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How good are Trijicon scopes for hunting at night?

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Steveg View Drop Down
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    Posted: June/25/2010 at 17:32
I am hog hunting at night using an LED light to illuminate a feeder (hunting hogs with permit).  I have a Leupold VX-7 2.5-10 scope but have found it a bit difficult to see the reticle at night.
 
Would the Trijicon be better?  If so which one is recommended?  Are there other good options?
 
Thanks for the help.
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RifleDude Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/26/2010 at 01:07
The Trijicon will be better from the standpoint of having an illuminated reticle, which contrasts better against dark animal silhouettes in low light or at night.  The VX-7 probably has as good or better light transmission as the Trijicon, and probably has a slight edge in image quality.  A good lit reticle system that lets you easily see your aiming point at night is the edge the Trijicon provides over the Leupy.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote stork23raz Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/26/2010 at 08:15
There are several hog hunters on here that use Trijicon. Im sure a few of them will be along shortly to give you all the info you will need on them.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RifleDude Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/26/2010 at 12:17
Originally posted by stork23raz stork23raz wrote:

There are several hog hunters on here that use Trijicon. Im sure a few of them will be along shortly to give you all the info you will need on them.


I'm one of them.  They are great for night hunting.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Urimaginaryfrnd Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/26/2010 at 12:41
In addition to a 2.5-10x56 Trijicon Accupoint you might want a green ND3 Laser illuminator .

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Steveg Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/26/2010 at 13:11
Thanks for the responses.
 
I'm looking at the 3x9x40 with the standard cross hairs and amber dot.  Just seems like the amber dot would show up better.  Is this true?
 
I would rather have the 2.5x10 but I don't want a 56mm objective lens.  That's is just too big for me.
 
What is the advantage of the amber triangle?  Just seems a bit odd to me but it might be better at night?
 
I have seen the ND3 but already have another light that you turn on and leave on the entire hunt.  Doesn't work really well unless you are hunting on a feeder.
 
Thanks again for the help.
 
Steve
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RifleDude Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/26/2010 at 14:56
Originally posted by Steveg Steveg wrote:

What is the advantage of the amber triangle?  Just seems a bit odd to me but it might be better at night?

 


The triangle combines a very fast, instinctive aiming point that is very visible with a very sharp aiming point (the very tip of the triangle) for precision shooting in the same reticle.  Since the reticle is very uncluttered, your eye is immediately drawn to the triangle, and you can use it for "both eyes open" shooting.  Read on their website about the "Bindon aiming concept."  Basically, if you have a simple, very high contrast reticle and you shoot with both eyes open, your brain tends to draw your dominant eye to the reticle and it appears to float over the target.

Colors in the yellow and green wavelengths are among the most visible colors to the human eye.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote stickbow46 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/26/2010 at 18:37
I spoke to the people @ trijicon 2 weeks ago & I was told that the green was the best color for hunting.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote pyro6999 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/26/2010 at 19:00
i know that this is off topic, but hear me out, when i go ice fishing in the winter after dark for walleye's i use a glow in the dark green jig for a reason. the fish can see it from further away than any other glow in the dark color. red is probably one of the worst in that context. but here is another thing to think about, think about driving in the dark, if your car has green lights on the dash or on your stereo they can be some what of a hindurance, where as the ones that are orange or red are very easy on your eyes. the greens and blues you usually have to dim down so you can see the road better through the windshield. just something ive observed myself.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Rancid Coolaid Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/26/2010 at 20:00
I hunt pigs with various Trijicon Accupoints (currently have a 3-9 and a 5.5-20; have owned the 2.5-10 and the 1-4 also.)

The triangle aiming point is quite fast on target, but doesn't offer (in my opinion) as fine an aiming point as a crosshair reticle.

I prefer the mil dot reticle with dot center, it is the best of both worlds: fine aiming point and illumination when needed.

The 2.5-10 is big - very big, I too prefer the 3-9.  The 5.5-20 is too much scope for most hog hunting, unless you might need to shoot a hog 600 yards out - which I've done (and wished I had a 20X when that time came.)

If it is a pig gun, the only thing better would be very high end night vision.  Save the $8,000, buy a Trijicon, use an LED or ND3, shoot every one you see!


(That's the 2.5-10 in the picture, too big for an AR, mostly.)




Edited by Rancid Coolaid - June/26/2010 at 20:01
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Urimaginaryfrnd Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/26/2010 at 21:07
The 2.5-10x56 is way big but the fact remains that at 10x  a 56mm objective divided by 10 power give a 5.6mm exit eye pupil and if 7 mm exit eye pupil is the max that the human eye can use 5.6 will make an extremely bright view through the scope. In comparison a 3-9x42 would have  42 divided by 9 = 4.6 
At  6 power however the 42 mm and the 56 mm would be equally as bright so the two places the the 2.5-10 x 56 makes a difference is it eill have a wider field of view from 2.5x to 3x and it will be brighter on powers over 6 power.  As for the choice of reticles most people like the crosshair or mil dot, however those do not work with the Bindon aiming concept Trijicons web site lists which do and which dont.  I have two trijicon compact ACOGS and one ACOG two are red one is yellow and  all of them seem to work well. If however I was buying a 5-20x50 I would buy the green mildot. If I was buying a 2.5-10x56 or a 3-9x42 I would buy a color other than green only if I was using the ND3 because it is green and I would want a contrasting color.  I have to question the idea that green is a good choice for hunting in the woods if the background is primarily green.  I have tracked running deer with the amber 1.5x triangle TA442 and it works quite nicely the only place I do not like amber is looking toward streetlights at night it washes out. Most red dot sights are red and come on target quickly. The eye sees green as if it appears brighter but lets face it go out at night and look at a traffic light you can see all three colors in the darkness just fine.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RifleDude Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/27/2010 at 09:39
Originally posted by Rancid Coolaid Rancid Coolaid wrote:


