Leupold Scope Stopped Tracking

Status
Not open for further replies.
S

Swifty Morgan

New member
I just took my first precision rifle course. It was fantastic, but it was marred by the breakdown of my Leupold Vx-3 scope.

I was up over 800 yards, and I maxed out the turret. I could not drop the reticle any lower, so the instructor who was spotting had me aim somewhere up in a tree to hit the 1060-yard gong.

Later, I tried to go back to zero. The turret would not turn. I didn't apply much force at all, but the shock of the recoils had apparently loosened the set screws, so the turret's graduated cover started slipping. We tightened the screws, and my instructor turned the turret successfully.

After that, things seemed screwy. The farther out I got, the less the turret's markings seemed to relate to what was happening. We quit before I got up to the 1060-yard target because we would have been looking around at random for the right setting.

My instructor said it wasn't tracking. He told me his outfit in the military had a bunch of Leupolds, and only half of them worked. He said he was not surprised mine had a problem.

Has anyone else here had this issue?

I'm going to get a MIL-dot scope, but I'm not happy that a rarely-used $900 scope stopped working after a lifetime total of maybe 400 rounds.

I also learned that a varmint reticle is not the way to go for a long-range rifle class. If I had known that sooner, I would have bought something new.

I'm not too sure what this scope is for. It's not for precision rifle shooting, but the magnification is awfully high for hunting. It's 20x on the high end. Maybe someone can tell me. I bought it long back when I knew even less about optics than I do now.
 
As far as I know Leupold's lifetime warrany i still gold.

Maybe running it up against the stop and shooting it subjected something to unusual shock.

Picture loading a pickup till its resting on the axle snubbers and hitting a speed bump at 70 mph. Combined factors.

Unless policy has changed at Leupod,they have a long history of standing behind their product.

As far as you reticle choice...OK. You had the choice.
"Varmint Hunter" is about making the corrections without twisting knobs. You see the varmint when it presents itself,and maybe you have 5 seconds.
Long range precision shooting is done with calculation and knobs.

Both are correct.

Among the "serious folks",the HORUS reticle is the choice these days.

Do you have inclined bases? With 20 MOA Nightforce bases my 4.5 to 14 x Leupold has enough adj for over 1400 yds. In fairness,its a 7mm Rem Mag.

It also has a 30 mm tube. Typically,larger tubes have more adj range.

Call the Leupold custom Shop,ask about a reticle change. They can probably put a mil-dot in it for you. IIRC,its about $130
 
Leupold

Big Leupold fan,...... send that thing back to Oregon, they will fix it for free and it will return in a timely manner. You might inquire about a reticle change while your at it, I think they will still change reticles in the VX-3 line for about $60 bucks and a Mil-Dot should be an option. They do not do reticle changes on all models though.

I'm suggesting that maxing out the elevation did your scope in, not a bad scope from Leupold. What caliber were you shooting? Did you have a 20 degree base? A lot of cals/rifles/scope combos will not get to 1000 yds w/o a long range base.
 
Oops

Heh, $60 bucks......$130 bucks, shows you when the last time was I had one done, but HiBC and I are on the same page, sort of.
 
Leupold's custom shop has been closed over a year now with no signs of reopening soon. I would send the scope back for repair, but don't expect any changes to the reticle. I'd just go spend the money on a Super Sniper fixed 10X, for the price they are a hard scope to beat.
 
Scratch the Leupold! They are notorious for not tracking! Get it repaired and sell it. Get a zero compromise optics, nightforce, or top of the line Vortex.

If you have to stick with a Leupold get 5HD.

VX3 are not really made to take much abuse

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk
 
Leupolds don't like to be maxed out then given a little more accidentally in the heat of the moment at a match which is what I'm guessing happened.
Leupold is not what it used to be since Jack Slack died, the bean counters are running things and in my opinion they're running the company into the ground.
I think I have 18 of their scopes from pistol and crossbow models to the 6.5x20 they gave me a couple of years ago to replace the first one I bought in 1984 as a teenager for silhouette.
It's criminal IMO for a company that's doing well to let some as!@hol#$% come in and ruin customer service and gut the product line to make a little more money so they can justify their bonus's and golden parachutes.
 
I appreciate all the information. I'm thinking I'll get a Vortex Mil-dot scope. I'll find out what it costs to fix the Leupold. I don't know what to do with it after that.

I'm not sure what a 20x scope with no Mil-dot reticle and seemingly meaningless BDC graduations is for. My instructor is an Army sniper and competition shooter, and he didn't know what to do with it.

I don't have anything fancy holding it up. I probably bought the rings on Amazon, giving it my best guess.
 
There is something else I believe.

Some scope manufactures brag about holding tolerances to less than -001 in critical areas. Thats all well and good,

But consider what hapens when the screws are tightened down on bases and rings.

For years sightng in (for me) amounted to using far too much ammo chasing groups around the target using rather fickle ,non repeating adjustments.

Then I took up setting up my receiver on a surface plate,using a height gauge and test indicator to check alignments,and re-machining bases as necessary so the bases were aligned to less than .001.

And then I use bar ends from stock for a Swiss Turn machine that is OD ground .005 under nominal size. .995 for the 1 in size,for example.That allows for the overcut of the lapping compound. I suggest 320 grit.

I have found my scope adjustments work much better when the tube is not flexxed by misaligned rings.

Its a bit like the idea of leveling a lathe so the bed is not twisted.

I can't prove it,but I suspect that is the root cause of many scope problems.

I have never owned a Vortex scope. From what I have heard,I would consider buying one.Supposedly the upper level ones are quite good.

Some folks suggest if you go with a Mil based reticle you get mil adjustments,and MOA adjustments for MOA reticles.

