Vortex Viper PST - Debris in Reticle

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jakerz

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I just got my 4-16x PST in the other day and took it out for it's first range session. I mounted it to a Remington 700 in 308 with a Badger base and Badger rings all within spec. While sighting it in I experienced an issue. The first 8 rounds fired, the scope and rifle performed flawlessly. After that, things went downhill.

When getting ready to fire my 9th shot, I noticed some debris in the reticle. I zoomed in completely to make sure, and sure enough, there were large "flakes" that looked like it could be paint or some kind of residue.

I tried to wipe off both lenses to see if there was something on them and that it wasn't internal. No luck. I fired 3 more rounds and the debris would move around. Good news is, regardless of this issue, the scope still held zero and worked great otherwise.

I called Vortex's Customer Service (which seemed top notch) and they said that they will have to send me a new one, but they are currently out of stock and will call me when they are back in stock (2-3 weeks). We'll see... I hope to hear from them soon. I'll try and get a picture up of the reticle with the debris, but it might be hard to see with my camera.

I thought I would share with anyone that has or is thinking about purchasing this scope. I still think the scope is great and hope to get a lot more use out of it once it is replaced.

-Jake
 

vdub

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Everything I have seen about Vortex on the internet goes to show that they have excellent customer service. It does suck to get a scope that has defects out of the box. However, I have faith that they will take care of your issue based on what others have reported in the past. They stopped shipment of a whole batch of scopes because the scopes didn't stack up to their QC levels. Yes it did cause them some headache from people complaining but they bite the bullet and stopped the release of products they didn't think stood up to their expectations. They fixed the problem, made some tweaks and released scopes with no issues that met their expectations.

I do agree as I enjoy my Viper PST 1-4 very much!!
 

jakerz

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I have no doubts that their customer service will come through as promised. I'm a member on another forum (sniperhide.com) and they suggested that I bang the scope on a phone book to clear the debris. I was told this method has been used on high end scopes such as Zeiss, Nightforce, USO, and others... I might consider it with my PST since Vortex has outstanding customer service, but I couldn't imagine doing that to a $1,800+ scope...
 

jakerz

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Kind of late, but figured I would update this thread anyway.

Vortex gave me a brand new scope in the box and had it shipped to my door within 2 weeks. Great customer service, and great communication throughout the whole thing. I didn't feel like a number when I dealt with them. I would buy from them again in a heart beat.

Thanks everyone,

Jake
 

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