New Arken 7x35

[RED DIRT]

If that’s the experience you had I don’t blame you for not being a fan, hopefully they learned from it. Sounds like someone in shipping had a hot date on a Friday afternoon and just didn’t care. Stuff like that happens, I get it, hopefully customer service has improved since! I’d be angry too.

Thank you for understanding. They surely dropped the ball completely all the way around. Its very hard to trust, after that. Maybe someday down the road, things could maybe change. But as of right now, i` wouldn`t give them the time of day, or a penny of my money.

 

[nakneker]

Thank you for understanding. They surely dropped the ball completely all the way around. It’s very hard to trust, after that. Maybe someday down the road, things could maybe change. But as of right now, i` wouldn`t give them the time of day, or a penny of my money.

I’ve seen a couple of guys comment along the same lines. I think they have improved that side of things though, I haven’t seen any of that for quite awhile now. We are live and we all learn. I’ve been self employed since the age of 23, made a lot of mistakes early on…. Live and learn.

 

[Ledd Slinger]

Ok, i`ll play that game....

The ep5 arrived in a perfect shipping container box, ZERO damage, i open the shipping box only to find that the box that the scope is in, is damaged severely. Who the hell ships a KNOWN damaged scope box with a damaged scope in it!!!!! You could obviously SEE that the box was practically crushed! Yet the shipping box everything came in, was in perfect condition. They just simply didn`t give a sh!t and just tossed whatever they had, into the shipping box and sent it out the door without even caring! Did they really think a customer wasn`t going to notice, or care??? They simply didn`t have any quality control the day this one got shipped. Hopefully, they have addressed their quality issues. I bet i wasn`t the only arken victim out there.

Contents in the package:
They sent 30mm rings with the scope when we all know damn well its a 34mm scope (DUH!!!!!)
They sent the wrong scope covers! Both were wrong, and both were the same size (DUH!!!!!!)
They sent the wrong throw lever.

Inspection of the scope:
The power ring locked up on the low end and would hardly even move without over forcing it.
The illumination, just flat out couldn`t be used during daylight at all. Never seen one so dim & terrible.
This is just my opinion, the glass didn`t equal all the hype everyone blew it up to be. Mediocre at best.
The parallax didn`t move smoothly at all, was super stiff, nore did it do much as far as focus.

Contacting for the return:
I emailed, i called, i left message after message, and it seems my messages were ignored for MANY days. Then after the return policy was past its date, SUDDENLY, i get an email saying i`m out of the return policy timeline to get a refund. I told them i had proof that i contacted them the next day when the scope arrived, telling them that the scope was being returned for being totally defective, and that they had ALSO sent all the wrong items with the scope. They played the "oh i don`t see anywhere where you contacted us". After they said that, i told them i will seek legal advice where we go from here. It was amazing how they all of a sudden, found my messages. Then my money was refunded quickly after that.

Its hard to make a second impression good, when the first one went so bad.

Sorry, arken left a very bad taste, for me.

YMMV

Yeah that’s pretty bad. I like explanations because it helps us differentiate between the issue lying with the optic itself, or the company service/warranty, or both.

I don’t think Arken glass is anything exceptional either. It’s quite good, but not top tier glass by any means. For the price point the glass is great and for people who haven’t spent a lot of time behind top tier glass, they will be tickled with the quality. I like Arken because on some of my rifles, it doesn’t make much sense to put a $2K+ optic on them.

 

[RED DIRT]

I’ve seen a couple of guys comment along the same lines. I think they have improved that side of things though, I haven’t seen any of that for quite awhile now. We are live and we all learn. I’ve been self employed since the age of 23, made a lot of mistakes early on…. Live and learn.

What surprises me a little bit, is the amount of used arkens for sale out there.

 

[Ledd Slinger]

What surprises me a little bit, is the amount of used arkens for sale out there.

Yeah but you can say the same about NightForce and Vortex. There’s used scopes for sale from those 2 companies everywhere you look

 

[RED DIRT]

Yeah that’s pretty bad. I like explanations because it helps us differentiate between the issue lying with the optic itself, or the company service/warranty, or both.

I don’t think Arken glass is anything exceptional either. It’s quite good, but not top tier glass by any means. For the price point the glass is great and for people who haven’t spent a lot of time behind top tier glass, they will be tickled with the quality. I like Arken because on some of my rifles, it doesn’t make much sense to put a $2K+ optic on them.

I usually don`t like to put to much out there because i know there`s a ton of people that live & breathe arken. I know the arken fan boi`s will gang up on me for running the brand in the ditch. But you`re right, people NEED to hear it so that they can have opinions from every user, good AND bad. Most everyone here is pretty understanding though.

 

[RED DIRT]

Yeah but you can say the same about NightForce and Vortex. There’s used scopes for sale from those 2 companies everywhere you look

Yup, agreed, but i think for different reasons. It is of my own opinion, arken is way over hyped, then people ditch them for better scopes.

 

[nakneker]

What surprises me a little bit, is the amount of used arkens for sale out there.

I think a lot of people are curious. That’s why I bought my first one, watched a few reviews and wanted to try one. I’m the type that likes to put my hands on them and form my opinion so I ordered one. Ended up buying more. I haven’t had any issues, I’ve been very happy with them.

My only issue is where they are made but it’s a company that’s owned by Vets and that’s certainly worth something.

 

[RED DIRT]

I think a lot of people are curious. That’s why I bought my first one, watched a few reviews and wanted to try one. I’m the type that likes to put my hands on them and form my opinion so I ordered one. Ended up buying more. I haven’t had any issues, I’ve been very happy with them.

My only issue is where they are made but it’s a company that’s owned by Vets and that’s certainly worth something.

