I have two of these and they are both having issues. Cannot set elevation on one and windsge on another. They are at my gunsmith.

I will send hem back to Nikon for lifetime warranty.

I am done buying Nikon scopes.

I wish I had fewer guns - I would use Swarovski z3 as starter scopes on all my rifles. Over time I may end up doing it.

Mike

Leupold, a riflescope company, markets some of the worst cameras I've ever tried to use.

Think about that for a minute.

Now, what kind of company is Nikon?

quote:

Originally posted by Stonecreek:
Leupold, a riflescope company, markets some of the worst cameras I've ever tried to use.

Think about that for a minute.

Now, what kind of company is Nikon?

Nikon started life, over 100 years ago, as an optics company making binoculars if memory serves. And they have been making lenses ever since.

That being said, there is a reason there are so many refurbished Nikon scopes on the market. I own a couple of their scopes and haven't had any issues with them but it's always in the back of my mind when I'm looking for a new scope.

Hard to beat Leupold.

Whenever I looked through Nikon scopes over the last few years I was never convinced optical quality was superior. My old eyes rated that quality as about equivalent to Leupold of comparable standardm. Usually optical quality was noticeably better with Euro brands. Lately I think Leupold glass / optical quality has improved. Possibly improved coatings or superior lenses....I don't know but I think they are better in newer models particularly.
To me time has proven my decusion to use and stick with both Leupold and Swarovski optics has been sound.

Nikon's main business is photography. For this reason and their internal politics Nikon Photo Japan will not allow a Nikon photo dealer to carry any Nikon "blood sport" products as Nikon Photo Japan does not approve of it. This is why you will not find Nikon riflescopes on the web sites of any Nikon photo dealer.
That said, they do allow photo dealers to carry their binoculars, spotting scopes and golf rangefinders.
As a loooooong time Nikon photo dealer I can say that they, through the years, have offered more options in under $500 binoculars than any other company and their main purchasers are the big box WalMarts as their main interest is to move quantity not quality.
For the price range of Nikon riflescopes you can buy
Sig Sauer
Hawke
GPO
Leupold
Meopta
to name a few.
I' would happy to discuss options with any of the members here, 516-217-1000, and if you have your mind set on a Nikon we will order one in for you

I arrived at the same opinion on Nikon several years ago. I bought a 50 mm scope specifically for a leopard hunt I had booked. The elevation adjustment bottomed out with .375 260 grain loads, and I couldn't zero my 300 grain loads due to limited adjustment. I sent it in for repair, and when it was returned, I could adjust elevation ok, but didn't have sufficient windage adjustment!

I returned it again with a note that I had no confidence in the scope and wanted it replaced, which they did. Lots of time and headache for a poor quality product and poorer service.

No more Nikon for me.

This thread interests me. Certain posters I respect had convinced me that Nikon must be the most reliable, but I guess every maker makes the odd lemon.

On the matter of limited adjustment, really it should not matter because optical integrity requires we should set the scope up to be more-or-less centred without clicking, to prevent distortion/clarity loss from looking obliquely through the lenses.

Personally, I have never liked Nikon scopes or binoculars.

They make great cameras and camera lens, but that is about all IMO.

BH63

Not a fan of nikon scopes. I own 3.
On the other hand I am a fan of Leupold scopes. I own around 15 or so.

Nikon has a great warranty and service department. I don't like the M223 or M308 rifle scopes either but the Monarch line and the X1000/FX1000 rifle scopes are nice. Also if you find an older Monarch UCC or Titanium or any of those...they will give you full msrp value of it toward a new product if you ever had an issue with it. Their service is also faster than Leupold (3mo) although not as fast as Vortex (week or less)

quote:

Nikon's main business is photography. For this reason and their internal politics Nikon Photo Japan will not allow a Nikon photo dealer to carry any Nikon "blood sport" products as Nikon Photo Japan does not approve of it. This is why you will not find Nikon riflescopes on the web sites of any Nikon photo dealer.

For this reason alone, I do not buy Nikon scopes.

I figure if they are that ashamed of my lifestyle, then they don't need my money.

It would be like donating money to a Democrat!

I've trusted Nikon gear for decades and in fact used to make my living with it. Neither camera/lenses nor scopes/rangefinders/binos have ever disappointed me, and I can tell you that some endured rather harsh treatment.

I was not a fan of their original ProStaff line of scopes as I preferred better optical quality, but they still functioned fine and were as reliable as anything else at that price point. The newer ProStaff5 and 7 lines are very nice indeed.

Want one of the better non-illuminated low-light scopes out there...one that won't break the bank? Welcome to the best-kept secret of the Nikon Monarch Gold line. With the #4 reticle, those scopes were among the best Nikon ever produced and still give the alphas a run for their $$. I know because I have a 2.5-10x50 on a Contender barrel in 30-30 at the moment and have compared it against some big names in the optics world. The 2.5-10x56 version is even more of a good thing.

As to customer service, I've only needed it a scant few times, but it was wonderful. I'll use this as an example: During a photo shoot back win the 90s, a custom 6.5-06 rifle took a fall onto a concrete floor, and the Monarch UCC 4-12x40 took the brunt of the impact. I packed it up, sent it in and included a note explaining what happened, fully expecting to pay for the charges. In less than 2 weeks, I had a UPS package from Nikon -- and they didn't charge me a cent to take care of something that wasn't even a true warranty issue.

Got one Nikon back. Turned out the Nikon mount was screwed up and not the scope. The mount was replaced with a rock river arms mount.

I still don’t like the exposed turrets of the m-308.

Will shoot the sig 716 in next few weeks.

Mike

I mostly use Swarovski these days. However, I do have a few Nikon scopes. If my memory is correct, they are all on rimfire rifles. I like them. Would I take one on a sheep hunt ? Not a chance!

Had an e-mail from a member who said he was following this thread. Said he never heard of Nikon offering the #4 reticle. So I took a photo late yesterday evening and sent it to him but will also post here in case others aren't familiar with it.

Pardon the poor picture; it was late, I wasn't feeling all that great and simply lined up the camera as closely as I could and hand-help for the image. The view though the scope is much better than the low-res image you'll see here.

Anyway, the scope was on 7x, and the deer nearest the center was app. 185 yards away. There wasn't much light remaining when the photo was taken.

I have a Nikon Monarch 1.5-4x20 Africa with a German #4 reticle.

The above scope is the scope of choice for testing big-bore rifles by Michael McCourry who designs and tests for B&M rifles. He chooses them because they hold up for thousands of rounds.