Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game 2-7x33 Vari X II Leopold Scope

Anyone out there ever have this model scope? I am finally putting a decent scope on my 99. Before anyone yells- it was D and T when i bought it. I was thinking that 33mm is a little small for good light gathering and was wondering if anyone had ever had this model on a hunting rifle. I am quite fired up for elk season and want to move soon on a new scope. Thanks for any feedback.

I have one on my .338 and like it a lot..It's probably the best scope going for the money.

Mike

I have one on my 416 Rem. I have hunted with it a couple of times. As soon as I go on a serious hunting trip with the 416, I'm getting a 1.75x6x32E for the 416.

The 2x7x33 Vari X II does not work well in low light. I have used this scope at dusk, and it doesn't enough power or exit pupil to be effective in the dark. However, within typical shooting hours it is all right, and it is certainly stout. I have put 300ish rounds of 50-60 ft lbs of recoil through this scope and it will still let me shoot 1/2" groups on ocassion.

Blaine

99elk.
The 2-7 is the very first Leupold I bought 20 some years ago. Its pre MC4 and a pretty dim view. But is still hanging in there. Depending on how you hunt it should work well for you. These days I tell people to buy a 3-9 Ziess Conquest and be done with it.
dave <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

The one I have on a Rem. 700, 300 Win. Mag. has held

it's zero so far with about 50 rounds through the rifle.

The one complaint I have is the eye relief at 7 power is

a little dicey with the Win . Mag. recoil....(It just bumps

my glasses & is a bit too close for comfort). Other than

that it is a fine scope & would recommend it on mild to

medium kickers. Good Shooting, Bruce

Let me throw a little fuel on the fire. I needed to make the same decision for my 99 about 3 years ago. After considering the Vari-X II, I ended up with the Nikon Monarch 2-7X33. Let me tell you why. 1)Monarch is fully multi-coated, Vari-X II is coated on outside only, 2)click adjustments on Nikon, friction on Leupie. 3)Clarity; I was and still am more impressed with the Nikon's clarity to the edges over the low end Leupolds. Keep in mind if you are talking about the old Vari-X II the equivalent now is the VXI model. If you are talking about the new VXII model, that one IS equal to or better than the Nikon. The VXII does come with fully-multicoated optics and click adjustments. For the 99 a 33mm objective "looks" right. A bigger scope looks like it is wearing the rifle in my opinion. I shot a hog in July at nearly 9:00 PM here in California and had no problem picking them out of the field. Brightness was absolutely adequate.

Good luck,
NoCAL

I have at least a dozen Leupold 2-7x VariX-IIs, some with the 28mm objective, some with the 33mm objective, and some shotgun scopes. I really like the heavy duplex on the shotgun scopes and, although they don't have multicoated optics, I've never missed a shot because of it. I have most of my "user" rifles set up with QR rings, so that I can swap scopes if the need arises, but it seldom does. If I'm canyon hunting in the Missouri River breaks, I carry an extra higher power scope with me for those 1 in 1,000 very long shots, but I've never actually had to use the extra scope. A 2-7x for most applications and a 6x42 with MC4 and heavy duplex as an alternate should cover most all the bases.

Jeff

I have used a couple of Leu 2-7 VX11 for quite a while now and now I have bought a pair of Leu 2-7 VX1's as a think the scopes are just right for game hunting. I did my own comparison of the ability of those scopes against a new Leu 4.5-14 VX111 and they all seem just fine to me.

I am all for having the best of something but for the life of me I just don't see much difference in scopes as long as they don't break or hit me in the eyebrow.

I had 2 of these in the past. One on a 30-06 and another on my first 338 Win. The 2-7x33 is good for an inexpensive lightweight variable. It certainly does have its limitations though. Its light gathering ability leaves a lot to be desired. I do favor the 1.75-6 VX III for a lightweight variable. I have used my 1.75-6 in conditions where my naked eyes weren't doing so well anymore. Now a 1.75-6x32 VX III is the scope I prefer on all my big game rifles, period. If looking for something in this range I would definitly opt for the 1.75-6 over the old 2-7. The extra cost is well worth it, even if ya gotta save up a little longer.

Try the VX-II it has more lense coats, click adjustments,
and with a German 4a reticle from Premier Reticle, it is not
bad in dim light either. In my view a much better scope than
the Vari X II and not that much more in cost.

I lke them becasue they fit beautifully on Ruger 1s.

Good luck,
1B

1B

I take it you mean the Vari X III's are better. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

Not much to add except the newer VXII 2-7X33 is noticably brighter than the older Vari X II models. Plenty of eye relief too as I have one on a 338WM. No problems.

MtnHtr

MTGOAT.

I said, and meant, that the "VX-II 2X7" is much better than the
old VARI X II 2x7 (which now, by the way, is being marketed
as the VX-1 2x7.)

Sorry for the confusion but Leupold is responsible for it.
Their new names leave a lot to be desired in clarity. They
should have introduced a new scope series with a new name
and left the old one as is. But I guess some marketing genius
thought they could still sell the old wine in new bottles...

1B

1B

Got it. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />
Now I'm really confused. JK <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

I have one -- solid as heck and works great in the daytime, but the difference from a Vari-X III is noticeable.

In low light this past season, I had to pass on two whitetail does that stopped broadside at about 50 yds because I couldn't make out if I had a clear path for the bullet. While I was debating it, the sun was still going down and the reticle got hard to see. Of course this was vary late, in fact the clinching factor was a peek at my watch that showed I had 23 seconds of legal shooting time left, this on a cloudy day in a pretty thick stream bottom.

If I hunt the same stand this year, I'll be using a Vari-X III or a fixed 4x.

John

I believe that the current M8 4x scopes have the same lens coatings and 82% light transmission as the old VariX-II and current VX1/Rifleman scopes. A local wholesaler has (had?) some of the old 4x heavy duplex shotgun scopes on sale for $180 if you're interested.

Jeff