I installed this optic on a crossman 760 air rifle.I have now shot the riffle around 500 times during target/plinking practice, and the th-cam.com/users/postUgkxc4K63Fd5LglDMObu7-Bgapxp_ef0W8hE scope has done well.With this optic, I have neutralized around 30 pigeons that were invading one of my buildings.For my short range air rifle, I will continue to use this scope, but will be upgrading to a more powerful scope, when I buy a more powerful air rifle, in order to shoot at longer distance.For the money I have spent, this scope has truly been a great buy.
I just upgraded from my old arken sh4 to a new Leupold vx 6hd 3-18x50 and holy cow the clarity even at full zoom is insanely clear I’ve never seen anything like it
Love mine. Love it better with the aluminum thumb-flip lens covers that Leupold offers. Where I hunt whitetail deer shots come from 10 yards to 300 yards and I leave it set at 3X until a deer appears further. I settled on my favored bullet/load and had a turret made (first one is "free") for distance dialing. Outstanding feature. I practiced it at a 8" gong at 330 yards and it was spot-on. Good enough for me. The FireDot feature is well worth it for the early dawn and dusk prime-time whitetail hunting I wait hours to get shot opportunities in. Easily worth more than the bolt-action and stock I had it mounted on . . . but it seems to have been the sensible way to invest. You can't hit what you can't see. And I especially like the light-weight for features. I walk to my hunting and every ounce matters.
I have this exact scope on my Tikka CTR and it is awesome. I got the dial made for Hornady 147 ELDX and I just dial to yardage and I am on target. I shot a mule deer at 300 yards and dropped him in his tracks hit him exactly where I was aiming. Then for fun we ranged a yucca tree at 800 yards and hit it with ease. It’s a great hunting scope, light weight, excellent low light and with fire dot at dusk it’s a great design.
Hey Brian, what caliber are you shooting? I am trying to set up a new 300 win mag for around 600 yards,getting harder and harder for elk in Colorado. I prefer to hunt "normal " but I am not going to be a bird dog for lazy hunters, and so this is my situation. Anyways, any suggestions? Thanks in advance ☺
Nice review. Just two suggestions for improvement: When you did the tracking test, it might have been nice to see the reticle cross hairs moving from one bullseye to the one 5" right, left or down. That said, because the shot didn't seem to move 5". It seemed to move more. Also, I noticed when you were shooting at the end at the far away white flipper plate that you "held over" to get a correct hit. It would have been interesting in context of a scope review of a $1,000 scope with an exposed vertical turret to calculate the required minutes adjustment and then dial it to get a bullseye. That's the point of buying this type of scope and spending this much money. Thanks for the very nice review all in all.
I’ve been looking for a new scope and checked out this model along with Zeiss victory ht, s & b zenith and klassik, Steiner ranger and a Kahles on Tuesday. The Leupold came a distant last for optical clarity. The Steiner was very close to the Zeiss (Zeiss was the clearest) and Schmidt’s even though it was in the same price range as the Leupold. I’m still deciding which way to go but the Leupold was the first unit to be culled. I was lucky to have them all lined up to compare side by side.
I also have compared all the scopes you mentioned. I would hardly say the Leupold was a “distant last” for clarity. Kinda laugh when you stated this. However, after looking at a lot of scopes, I would say this whole “clarity” notion is, at best, so subjective as to be utterly useless after you reach a certain level of scopes. Just my 0.02. What ever happened to the cent sign?
Paul R Anderson you are spot on about an individuals perception of clarity being subjective but, that is my take on the scope. After much research I bought two Steiner Nighthunter 3-15x56, 70th Anniversary models with the military glass. One I’ve fitted to my Sako 85 in 243 and it is a tack driver. The other will go on my wife’s Mauser 308. Other than the day I zeroed it all of my shooting has been with a spotlight and it does everything so well, the dot can be adjusted so it’s ‘just’ there and the cross hares are beautifully fine and it is as clear as a bell without any distortion around the edges. Shopping around was half the fun. Once the CV19 business is behind us I’ll be back out there but, living in Vic. It is illegal to hunt, go boating or fishing - all of my passions are now outlawed 😕. Sorry for the rant, I can’t help myself❗️
I agree after looking through other scopes the leupold is definitely behind. In the states it’s a budget scope, over here it costs twice as much and is in the same price category as the swaros and zeiss, when it’s really not in the same quality category.
