Description
Rifle Scope Product Details
Vortex Optics Viper PST Gen I First Focal Plane Riflescopes
Rifle Scope Product Features
About this item
The Viper PST 4-16×50 First Focal Plane boasts features associated with top-tier riflescopes. The one-piece, shock proof 30mm tube, precision-machined from a single solid block of aircraft-grade aluminum, offers ample windage and elevation adjustment.
Matching reticle and turret measurements allow accurate, fast dialing of shots. The EBR-1 (Enhanced Battle Reticle) is a hashmarked ranging reticle using MRAD based subtension lines for ranging, holdover, and windage corrections.
Customizable Rotational Stop (CRS) aids in return to zero after dialing temporary elevation correction. Precision-force spring system sses premium components in the erector-spring system to ensure maximum repeatability and ease of adjustment.
Extra-low dispersion (XD) glass increases resolution and color fidelity, resulting in crisp, sharp images. Proprietary coatings increase light transmission with multiple anti-reflective coatings on all air-to-glass surfaces.
Fiber optic turret rotation indicator provides a highly visible and tactile point of reference for turret rotations. O-ring seals and argon gas purging provides both shockproof and waterproof performance.
About the Vortex Manufacturer
Vortex is a premium company for weapon scopes, optics, mounting solutions, and other components used for firearms like rifles and long guns. They innovate and build their products by choosing building materials which are long lasting and resilient. This includes the Vortex Optics Viper PST Gen I First Focal Plane Riflescopes by Vortex. For more shooting goods, visit their website.
About Scopes
Rifle scopes enable you to precisely align a rifle at various targets by lining up your eye with the target at range. They accomplish this through zoom by using a set of lenses inside the scope. The scope’s positioning can be dialed in to account for different natural things like wind and elevation decreases to account for bullet drop.
The scope’s function is to help shooters understand precisely where the bullet will hit based upon the sight picture you are seeing using the scope as you align the scope’s crosshair or reticle with the target. A lot of modern-day rifle scopes have around eleven parts which are located internally and externally on the scope. These optic pieces consist of the rifle scope’s body, lenses, modification dials or turrets, objective focus rings, and other parts. Learn about the eleven parts of optics.
Rifle Optic Styles
Rifle scopes can be either “first focal plane” or “second focal plane” type of optics. Picking the best type of rifle optic is based on what type of shooting you plan to do.
First Focal Plane Scopes
Focal plane scopes (FFP) include the reticle in front of the zoom lens. These styles of scopes are helpful for:
- Quick acquisition, far away types of shooting
- Shooting situations where calculations are minor
- Experienced shooters who understand their aim point “hold over” plus “lead” correlations for their weapon
- Shooters who do not mind the reticle is bigger and requires more visual sight space than a SFP reticle
About Second Focal Plane Scopes
Second focal plane optics (SFP) include the reticle to the rear of the zoom lens. This induces the reticle to remain at the very same scale in relation to the volume of magnification being used. The effect is that the reticle dimensions shift based upon the zoom employed to shoot over greater distances given that the markings present distinct increments which vary with the magnification. In the FFP example with the SFP scope, the 5x “zoom” one hundred yard tick measurement would be 1/5th of the non “zoom” tick. These particular kinds of optics are useful for:
- Long distance types of shooting where shooters have more time to make ballistic estimations
- Shooting where most of the shots occur within shorter ranges and distances
- Shooters who select a clearer optic picture without room used up by the larger size FFP reticle
Details on Rifle Scope Zoom
The amount of zoom a scope provides is determined 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.
Info About Fixed Single Power Lens Rifle Scopes
A single power rifle scope uses a zoom number designator like 4×32. This means the magnification power of the scope is 4x power while the objective lens is 32mm. The zoom of this kind of scope can not fluctuate given that it is a fixed power scope.
Info About Adjustable Power Lens Scopes
Variable power rifle scopes use variable power levels. The power adjustment is accomplished by the power ring part of the scope near the back of the scope by the eye bell.
Power and Range Correlations
Here are some suggested scope power levels and the distances where they may be effectively used. Consider that high power glass will not be as efficient as lower magnification level scope and optics since excessive zoom can be a detractor. The same concept relates to longer distances where the shooter needs to have sufficient power to see precisely where to properly aim the rifle.
