Description
Rifle Scope Product Details
Leupold VX-3i 2.5-8x36mm Riflescope, Duplex (170678), Duplex (170678) (170678)
The VX-3i 2.5-8×36 holds a special place in hunter’s hearts and minds. Its blend of just-the-right magnification and lightweight ruggedness have helped people find success from eastern tree stands to the western backcountry. What do hunters want most in a scope Plain and simple; outstanding performance in low-light conditions and an incredibly tough, lightweight design. The VX-3i delivers this and more. Our Twilight Max Light Management System lets you see details others can’t in those crucial low-light situations at the beginning and the end of the day. Everything we put into the VX-3i is there to help you tag out.
Rifle Scope Product Features
About this item
Model #170678 – VX-3i 2.5-8x36mm with Duplex reticle and Matte finish
100% Waterproof, fogproof, and shockproof.
DiamondCoat 2 – Ion-assist lens coating for higher light transmission and the greatest level of abrasion resistance
Precision 1/4 MOA finger click adjustments for windage and elevation offer absolute repeatability and dependability over a lifetime of extreme use
Made with 6061-T6 aircraft quality aluminum and punisher tested to guarantee a lifetime of performance even under harshest recoil
Sport type: Hunting
VX-3i 2.5-8x36mm
Magnification Range: 2.5x-8x
Weight: 11.4 oz.
Length: 11.4 in.
Maintube Diameter: 1 inch
Eye Relief (in) – Low: 4.5
Eye Relief (in) – High: 3.6
Linear FOV (ft/100 yd) – Low: 37.5
Linear FOV (ft/100 yd) – High: 13.7
Leupold VX-3i
Relentless Performance
The VX-3i 2.5-8×36 holds a special place in hunter’s hearts and minds. Its blend of just-the-right magnification and lightweight ruggedness have helped people find success from eastern tree stands to the western backcountry. The VX-3i delivers outstanding performance in low-light conditions in an incredibly tough, lightweight design. Our Twilight Max Light Management System lets you see details others can’t in those crucial low-light situations at the beginning and the end of the day.
Lightweight, rugged performance
Unparalleled low light performance
Designed, machined, & assembled in the USA
Twilight Max Light Management System
See a more vivid, bright, and clear target image in a wider variation of low and bright lighting conditions. The combination premium edge-to-edge lens clarity, full visible-spectrum lens coatings and glare management provides an extra 20 minutes of shooting light.
Twilight Max Light Management System
Designed, Machined, & Assembled in the USA
Rugged Reliability
Proprietary gas blend and seals are tested by us to a 33-foot depth and a multitude of pressure changes.
Every Leupold riflescope is designed to survive a minimum of 5,000 impacts on the Punisher, Leupold’s recoil simulation machine. The force of each impact is 3x the recoil of a .308 rifle.
All Leupold riflescopes are tested by us to perform from -40F to 160F.
VX-Freedom VX-R VX-3i VX-5HD VX-6HD
Light Management System Twilight Twilight Twilight Max Twilight Max HD Twilight Max HD
Maintube Size 1 inch 30mm 1 inch, 30mm 30mm, 34mm 30mm, 34mm
Zoom Ratio 3:1 3:1 3:1 5:1 6:1
HD Glass No No No Yes Yes
About the Leupold Manufacturer
Leupold is a premium manufacturer for firearm scopes, optics, mounting solutions, and other add-ons used for firearms like rifles and long guns. They style and make their mounts and related products by making the most of building materials which are durable and long lasting. This includes the Leupold VX-3i 2.5-8x36mm Riflescope, Duplex (170678), Duplex (170678) (170678) by Leupold. For more shooting items, visit their site.
What You Need to Know About Glass
Rifle scopes allow you to specifically align a rifle at different targets by aligning your eye with the target over a range. They do this through zoom by employing a set of lenses inside the scope. The scope’s positioning can be dialed in to account for various ecological factors like wind and elevation decreases to account for bullet drop.
The scope’s purpose is to understand precisely where the bullet will hit based on the sight picture you are viewing with the optic as you align the scope’s crosshair or reticle with the intended point of impact. Most modern rifle optics have about eleven parts which are found within and externally on the scope body. These scope parts consist of the rifle scope’s body, lenses, windage dials, focus rings, and other elements. Learn about the eleven parts of rifle glass.
The Types of Rifle Scopes
Rifle scopes can be either “first focal plane” or “second focal plane” type of scopes. Finding the best type of rifle optic is based around what type of shooting you plan on doing.
About First Focal Plane Scopes
First focal plane glass (FFP) feature the reticle in front of the zoom lens. This triggers the reticle to increase in size based upon the extent of magnification being used. The benefit is that the reticle measurements are the same at the magnified range as they are at the non amplified range. One tick on a mil-dot reticle at 100 yards without “zoom” is still the identical tick at 100 yards with 5x “zoom”. These kinds of scopes are beneficial for:
- Quick acquisition, far away kinds of shooting
- Shooting circumstances where computations are low
- Experienced shooters who know their aim point “hold over” plus “lead” relationships for their long guns
- Shooters who don’t mind the reticle is enlarged and uses up more visual eyesight room than a SFP reticle
Info on Second Focal Plane Scopes
Second focal plane optics (SFP) come with the reticle behind the zoom lens. In the FFP example with the SFP scope, the 5x “zoom” 100 yard tick measurement would be 1/5th of the non “zoom” tick.