The triangle aiming point is quite fast on target, but doesn't offer (in my opinion) as fine an aiming point as a crosshair reticle.



Not to undermine your point, buddy, but a sharp point is always finer than a dot of any size.  You just have to rethink the way you aim with it.  If you are aiming with the center of the triangle, you won't have as fine an aiming point, but if you use the very tip of the triangle, it simply isn't possible to get a finer aiming point.  Just like the edge of a knife blade, an angle that terminates to a point is always finer than any circle shape, and the only way a dot could be finer is if it were so small you couldn't see it.


Edited by RifleDude - June/27/2010 at 20:54
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Steveg Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/27/2010 at 20:14
Thanks everyone for all the help!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Rancid Coolaid Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/28/2010 at 09:42
Originally posted by RifleDude RifleDude wrote:

Originally posted by Rancid Coolaid Rancid Coolaid wrote:


The triangle aiming point is quite fast on target, but doesn't offer (in my opinion) as fine an aiming point as a crosshair reticle.



Not to undermine your point, buddy, but a sharp point is always finer than a dot of any size.  You just have to rethink the way you aim with it.  If you are aiming with the center of the triangle, you won't have as fine an aiming point, but if you use the very tip of the triangle, it simply isn't possible to get a finer aiming point.  Just like the edge of a knife blade, an angle that terminates to a point is always finer than any circle shape, and the only way a dot could be finer is if it were so small you couldn't see it.


I understand your point and in theory, agree; however, in shooting groups with both setups, a triangle post and a mil dot reticle, I find that my eye more easily aligns a traditional cross hair than it does the tip of a triangle.  In thooting both, same rifle, same ammo, same setup; groups were noticably larger with the traingle than with the mil dot reticle.

It's probably just me.  And I'd be the first to admit that the triangle is much faster on target.  It is also brighter in low light, which can be good and can be bad.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote tejas Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/28/2010 at 23:43
    Ive been in exactly the same boat as you are and did the same thing your doing, got on here and got some advice. I was previously using a zeiss conquest 3-9X40 Z plex and it wasnt horrible seeing the reticle because its thick at the edges and only fine in the middle. I dont use LEDs and hog hunt under the full moon. That said,  seeing a black hog against a dark background makes it  plenty tough to see your crosshairs. I went with the trijicon 2.5-10X56, green dot, ballistic plex. I havent used it hog hunting yet but I did take it outside under the full moon and had no trouble "crosshairing" the dog. Im really happy with this scope so far.
    Heres a couple more options though. Leupold 6X42 with heavy duplex reticle, for that matter you can go to leupolds custom shop and get the heavy reticle in several models. Meopta Meostar also has a top-notch illuminated reticle scope, possibly even better than the Trijicon. Something else you can try is mounting a laser on your gun and zero it to hit the middle of your crosshairs. You can use your scope to put the dot on the pig. I personally have not had good luck with this method because Ive never been able to make the laser stay zeroed. A guy I hunt with swears by it though.
    At any rate, you will be happy with the trijicon.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote arteacher Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/29/2010 at 21:27
I was disappointed with my trijicon for pig hunting. Sitting in a pitch dark blind looking at pigs under a hoglight the color washed out pretty bad. I now use a Leupold 1.5x5 illuminated and it is awsome.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote pyro6999 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June/29/2010 at 21:34
Originally posted by arteacher arteacher wrote:

I was disappointed with my trijicon for pig hunting. Sitting in a pitch dark blind looking at pigs under a hoglight the color washed out pretty bad. I now use a Leupold 1.5x5 illuminated and it is awsome.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote blacktails Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/01/2010 at 19:37
Stopped at Cabela's this week to compare the VX3 2.5-8x36 & the 4200 Elite 3-9x40 for a 257 Bob that needs a scope.  They also had a Trijicon Accupoint 3-9x40 w/green triangle set up on a display stock on the counter, and it was easily the most impressive of the three scopes to me.  Very sharp, bright, and clear, and the green triangle draws your eye to it and it REALLY stood out against any background in the store that I looked at, including all of the animal mounts.  Way better than the plex reticles in the Leupold, Bushnell, and also a Swarovski AV 3-10x42 that I also looked through.  Precise aiming with the tip of the triangle seems very possible.  I was impressed enough, that I will be buying one as soon as I find the best available deal from a good supplier.
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