Nightforce ATACR or Vortex Razor II

[LynnJr]

Of those two scopes which would you choose and why?
Scope will be going on a 338 Snipe-Tac for 2000 + yard matches and long-range hunting.

[FourT6and2]

I would choose the Vortex HD Razor Gen II because it goes up to 27x, which is a bit higher than the ATACR. And it has a better reticle (to me). I had a chance to peek through one a while ago and it is pretty good. Never seen an ATACR in person. But I'm sure it's a quality scope as well. But the reticles are crap. Again, to me (since you asked).

For hunting... I guess they'd both do just fine. But for matches, the Vortex might have an edge in the reticle department. It's really personal preference with that sort of thing. But for me, I prefer a MIL reticle. And Nightforce's choices aren't great.

[Tract Optics]

This is an interesting dilemma....

If purely on the bench, I would say the Gen II...Purely LR hunting I would give the edge to the ATACR.

Will you be huffing it on your LR hunts? 10 oz difference adds up at the higher elevations, which would sway me to the NF as i will toss anything that will lighten the load.

Both are about equal in internal elevation adjustment...


What is the primary purpose going to be? Will it be the occasional hunt but a range tool most of the time? Or vice versa?

[OpticsPlanet]

I would say Vortex Razor Gen II

They are more readily available on the market (so you can get the reticle you want), their warranty/customer service is excellent, they are not currently named in the lawsuit by Leupold, and I think it is just an attractive looking scope

-Matt S.

[Mute]

For ELR that extra magnification could come in handy at times. I'd go with the Vortex.

[CSTactical]

I'd also look at the Nightforce Beast which has been used in many 2,000+ yard records

[FourT6and2]

I'd also look at the Nightforce Beast which has been used in many 2,000+ yard records

What does the BEAST give you that you can't get with the ATACR? The wacky elevation turret?

[castgold]

I have a Razor Gen ii 4.5-27. If I was going to shop for something to shoot 2000yds, I'd consider the IOR Crusader 5.8-40x56. The turret tracking is supposed to be more accurate with IOR.

[CSTactical]

What does the BEAST give you that you can't get with the ATACR? The wacky elevation turret?

We love the ATACR as well and it's amazing that they made the Beast even more durable and with better glass. The "Wacky Turrets" can be a love or hate thing, but they do allow for finer adjustments which allow for possible increased precision when shooting at long distances aka well past 1,500. The Beast is expensive but to some people it is worth it, YMMV

[focus]

You should look through both scopes before purchasing

I have switched from Leupold to Nightforce over the last 5 years. I just don't like the glass in the Leupolds. The mark 6 scopes glass is not as clear as my older Leupolds. When I looked through the Vortex I thought it had a yellow/blue tinge to it. I aim at small features and the Nightforce's neutral colors enhance the contrast for me.

I run a Beast on my ELR rifles. I love the uncapped windage knob. I dial base wind and hold off for changes between shots. I like the analog throw lever. It allows a perfect elevation zero. But, the elevation should be .1 mils. Then you could adjust fractional elevation changes to center your brackets.

I don't like the ATACR's capped windage knob. It makes it harder to dial your base wind. And on my scope the ring under the cap with the reference mark spins. That has cost me more than a few points. I don't like the ATACR's 12 mil elevation turrets for an ELR gun. It may be ok for point blank shooters; but, for ELR you spend too much time in the second revolution. Then you have to add 12 mils to what is on the dial

Cheers,

[LynnJr]

The gun is shot from a bench for both competition and hunting.
Our competition starts at 2000+ yards and our hunting starts just under 600 yards. Weight is not an issue as the gun weighs 22 pounds now and I am going to add some lead. It goes from the truck to the bench.

Focus
I have your brass the reamer and the gauge but no Billy. I am going salmon fishing this Sunday so maybe after that I can drop it off somewhere near Santa Rosa?
At our next match let me look through your beast if you bring it so I can spend $2000 more than I want to.
WhiteMamba has a SN-9 sb2 he is selling for about what the atacr and razor go for maybe I should have him bring it to our next match?

[focus]

Hi Lynn,

I will bring both the BEAST and ATACR to the next match. The BEAST will be on the SnipeTac and the ATACR will be on the 300 Norma. If you can deal with the capped windage turret; I bet you will get the ATACR.

Don't worry about the brass. I just wanted to measure the water capacity of a fire formed case. I'm using 165 grains in my load dev at the moment. Kiff sent me the SnipeTac reamer and gauge last week. He's had em in stock since 2014. I already cut the forming die and necked down a 375 case. I don't get the action until Tuesday night. But, I won't be able to fire it until the chassis shows up some time late September.

Cheers,

[JMP]

Of those two scopes which would you choose and why?
Scope will be going on a 338 Snipe-Tac for 2000 + yard matches and long-range hunting.

Since they have decent elevation ranges, these are the two obvious choices for ELR if you don't hold out for a Hensoldt, however, you didn't specify if you wanted a FFP or SFP scope. If you want SFP (like what you are used to) then you will want the NF since it is an option. I believe the FFP is only available for the Vortex.

For the people that suggest extra magnification, there is no real difference between 24-27x. Most of the scopes will need to be dialed back from maximum magnification due to the mirage at extreme distances. Actually, among different lenses, your eye may have better perception at 25x in one scope vs. 27x in another.

[HK Dave]

I'd just choose between the two by the reticle offerings. I have both and optically they are on par with each other.

[ocabj]

I had a conversation with a couple of guys at WEGC on Wed morning. I had my Razor HD Gen II 4.5-27x56 EBR-2C and one guy wanted to check it out because he never handled one before. He eventually admitted that he should have just ordered that one instead of the 4.5-25x56 ATACR F1 because he prefers the turrets on the Razor II overall (including the Zerostop design).

He had both the 4-16 and 4.5-25 ATACR scopes with him.

You can't really go wrong with either one. Just pick whichever one fits you the best.

Around mid-morning (1000 or so), I have to dial down to 22x or so because mirage starts to factor in for mid-range to long range targets.