Vortex Viper PST EBR-1

[funkedup]

http://www.vortexoptics.com/product/...-1-moa-reticle

http://s1120.photobucket.com/user/fu...tml?sort=3&o=2

I bought this scope a month or so ago and have been out with it a few times in different conditions, so thought I should do a review.

When it first arrived I was shocked at the weight, it is nice and light, noticeably lighter the the MTC Viper connect that I had on there before.
The build quality is awesome, very solid and the turrets, sf and mag ring operate perfectly.
The ret is fine, but not too fine, I can use this ret in lower light than I could the AMD ret of the Viper Connect. This has an illuminated ret, that has off positions in between each power setting, which is a nice little feature and saves you from cycling through to get the correct setting for the conditions. This has very positive stops and operates smoothly and faultlessly. It is set at an angle so that it does not get in the way of viewing the mag ring or the elevation turret.
When the illumination is on, this doesn't bloom the reticle unlike on some scopes, the ret remains nice and fine, but enables you to view each aimpoint much clearer when shooting towards a hedgerow in lower lighting. I haven't found any need for this to be used before sunset and even then, it has had minimal use and is not needed when aiming in a clearing.

The elevation and windage turrets are solid and chunky, but not too big, I find the turrets on the Bushnell Elite Tactical turrets too big for my liking, these are better for my preference. There is nice, not sure what to call it, knurling? Gripped teeth? around the rims making them easy to get hold of in wet conditions or whilst wearing gloves.
The turret housing has markings from 1-6, with a line on the turret itself, visible through a slit in the turret housing, so it is easy to identify how much travel you have left on each turret. At the top of each turret, from the center out to the rim is a little red slither of plastic that they call fiber optic, it doesn't illuminate though, but it helps to identify your turret position quickly, there is also one pointing to the mag ring.

The turrets are nice to operate, not too stiff and not sloppy, they shouldn't get knocked off zero as they are non lockable. The stop points or each increment (1/4") are positive with dull audible clicks, or soft/gentle clunks.

The parallax on these scopes has a marked minimum of 35yds, but will travel closer to that on the sf ring, to approx 30, but this scope has such amazing dof that on low-mid mag, you can use this scope much closer. Min has however been re-parallaxed to 17.5yds, making each marking half the distance of it's actual marking.
The SF is slick to operate, but I haven't found much need for using it yet once set at 25yds.

The mag ring is the same quality, slick and smooth to operate, but it is missing numbers, i like to know the number that my mag is set on, if only to know the mag ring hasn't moved (altering my aim points) but with this scope, you don't have that issue as it is FFP. Once you have your aim points worked out, they remain the same no matter what mag.

The aim points are very small at the lower end of the mag range, I have set mine to around 8 (as there are no numerical markings between 5-10) and have left it there, and the aim points for my .20 are awesome.

Optically this is a great scope, totally awesome before sunset, even when facing direct sunlight, no problems whatsoever. The head positioning is quite critical to get the best eye box and sight picture. If your head is not in 100% the correct position, the edge-edge clarity declines. I was pushing my cheek quite hard into my stock at first and was amazed at the difference it makes when I lightly rested it on the cheek comb. This also helps in correct head positioning, so I am kind of thankful for it as it will reduce parallax error, although currently I haven't experienced any.

Right, after the sun sets...
...It is not the best scope you can use in twilight really. It is useable, but more concentration is needed to identify the target.
Whereas during the day, whether it be overcast, in woodland or sunny, the brightness, contrast and resolution of these optics are fantastic, it seems to degrade quite quickly after sun down, making target acquisition a little bit more tricky, especially if shooting towards a hedgerow. The illuminated ret comes in to play then, helping out a little as the settings are not too bright to take the focus away from your target, but does have the correct setting to just give enough illumination to highlight the ret.

Remember though, this scope does only have a 32mm objective. I have used this with my NM400 Demon Red torch and it is awesome, infact this set up has now replaced my .177 Rapid with Bushnell Elite 4200 6-24x40sf and lightforce for lamping the rabbits.

The quality of the finish of this scope is really nice, the coating seems reasonably thick, so the areas of wear and tear should hold up nicely, without any chipping, flaking or rubbing of the coating

Personally I love this little scope and the features it offers, especially for a small lightweight scope. If you get a chance to take a look through one, i suggest you do.