Joining the 1-4 Variable Club

[Doc Safari]

It's finally happened. In the bright southwestern sun my eyes just fatigue too quickly or don't see adequately for irons and red dots. Even my beloved Trijicon MRO was an exercise in eye pain focusing on the dot, target, and brightly illuminated desert. I borrowed a Nikon AR scope from my girlfriend and I liked the easy contrast between cross hairs and target, and the fact that the light transmission cut down on the brightness of the sun while conveying enough light to the eye to allow me to easily acquire each target. After returning the scope to her, I went shopping.

I went to the local LGS and bought a Leupold stock #115388 Mark AR MOD 1 Rifle and a quick detachable Burris mount to "get me by" while I shop for something better.

Note that I did not buy it from Amazon, I'm just posting the link so you can follow along as to which scope I got:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...A2M0YF99V6731C


The quick detach Burris mount I got seems considerably less than combat grade, but should work until I decide if I like this optic or not.

https://www.amazon.com/Burris-410344...is+scope+mount

Once again I'm only posting Amazon's link so you can see which one it is.

I'm a newbie to low power variables.

If it were you, and you wanted to upgrade your scope and QD mount options from what I got, what would you choose and why?

Please post a link to both the scope and mount, and tell us why you chose what you did.

Thanks!

[militarymoron]

Never used that scope before, but after shooting some with 1.5x instead of 1x, I'd stick to 1x (especially for up close drills and shooting on the move). Just personal preference.

Edited to add: P4Xi user here - I really like that scope.

[mack7.62]

What's your budget? I like the Steiner P4Xi which is a lot of scope for the money and I like the ADM AD-Recon H.

[WickedWillis]

What's your budget? I like the Steiner P4Xi which is a lot of scope for the money and I like the ADM AD-Recon H.

I second that. It's been a fantastic optic for me.

[Doc Safari]

The Burris mount is headed to the trash. After messing with it for a couple of days, it's obviously "range toy" quality. To tighten the mount, you have to move a couple of nuts against retaining pegs so they don't loosen up. It's Mickey Mouse because the pegs are too tall to tighten the nuts down by hand without encountering a point where they won't go down any further. I had to use a multitool and force the nuts past the retaining pegs. At that point I noticed the rear locking lever wasn't even straight. Reading some reviews online these mounts often don't even allow the scope to be truly parallel to the bore.

I've already ordered the American Defense version.

https://www.opticsplanet.com/america...ope-mount.html

I'm also considering just ordering some high rings for the weight savings.

[SomeOtherGuy]

I've been very happy with the ADM mounts.

For the scope, do you want illumination? BDC or a mil/moa scale? Or just something for 0-200, so speed and simplicity trumps multiple aiming points? What's the budget and how much are you going to abuse it?

[jsbhike]

I have a P4XI in and ADM extended scout mount I like.

[Doc Safari]

I've been very happy with the ADM mounts.

For the scope, do you want illumination? BDC or a mil/moa scale? Or just something for 0-200, so speed and simplicity trumps multiple aiming points? What's the budget and how much are you going to abuse it?

Here's the bottom line: I like Leupolds because of their superior light transmission. I think they're adequately rugged--maybe not ACOG grade but then again what is at an affordable price?

I probably will purchase a firedot scope at some point. Other than that a simple duplex reticle is probably the order of the day. I want speed and 0-200 accuracy. I also appreciate variable power because....variable power. I also appreciate a minimum of 1.5x because that helps barely visible targets stand out.

[militarymoron]

I'm also considering just ordering some high rings for the weight savings.

Rings alone won't work; you need a cantilever mount. You don't want to mount the rear ring to the receiver and front ring on the handguard rail.

[Doc Safari]

Rings alone won't work; you need a cantilever mount. You don't want to mount the rear ring to the receiver and front ring on the handguard rail.

Even if I use the Nikon P-series rings and both are mounted to the receiver? What's wrong with that combination (other than the fact that it's not QD)?