I mounted the Vortex CFII and shot it some. Comparing it to the old VarixII it compared vary well, while the sun was up. They were virtually neck to neck in every aspect that I compared them. Once the sun was down the Leupold started pulling away fairly quickly. Looking at a small piece of bark sticking up on top of a broken tree at about 125 yards (the stump is near the edge of the wood line across an open field) it was nearly indistinguishable at 8:47 p.m. through the Vortex. With the Leupold I could have still taken a shot at the small piece of bark a full 13 minutes later.
A doe came into the field at about 9. She stayed directly in line behind a small bush at the ditch line although she came within about 50 yards. Both scopes were at 12 power and the parallax was adjusted for the piece of bark at 125 yards, I did not change the settings to optimize either scope. The Leupold definitely gave me a better look at her features such as the white around her nose and eyeballs.
I'm sure it's not fair to compare a scope costing a couple hundred more but in all actuality the Vortex compared very well and since I normally don't hunt up till the last few minutes of light I could very easily live with the Vortex for the money saved, at least on anything I'd hunt with a 22 or 17 rimfire.
Another plus for the Vortex, the A.O. adjust down to 10 yards. The power and A.O. ring both adjust smoothly and easily. If it matters to you the Vortex also came with a sunshade.
I didn't have much time to shoot because of wanting to compare the two scopes so I didn't get to play with the tracking much. I did however (after getting it sighted in to p.o.a.) turn the elevation screw all the way down and back up to zero. I then fired a five shot group right on top of another one I had shot prior to moving the turret. Next I cranked it all the way up and back down to zero and fired another 5 shots. The entire 15 shots were in about a 1/2" group, about what this rifle has proven to do with this ammo at this range (25 yards).
My only complaint with the scope is that the turret caps seem a little loose. The screws holding them were tight. They evidently didn't slip but they feel like they could. The ones on the 3 - 9 on my 17 feel much more "secure".
Only time will tell if the scope will hold up but if not, it is covered by their lifetime warranty.
For rimfires, I will be trying a few more of them. YMMV.
Dave.
You are saying that a Leupold Varix II, magnesium fluoride single layer lens coating, was noticeably brighter and lasted almost fifteen minutes longer at dusk? That sure doesn't place the Vortex in a favorable light (pardon the pun, it was just too easy)!