About Scope Lens Finishes
All modern rifle optic lenses are covered in special coatings. There are different types and qualities of coverings. Lens covering is an important element of a rifle’s setup when thinking about luxury rifle optics and targeting equipment. The lenses are among the most vital pieces of the optic since they are what your eye looks through while sighting a rifle in on the point of impact. The finish on the lenses safeguards the lens surface and assists with anti glare capabilities from refracted sunlight and color exposure.
HD Versus ED Lens Coatings
Some scope makers likewise use “HD” or high-definition lens finishings which use various methods, polarizations, chemicals, and elements to draw out a wide range of colors and viewable quality through the lens. Some scope manufacturers use “HD” to refer to “ED” meaning extra-low dispersion glass.
Rifle Optic Lens Single Finish Versus Multi-Coating
Various scope lenses can even have various finishes applied to them. All lenses generally have at least some kind of treatment or finishing applied to them prior to being used in a rifle scope or optic. This is due to the fact that the lens isn’t just a raw piece of glass. It becomes part of the finely tuned optic. It requires a coating to be applied to it so that it will be efficiently usable in lots of types of environments, degrees of light (full VS shade), and other shooting conditions.
Single covered lenses have a treatment applied to them which is usually a protective and boosting multi-purpose treatment. This lens treatment can shield the lens from scratches while reducing glare and other less helpful things experienced in the shooting environment while sighting in with the optic. The quality of a single coated lens depends on the scope designer and how much you spent on it. Both the make and cost are indications of the lens quality.
Some scope producers also make it a point to define if their optic lenses are coated or “multi” covered. This implies the lens has had multiple treatments applied to them. If a lens gets several treatments, it can indicate that a manufacturer is taking multiple steps to fight different natural aspects like an anti-glare coating, a scratch resistant anti-abrasion coating, followed by a hydrophilic finish. This also does not always indicate the multi-coated lens will perform much better than a single layered lens. Being “better” depends on the maker’s lens treatment innovation and the quality of glass used in developing the rifle glass.
Hydrophobic Rifle Scope Lens Coating
Water on an optic’s lens does not assist with retaining a clear sight picture through a scope at all. Many top of the line and premium optic producers will coat their lenses with a hydrophobic or hydrophilic finishing. The Steiner Optics Nano-Protection is a good example of this kind of treatment. It provides protection for the surface of the Steiner optic lens so the H2O particles can not bind to it or create surface tension. The result is that the water beads slide off of the scope to preserve a clear, water free sight picture.
Rifle Optic Mounting Alternatives
Mounting options for scopes can be found in a couple of options. There are the standard scope rings which are separately installed to the optic and one-piece mounts which cradle the scope. These various types of mounts also normally can be found in quick release versions which use toss levers which permit rifle operators to rapidly install and dismount the optics.
Rifle Scope Mounting Solutions with Hex Key Rings
Normal, clamp style mounting scope rings use hex head screws to mount to the flattop design Picatinny scope mount rails on rifles. These types of scope mounts use two separate rings to support the optic, and are often made from 7075 T6 billet aluminum which are created for long range accuracy shooting. This type of scope mount is perfect for rifles which require a long lasting, rock solid mounting solution which will not move no matter how much the scope is moved or abuse the rifle takes.
Rifle Scope Mounting Solutions with Quick-Release Cantilever Rings
These kinds of quick-release rifle scope mounts can be used to quickly remove a scope from a rifle and reattach it to a different rifle. If they all use a similar design mount, multiple scopes can often be swapped out in the field. The quick detach mount style is CNC machined from anodized 6061 T6 aluminum and the mounting levers attach nicely to a flat top design Picatinny rail. This allows the scope to be sighted in while on the rifle, removed from the rifle, and remounted while retaining the original sighting settings. These types of mounts come in convenient for shooting platforms which are carried a lot, to take off the scope from the rifle for protection, or for optics which are chosen for use in between multiple rifles. An example of this mount style is the 30mm mount designed by the Vortex Optics manufacturer. It typically costs around $250 USD
Sealing and Gas Purging for Glass Tubes
Moisture inside your rifle scope can destroy a day of shooting and your expensive optic by bringing about fogging and producing residue inside of the scope tube. Many scopes prevent moisture from entering the scope tube with a system of sealing O-rings which are water resistant.
About Rifle Glass Tube Gas Purging
Another part of preventing the accumulation of wetness within the rifle scope’s tube is filling the tube with a gas like nitrogen. Because this space is already taken up by the gas, the glass is less altered by condition alterations and pressure distinctions from the external environment which could potentially enable water vapor to permeate in around the seals to fill the vacuum which would otherwise exist. These are good qualities of a good rifle scope to look for.
