Rifle scope brands to avoid?

[painiac]

What are your overall opinions of various scope brands?
I know Leupolds are really good by reputation, but don't want to pay that much. I know Nikons are really good glass for the money and with a great warranty, and I have a 4-12 Nikon on a bolt action that I've been quite happy with. Other than that, I haven't had much experience with scope shopping. While browsing, I found I have a negative association that makes me distrust the cheaper brands like Barska, Leapers, etc, but please tell me if this is misplaced.

I'm in the market for an affordable scope for an AR that isn't a piece of junk. It'll be mostly for plinking out to 100 yards or so. It must not break, fall apart, or lose zero if it gets jostled.
I usually prefer variable magnification. I was thinking that a very low starting magnification would be ideal for close-in shooting, but my eyes suck even with glasses so a high magnification is necessary out past 30 yards or so.

[painiac]

I should add that I'm thinking $300 is the most I'd want to pay for the scope itself.

[Mr. Glock]

The Nikon stuff for ARs is pretty nice, espcially with the 223 BDC reticle, and not too pricey.

Redfield is pretty solid too.

[Greg the baker]

The Nikon stuff for ARs is pretty nice, espcially with the 223 BDC reticle, and not too pricey.

+1. I've got a 3-9X40mm Nikon p223 on my varmint rifle AR build.

[CCIman]

For plinking, you don't need that much magnification since the AR is only a 4 MOA rifle or minute of man.. Keep an eye for holiday deals from online sellers like amazon, primary arms, aplmetto, optics planet-- they seem to run deals every week. slickguns.com is a great site for keeping track of deals:

https://www.slickguns.com/category/acce ... caliber=47" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


Here's a fair deal:
http://www.amazon.com/Bushnell-Zone-223 ... ickguns-20" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Bruenor]

I don't spend a lot of time looking at what scopes to avoid...

I have been eyeballing a Vortex Strike Eagle for the AR I use in 3 Gun. it's 1-6x24 with a large illuminated BDC reticle for speed when shooting up close. Right around $330.00 most places I've found it. All the reviews I have looked at have been pretty positive for a budget priced scope like this.
http://www.vortexoptics.com/product/vor ... dc-reticle" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Mr. Glock]

For plinking, you don't need that much magnification since the AR is only a 4 MOA rifle or minute Of man

Really? I better go tell my ARs they are really special, even the laggard one shoots well under 2 MOA.

Now, if you had said Mini-14, is is harder to find an accurate Mini.

[JustaShooter]

For plinking, you don't need that much magnification since the AR is only a 4 MOA rifle or minute Of man

Really? I better go tell my ARs they are really special, even the laggard one shoots well under 2 MOA.

Now, if you had said Mini-14, is is harder to find an accurate Mini.

Agreed - this struck me as a bit of an over-generalization that really only applies to the bottom end of the platform, if then. Now, if we were talking about AKs I might agree, but your typical AR is quite accurate.

[CCIman]

For plinking, you don't need that much magnification since the AR is only a 4 MOA rifle or minute Of man

Really? I better go tell my ARs they are really special, even the laggard one shoots well under 2 MOA.

Now, if you had said Mini-14, is is harder to find an accurate Mini.

Agreed - this struck me as a bit of an over-generalization that really only applies to the bottom end of the platform, if then. Now, if we were talking about AKs I might agree, but your typical AR is quite accurate.

Yes tell your AR's they are special, and "much better than mil-spec".

A $300 dollar budget for a no-junk magnified scope suggests a "plinker" AR, not a high platform one being tested for competition accuracy.

[M-Quigley]

For plinking, you don't need that much magnification since the AR is only a 4 MOA rifle or minute of man.. Keep an eye for holiday deals from online sellers like amazon, primary arms, aplmetto, optics planet-- they seem to run deals every week. slickguns.com is a great site for keeping track of deals:

https://www.slickguns.com/category/acce ... caliber=47" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


Here's a fair deal:
http://www.amazon.com/Bushnell-Zone-223 ... ickguns-20" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

4moa must be some government standard. When I was in basic training, the M16 they issued me looked like it had seen better days, and yet I easily shot a less than dime size 3 shot group at 25 meters. Last year someone I know purchased a carbine AR parts kit with a stripped lower. !:8 twist 16 inch barrel. He bought the cheapest 3-9 scope he could find on ebay. The ammo was 50 grain varmint .223. I assumed when it was zeroed that the bullets would be all over the place, but it did on sandbags a 1 inch 3 shot group at 100 yards. Although the cheap scope handles being on an AR just fine, I'm guessing it wouldn't hold up well to any rough use. The AR however does about as well as you can expect for a carbine.