- Long distance kinds of shooting where shooters have additional time to make ballistic computations
- Shooting where most of the shots occur within shorter distances and ranges
- Shooters who desire a clearer optic picture without space taken up by the bigger FFP reticle
Glass Zoom
The quantity of magnification a scope offers is figured out by the diameter, density, and curvatures of the lenses inside of the rifle scope. The zoom of the scope is the “power” of the scope.
Fixed Single Power Lens Rifle Optic Details
A single power rifle scope will have a magnification number designator like 4×32. This indicates the zoom power of the scope is 4x power while the objective lens is 32mm. The zoom of this type of scope can not adjust given that it is a fixed power optic.
Variable Power Lens Optic Details
Variable power rifle scopes use enhanced power. The power change is performed by the power ring part of the scope near the back of the scope by the eye bell.
The Power and Range of Optics
Here are some recommended scope powers and the distances where they may be effectively used. Always remember that higher magnification optics and scopes will not be as practical as lower powered optics and scopes since too much magnification can be a bad thing. The same idea applies to longer ranges where the shooter needs to have sufficient power to see where to properly aim the rifle.
Rifle Glass Lens Finish
All top of the line rifle optic and scope lenses are layered. Lens finishing is an important aspect of a rifle when buying high end rifle optics and scope equipment.
Details on Lens Coatings – HD Versus ED
Some glass companies also use “HD” or high-def glass finishings that employ different processes, rare earth compounds, elements, and polarizations to enhance various color ranges and viewable definition through the lens. This high-definition finish is normally used with higher density glass which reduces light’s potential to refract by means of the lens glass. Some scope vendors use “HD” to describe “ED” meaning extra-low dispersion glass. ED handles how certain colors are presented on the chromatic spectrum and the chromatic deviance or aberration which is also called color distortion or fringing. Chromatic aberration is often obvious over things with defined shapes as light hits the item from various angles.
Optic Lens Single Covering Versus Multi-Coating
Different optic lenses can also have different coatings applied to them. All lenses usually have at least some type of treatment or coating applied to them before being used in a rifle scope or optic assembly. Because the lens isn’t simply a raw piece of glass, they require performance enhancing coatings. It is part of the carefully tuned optic. It requires a coating to be applied to it so that the lens will be efficiently usable in lots of kinds of environments, degrees of sunlight (full VS shaded), and other shooting conditions.
This lens treatment can offer protection to the lens from scratches while minimizing glare and other less advantageous things experienced in the shooting environment while sighting in with the scope. The quality of a single covered lens depends on the scope producer and how much you paid for it.
Some scope makers also make it a point to define if their optic lenses are covered or “multi” covered. Being “much better” depends on the maker’s lens treatment technology and the quality of products used in building the rifle scope.
Hydrophobic Lens Finish
Water on a lens does not improve preserving a clear sight picture through an optic whatsoever. Many top of the line and high-end scope manufacturers will coat their lenses with a hydrophobic or hydrophilic finish. The Steiner Optics Nano-Protection is a fine example of this type of treatment. It treats the surface area of the Steiner optic lens so the water molecules can not bind to it or develop surface tension. The result is that the water beads move off of the scope to maintain a clear, water free sight picture.
Options for Mounting Glass on Firearms
Installing options for scopes can be found in a few options. There are the standard scope rings which are separately mounted to the scope and one-piece mounts which cradle the scope. These various kinds of mounts also normally can be found in quick release versions which use manual levers which permit rifle operators to quickly mount and remove the glass.
Hex Key Rifle Glass Rings
Standard, clamp style mounting scope rings use hex head screws to mount to the flattop style Picatinny scope mount rails on rifles. These types of scope mounts use two different rings to support the optic, and are made from 7075 T6 billet aluminum which is developed for long range precision shooting. This type of scope mount is excellent for rifles which need a long lasting, sound mounting solution which will not move no matter how much the scope is moved or abused.
Rifle Glass Mounting Solutions with Quick-Release Cantilever Rings
These types of quick-release rifle scope mounts can be used to quickly detach a scope from a rifle and reattach it to a different rifle. If they all use a similar design mount, a number of scopes can also be swapped out. The quick detach design is CNC machined from anodized 6061 T6 aluminum and the mounting levers fasten nicely to a flat top type Picatinny rail. This permits the scope to be sighted in while on the rifle, taken off of the rifle, and remounted back on the rifle while maintaining accuracy. These types of mounts come in practical for shooting platforms which are carried a lot, to remove the glass from the rifle for protection, or for scopes which are used between a number of rifles. An example of this mount type is the 30mm mount from Vortex Optics. It typically costs around $250 USD
Info Around Scope Tube Sealing and Gas Purging
Moisture inside your rifle scope can wreck a day of shooting and your highly-priced optic by triggering fogging and creating residue inside of the scope’s tube. Most optics prevent humidity from going into the scope tube with a system of sealing O-rings which are waterproof. Generally, these scopes can be submerged under 20 or 30 feet of water before the water pressure can force moisture past the O-rings. This should be ample moisture prevention for common use rifles, unless you plan on taking your rifle sailing and are worried about the optic still working if it goes overboard and you can still rescue the firearm.
Rifle Optic Gas Purging
Another element of avoiding the accumulation of wetness within the rifle optic tube is filling the tube with a gas like nitrogen. Considering that this area is currently occupied by the gas, the optic is less altered by temperature shifts and pressure variations from the external environment which might possibly permit water vapor to leak in around the seals to fill the void which would otherwise be there. These are good qualities of a decent rifle scope to seek out.
