Definitive Review - Arken EP5 5-25x56 vs Nightforce ATACR 5-25x56 Part I of II

[@jereM5373]

just the fact that this video comparison between the arken ep5 and the nightforce atacr exists makes the arken ep5 the winner for me, as it is able to reach in comparatives a sight of more than 4 times its price.

[@commonsense5709]

Best of all you won't be looking through a straw like the ATACR.

[@davidlong6796]

It exists because internet trolls try to convince people theyre basically the same. Ive owned both, and still own the NF. The Arken is great, for the money. It is not even in the same continent as NF, especially the ATACR. The reticle casts a shadow within the scope, the turrets are mushing and gigantic. That said, I would actually say that Id take an Arken over a NF SHV, even if they were the same price. The SHV is so behind the times that NF should disco it out of shame.

[@SCTitan06]

@@davidlong6796 pretty much every review I've seen/read on the SHV 4-14x50 F1 with the MIL-R reticle is good besides maybe some scope shadow. Haven't bothered with the F2 models though.

[@davidlong6796]

@@SCTitan06 i got behind a friend's, and my first impression was "holy shit, this is a NF? If I bought this I'd be pissed". For that same money, Id buy an Athlon Ares, which Ive also owned.

[@SCTitan06]

@davidlong6796 must've needed to adjust the parallax then lol check out C_DOES review on it. He says the glass is excellent and he's been behind more scopes than most.

[@jeffreygray352]

Best review I've seen yet. Very thorough. It is very hard to find a quality, thorough review of rifle scopes. The tracking teat was the highlight for me. I just purchased an Arken scope and will do this myself.

[@paramounttactical]

Thanks. I appreciate that and appreciate you watching! Make sure to join us Wednesdays at 7pm here on KZbin and Rumble for our live Dangerous Liberty Podcast. Thanks, Gary

[@joesackmann5589]

I'm watching this a year later and it still proves my point. Is the Nightforce better? Yes, have others had opposite results? Yes, but for 99% of people, the Arken is going to perform more than well enough. If you want each of your rifles to have a scope, if you have multiple, use Arken, they do a good job and for the price of one NF, you can buy 5 Arkens.

[@NousDefionsIntel]

I have both. The Arken is phenomenal for the price. Shooting low light, you can see where the NF is better. And I love the durability of NF. Used NF almost my entire career. Is it worth the money, that is personal preference....

[@paramounttactical]

100%. Out to long distances and low light, along with the durability, reliability, better tracking, you start to see where the extra money and quality goes. NF will always be good buy for me/us… other people or new shooters, Arken offers a great value.

[@NousDefionsIntel]

@@paramounttactical really couldn't say it any better than that. Right on, brother.

[@a10sim]

Thanks so much for your time and effort in producing this excellent and informative video. I love my NF scopes as well as the Arken EP 5 that I recently purchased. It really is a nice scope, especially considering the price.

[@McgSpook]

@@paramounttactical whre i can usually tell a difference really fast is seeing the effects of mirage at range. For example by buddy has a nice burris xdr ii 8-32. Im using an atacr. Even when he dials down to 25 so we are same-same his picture is almost unshootable when mirage kicks up. He has to drop to 15 or so before we have comparable sight pictures. Often i will hear him say how bad the mirage is, and Ill be like what mirage? Then I look through his scope and go wtf is wrong here? Its off enough that he put that glass on a shorter range rifle and put a NF on his LR gun. When we are close (500 or closer) its not as pronounced but still exist. But past that it becomes huge in my experience.

[@paramounttactical]

@@McgSpook you’re correct. I’m getting ready to do a 1yr long term review on this optic and highlight the major differences between this and my higher end optics after over a years use. Spoiler, it’s primarily lowlight and mirage.

[@trevorkolmatycki4042]

It is remarkable how good these budget scopes are getting. The turrets are becoming just as good on budget optics as on high end optics. Now if they can figure out how to bring the cost of top end glass down… that would be ridonkulous!!! For a soldier or a tac ops professional I can see that the night force durability is critically important… but for a casual civilian sporting rifle… who cares?… buy 3 EP5 scopes and have 2 spares and still save $1,700

[@Valueshooter]

100% you are lucky jus to get a cheap scope that hold zero 10/20 years ago. forget tracking, reticle, and any fancy stuff.

