• This Forum is for adults 18 years of age or over. By continuing to use this Forum you are confirming that you are 18 or older. No content shall be viewed by any person under 18 in California.

Nightforce Scope Differences

PaulyD

Silver $$ Contributor
Question regarding the differences between the Nightforce scope line. I currently have several of the NSX 5-22X50 scopes with the MOAR reticle and I do like them. Was thinking about upgrading to either the NX84-32X50 or the ATACR 7-35X56 F1 or the ATACR 5-25X56 F2. I mainly shoot paper punching matches out to 600 yards. I'm not so keen on the F1 reticle and not sure I really need one. The bigger question is....... does the coated glass make that big a difference? Am I gaining that much more from an optical clarity standpoint? Thoughts? Different scopes perhaps? Zero Compromise, March Optics?
Thanks
Paul
 
I feel so overqualified for once…..

Ok here it goes.

All of them have perfect adjustment. Period.

NXS- rugged, decent glass and I mean decent, problem free.

NX8- better glass, still not excellent, reliable, rugged, lots of features in a scope of that size and weight.

ATACR- if you don’t mind the weight, it’s got Swaro Z8i quality glass and you can run it over with a tank and shoot a .250 group 5 minutes later.

Nightforce are tough from top to bottom, you pay for the glass you receive, and you can pretty well set it and forget it for the rest of your life.

Now, here’s the kicker. Most if not all of their reticles suck if you want to shoot groups in the low .1s, with the exception of the MIL-C, and I’m an MOA guy myself.

I’ve got a hell of a collection of stupidly expensive optics and here’s how I’d rank them.

Truck gun- NXS

Long range hunting- NX8 and ATACR

Low light- ATACR.

Bet your life on it- ATACR

All that being said, I don’t fight wars. My favorite scopes for set and forget are Swarovski Z8i (deer and coyotes.) My favorite all-arounder right now is the new Swarovski Z5i+.

It just depends on what you want to do with it, and for what you’ve said you wanted….. 7-35 ATACR with the MIL-C. I wouldn’t use a March if they gave it to me, and I’ve never had a ZCO- but that’s my advice.
 
Thanks Clancy,

I am also a MOA guy. The MOAR T reticle is not bad for longer range stuff if you have young eyes!
 
You might consider the ED glass used in the NX8 as an improvement over the NXS. While you may find equal clarity in both lines, the NX8 does it with smaller objectives and lighter weight compared to the NXS. Both have coated lenses. It's the improved glass that helps.
 
Krogen said:
You might consider the ED glass used in the NX8 as an improvement over the NXS. While you may find equal clarity in both lines, the NX8 does it with smaller objectives and lighter weight compared to the NXS. Both have coated lenses. It's the improved glass that helps.
Click to expand...
The objective is not necessarily smaller on on the NX8, it matters which NXS you have. The NXS are made in both 50mm and 56mm objective, the NX8 is 50mm.

For what the op is doing the MOART reticle is a better choice. But if it where me for his purpose I would be looking at the NF Competition Match 15-55x52, It has some of the best glass out there and has a great choice of reticles to suite his needs for shooting group. And it's lighter weight than the others listed... in case that matters.
 
I should have been more specific. For a given max power, you may be able to get smaller objectives. But as you note, that’s not a firm rule applicable to all variations.
 
Clancy said:
I feel so overqualified for once…..

Ok here it goes.

All of them have perfect adjustment. Period.

NXS- rugged, decent glass and I mean decent, problem free.

NX8- better glass, still not excellent, reliable, rugged, lots of features in a scope of that size and weight.

ATACR- if you don’t mind the weight, it’s got Swaro Z8i quality glass and you can run it over with a tank and shoot a .250 group 5 minutes later.

Nightforce are tough from top to bottom, you pay for the glass you receive, and you can pretty well set it and forget it for the rest of your life.

Now, here’s the kicker. Most if not all of their reticles suck if you want to shoot groups in the low .1s, with the exception of the MIL-C, and I’m an MOA guy myself.

