My new Votex Crossfire (updated info)

[fgw_in_fla]

I just got home from the range & using my new Vortex Crossfire 8 - 32x w/50mm A.O.

Vey nice piece of glass. I like the clarity of the glass even on higher powers. I did have to deal with a little glare as it's quite sunny this am however, i kept it at 20x on the 200yd line. So far, it has survived the recoil of my '06 handloads. Y'know... up to around 12x - 15x, it kinda reminds me of my Leupold scope. Nice, clear, no fuzzy edges... A pleasure to use ;)
So far, so good.

Now....
I need to save a few bucks since I'm now dealing with as additional addiction. Now I've got Savage, Reloading & Votex addiction.

I like what I read & see on the Viper series AND the price is right.

Lastly, the guys at CameraLand are a good bunch & their prices are right.

Anybody here buy from SWFA?
I have a catalog from them & they have quite the inventory. How's their service, etc?

Have a good weekend Y'all.

Frank in Fla

[rjtfroggy]

Frank I deal with SWFA whenever I need a scope, thier CS is second to none. They used to have (think they still have) a price match +some on any addvertized optic.
If you like fixed power scopes give one of the SS scopes a try.I use the 20x for target and the people around me can not believe the quality of the glass, they all use NF,Leu.,or weaver target scopes. When I tell them mine are only $300 they walk away shaking thier heads in disbelief.
Thier scopes are always compared to the ones that cost 3x as much. I have 4 of the 20x and a 6x and at the moment trying to decide between another 20 or the 16x.
Great scopes great people don't be afraid to try one.

[airaddict]

Frank,

How are the lens covers that come withthe vortex scopes? Are they sturdy and stay closed if bumped around a bit? Im considering switching to a vortex from my lupy due to paralax issues. I love the threaded flip up lens covers since they are so sturdy and robust. The ones that come with vortex look like they are plastic but look built well and i havent gotten a chance to ask someone first hand how they handle. Thanks.

Brian

[fgw_in_fla]

Froggy - Thanx for the info. Much obliged ;) I just got a SWFA catalog on Friday. Good stuff!

Air - I have the bikini type covers on mine. It's not a tactical. Just a plain 'ol A.O type that'll run up to 32x.

I went shooting again today & I gotta say... That scope on 32x on the 200yd line is the cat's meow. I like it alot & these tired old eyes came home this afternoon & weren't nearly as tired & scratchy as they usually are. It was nice being able to read the "Birchwood Casey" on the bottom of a shoot-n-see target.

The best part is.... Between yesterday & today I shot over 230 rounds of my "home rolled" ammo. The scope never flinched or dropped a note. I even got to messing with the scope & shot a "box" just to figure out how it handles & was most impressed. For the money, It's great.

Thank you for listening...... The Mgmt.

Frank in Fla ;)

[bootsmcguire]

I wanted to buy that exact scope myself last week. Went to C.Land-NY page and it was there. Went to go confer with the "boss" about using the card and when I came back, the page said "No Longer Available". Now I see where it went ;)

I'll get find one before too long. If you got it at the price they had listed when I looked, then you got a deal.

Enjoy and Good Shooting.

[fgw_in_fla]

Hey Boots - I sorta know the feeling. I like the darn thing so much, I went back to C-Land website to see about getting another one and it said "We Ain't Got No More!"

I may just wait a save up a few more bucks and go for the next model up. That was the original strategy anyway.

I'd like to have a scope with a SF instead of an AO. At least that's what I'd like anyway. What I'll end up getting may be a completely different story :o

Frank in Fla ;)

[jglover_81]

I have that exact scope on my 6BR and love it!

[bootsmcguire]

It looks like everybody is out of stock on these and I don't see anybody offering back orders, so I am guessing that this model is discontinued. Too bad, cuz it must obviously be a good model and I don't see anything in the vortex line up that has magnification up to 32x. Oh well, maybe they will come out with something similar in the future. ;)

[JavRGV]

Was this the Crossfire II?

[bootsmcguire]

The one the OP is talking about should be a Crossfire, not the Crossfire II.

OP correct me if I am wrong.

[rjtfroggy]

I have a 6x24 crossfire that I tried on my 260rem. Not impressed with it so I took it off and put it away.I could be persuaded to let it go.P.M. if interested.

[GaCop]

It looks like everybody is out of stock on these and I don't see anybody offering back orders, so I am guessing that this model is discontinued. Too bad, cuz it must obviously be a good model and I don't see anything in the vortex line up that has magnification up to 32x. Oh well, maybe they will come out with something similar in the future. ;)


Correct, the Crossfire line is discontinued. I sent them an e-mail asking what is their proceedure if my 8X32 should go "belly up".