[@deanfirnatine7814]

Arken I believe has Japanese glass, I believe they are able to have good quality control despite being made in China because I heard they own the factory.

[@MSRWorkshop]

Well, a lot of Zeiss stuff now is made in Japan and not Germany. Yet it’s like 3500 probably. So a night force is 3-4 times more expensive, is it 3-4 times better??? I would say no we’re splitting hairs in this video to compare the two, if a few split hairs is all we get for the extra money and that’s a hard pass for me.

[@anymanusa]

Thanks a bunch for doing this. I've watched these videos 3 or 4 times and I've ended up buying an epl4, ep5, sh4 and lh4.

[@SavageShooter93]

I can tell a slight difference between the Nightforce and the Arken, the color saturation on the Arken is a little bit more noticable the black/grey is slightly blue shifted but the comparison is mindblowing considering the cost difference. I just bought an Arken EP5 because of this.

[@jacobharrod6912]

This comparison and review is the standard! Awesome job man. Ive been looking at a lot of different reviews for the Arken just to see what its all about. This has been the best and most comprehensive review, and I really like that you compared it to a higher end optic so we can really see how it stacks up.

[@GhillieMedic92]

Modern ‘budget’ optics are the tier one optics of 10yrs ago and I AM HERE FOR IT. I have a primary arms GLX that tracks like The Predator and was wildly inexpensive.

[@stevenlewis6781]

Yes. I have a couple Leupolds and a Swarovski, all between 20 and 30 years ago. I think the Arken is better, especially more feature rich, than the Leupolds and every bit as good if not better than the Swarovski.

[@Overit5000]

Spot on. My Bushy HDMR and Vortex PST was smoking my old Luppy mk4. Just ordered an Arken. Stoked

[@mtnhunter5578]

Ran NF as a contractor and the durability and tracking were always spot on between all the rigs, they will always be my gold standard. Arken to me is " training wheels ", glass is good enough, it allows you to learn the basics of dialing, using a christmas tree reticle, how to properly MIL targets, leads ect without having to max out the credit card. Once you have a solid proficiency of the basics and can appreciate the advantages of top tier glass you can make a much more informed decision on what you want to upgrade too.

[@paramounttactical]

Couldn’t agree more. 👍

[@NoVaRedacted]

Any idea on where to start this process. I’m gonna get a 308 semi auto MR762 or maybe scar 20S NRCH and I’d like some channels that teach how to read a scope.

[@paramounttactical]

@NoVaRedacted the correct answer is to attend a credible course, even BEFORE you buy anything. We offer LR courses taught by experienced professional instructors. You learn everything you need to know to get started. What will send you down a rabbit hole of wasted time and money is trying to learn long range on KZbin. We cover equipment, what makes a good rifle a good rifle, optics and everything you need to know in order to buy wisely. Then of course we cover the fundamentals of long range, like internal, external and terminal ballistics, mil vs MOA, fundamentals of marksmanship, recommended accessories and gear. The money you spend on a course presented by a credible company will be returned many times over. With us you can rent a rifle and pay for ammo and you can figure out if long range is something you even want to pursue without spending thousands of dollars. If you decide it’s an endeavor you want to pursue, you’ll have the knowledge to buy wisely, not overspend or go so cheap that your equipment holds you back. You’ll be able to buy what’s right for you, I’m not sure where you’re located but we just had another sold out course this past weekend with people attending from Washington state, TN, MD, WY… we’re in WV about 1.5hrs from DC. Go to paramounttactical.com to learn more. -Gary

[@jlb194]

I would love to attend courses for long range but 2 gs for a course I can’t swing though I believe it’s worth it and don’t knock anyone at all for doing it I just can’t at this point in my life so getting information on a budget of kinda like buying Gucci from goodwill it’s the same just completely different and not first hand and without the experience in first person

[@alstar300]

100% spot on.

[@mmgross144]

I am thrilled to find this channel! Your objectivity and attention to detail is refreshing. I look forward to many more volumes of treasured knowledge!

