Retiring the Bushnell from this rifle.



In with the new. In Night Force Ultralite aluminum rings. Eye relief set, scope leveled, screws wiped of oil, and low strength Locktite applied. NF calls for 65 in/lbs on the windage nut, and 25 in/lbs on the cap screws. Bore sighted and zeroed in two shots of course.




Last night I was looking through the scope at a tree line behind the house. It was the last few minutes of legal light, and I was on 4X. If illumination is needed, it is just a push of a button on the left side of the scope. Read the manual and learn how to turn it off and on, as well as how to adjust brightness and color. I say color, because you can have a red or a green illuminated reticle. I typically set illumination as low as it will go, and I did that last night on red. A green reticle with a green background doesn't always work. The next time you turn it on, it goes to your last setting.

Not a featherweight scope by any means, but fills the bill I have nicely. 28 ounces, I can live with. 50mm objective instead of 56mm in the ATACR. 30mm tube instead of 34mm. 13" long and came with Tenebraex flip up caps, which seal well and are very durable. This one will get moved from the 7mm-08 A.I. that I have beside me every day, to the 7 Rem Mag when I'm after big game. Like Lodge cast iron skillets say "you have made a friend for life".

They also offer the 2.5-20X. Even Night Force is not immune to losing clarity at 100% magnification. So this scope is going to be more clear at 20X than the 2.5-20X is. I doubt I'll ever go as high as 32X. I just zeroed at my common 25X, and of course everything looked terrific. Last night I turned the focus know down to as close of a range as it will go. NF claims 25 yard clarity, but for my eyes it is much closer than that. Inside the house, I had a clear image at 5 yards.

Gotta go ring some steel with it, though I am quite sure it is going to work perfect.

Dang. I'll buy these next time due to this alone: "NF calls for 65 in/lbs on the windage nut". A very robust design no doubt.

And people want to tell me the Leupold windage bases are fine.

Fat chance!

I like a rail and stout rings. Could you post a pic of the other side of your new set up?

Thanks, nice. I was wondering what that bronze colored Ø was near the rear ring.

Rust

You misspelled "rust".

You are gonna have so much fun with that new toy! Merry Christmas, JG!

If we wanna get fancy, "patina".

That’s his level……it’s on backerds.

No kidding. The JR adjustable windage mount has got to be the weakest design ever devised.

Looks like you got a nice scope there for the kind of stuff you like to do. If I ever pare down my collection to just a couple or three rifles I might just acquire a NF or three. Forceplex reticles, of course, but whatever flavor of NF scope you choose will be hard to beat for the money.

I would bet it’s the lightest scope in your fleet

Nice scope, congrats JG!

One thing is for sure, if it has "NF" on the side of it, it is unlikely that it is going to break down.

Definitely the lightest one. That was the major reason for the purchase, cutting weight.

What sling is that?

Triad Tactical

Santa was good to you this year. Merry Christmas!

Congrats...looks like a nice rig.

What scope base do you have on it?

What are your thoughts on aluminum rings vs. steel?

they be good. got one sittin in the safe now

No doubt the NF is a step up but do you have any feedback on the Bushnell you’re pulling off?

The base is an EGW that's been screwed down for 5 years. Aluminum rings are plenty strong, and significantly lighter than steel. I have a couple pairs of Badger Ordnance rings, and they are a bit rusty now.

Love that Bushnell! And I am not selling it, I have another job for it. The ERS is touted as maybe the best glass they ever made. The G-2 reticle is their first Horus based reticle. Of course now they have the G-3. The scope was $2k when it was new, and rightfully so. Today, it probably wouldn't bring $800, especially as banged up as mine is. The Bushnell is great, but the NX8 is lighter and has illumination. Those are the only two factors that made me replace the Bushnell for this task.

Sweet optic right there, and a nice writeup/setup. My son confiscated my Tikka PRC so I'm going to get another one for myself......may just top it with that one. Very nice.

How do you rate it vs an ATACR? I know you have both. I have often wondered how much the NX line gives up vs the ATACR.