Assuming Leupold will warranty your scope,...someplace on their site you can get the MOA dimensions for the reticles,Varminter included.

The spacing of the reticle will describe a curve that approximates the path of a bullet. Of course,variations in velocity,BC,etc will reshape the curve somewhat.

But I have found that if I play with ballistic software,I can overlay the curve described by the reticle and the curve of my actual trajectory.

I may not get neat,even range intervals,like 100 yds,but just like a broken clock being right twice a day,there IS a range that can be seleced for a sight in range that will work pretty well with your velocity and BC.

And for each reticle feature,there IS a range where its just right.

So you just write those down as "dope" The wind tic marks might have a value of 8 mph or 12 mph. Its just a change of unit. Its still useful

I have a Pride-Fowler scope with an 800 yd Rapid Reticle.

I've found that if I actually sight in at 600 yds,I minimize the effect of the error.In other wrds,I may get a 1 1/2 in error at 250 yds and a 3/4 in error at 100 yds. I might get a 3 in error at 700 yds.
I can work with those.
You also might develop a range / dope card for your reticle features that works with one or two full turns of the turret.

I realize these workarounds are not ideal for shooting at a 2 MOA diamond at 900 yds.

I agree good target turrets and dialing in dead on hold correction is the way to do it.

But if that was a coyote scope, there are ways to make it useful.
 
Last edited:
No custom shop???

Well, I wasn't aware of that either. I'm going to check out their website and see what else has changed. Doesn't sound good, discontinued products, no custom shop............?

A check of the website states they are "restructuring" and one can sign up to be notified when the shop reopens......who knows?
 
Imagine that,A Leupold scope that doesn't track correctly.

That's actually pretty common. I've heard the Mark 5 and 6 series track better,but there are so many better choices for the money.
 
Swifty Morgan said:
I appreciate all the information. I'm thinking I'll get a Vortex Mil-dot scope. I'll find out what it costs to fix the Leupold. I don't know what to do with it after that.

I'm not sure what a 20x scope with no Mil-dot reticle and seemingly meaningless BDC graduations is for. My instructor is an Army sniper and competition shooter, and he didn't know what to do with it.

I don't have anything fancy holding it up. I probably bought the rings on Amazon, giving it my best guess.
Click to expand...
Snipers dont learn hunting BDC reticles. Leupold makes about every reticle you can think of. You chose the one you have.
 
Oh. So you're angry and you want to defend Leupold.

You got all the facts wrong.

The scope is useless because Leupold made it so fragile it breaks when you reach the MOA limit on the elevation turret. That is Leupold's fault.
 
Last edited:
Swifty Morgan said:
Oh. So you're angry and you want to defend Leupold.

You got all the facts wrong.

The scope is useless because Leupold made it so fragile it breaks when you reach the MOA limit on the elevation turret. That is Leupold's fault.
Click to expand...
I have the facts as you gave them. I really dont like Leupold. I shoot Meopta. Leupold will fix the scope you tore up through MISUSE. What kind of numb skull shoots a scope with its elevation or windage adjustment maxed out?
When I was 6 or 7 years old I ruined one of my dads target scopes turning the knob too far. I will never do that again. Didnt think an adult would ever do it.
 
Last edited:
Now you've gotten the facts wrong twice. Nice work. Hard to believe an adult would do that.



Leupold provides a certain range of adjustment, and they don't tell users they can't use all of it. You may check their product literature yourself.

You are obnoxious and childish. The perfect forum troll. Why are you here? People like you ruin forums for everyone. Your posts are factually wrong, and they discourage other people, who actually have useful things to say, from participating.

Go vent on someone else. You are wasting your time if you think you can push me around with your rotten personality, trashy manners, and sparse mental resources.
 
The Weaver 330's used on the WW2 1903A4 Sniper scopes would not tolerate being run against the end of travelYou can elevate a Brigdeport table till the lead screw comes out of the nut.That can damage the nut thread start. On lathe cross slide leade screws,often there are two nuts with a tapered wedge to take up backlash. Over traveling the screw can cause the wedge to get displaced.
Yet if that happened on a Monarch EE I would not blame the lathe.

I've bought a fair number of scopes. Sometimes I figured another,cheaper brand would be "good enough".

Then later I replace it with a Leupold.

All of my Leupolds have served me over 10 years. None have given me any trouble.

I have bought some used,and had them serviced or reconfigured by Leupold.

Including having a Mil Dot and Target turrets retrofitted.

All I have is my experience with them,not "What someone told me"

I'm not sayingLeupold is the only scope,r the best scope,to buy.

They have been the best value for me,quality received for dollar spent.

If I had a bigger budget,I'd go Nightforce.

Unless you have checked ring alignment,odds are good a stresed tube will give you tracking errors.

Its not unusual for Reynolds 357 and I to disagree and say so,but IMO,he is far less deserving of your critical comments than you are,Swifty.

I'll leave you with the words of William Blake:

"All efforts at foolproofing are futile,for the genius of the fool is infinite"
 
Last edited:
Its not unusual for Reynolds 357 and I to disagree and say so,but IMO,he is far less deserving of your critical comments than you are,Swifty.
Click to expand...

One of the interesting dynamics of forums is that users who have been around for a long time tend to take up for each other, right or wrong, against people who show up later. I've seen it many times.

Reynolds said some very nasty things for no reason. Zero provocation. He went off the subject and insulted me personally while I was still talking about the scope. Scroll up and see. Then try to find me doing the same thing. It's not there.

It's not necessary to have a rotten attitude and insult people for no reason. If forum bullies treated people like that in real life, they would have cauliflower ears and no teeth.

I've been around forums for a long time. I no longer have any patience with abuse. He's on my ignore list with a couple of keyboard ragers from other threads.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top