[@chrism2042]

I saw this video months ago but had to come back to it and comment after range trip yesterday with accidental Arken scope drop test. My rifle was on the tallest bench at the range when someone walked between benches and accidentally bumped the rifle, it rolled off the approx. 42" tall table and landed Arken scope down on the concrete. The scope is mounted on the Arken offset mount. The scope took all of the impact, not a scuff on the Daniel Defense rifle. The Arken objective lens cover snapped at hinge and landed about 4' away, the full rifle and scope weight landed on the top of objective lens and elevation turret (which has concrete rash on top). I started shooting, dialing out to 200, 300, 400 & 500, then back down through the ranges to 200, then 15 shot groups at 100. The scope never lost zero and tracking was dead on. I have always wanted a Nightforce scope but have never brought myself to spending that kind of money on a scope. My first thought when I picked the rifle up after fall was, at least if the scope is broke, I only lost $500, not $2500. Still want to get a Nightforce one of these days!

[@plainclothesbros]

This comment is almost the identical story told by Overton Windex about something that happened to him on a range trip. Same scope, same rifle, rifle gets bumped off of a 42" table, landing scope-down on the concrete, then took shots dialing down to 300, 200, 100...? C'mon man, don't plagiarize someone else's KZbin comment. It's great if you have the same gun and scope and have confidence in your setup, but for goodness' sake, be authentic

[@chrism2042]

@@plainclothesbros - Interesting facts. I don't know who Overton is, I have the photos, email correspondence with Arken and the new replacement turret is still in the bag along with the new scope cover because the damaged parts are still on the same rifle.

[@chrism2042]

@@plainclothesbros - I looked up his videos, can't find the one you said he made about rifle with the Arken scope. So, before you call me a liar, find his video where you said he told that story and see when it was posted. I posted the comment about the Arken scope incident 11 months ago, the day after my range trip. It appears he didn't start pimping for Arken until a few months ago. Think about it, I don't do YT videos, have no reason to pimp their products, they have never paid me a penny and the only products they have given me are the replacement turret and scope cover to replace the damaged parts. And that's AFTER I had purchased several scopes from them. I have purchased a couple EP5 scopes since that incident and I paid the same price everyone else pays.

[@RonBussiere-c2t]

Hi. First of all, thank you! for your service!!! I was really not too surprised by the review you did. I "Discovered" Discovery Optics several years ago. At that time I was diagnosed with Cancer, but thanks to awesome Doctors and treatment, I am back to my favorite hobby...shooting. Yeah, I'm a true Old Fart at 77 but very healthy and still don't even need glasses! ha ha That said, without turning this into a 'brag tape', let's just say I have as many scoped rifles as the average gun store. Plus, a LOT of spare scopes that I swap just for fun. I'm a retired Engineer and ex-Navy Gunner's Mate. Been shooting since I was a pup. My inventory of scopes runs the gamut from the WalMart blister pack jobs up to the Sightron SIII I have on an exceptionally accurate Savage SS Varmint in 22-250 to the high end Leupold on a Barrett M107A1. The Discovery scopes I currently have, in all honesty make my line of Vortex scopes suck. Why am I talking about Discovery? Because I'll bet the Arken and Discovery scopes are made in the same Chinese factory. Thank you again for this comparison. I currently have 2 Arken scopes to be delivered this coming week. In addition I also bought a new Discovery that has the same specs as the Arken, just to do a side-by-side test. thanks for the bandwidth ron

[@commonsense5709]

Only difference is with buying Discovery Optics good luck if you ever need warranty.

[@commonsense5709]

The only good thing is the Discovery Optics brand 20MOA cantilever mount is half the cost of Arkens and it's the exact same Chinese mount.

[@jasonsponsler21]

Love my Arken. Bought it after the Gary’s review and it hasn’t disappointed. Doesn’t get any better for the price

[@RecreationalSniper]

TiborasaurusRex just did a test with 2 Arkens ($340 and $400), a Primary Arms ($500), a Vortex ($900) and an IOR Valdada ($2500). Both Arkens had 0.25% discrepancy in tracking, the Primary Arms and the Vortex both had a 3.0% discrepancy and the IOR Valdada had a 1.5% discrepancy. I find it kind of funny that a company can build a scope with 99.75% tracking capability for under $400. For me personally the tracking capability is far more important than overall image quality. There was a lot more to his test but the part about the tracking was most impressive to me.

[@alanmeyers3957]

The way I look at it is, I spend a lot of time looking through my scope and the clarity suck’s with the ep5 compared to the valdada.

[@RecreationalSniper]

@@alanmeyers3957 I recently got an Athlon Cronus 4.5-29x56 and I have come to the same conclusion. The ep5 is good for a $500 scope but it does not even compare to the brightness and clarity of a real $2000 scope. It's making me reconsider my initial thoughts of Arken.