@@devinb3397 I’m loving my Steiner but because we are still locked down I haven’t used it much. My neighbours would probably complain if I used it in the backyard 🤭
I only buy up to their VX3 line and buy Japanese made scopes for better glass given the same price point compared to Leupold's higher end models. I really like Japan made March scopes for lighter weight high end scopes. I've had S&B and Kahles scopes but their glass simply just don't do it for my own eyes. Swarovski glass is fantastic but still prefer March.
I've had 15 Leupold scopes so far. I just bought two more, both in Firedot Illuminated Duplex reticle: the 44 mm and the 56 mm versions. I'm about to go out and chronograph some handloads with them so I can order the custom dials. Nice and clear; still, quality control could be a tad better. A very small amount of debris on the upper vertical wire with the 56 mm model. Plus the horizontal windage dials look like they were made of plastic. Not good. Then the boxes had the product decals slapped on at about 15 degrees crooked, making me wonder if the scopes were rushed out the door on Friday afternoon. I also feel - given the price point - that the scope caps should be better than the included bikini covers, that are almost useless while actually in the field. Leupold has good customer service, but the price of their scope accessories is unfair. I ordered 2 sets of their Alumina flip open scope covers. Very nice, but they're about $120 US, each set. Optional power throw levers and sunshades, which is included free with Bushnell Forge scopes, retail for almost $200 US and $80 US, respectively. Quite unfair because throw levers surely cost only a buck or two to manufacture. I can't see any noticeable difference in image clarity with either version, hard though I tried. Both are just fine - which is the main thing I'm looking for. While the illuminated reticle is a nice touch, you really don't need it under almost any legal hunting conditions. Whether or not the $200 -$250 higher price tag is worth it is strictly a personal decision. I wouldn't let it deter me from the non-illuminated version, if that was all that was available.
I’m debating on going with the 44mm or the 56mm for my next rifle. Do you have a preference between the two? Do you ever find the 56 to be too bulky or cumbersome at times? Has the larger lens proven to be that much better in low light?
Hey mate, i know this review was done a while ago but i got a quick question. Im almost ready to pull the trigger on this scope but im worried the cross hairs might be a bit thin when out in the thick scrub and close to low light. Is this something you have noticed to be a issue?
You might consider the Meopta Optika6 3-18x56 with FFP MRAD1 reticle. I'd say the glass is better especially when used up to 16x. It has a very useable reticle (specifically their MRAD1).
@ozziereviews What ring height did you use on the fieldcraft? I'm thinking about getting one of these for my fieldcraft, would you recommend a low or medium ring height?
What is the real difference between this one and the LRP 6.5-20x50 I'm undecided on which of the two to go with. Is the HD more higher quality than will be better in the longer range than the LRP 20x instead of the 15x from the HD? I want it for my 300 Win Mag for both hunting 200 yards and for long range practice 800-1000 yards
Hey Ozzie, is that the illuminated model? I've only seen the illuminated model and they appear to have a wider duplex than other Leupold scopes (Freedom etc..)
Unfortunately another bad review done by someone just reading a box. Most scopes with a side focus has a min setting to a max setting like Vortex Strike eagle 3-18 min setting is 10 yards. That is important to some of us who need to be able to shoot a rifle from point black with both eyes open to 500 yards off a rest. It was in your hands and because the manufacturer didn’t put it on their box it was not mentioned
Thanks Ozzie, appreciate the video. Just bought one and am wanting to learn more about it. I am mounting it on a Kimber 8400 super American 300 win mag, New gun,to me also. Any recommendations for sighting in for shooting around 600 yards? I have chosen 180 gr bullets. What would you suggest a point of aim at 100 yards? Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
I have both. I will not purchase any more VX3i's. It is a good scope, but the VX5 is so much better. The Windplex reticle coupled with the CDS feature works fantastically. I recommend Leopold model 171715.