I fell for the curious thing myself too, and bought the ep5. I wanted to see what all the hype was about.

 

[Ledd Slinger]

Yup, agreed, but i think for different reasons. It is of my own opinion, arken is way over hyped, then people ditch them for better scopes.

Arken may be overhyped, but I can see them going in a good direction. People said the same about Vortex and Athlon but now they both have a strong foothold in the market.

To be completely honest, I’ve had more issues and warranty claims with Vortex optics than I have anything else out there, from Vipers to Razors. In testing the current Arken SH4 Gen 2 I own, it is far superior mechanically to any Vortex scope I’ve owned over the years. Much more robust and precise. Feels like a tank compared to a “tin can” Vortex

 

[30378]

Have two EP-5 5x25s that I really like. They are on range/hunting rifles and have been outstanding for that service. I would go a different route for a true competition rifle.

 

[RED DIRT]

Arken may be overhyped, but I can see them going in a good direction. People said the same about Vortex and Athlon but now they both have a strong foothold in the market.

To be completely honest, I’ve had more issues and warranty claims with Vortex optics than I have anything else out there, from Vipers to Razors. In testing the current Arken SH4 Gen 2 I own, it is far superior mechanically to any Vortex scope I’ve owned over the years. Much more robust and precise. Feels like a tank compared to a “tin can” Vortex

I hope arken does get better. Good for them if they do.

As for vortex, my wife an i have many. All of ours start at the Strike Eagles, and on up in price point. As for their warranty, quite the opposite for my wife an i. We`ve never once had to send any of ours back for repair. They have all been very good scopes, for my wife an i. To each their own. Good & bad everywhere i guess.

 

[drop_point]

I read somewhere that Vortex sells more scopes than any other scope maker in the world. Pretty amazing feat.

I've never had an Arken, but there are snake oil salesmen that push them really hard so that has turned me off to them.

 

[RED DIRT]

I read somewhere that Vortex sells more scopes than any other scope maker in the world. Pretty amazing feat.

I've never had an Arken, but there are snake oil salesmen that push them really hard so that has turned me off to them.

There are a couple particular you tubers that over hype the arken alot. We all know exactly why though.

One video i saw one time, the guy try`s to tell people that he believes that the arken is equal to, or better, than a vortex razor....lol. I would have to say that the Vortex Venom would be more of a match for glass quality against the ep5, but in my own opinion, the venom has a little better glass. A Razor? Oh hell no, not even close! Its all about the hype... you brag it up, you`ll sell a ton of them. People that don`t know any better, those are your perfect buyers.

 

[Ledd Slinger]

There are a couple particular you tubers that over hype the arken alot. We all know exactly why though.

One video i saw one time, the guy try`s to tell people that he believes that the arken is equal to, or better, than a vortex razor....lol. I would have to say that the Vortex Venom would be more of a match for glass quality against the ep5, but in my own opinion, the venom has a little better glass. A Razor? Oh hell no, not even close! It’s all about the hype... you brag it up, you`ll sell a ton of them. People that don`t know any better, those are your perfect buyers.

You also have to remember that the Arken price point is a lot lower than many of the optics everyone compares them against, ie; Vortex razor, NightForce, etc. So if they are even somewhat close in performance, that’s pretty impressive.

I think it’s fair to say the Arken optical quality is ‘on par’ with scopes in the $500-$1000 range, perhaps even better than some, but I would trust the “mechanical” reliability of an Arken over anything Vortex produces. If you took a Vortex Venom and put it thru some of the turret torture testing like many have with the Arken, I wouldn’t bet a single penny that the Vortex would hold up like the Arken does. That’s a lot more important trait for a scope to have. So if optical quality is similar, then the going with the Arken is the clear choice.

If you have owned a lot of Vortex products and haven’t had a mechanical failure on turrets or side focus yet, then you probably aren’t using them very hard at all

 

[Mastershot]

Rule of thumb #1: never put a $500 scope on a $3000 rifle. They need to match, put a $500 scope on a $500 rifle.

 

[RED DIRT]

You also have to remember that the Arken price point is a lot lower than many of the optics everyone compares them against, ie; Vortex razor, NightForce, etc. So if they are even somewhat close in performance, that’s pretty impressive.

I think it’s fair to say the Arken optical quality is ‘on par’ with scopes in the $500-$1000 range, perhaps even better than some, but I would trust the “mechanical” reliability of an Arken over anything Vortex produces. If you took a Vortex Venom and put it thru some of the turret torture testing like many have with the Arken, I wouldn’t bet a single penny that the Vortex would hold up like the Arken does. That’s a lot more important trait for a scope to have. So if optical quality is similar, then the going with the Arken is the clear choice.

If you have owned a lot of Vortex products and haven’t had a mechanical failure on turrets or side focus yet, then you probably aren’t using them very hard at all

I get it Ledd Slinger, we both have our own opinions, likes, and dislikes, lets move on from it, because now we`re getting into, "you probably aren`t using them very hard at all" mud slinging. I`m going to bow out of the arguments.

 

[RED DIRT]

Rule of thumb #1: never put a $500 scope on a $3000 rifle. They need to match, put a $500 scope on a $500 rifle.

No, Rule of thumb #1: spend what your wallet allows you to spend.

 

[dstoenner]

Well i have joined the crowd. I have one of the 7-35x56 on order. That makes the 4th Arken i have. I have an EP-5, Ep4 and an sh4j. If the 7-35 is as good as my 5-25 then the sh4-j is going.

David

 

[drop_point]

Rule of thumb #1: never put a $500 scope on a $3000 rifle. They need to match, put a $500 scope on a $500 rifle.

That's nonsense.

A scope needs to work. The price of the rifle a scope sits above doesn't affect the scope's performance.