[42769vette]

the folks at vortex will either fix your scope or give you a great deal on a upgrade if your current crossfire goes belly up.

the crossfire 2 is a completly diffrent scope. the crossfire 2 will dominate the less than 200 dollar market when they get out and get some reviews. ive done some testing on my 3-9x40 crossfire 2. here is what i came up with.

So I mounted the new crossfire 2 yesterday and have about 300 rds through it. It's mounted on my cz 452 for now, since it's more accurate than the 10-22 that the scope will spend its life on.

The scope will run between 120 and 269 depending on size, features, and reticle. I was pretty leary of the scope when I heard about it. Vortex told me a lot about it and to be honest my exact words were, "I'll believe it when I see it." I did not think they could produce a scope that did what they said it would, in the price range they said it would be in.

I was wrong. The glass is not top of the line hd glass but it's better than any Nikon Prostaff or other scope in its price range that I've ever seen.

Under the turret caps are resetable finger turrets. The turrets are kind of a pain to reset but it's not like you will do that a lot through the life of the scope. The clicks are very loud and postive.

Tracking was the main thing I did not think they could produce in this price range. Tracking is how a scope performs when you run the turrets up and down, left and right. A scope that tracks well you can dial up 15 moa from a 200yd zero and dial left 2 moa forwind, then dial your turrets back to there original position and you are backexactly to your 200 yd zero.
I did 4 or 5 box tests with it at 50 yds and it passed every one. It was always within 1 moa of where it should be and always returned to zero. I was going to take pictures, but to be honest, I kept pulling a shot and making an ugly target, so I will get a pretty target in a few days for everyone to see. For those who are un familiar with a box test, I basically zeroed the rifle at 50 yds. The target has 5 bullseyes on it: a center bull, a bull that is up 5 inches and right 5 inches from the center, one that is right 5 inches and down 5 inches from the center, one that is left 5 inches and down 5 inches from the center, and one that is up 5 inches and left 5 inches from the center

Through the whole test I aimed at the center bull. I shot a couple rounds in the center, then dialed up 10 moa (5 inches at 50 yds) and right 10 moa (5 inches at 50 yds) and shot a couple more. Then i dialed down 20 moa (10 inches at 50 yds) and shot a couple more, then I dialed left 20 moa and shot a couple more, then up 20 moa and shot a couple more. Finally to finish the test, I dialed right 10 moa and down 10 moa. The goal of this test is to dial the scope all over its travel range, have a group in each bull and make sure that the scope returns to its original 50 yd zero. On a perfect test you will have a tiny group in the center bull and shots in the center of each of the outside bulls.

The scope did its job prefectly. I just was not happy with my shooting.

As far as durabilit, I never mounted it on any centerfire rifles, on the 22 it held up great. I was not overly abusive to the setup, but I was not gentle either. I would shoot a bullseye stand up and drop the whole thing on its side, lay back down and it never lost zero.

This scope carries vortex's vip warranty which is really simple; if it's not functioning properly it will be fixed or replaced free. If you buy one from me that does anything it's not supposed to I'll replace it out of my inventory no questions asked. This is not something I could afford to do if I didn't trust vortex to make it right with me. A lot of times its simplier to send it to vortex yourself but if you're in a hurry or don't want to deal with a company I'll take care of it for you. This warranty applies no matter what. It doesn't matter if you are the original purchaser or the 50th owner (really helps resale value) and I'd doesn't matter if it's a factory defect or if you accidently ran it over with your truck if its not right it's fixed or replaced.


final notes

pros

PRICE
TRACKING
GLASS
WARRANTY

cons

resetting the zero is kind of a pain


In it's price range it's a no brainer. That said if you compare it to a pst or similar it will lose every time, but compare it to a scope in it's price range it will win every time. Vortex really raised the bar with this scope.

[fgw_in_fla]

RIP - My new Vortex Crossfire scope.... :'( :'( :'(

Sunday was the 4th time I had it out to the range. After the 20th shot I noticed it was out of focus. I reach out and give the A.O. a little twist & it's right back in focus. Until the next shot. Now, it'll focus on settings between 300 & infinity on a 100yd line.
I spoke with Vortex Cust. Serv. this afternoon. They say, at no cost whatsoever to me, Send It In...

The young lady then tells me it's an "entry level" scope & don't expect it to last on a gun with "heavy" recoil. I have it mounted on my '06 shooting 180 Noslers with 55.5gr. of RL-19. I thought I'd need to see the Chiropractor after yesterday's shooting session. No matter. It just really PO's me that i need to send it back already. I guess I should just do the upgrade if the cost isn't too high. I need the higher power since my eyesight is begining to really suck as I age.

I suppose my next move is.... Peruse the Vortex catalog & see what's available / affordable.

Stay Tuned...

Frank in Fla