I’ve got a hell of a collection of stupidly expensive optics and here’s how I’d rank them.

Truck gun- NXS

Long range hunting- NX8 and ATACR

Low light- ATACR.

Bet your life on it- ATACR

All that being said, I don’t fight wars. My favorite scopes for set and forget are Swarovski Z8i (deer and coyotes.) My favorite all-arounder right now is the new Swarovski Z5i+.

It just depends on what you want to do with it, and for what you’ve said you wanted….. 7-35 ATACR with the MIL-C. I wouldn’t use a March if they gave it to me, and I’ve never had a ZCO- but that’s my advice.
Click to expand...
Do tell on the March scope issue. Curious minds are interested. Thanks.
Paul
 
PaulyD said:
Question regarding the differences between the Nightforce scope line. I currently have several of the NSX 5-22X50 scopes with the MOAR reticle and I do like them. Was thinking about upgrading to either the NX84-32X50 or the ATACR 7-35X56 F1 or the ATACR 5-25X56 F2. I mainly shoot paper punching matches out to 600 yards. I'm not so keen on the F1 reticle and not sure I really need one. The bigger question is....... does the coated glass make that big a difference? Am I gaining that much more from an optical clarity standpoint? Thoughts? Different scopes perhaps? Zero Compromise, March Optics?
Thanks
Paul
Click to expand...
I've owned and shot behind NF scopes for 20+ years now. Started with the NF BR 12-42 on a 600/1000 yard bench rifle, followed by many (a dozen or so) NXS 5.5-22 even before they came out with the Hi-Speed zero stop models. I agree, for the most part, with @Clancy assessment. The ATACR wins hands down when mirage, reticle choice and elevation-windage adjustment are a requirement. They are also, as the NXS, tougher than concrete (so is the NF Competition and I unfortunately proved that). I tried the NX8 and, while it was some improvement over the original NX8, it is still IMO well behind the ATACR. Were I just shooting paper out to 600 yards I would choose the NF Competition 15-55. Glass is excellent, has great adjustability, zero stop and good choices for reticles the will work well with your purpose in mind.
 
Ju
muleystalker said:
They did make a 12-42 NXS that had 1/8moa clicks but they usually sell fast when they come up for sale, I have one. You may want to put out a WTB request.
Click to expand...
Just curious I guess at this point. I did pickup a Sightron PLR this weekend that Midway had on sale as a open box product, they finally dropped it down to a stupid price.
 
Kracken McGraw said:
Are anyone of the above NF turret clicks smaller than 1/4” at 100 yards?
Click to expand...
muleystalker said:
They did make a 12-42 NXS that had 1/8moa clicks but they usually sell fast when they come up for sale, I have one. You may want to put out a WTB request.
Click to expand...
Kracken McGraw said:
Ju

Just curious I guess at this point. I did pickup a Sightron PLR this weekend that Midway had on sale as a open box product, they finally dropped it down to a stupid price.
Click to expand...
All the NF Competition 15-55 scopes are 1/8 clicks.
As for Sightron, I really like their MOA-2 (IIRC) reticle and picked up nice SVSSED 10-50 with that reticle, 1/8 clicks and zero stop. Later I bought a new SIII 10-50 LR version with the same reticle (hard to find now) and it has 1/4 clicks.
 
The ATACR 7x35 will be the absolute best glass you ever look through!! Unless you are ranging using a Mil reticle, stay with F2. I tried the F1 and at distance the crosshairs were so big, they covered up the ten ring on target..made holding precise holds hard.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Upgrades & Donations

This Forum's expenses are primarily paid by member contributions. You can upgrade your Forum membership in seconds. Gold and Silver members get unlimited FREE classifieds for one year. Gold members can upload custom avatars.


Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.

You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.


To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.

Classified Ads

Forum statistics

Threads
164,661
Messages
2,182,057
Members
78,459
Latest member
ZY100

Share This Page

Back
Top