Vortex Mil Dot

[lwink]

Was looking at these scopes, I can't find any locals with them at all, but I see that many of you have seen and or used them. My question is -- what is the size of the mil dot reticle -- to clarify, is it like looking through tree trunks that will cover up an elk and 400 yards or is a nice fine reticle? Also wondering if anyone knows if it is glass etched or wire? Overall comments are also very welcome.

[tropicmaster]

I just bought the Viper 6.5x20x40 mildot and I could not be happier. I do not know if the reticle is etched or wire, but I have had no problems with it obscuring anything. PDog has several of them and is a lot more knowledgable on them so maybe he can chime in, but I cant see you being disappointed with the Viper. The only negative for me is that you can only range with the scope set at 14 power. I think that is because it is second focal plane rather than first? Anyway it is not that big a deal as I rarely need to range something that is too close for that power setting.

[dolomite_supafly]

As long as it is the standard you shouldn't have a problem. The center of the mildot reticle doesn't have a dot, just normal cross hairs. The first dot is 3.6" away from the center at 100 yards. The reticles are not any more bulky than a decent duplex reticle.

The dots in the Vortex scopes are .25 mil so at 100 yards the dot would be .9" which at 400 yards would be 3.6" in diameter, hardly big enough to cover up almost anything you might be shooting.

The distance between mil dots is 3.6". That means it's 3.6" at 100 yards, 7.2" at 200 yards, and about 10.8" at 300 yards. Also, the first dot is 3.6" at 100, the second dot is 7.2" at 100, the third is 10.8" at 100 and so on.

Personally I like them for ease of range finding when in a hurry. If you know the approximate size of what you are going to be hunting then you can easily make up a chart ahead of time then use the reticle to range.

With my 223 I can range all the way out to 650 yards without turning a single knob. I can keep it within 4" out to 400 yards just using the reticle. At 650 yards the drop is 4.9MIL which equates to roughly 112 inches. In MOA that is a little over 16 MOA, not really a lot of movement but with a MIL reticle you can have the same holdover without ever turning the knob.

Dolomite

[lwink]

.25 mil dots huh?? That'd take some getting used to I suppose, but I guess it could be overcome with a little practice if the scope is worth it. Any more ideas about these?

[dolomite_supafly]

.25 mil dots huh?? That'd take some getting used to I suppose, but I guess it could be overcome with a little practice if the scope is worth it. Any more ideas about these?

The dots themselves are .25MIL not the spacing. The spacing is 1MIL between the centers of the .25MIL dots. The distance between the edges of the dots is .75MIL.

Sorry for the confusion.

Dolomite

[sharpshooter]

If you don't like the mil dot reticle, you can go with the BDC reticle. The first dot is 1.5 m.o.a. the 2nd is 4.5.,3rd is 7.5 and to the tip of the course crosshair is 11 m.o.a.

[lwink]

Thats a tough call -- the mil dot for ranging or the moa reticle for fast holdover. Too many choices out there, and this is only one of 3 scopes that I'm choosing between.

[dolomite_supafly]

Thats a tough call -- the mil dot for ranging or the moa reticle for fast holdover. Too many choices out there, and this is only one of 3 scopes that I'm choosing between.

I use the mildot for both ranging and holdover. I have a cheat sheet for holdover in mils and moa if I want to get more precise. I never really thought about using mildot until I bought a cheap one to see if I like it. I love it and can't imagine shooting distance without one now. I only punch paper and steel but the mildot makes hits pretty easy.

Using mildots for holdover isn't super precise but like I said I can keep it within 4" out to 400 yards. Another alernative is use the mildot for the ranging then use MOA turrets to dial in the holdover which would be more precise. Breaking down a midot reticle into 1/4's by eye is pretty easy also.

Dolomite

[Fjold]

.25 mildot would cover 2.5" at 1,000 yards.

I use a 6-24X Mildot Vortex on my 22 rimfire target gun.

[dolomite_supafly]

.25 mildot would cover 2.5" at 1,000 yards.

I use a 6-24X Mildot Vortex on my 22 rimfire target gun.

Your thinking MOA rather than MIL. A MIL is bigger than MOA

A MIL is 3.6" at 100 yards. a .25 MIL is .9" at 100 yards which equates to 9" at 100o yards.

MOA is roughly 1" at 100 yards. .25 MOA is .25" at 100 yards which equates to 2.5" at 1000 yards.

Dolomite

[pdog06]

I have a Viper 6.5-20x50 mil dot scope in my posession right now and it is not that thick at all. I like it ALOT better than the BDC reticle they offer. I am kinda partial to the target dot though.

[bythebook]

I have a Viper 6.5-20x50 mil dot scope in my posession right now and it is not that thick at all. I like it ALOT better than the BDC reticle they offer. I am kinda partial to the target dot though.

+1 for me also I like mine a lot.