I’ve had a VX3i and it does the job but the focus and eye relief is rough at times. Now I own a Z5 3.5-18 and 5-25 and will never go back to leupold. Looked through a VX5 3-15 and still wasn’t impressed, not as crisp as the swaro in my opinion. Only bonus I can see with the VX5 is the turret, but for most people who don’t hunt past 500 yards it’s really not an issue
hey, guys, I have just put in an order for a tikka t3x in .308 I need help to find a well-priced scope with a decent zoom. my budget is maximum $600 AUD . does anyone have any suggestions ???
daniel saad don’t cheap out on a scope with a $1.5k gun.. you’ll only shoot as good as the scope. But for $600 I’d get a leupold 3-9x40 vx freedom. I’d recommend saving up to get a vx3i 4.5-14x50 with CDS
Shane Von Harten you what? I shot 3 bullets through the same hole with my vx3i and multiple 0.5 inch groups lol, how can you expect the scope to be the cause of a gun not being accurate enough
Shane Von Harten depends on the magnification too, but me and all my friends run leupolds and they shoot exactly the same as any other scope. My VX3i shoots just as good as my $2100 Swarovski Z5
It's a Leupold, one of the rare companies to refuse to allow their standards to decline after all these years.
I own three Leupolds.
Leupold's standards have gone down over the recent years especially in their tracking department.
For the hard earned money these scopes cost ( 1400.00 ) Leupold could have included the flip up lens covers .
I installed this optic on a crossman 760 air rifle.I have now shot the riffle around 500 times during target/plinking practice, and the th-cam.com/users/postUgkxc4K63Fd5LglDMObu7-Bgapxp_ef0W8hE scope has done well.With this optic, I have neutralized around 30 pigeons that were invading one of my buildings.For my short range air rifle, I will continue to use this scope, but will be upgrading to a more powerful scope, when I buy a more powerful air rifle, in order to shoot at longer distance.For the money I have spent, this scope has truly been a great buy.
I just upgraded from my old arken sh4 to a new Leupold vx 6hd 3-18x50 and holy cow the clarity even at full zoom is insanely clear I’ve never seen anything like it
Love mine. Love it better with the aluminum thumb-flip lens covers that Leupold offers. Where I hunt whitetail deer shots come from 10 yards to 300 yards and I leave it set at 3X until a deer appears further. I settled on my favored bullet/load and had a turret made (first one is "free") for distance dialing. Outstanding feature. I practiced it at a 8" gong at 330 yards and it was spot-on. Good enough for me. The FireDot feature is well worth it for the early dawn and dusk prime-time whitetail hunting I wait hours to get shot opportunities in. Easily worth more than the bolt-action and stock I had it mounted on . . . but it seems to have been the sensible way to invest. You can't hit what you can't see. And I especially like the light-weight for features. I walk to my hunting and every ounce matters.
That's exactly why I want to get one for myself 👍
I have this exact scope on my Tikka CTR and it is awesome. I got the dial made for Hornady 147 ELDX and I just dial to yardage and I am on target. I shot a mule deer at 300 yards and dropped him in his tracks hit him exactly where I was aiming. Then for fun we ranged a yucca tree at 800 yards and hit it with ease. It’s a great hunting scope, light weight, excellent low light and with fire dot at dusk it’s a great design.
Does the custom dial make 2 revolutions like the factory CDS dial?
Hey Brian, what caliber are you shooting? I am trying to set up a new 300 win mag for around 600 yards,getting harder and harder for elk in Colorado. I prefer to hunt "normal " but I am not going to be a bird dog for lazy hunters, and so this is my situation. Anyways, any suggestions? Thanks in advance ☺
Nice review. Just two suggestions for improvement: When you did the tracking test, it might have been nice to see the reticle cross hairs moving from one bullseye to the one 5" right, left or down. That said, because the shot didn't seem to move 5". It seemed to move more. Also, I noticed when you were shooting at the end at the far away white flipper plate that you "held over" to get a correct hit. It would have been interesting in context of a scope review of a $1,000 scope with an exposed vertical turret to calculate the required minutes adjustment and then dial it to get a bullseye. That's the point of buying this type of scope and spending this much money. Thanks for the very nice review all in all.
