Which one would you choose? Price is about the same.

I'd pick the Vortex just to get an actual 1× on the low side. A 1.5× never made much sense to me. Add the bigger tube and objective, and the warranty. Vortex all day for me.

+1.

MTAC.

Thought about the Mtac but dont care for the reticle. I have a Burris 3x prism sight and seems a little cluttered for me

You can't beet the Leupold for quality.

Yeah, you can, but the improvement will be marginal and very costly.

I'd buy the Leupold, hands down.

Oh, yes, you can!!! I will put up Leupold against a Vortex everyday of the week and twice on Sunday. For reliability, the Vortex is more durable, internally. The Vortex shares the same mechanics inside the scope as the Nightforce scopes. I have seen many Leupolds go down. They are a great scope company, but there are better and more durable options available. I'm not talking about glass clarity, simply internal construction.

People have been arguing scope brands since I joined this forum in 06.
If you are a casual shooter like most of us and stick with a quality brand, you probably won't have an issue either way.

THIS^^^, but it's so much fun to argue, I mean debate. just remember everyone will "sell" what they run, nobody wants to admit their choice sucked.

I went with the Leupold V-6, 1-6, love it

Burris is coming out with a 1-8 with a 34mm tube, pretty cool for an AR, shooting 3-gun

in your budget, pick the one u like

Yes, Leupold quality CAN be beat, but not without paying more.

It's all about compromises. What's the weight of a Nightforce compared to the weight of a Leupold? Take these two scopes in the OP for instance. Is the Vortex more durable? Maybe it is. It weighs half again what the Leupold weighs.

For me, it's Leupold because the eye box is very forgiving, the glass is excellent, plus the lifetime warranty is not something you need to exercise frequently. I've owned probably 40 to 50 Leupolds and never had one go south on me.

Sometimes you NEED a scope that's tougher because your rifle pounds them apart. If it's going to be a Nightforce ar something else that weighs as much, you'd need to spend a lot more on mounting the thing too.

I SO want one of these. I really hope that it's a quality optic.

I would pick the leupold of those two

I have the Leupold in firedot form. I like the scope but not a huge fan of the SPR reticle which uses 2.5 Mil subtensions. Be more useful if they were 1 mil.

Vortex strike eagle 1-6X...Awesome!

Is the magnification true 1? The reason I ask is that most companies fudge a little on stated magnification. I know that to be true. It is also my understanding that it is quite a bit more expensive to make a variable scope with true 1X magnification than one with a small amount at the low end. At the price point the Crossfire II sells for I'd be surprised if it had true 1X.

Chad mentioned seeing more Leupolds break than Vortex. Where I work it's the opposite. We have many more Vortex brought back than Leupold. Not that Leupold is perfect because I bought a VX-3 1.75-6 last year and out of the box the windage turret wouldn't track. I'd still bet on the Leupold being a better quality scope, especially going against a Crossfire which is the only Vortex scope made in China that I know of.

Booradley, what is the ratio of sales between the two brands?

I have that Leupold, love it. I have a Vortex crossfire and a diamondback, and several vipers.
I have to go up to the viper PST class to get clarity as good as that Leupold. Also it's very compact
which I like on an AR.

I don't plan on doing any dynamic entry cqb, so I'm ok with 1.5x

Well then, what in hell DO you do for fun??

I'm not sure but I'd guess about equal. Vortex buyers do tend to be younger. The thing I hear most from people looking to buy Vortex when they first walk up is the warranty. I don't have many people who own Leupold that come in asking for Vortex. I do have people that have bought Vortex come in looking to try Leupold.

I'm not knocking anyone that likes Vortex scopes, they just aren't for me. I've owned two Vipers and their low light capability was subpar for me compared to other scopes in their price range, and I judge my scopes on how they do in low light. If I punched paper I'd have a different set of criteria and then Vortex might fill my needs better. I also think the Razor line is excellent. Don't have a scope but do have a Razor mini red dot that I'm pleased with.

I've also softened my stance on the Diamonback line lately. In their price range I think they are a good value. The Burris Fullfield II is still my first choice but if one wasn't available I'd be happy with a Diamondback.

Leupold is not my favorite brand of scope either, I prefer Meopta most of the time. I'm also partial to my Zeiss Conquest and my Bushnell Elite 4200. But yes I'll take a Leupold scope over a Vortex. I'll take Vortex binoculars over Leupold though.

I call it dynamic hog chasing, but the distances don't really warrant the need for true 1x

Turns out I'm not as sneaky as I'd visualized