[CCIman]

The mil spec for AR15 is only 4 moa minimum, I did not make that up --
I don't want to ruin this thread, but there are many facets to so called "accuracy" of any rifle.

So if your XoX-brand AR only seems to shoot 4" groups at 100yards: So what- what are you going to do? Are you going to chase those extra 2" of diameter groups with a sub-$300 scope attached? Buy a new rifle? Call the manufacturer?

Is it your technique?
Physical limitations: eyesight factors, stance, postion, poor support?
Ammo?
Barrel choice?
sights or scope?
handguard setup?

[Mr. Glock]

These days, I can buy any decent name brand $300 scope (say Redfield) and mount it to any decent name brand AR (say, S&W Sport) and shoot 2 MOA all day long. That would be an $850 or so set up, which is pretty low end for longer range. Heck, just saw a LGS ad for a $500 AR (off-brand) and let's top it with a $150 scope....no way it shoots 4 MOA. We are in the salad days of both scopes and ARs.

If I bought a 4 MOA AR, it would be back to the shop or Mftg faster than you can say 4 MOA.

[Mr. Glock]

As opposed to an M16, with minimum acceptable accuracy. The military might accept a high mileage 4 MOA M16, but the AR world has moved well past that mark.

[JimE]

You can pretty much run whatever scope you want.
Clarity and durability will get better as the price goes up. Cheap scopes are like looking thru the bottom of a soda bottle.
Pick up a Weaver Kaspa, then compare it to a Vortex Crossfire II . Both are starting points with each company, both are made in China, yet the better glass (and slightly higher price) makes the Vortex stand out. That clarity can be the difference between a miss and a hit.
Normal Ohio hunting/plinking use, either will last for years. If it is for rough use/heavy recoil, competition, or duty, you daggone want a proven, tough scope that won't fail. Same goes for hard hunting. No way would a sane person risk a $10k hunt to a $100 scope.
You will find the cheaper scopes, including some from big name makers, will not take much in the way of bumps before they fail. That includes loss of zero, point of impact changing from shot to shot, etc. I once bought a Leapers 6-24x40mm just to mount on the carry handle of an old 20" AR for load development. $100 at a gun show, I figured I couldn't loose.
Wrong.
Lasted 100 rounds. Never went to the field, only the range. One of the lenses came loose inside the scope, from 223 recoil.
And since I bought it at a gun show with no receipt, the company would not honor their warranty. I no longer have any use for Leapers/UTG products.

As for the comments on AR's being 4moa....that depends.
With my near 60 year old eyes and issue iron sights, offhand with no sling, that might be what I shoot at times. Now that kind of shooting would not get any praise in the military, as that could be an easy miss on a man sized target at 500 yards. That is why I use glass.
Here is a couple of things I have found.
My Core-15 Keymod Scout, 16" 1/7 twist with a std GI trigger and a Vortex Strike Eagle 1-6x24mm, would run 1-1/2 to 2moa with a 55 gr sp handload.
Changing to a Nikon P223 3-9x40mm (considered an entry level AR scope), a Ruger 452 trigger and 60gr ballistic tip loads, it now runs 1 to 1-1/2 moa. Plenty good for coyote and groundhogs. The extra magnification (and better trigger) helps me a bunch.
My Rock River Predator Pursuit (20" 1/8 twist, Wylde chamber) with a NM trigger and a 6.5-20x44mm scope will run those same 60gr handloads 1/2 to 3/4 moa, even with me behind the trigger. That rifle is mostly for longer shots, not fast movers, so I went with more magnification.
Best go to your LGS, and look thru some glass in your price range. Don't take some internet review as gospel, as other people don't have your eyes.
Buy the best you can afford and be happy.

[painiac]

I appreciate all the input so far

I am really liking the picture of that Vortex Strike Eagle reticle... I may have to look for something similar with higher magnification.