The 56mm version is amazing in low light and as sharp as I've seen out at 300m or so.
I’ve been looking for a new scope and checked out this model along with Zeiss victory ht, s & b zenith and klassik, Steiner ranger and a Kahles on Tuesday. The Leupold came a distant last for optical clarity. The Steiner was very close to the Zeiss (Zeiss was the clearest) and Schmidt’s even though it was in the same price range as the Leupold. I’m still deciding which way to go but the Leupold was the first unit to be culled. I was lucky to have them all lined up to compare side by side.
I also have compared all the scopes you mentioned. I would hardly say the Leupold was a “distant last” for clarity. Kinda laugh when you stated this. However, after looking at a lot of scopes, I would say this whole “clarity” notion is, at best, so subjective as to be utterly useless after you reach a certain level of scopes. Just my 0.02. What ever happened to the cent sign?
Paul R Anderson you are spot on about an individuals perception of clarity being subjective but, that is my take on the scope. After much research I bought two Steiner Nighthunter 3-15x56, 70th Anniversary models with the military glass. One I’ve fitted to my Sako 85 in 243 and it is a tack driver. The other will go on my wife’s Mauser 308. Other than the day I zeroed it all of my shooting has been with a spotlight and it does everything so well, the dot can be adjusted so it’s ‘just’ there and the cross hares are beautifully fine and it is as clear as a bell without any distortion around the edges. Shopping around was half the fun. Once the CV19 business is behind us I’ll be back out there but, living in Vic. It is illegal to hunt, go boating or fishing - all of my passions are now outlawed 😕. Sorry for the rant, I can’t help myself❗️
I agree after looking through other scopes the leupold is definitely behind. In the states it’s a budget scope, over here it costs twice as much and is in the same price category as the swaros and zeiss, when it’s really not in the same quality category.
@@devinb3397 I’m loving my Steiner but because we are still locked down I haven’t used it much. My neighbours would probably complain if I used it in the backyard 🤭
I only buy up to their VX3 line and buy Japanese made scopes for better glass given the same price point compared to Leupold's higher end models. I really like Japan made March scopes for lighter weight high end scopes. I've had S&B and Kahles scopes but their glass simply just don't do it for my own eyes. Swarovski glass is fantastic but still prefer March.
"The austrahyian dolla" love Australia. Thank you so much for the video!
I've had 15 Leupold scopes so far. I just bought two more, both in Firedot Illuminated Duplex reticle: the 44 mm and the 56 mm versions. I'm about to go out and chronograph some handloads with them so I can order the custom dials. Nice and clear; still, quality control could be a tad better. A very small amount of debris on the upper vertical wire with the 56 mm model. Plus the horizontal windage dials look like they were made of plastic. Not good. Then the boxes had the product decals slapped on at about 15 degrees crooked, making me wonder if the scopes were rushed out the door on Friday afternoon. I also feel - given the price point - that the scope caps should be better than the included bikini covers, that are almost useless while actually in the field. Leupold has good customer service, but the price of their scope accessories is unfair. I ordered 2 sets of their Alumina flip open scope covers. Very nice, but they're about $120 US, each set. Optional power throw levers and sunshades, which is included free with Bushnell Forge scopes, retail for almost $200 US and $80 US, respectively. Quite unfair because throw levers surely cost only a buck or two to manufacture.
I can't see any noticeable difference in image clarity with either version, hard though I tried. Both are just fine - which is the main thing I'm looking for. While the illuminated reticle is a nice touch, you really don't need it under almost any legal hunting conditions. Whether or not the $200 -$250 higher price tag is worth it is strictly a personal decision. I wouldn't let it deter me from the non-illuminated version, if that was all that was available.
15? !blimey Couldve bought a Harley…
I’m debating on going with the 44mm or the 56mm for my next rifle. Do you have a preference between the two? Do you ever find the 56 to be too bulky or cumbersome at times? Has the larger lens proven to be that much better in low light?
I’ll be putting this scope on my weatherby mk v 6.5-300 magnum.. thanks for the review👍😊
Thinking about this scope for my 300 win mag as well. Did you end up buying the scope? How happy are you?
