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US-Optics

cncmill

Erick Crouthamel (Crouthamel Precision)
Anyone using US-Optics scopes? I was wondering how they would compare to Nightforce or other high end scopes. Are they worth the extra $$$$$?
 
My Wife has a SN3 5-25 x 58 TPAL. Yes!!! A U.S. Optics scope is worth the extra money. Night Force scopes are toys. As my good friend Mike Tuck says, “...they can also be used as clubs.” U.S. Optics scopes are tanks on the outside and Schmidt & Benders on the inside.

Total clarity from 5 to 25 power. No change in focus. No cloudiness. No change in impact point. I have looked through the scope at night here in North Hollywood, CA. You can easily use the scope in the dead of night with just the ambient lighting of house and street lights.

Her scope is setup to shoot from 100 to 1100 yards with no change to elevation using the MOA scale Type 1 reticle; being zeroed at 100 yards. When using elevation by adding 20 MOA at the turret the rifle can reach out 1400 yards. The base is flat. Here rifle is a Nemesis, Vanquish chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor. She shoots 123gr .264cal bullets. The barrel is a 1 in 10 twist. It won't stabilize the heavier 130 and 140 grain bullets.
 
US optics scopes are built like a tank, but their quality control is sometimes lacking. I owned an ST10 with an EREK knob that was etched incorrectly with incorrect spacing between the hashes. I've seen several scopes with reticles that had come unglued in hot envirnoments. I'd look elsewhere for a high end scope.
 
There's probably a reason why you don't typically see US Optics scopes at highpower matches. If that's your use case, then I'd follow palma's advice and look elsewhere (NightForce, etc...). If you are doing tactical matches, then USO is probably your friend.
 
palma said:
US optics scopes are built like a tank, but their quality control is sometimes lacking. I owned an ST10 with an EREK knob that was etched incorrectly with incorrect spacing between the hashes. I've seen several scopes with reticles that had come unglued in hot envirnoments. I'd look elsewhere for a high end scope.

palma, I'm sorry to hear you got a bad scope. Did U.S. Optics fix the problems? I bet the builder grabbed the wrong elevation turret. Can't believe the reticle had problems in the heat. These scopes are built to better than Mil Spec. I'm sure they are rated to upwards of 140 degrees Fahrenheit.

My wife so loves her U.S. Optics scope, she now wants to buy a SN9 10-42 x 80 scope. I AM SUPPORTING HER WHOLE-HEARTEDLY. ;D
 
Let me also say this. The clarity is so good on U.S. Optics scopes at 5 power, it's like looking through 24 power on a 8-32 x 44, $300.00 scope. I've looked through Nightforce scopes at 42 power. Really nice. Total clarity. But only useful in benchrest when the wind is set and you are going to fire off 10 rounds as quick as possible and F Class shooting. Otherwise, the field of view is to narrow and the sight picture can be to shaky. That's out to 1000yds.

I would put a U.S. Optics scopes at 25 power up against a Nightforce scope at 42 power any time. Again if this is a slow fire situation and the rifle is not supported by both front and rear rests. Even then, the two scopes are equal.
 
USO makes excellent scopes. They stand behind their stuff and will fix any problem you have with them, whether you are the original owner or the 10th. They are a 100% US company based in California, all scopes are built there with all American parts(except the glass). You can call and talk to the president of the company on the phone. They will build a scope to your exact specs. They have more options than any other scope manufacturer.

If you are planning on shooting F-class or something along those lines, they may not be the best choice as the FFP reticles are thicker at max magnification than the finer SFP reticles preferred for that game. Most of the F-troop guys I know want the thinnest/finest reticle possible.
 
Note that the US military chose the Schmidt & Bender 5-25X56 PMII as the Precision Sniper Rifle dayscope in an open solicitation. The scope will be used by Army, Navy, Marine and Air Force snipers. They are not shooting F-Class or BR.

We have several F-T/R shooters at Camp Pendleton matches that shoot USO scopes. The scopes are clear, have no issues that I have seen, but also appear to provide no advantage in that application.
 
Thanks for all the input. That was exactly the info I was looking for. My next build will probally be a tactical build, so sounds like US Optics is in the running.
 
...I realize this thread is a bit old, but I think it is a good place for me to post the following, and add to the collective opinion...

I recently purchased a scope from US Optics, which unfortunately did not work properly when mounted on my rifle's rings. I contacted USO's Customer Support and I cannot say enough about USOs willingness to figure out what was wrong, fix it, and get me squared away. Becky, who was my direct contact, was an absolute pleasure to deal with, and Jeff and Jason also lent a helping hand -- not many companies out there have an operating philosophy like USO anymore. The issue was a bit of a puzzle, and ended up being a slightly out-of-spec part, a rarity in their production -- USO promptly replaced my scope and am now a happy and proud owner of a legendary, US-Made, US Optics scope.

Happy Spring !
 
cncmill said:
Thanks for all the input. That was exactly the info I was looking for. My next build will probally be a tactical build, so sounds like US Optics is in the running.

If you're heading towards a "tactical" build, this article may be of interest - http://precisionrifleblog.com/2014/10/24/best-tactical-scopes-what-the-pros-use/

Mike
 
USO are good scopes. I dont have anything agaisnt them. I tend to gravitate more towards S&B pm2 and the steiner military... I use the MSR ranging reticle. It has multiple uses, not only do you have your regular mil cross hair, but you have quick ranging scales to measure and find ranges of targets. The finer scale in the bottom left side of the objective also doubles as a fine cross hair for shooting targets... so i can dial 2 mil left ajd 2 mil down and use that as a fine cross hair... imo and for me at least it works flawlessly... im a big fan of the MSR reticle...
 
He does a great job on his blog. Personally, I think the Rifle Blog series of articles that culminated in this summary is a better way to compare the landscape of tactical scopes (costing more than $1,500.00), including US Optics:

http://precisionrifleblog.com/2014/09/19/tactical-scopes-field-test-results-summary/

I have 3 U.S. Optics scopes (between 3 and 10 years old), 3 Nightforce (mostly bought 4-5 years ago), 1 March (3 years old), and previously owned a Swarovski (8 years ago). I've not owned but have used extensively S@B and Vortex scopes. They all have positives and all have negatives. To me, the one factor that holds back US Optics in most comparisons is the cost (second is the size and weight).

I have had to send in one of the U.S. Optics and one the Nightforce for warranty work (both for paralax problems). As between the U.S. Optics and the Nightforce, there is no comparison in customer service. U.S. Optics takes care of its customers. The U.S. Optics lifetime repair warranty is worth its weight in gold. I had a 20 minute discussion/fight on the phone to get Nightforce to give me a service number so that I could send it in for service. The service rep was positive my paralax issue/problem was an atmospheric anomaly. Eventually he agreed to take it in to look at it. When they did they fixed it, no problems and shipped it back in a few weeks. Other than shipping to the individual shop, neither company charged me to fix the paralax issue.

JeffVN
 
I don't intend to drive any railroad spikes with my NF so they're just fine!!

"Note that the US military chose the Schmidt & Bender 5-25X56 PMII as the Precision Sniper Rifle dayscope"

They also chose the M16 so that's not really a top endorsement IMO!!
 

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