), they will repair if possible and at a very reasonable cost. Many Leupold scopes in the lineup are made in the USA. I believe some of their rimfire scopes are not, somebody jump in here if you know for sure the current situation.

Much is made about Vortex being a “Wisconsin company”. That is so, but that should not be confused with “Made in Wisconsin”. I don’t know which or if any of Vortex’s models are actually made in the USA, but I know most of the lower end scopes in the line are not.

I did not have a good experience with Vortex when I tried the original Crossfire. Both the original and the replacement were bad right out of the box. The optics were blurry and no adjustment would correct either one. Obviously, this is now the second iteration of that model, so I would hope things have improved.

IMO, if you want to splurge a little on the 30-06, Zeiss offers an EXCELLENT (as if there is any other kind of Zeiss) scope in the Conquest V4. 3×9, everything you need, nothing you don’t, $700. Hey, I did say it was a splurge. Legendary optics and durability, your great grandchildren will love it when they use it.

Don’t dismiss Bushnell for the Rimfire. As with every other maker, there are different lines of Bushnell. The best varmint scope I have is an Bushnell Elite, so even now Bushnell can still make good products if you are willing to pay.

Grouse

TheFamousGrouse wrote:

I did not have a good experience with Vortex when I tried the original Crossfire. Both the original and the replacement were bad right out of the box.

I had the exact same issue a few years back with my Vortex. I finally got sick of it and took it off my .3006 this fall. Before next hunting season I’ll be replacing with with a Leupold. That custom dial system they have has me very intrigued.

I just saw a video the other day that said if you are a LEO or military active or vet you can get up to half off leuipold by going to the website and under the vip tab enter your information. I dont know if it’s true or not but might be worth a try. A co worker told me that vortex has a similar deal.

catnip wrote:

I just saw a video the other day that said if you are a LEO or military active or vet you can get up to half off leuipold by going to the website and under the vip tab enter your information. I dont know if it’s true or not but might be worth a try. A co worker told me that vortex has a similar deal.

They sure do! I went a little crazy this summer in scopes and bino’s. Got the goat scope mounted over the weekend.

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Leupold, Vortex and Burris are in my opinion some of the best options for price point and customer service. Crossfire is going to be you very low line in model of the vortex optics. What model of leupold are you looking at?

I have several Burris fullfield2 all the way up to Verasity and eliminator models and over the last 15 year have never had an issue. Clear class and good turrets.

Leupold I only own 2 VX models and same goes for them. Very clear and no issues.

I own a crossfire 2 on a 35whelen as well as a spotter. IMO the crossfire2 glass is noticeably different then the other scopes especially in low light (some of it is most likely tube size) I have had several customers come back in after buying a crossfire2 on there muzzle loader to upgrade. As you get up above into diamond back and on I do not hear very much as complaints.
-Customer service as stated above is superb. One of the guys I go out west with has “damaged” and I say damaged because it was due to dropping or other things not manufacturers error and taken his pairs into scheels or other retailers and had them exchanged on the spot.

Can’t go wrong with SWFA or Athalon.
My preferred brands.

I agree with Grouse about the Bushnell Elite scopes. Have a 4×12 mounted on a Savage .223, I have nothing but good things to say about the scope and the price was reasonable.

gunsmith 89…..i’m not sure. i googgled cabelas and looked at some scopes. i paid attention to the VX freedom.

i truly appreciate all the comments and suggestions. i think i will be going with leapold scopes but until i get to the store and look through them is when i decide. but yea leapold will most likely win. i wrote down all the suggested scopes.

Bob Ford wrote:

“I think you should consider Nikon for the 30-06 rifle scope too. The Monarch series is incredible.”

Nikon has not made rifle scopes for more then a year now. They eliminated it from there product line.

Given the Quality of them near the end its probably for the better. I have a near 25 year old Monarch that is still one of the best scopes i own. I have / Had a new Monarch that was purchased about 4 years ago that is/was one of the Worst scopes that I owned.

With my eyes getting older I just upgraded the muzzle loader scope from the 3-9 x 40 VX Freedom to the Diamondback 3.5-10 x 50 and really like the change. I use Leupold binos and this is my first Vortex scope but probably not the last.

I have a Leupold VX3 4.5-14×40, Leupold VX2 3-9×40, Leupold VX Freedom 3-9×40, Vortex Viper HST 4-16×44, and Vortex Crossfire II 3-9×40. In my opinion I would rate those scopes best to worst as far as clarity as Viper #1, VX3 #2, VX2 and VX freedom equal at #3, and the crossfire 2 last. Pretty disappointed in the crossfire really even for a 22 LR.

I personally have had great experiences when I have had to deal with Leupold and Vortex. Never for these scopes, but other family members.

Don’t skimp on the rings. I never use the thin single screw rings. Always 2 but sometimes 3 on a side. I put these on the last rifle I set up. Very happy with them.
DT

https://www.fleetfarm.com/detail/utg-pro-1-in-medium-profile-p-o-i-picatinny-rings-2-pc/0000000351839?bc=10276|10290|10297|10301

One thing to look at are you looking for scope caps the leupold ones are awesome little pricey but will go on all 40mm scopes