Hey mate, i know this review was done a while ago but i got a quick question. Im almost ready to pull the trigger on this scope but im worried the cross hairs might be a bit thin when out in the thick scrub and close to low light. Is this something you have noticed to be a issue?
I have the illuminated and non illuminated. Both are great. I really like the illuminated when hunting timber near dark.
You might consider the Meopta Optika6 3-18x56 with FFP MRAD1 reticle. I'd say the glass is better especially when used up to 16x. It has a very useable reticle (specifically their MRAD1).
@ozziereviews What ring height did you use on the fieldcraft? I'm thinking about getting one of these for my fieldcraft, would you recommend a low or medium ring height?
Its 44 mm Objective.doubt low would work
What is the real difference between this one and the LRP 6.5-20x50 I'm undecided on which of the two to go with. Is the HD more higher quality than will be better in the longer range than the LRP 20x instead of the 15x from the HD? I want it for my 300 Win Mag for both hunting 200 yards and for long range practice 800-1000 yards
Hey Ozzie, is that the illuminated model? I've only seen the illuminated model and they appear to have a wider duplex than other Leupold scopes (Freedom etc..)
Unfortunately another bad review done by someone just reading a box. Most scopes with a side focus has a min setting to a max setting like Vortex Strike eagle 3-18 min setting is 10 yards. That is important to some of us who need to be able to shoot a rifle from point black with both eyes open to 500 yards off a rest. It was in your hands and because the manufacturer didn’t put it on their box it was not mentioned
Yeah me to.
How many yards would this scope be good for?
How can I order from Turkey I live in Turkey
Thanks Ozzie, appreciate the video. Just bought one and am wanting to learn more about it. I am mounting it on a Kimber 8400 super American 300 win mag, New gun,to me also. Any recommendations for sighting in for shooting around 600 yards? I have chosen 180 gr bullets. What would you suggest a point of aim at 100 yards? Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
How do you think the glass compares to the trijicon?
Trijicon has better glass.
is the vx5hd worth it to you over the vx3i?
10x over. Absolutely awesome scope way clearer
I have both. I will not purchase any more VX3i's. It is a good scope, but the VX5 is so much better. The Windplex reticle coupled with the CDS feature works fantastically. I recommend Leopold model 171715.
I’ve had a VX3i and it does the job but the focus and eye relief is rough at times. Now I own a Z5 3.5-18 and 5-25 and will never go back to leupold. Looked through a VX5 3-15 and still wasn’t impressed, not as crisp as the swaro in my opinion. Only bonus I can see with the VX5 is the turret, but for most people who don’t hunt past 500 yards it’s really not an issue
Have you tried Meopta? I've posted replies above on other recommendations. Best bang for the buck in European Optics and better glass than Leupold.
Mils (MRAD) is not metric.
hey, guys, I have just put in an order for a tikka t3x in .308 I need help to find a well-priced scope with a decent zoom. my budget is maximum $600 AUD . does anyone have any suggestions ???
Save up and get this scope you will not be disappointed
leupold vx-3i
daniel saad don’t cheap out on a scope with a $1.5k gun.. you’ll only shoot as good as the scope. But for $600 I’d get a leupold 3-9x40 vx freedom. I’d recommend saving up to get a vx3i 4.5-14x50 with CDS
Meopta Optika 6 3-18x56 with MRAD1 reticle or at least the Optika 5 4-20x50 illuminated Z Plus.
oh
Leupold, you either love them or hate them . Sadly I've never seen a good group out of a leupold yet.
Shane Von Harten you what? I shot 3 bullets through the same hole with my vx3i and multiple 0.5 inch groups lol, how can you expect the scope to be the cause of a gun not being accurate enough
@@devinb3397. When you change scopes and instantly get good groups, its the scope.
Not saying it's all of them, we may of had a faulty batch.
Shane Von Harten depends on the magnification too, but me and all my friends run leupolds and they shoot exactly the same as any other scope. My VX3i shoots just as good as my $2100 Swarovski Z5
The scope isnt the problem... its you then! Such a subjective comment to make.
@@grayham8500 yeah its those types of people who i just want to punch in the face
How can I order from Turkey I live in Turkey