Can't argue with vortex's warranty though.
But we're definitely in the golden age of affordable optics. I'm actually about to buy a 510c within the next day or so. My huey didn't work out for me as expected.
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My quibble with these "better than average" budget optics is simply that they're not that cheap anymore to start with, and I STILL have to buy a quality mount to put it on...at which point I'm not far off an Aimpoint Pro/Comp2 or an Eotech/MRO on the re-sale market.
Further, they still can have issues, like lack of ability to stay watertight...
I have an OG PA MD-07 on my .22. It's been great there, and it does indeed f***ing hold zero, but compared to other high end sights I have owned or borrowed, I just can't see it on a "serious use" gun.
I’d agree for the stuff that’s in the $250 price range but that’s why I’m very interested by the Vortex Crossfire. You can get that for under $130 and it includes a low and lower 1/3 mount. Looks perfect for my .22, AK, and 870.
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There are a number of "almost ready for prime-time" budget Chinese made red-dots that for me, all fall in the same quality bracket. Holosun has been very basic, and their quality is coming up. Primary Arms, same thing, and from all things I have heard, made by the same company. Personally, both are ahead of the Vortex Sparc and Crossfire. I have not looked at the more expensive Vortex red-dots, because I have not liked what I saw on the first two brands. I would put Tacfire and NCStar below any of the aforementioned red-dots and clearly hobby scopes.
I would note that the Holosun and Primary Arms red-dots have seen to have held-up just fine with the right mount for range use, three-gun, etc. Absolutely no issues. We do not recommend them for Law Enforcement, however, since we have seen them fare as well as others, like Aimpoint and Trijicon in the field torture testing. FWIW. :cool:
Much of the choice is preference and opinion, to be sure, and different people will have different opinions. I do not want to impune Vortex, as they have some great qualities, and many will choose Vortex and be very happy. Some is personal bias, to be sure, in terms of image clarity and reticle quality. I also recognize that facts and circumstances may change over time. Feel free to throw rocks at me if you disagree. I am putting the sum of my experiences into a generalization, which may or may not be qualitatively accurate, but we all have opinions and biases from direct experience and what we have observed, learned and heard.
I have seen mention of larger numbers of returns on the Vortex. To their credit, both Vortex and PA have great warranty and return service. I see Holosun and PA being more innovative in the design and reticle choices (opinion), and I have seen quality inch-up with each of those brands. Vortex, on the other hand, is hit or miss (opinion). They have no brand identity (opinion) and they have products that range from hobby to best in class. I very much like and support the PST and Razor lines, although, even at those levels, I see more reports of failures than other competing brands within the PRS community (which, is btw, very supportive of those brands). I am not sure why, but again, warranty service is outstanding with Vortex.
We have done some testing for our tactical community on scopes, and also reference the testing of others, for which we refer to as the "throw it down the driveway" testing, which is the standard we use for our mil/LE customers whose lives may (and often do) depend upon their scopes and red dots. None of these brands mentioned meet that criteria, and some we have not actually tested, but did not meet other entry criteria. For those needs, there is a very small subset that we recommend and sell. Most notably Trijicon and Aimpoint in the smaller point and shoot optics. Some others in the RMR and low-powered scopes.
Hope this helps. If not, just take it like a belly-button. One guy's opinion, and we all have one and not really sure what to do with it.
If someone is happy with Vortex, I would not argue, and I am sure he / she will do well and enjoy his or her optic.
Got it, thanks. I was unclear if your views were opinion or from real world issues. I have a better understanding of where you come from now.
Here is a funny torture test of the Vortex that I found on YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jLzZlrlrz0
Pretty pointless test as he never shot it to confirm zero after each “torture”.