Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters ? is the VXIII worth the extra $ over the VXII

I'll be the first to admit I don't know a lot about scopes other than what I can see through them. The VX-III seems crisper and more clear to me than the VX-II does. Your call on weather or not it's worth the extra dough.

RD, the extra springs eliminate back lash to the adjustment system. Makes them more precise when used alot. Has nothing to do with the scope holding up under recoil. Leupold's toughest, most recoil resistant scope, the 2.5X Ultralight, uses single springs as do their very tough 3-4X scopes.
Diamond Coat Coatings have been around for a very long time. No one has offered any evidence that there is nothing to Leupold's claim that they are many times tougher than conventional coatings. E

I never said it did. The erector system controls POI adjustments and holding zero when impacted. Leupold's issue's with that are well documented here.



Those are fixed power scopes. Apples and oranges.




Again we have misinformation. Leupold states that these coatings are "the toughest they've ever offered". No such thing as a "conventional coating".



What are they comparing the coating to ? Their products or the competitions ?

...........Imo, the 2-7x33 VX2 is the better choice for that rifle. The 33mm obj has a lower profile, is more compact, is a little lighter than the 3-9x40 and will look better.

Although you could, I don`t know if a silver scope would look all that good on a Ruger UL with the matte barrel. Wood stock? And the silver scopes are more difficult to sell should you ever decide to sell it.

But Jorge, they made the bloody thing 1/2" too short.

Exterior lens surfaces are treated with DiamondCoat 2�, an ion-assist lens coating, for higher light transmission and the greatest level of abrasion resistance we�ve ever offered. DiamondCoat already exceeds military standards for hardness and durability. DiamondCoat 2 offers unsurpassed durability and will prove its worth in the wildest places on earth. DiamondCoat 2 has the additional advantage of assisting in light transmission, for greater brightness, clarity and contrast.

And yet I still do not see where Leupold says they are any better than anyone else's......and I'm sure ANY company would if they had proof.I suppose if you were a 'convert' maybe the 'unsurpassed' but until Leupold (or anyone other than E)comes out and states it...I'm calling BS

Not saying they aren't good enuf or more than good enuf

Probably tough enough to resist shirt-tail "cleaning," even after a week in the woods, but I still haven't seen any scientific research on that!

Kinda reminds me of my brother " Mr. gun cleaning is highly overrated" - shooting gophers and having a tough time seeing one I had spotted...and yes using his shirttail . One of those unscientific guys.

Also one of the most accurate and dependable shots I know ....frustrating as hell to me sometimes

Is your wife worth the extra money? I have a bunch of VXII and VXIII scopes and have gotten good service out of all of them. My favorite is the 3.5X10X40 VXIII. That is what I put on all my new purchases. Get whatever color you want.

I have a number of Leupolds in various configurations. However, my favorite is a 2-7X Vari-X II that I bought new in the 80's. It still sits on top of the same hard-kicker I mounted it on back then.

WN

Thanks for all of the advice, She is special so I ordered the VXIII silver for the Ruger ultralight SS .270. This all started because she saw Ruger was having another Carharddt jacket promotion. So she'll get that too. Now I need to load
up some lighter loads for her, thinking about using the 110 gr.
Sierras, for our small whitetails and the occasional javelina.

VXII has a 2 peice tube vs. VXIII which is a one peice tube according to Leupold customer service. In the real world, I am not sure it makes a difference, but conceptually I like the idea of a one peice main tube.

Also agree the 2.5x8 is about 1/2 inch to short.

Curly

Personally I disagree... that's what the 3.5-10 is for.

As to the rest, a scope is a place that holds crosshairs... if there was a 2.5-8x36 VXII I'd happily use it over a VXIII. Apparently Leupold smartly knows that. I've used a pile of 2-7x33's over the years but I like the 2.5-8x36 better. Just a bit easier on the eyes, but mostly because of the larger objective, not any so-called advantages in the glass.

You sound like one of those "serious" type hunters I've been hearing about...

Back to the Silver vs Matte thing

I've got a few Leupold Silver finished scopes, one of them looks great on a Win 70 Classic/Stainless with the woods stock.

Last year I got a good deal on a VXII 4-12 in silver and put it on a all weather Hawkeye, doesn't even come close to matching. In hindsight I wish I would have just spent the extra and got a matte finish for it.

Whatever you end up getting, splurge for the alumina caps. Well worth the money

I never noticed a problem with scope lenses since about 1942 to date! and yes I still wipe the lens with my shirt tail if they need it, that is what a hunter does, a shooter probably has a camels hair brush and so it should be I suppose.

Respectfully, I see a scope as a just a "sight" and its only function is to put the cross hairs on the animal and allow me to see where I put them and stick a bullet in that spot or close, I have no need to count the animals hairs or his ticks..I also see no need to spend more on a scope than on the rifle, and I pretty much use "used Leupolds" from the local pawn shop or gun shows, saved me a ton of money and I get my game 99 percent of the time..Within reason and price range, most of todays scopes do an excellent job, and its probably a good idea not to determine which one is best based on its cost, at least within reason as some of todays scopes are a suckers bag.

I know, I just shot the golden calf in his high dollar leg, well so be it..:)

Ray,

Well put. Had to laugh at myself for the mental gymnastics I am going through to put scopes on a pair of .270s.

Curly

Couldn't agree more Ray,

I've shot little bucks to B&C Grizzly with an old Leupold Vari X-11 3x9 (I think that's what it is...) and a Leupold VXII 2x7. Never needed more scope than either of those. Maybe the high dollar scopes help you see the bullet holes on paper a wee bit better, but I see no reason at all for owning anything more than what has worked so well for me for 35 years.

The 2.5x8 is the ultimate for a lightweight rifle--but I'm not sure it's $100 better than the VX II's.

Having said that, I own more 2x7's than 2.5x8's, and have killed almost as many critters with each of those as I have my 3x9's.

Got it all straight?


Casey

Well said Brad.......well, at least I entirely agree with you...



Casey