Nightforce SHV vs. Viper PST GEN 2

[.223Pound]

I’ve been listening to all of Frank Galli’s podcasts and they were talking about pairing SHV’s with Tikka’s for a really solid platform when teaching up in Alaska. Frank started talking about some of the scopes in that price range and I noticed that Frank didn’t really touch on what is probably the most popular scope in that range - the Viper PST Gen 2. That kind of made me curious and now I’m wondering how the two compare. They seem very similar in terms of glass but the Viper seems to have a better reticle, turrets, better zero stop, and more features. I know quite a few guys who have run them hard as do it all hunting/match scopes, and they seem to track and hold up quite well. So, I’m curious if I’m missing something here and what your general thoughts are on these two optics.

[maximus83]

Both are excellent midrange optics--I have several Vortex optics and one NF (though not the SHV line), all are excellent and I would recommend to a friend. But if you search around among optics users who have tried both, you see a trend that would favor NF for all-around ruggedness and glass quality--hence the higher pricing.
If I could get a Vortex and a NF within $100 of each other and similar features, I'd favor the NF due to preference for the glass and in the case of my scope, love the reticle. So in this case that would mean the SHV. But none of that means the Vortex are 2nd rate optics or that you shouldn't get one.

Between those two, you won't go wrong either way. Just compare specs, get hands on if you can, get the one that appeals the most and you can get for a good price.