Advice on a Leupold Mark AR

[grant22]

Not finding much with search......

I have an AR 15 with a 20" Bull Barrel and a JP EZ Trigger. My primary focus with this rifle is precision shooting at 100 - 300 yards from a bench. I believe some of my weak groupings are a result of my $100 Barska scope so I'm on the hunt for a quality scope @ $400 or less.

Does anyone here have any experience with the Leupold Mark AR 3-9x? I need it to hold zero and be a good choice for 100-300 yards.

Btw, I already have an offset 1" mount, so I don't need to budget that in. $400 for scope only.

[jmust1991]

I have a Leupold Mark AR 3-9 mil dot on my 20" Bull Barrel AR. Works awesome, have had 0 issues with it. I recommend it.

[grant22]

Would you say it does very well out to 300 yards? Thx for the reply.

[Coyotegunner]

I use 3-9 Zeiss Conquest(light) hunting scopes on 2 of them.The heavy barrel stuff and 308 stuff has 6-24 Burris signatures.The Zeiss will be about $400.The Burris stuff is more new unless you get down in power to the 3-9.I have many Leupolds on hunting rifles.All VX3s.If you want a reasonable bullet drop type scope,check out a Burris Fullfield.They are made in another country,but have Burris no BS warranty.If the rifle is capable of precision,go with a higher power.Kind of fun to shoot golf balls at 300.

[Droppin Deuces]

Are you going for tight groups or just trying to hit stuff? I have one on a LaRue Stealth that drops headshots on a human sized silhouette at 500 yards without fail. I don't know if I would use it to try and get tiny groups, though, unless you went with one of the higher power models(4-12x, 6-18x). I am, however, able to get .75 MOA groups when checking my sight-in. In my opinion, you'll have a hard time finding something better for the price.

[grant22]

I'm going for tight groups (1/2 moa @ 100, moa @ 200, and maybe about 1.5-2 moa @ 300 yards).

[Droppin Deuces]

I think I would go for something more powerful than 3-9x. Maybe my eyes are just bad, but I don't think a 3-9x gets you close enough to make tight groups past 100 or so. That's just me, though. I tend to only shoot paper at 100, then steel out past that.

[grant22]

I think I would go for something more powerful than 3-9x. Maybe my eyes are just bad, but I don't think a 3-9x gets you close enough to make tight groups past 100 or so. That's just me, though. I tend to only shoot paper at 100, then steel out past that.

Even tho it's a high quality optic? I thought the higher quality optics have clearer glass, therefore you can get away with less magnification.

Oh well, sounds like it's not the right scope for me.

[Droppin Deuces]

Even tho it's a high quality optic? I thought the higher quality optics have clearer glass, therefore you can get away with less magnification.

Oh well, sounds like it's not the right scope for me.

Oh, it's super clear. It just doesn't get you in close enough at those distances. Again, I would go with something a little more powerful if you're wanting tiny groups. I would probably have gone with the 4-12x or 6-18x if they were available when I made my purchase. That said, I am very happy with what I can do with what I have, which is .75 MOA.

[grant22]

Thx DD and everyone else for the tips.

[surfNshoot]

Also, I think the 3-9 is a fixed paralax. if you are shooting for some very tight groups at 300 yards you will want an AO scope. I have the 4-12 mark AR. it works very well.

[Agent Tikki]

I'm going for tight groups (1/2 moa @ 100, moa @ 200, and maybe about 1.5-2 moa @ 300 yards).

Huh?

.5 moa equals=
.5" GROUPS @ 100 YARDS
1" GROUPS @ 200 YARDS
1.5" GROUPS @ 300 YARDS

Given the same gun, with the same ammo, your groups will open up the farther you go out, but the MOA rating will stay the same. 2 moa @ 300 yards will be the equivalent of 6" groups at that distance. 1/2 moa is very ambtitious! Go for it!

[grant22]

Huh?

.5 moa equals=
.5" GROUPS @ 100 YARDS
1" GROUPS @ 200 YARDS
1.5" GROUPS @ 300 YARDS

Given the same gun, with the same ammo, your groups will open up the farther you go out, but the MOA rating will stay the same. 2 moa @ 300 yards will be the equivalent of 6" groups at that distance. 1/2 moa is very ambtitious! Go for it!

1/2 MOA out of a 20" bull barrel isn't that ambitious. It's what I'm close to achieving currently, I just want some better glass. And when I say 'tight groups', that may be tight for me (I've only been shooting for 4 months now).

Also, Just because I'd like 1/2 moa doesn't mean I expect 1/2 moa at the other distances. Other factors like wind can play a role (and do play a role where I live) and REALLY open the groupings up.

So as stated before, I'd like to achieve

1/2 moa @ 100 (.5 inch)
moa @ 200 (2 inches)
1.5 - 2 moa @ 300 (4.5 - 6 inches)

[HK Dave]

Are you shooting handloads? 1/2" groups is considered to be very impressive.

Take a look at the Nikon M223. Seems it's much sharper and higher resolving than the Mark AR.

[surfNshoot]

1/2 MOA out of a 20" bull barrel isn't that ambitious. It's what I'm close to achieving currently, I just want some better glass. And when I say 'tight groups', that may be tight for me (I've only been shooting for 4 months now).

Also, Just because I'd like 1/2 moa doesn't mean I expect 1/2 moa at the other distances. Other factors like wind can play a role (and do play a role where I live) and REALLY open the groupings up.

So as stated before, I'd like to achieve

1/2 moa @ 100 (.5 inch)
moa @ 200 (2 inches)
1.5 - 2 moa @ 300 (4.5 - 6 inches)

Ok. What kind of shooting are you looking to do? What kind of reticle are you looking for? Are you worried about weight? if you are just looking to make the smallest groups possible from the bench just get a decent scope with high magnification. I would go with this for what you are doing. http://swfa.com/Nikon-6-18x40-Buckma...pe-P42211.aspx And you get a free digital camera with it.

And yes... Consistant .5 MOA groups is ambitious. Getting 1-2 groups out of 10 that are close to .5 MOA is not even close to having a .5 MOA gun. Not trying to beat you up. Just being realistic.