[@commonsense5709]

​@@alanmeyers3957Send it in for warranty. They send you a prepaid return shipping label too so you aren't out of money to ship. The 2 newest EP5s I recently bought and received earlier this month are both crystal clear all the way to their 25x maximum magnification. I was really surprised because they compare close to my Tract Toric ELR and Athlon Cronus BTR in glass. I still can't believe it.

[@bunberrier]

New to range shooting here. This is the first review where I actually see what it looks like looking in the scope, and helped me decide. Thanks. Ill get the Arken and if I ever develop enough skill where it becomes a limitation I can upgrade then.

[@nuttintoseehere9141]

Exceptional review and comparison. For my use, the Arken will be great. It won't be on the nightstand, but it will be in the corner... Absolutely spectacular to know I won't be throwing money away, because nornally if it's too good to be true, it is. I Thanks for putting forth the effort.

[@TheWorldRealist]

When I joined the Royal Marines in 1970 the sniper rifle was Enfield Mk4 7.62x51 with a scope. None of the rest of us had optics. Move forward to 1982 same gear. I have a Vortex FFP 6-24 and I can hit s car door at 1,000metres. I understand that These are tough scopes but I haven’t thrown it out of a plane. It’s good enough for an old retired guy!

[@Darkice77]

I put the Arken on my cheap rifle for a complete budget set up. Savage 110 tactical in 6.5PRC. I bore sighted it by looking down the barrel at the 100 yard target and moving the zero to that spot. I was on paper. It shot great at 100, 300, 600, and 1000 yards. Its not the best scope in that class, but it works.

[@anthony.m.lamotta2337]

After I purchased an arken I compared it to my nightforce nx8, no comparison, I immediately purchased a Steiner t6xi, no comparison... I compared it to my leupold mark 4, slight comparison… In the middle of the day, yes the arken look good, 10 minutes of last shooting light, no way. However the arken tracks great, and has all the bells and whistles the other optics have, so… it’s super cheap and reliable.

[@billbee235]

ATACR glass is amazing.. I own several top tier optics, and have handled Tangents, Vortex Gen III, Khales, and ZCO… i also own the EP5, it’s not the same and nor should it be for the price. I have the EP5 on my rimfire and for that purpose it’s amazing. It would be a good entry level optic for PRS, but it’s not the same as a Razor or ATACR when it comes to clarity, durability, or build quality. Totally different classes of optic. With ATACR glass you can see scratches and imperfection on steel at 600-700 yards and you can resolve individual blades of grass. With the EP5… you see a white plate 😂

[@paramounttactical]

Great analysis. Thanks for watching! -Gary

[@antiquepurveyor]

I'll try this test, as I will soon have an ATACR and an ARKEN side by side. Shooting PRS, I do not have the time to find scratches, but it would be an interesting comp for glass quality

[@alanmeyers3957]

If you have all of those, why would you buy an Arken, I’m curious?

[@billbee235]

@@alanmeyers3957 so I don’t own all the top brands I mentioned, but between myself and my buddies I’ve handled them all. I prefer the Vortex myself. I went with the Arken EP5 for my 22LR. I just couldn’t justify spending $2,500+ on a rimfire.

[@ryanwalters694]

I can’t justify spending $2500 on any optic. I’m an army veteran. Shot expert and was a squad designated marksman. I can shoot with almost anything. Would I notice the difference? Most likely. Would it make much difference? Probably not

[@jeffhahn5106]

I have the Arken, EP5-26x56 on my Delta 5 Pro and I love it, love the price, and that its a Veteran owned company with a lifetime warranty, even if I f*ck it up. Its hard to break into a market like this being the small guy, but Arken in my opinion has knocked it out of the park!

[@paramounttactical]

Completely agreed. It’s currently a super solid optic at a ridiculous price. It’s a $1500 optic IMO that’s priced a 1/3 of what it’s worth.

[@HigherPrime8]

Im 7 days away from getting a Delta 5 Pro. How do you like yours?!

[@jeffhahn5106]

@@HigherPrime8 Love it, got the 26 in VARMINT barrel, I could not be happier... I am however a big DD fan, and have a number of other platforms, so I might be a little bias Lol.

[@paramounttactical]

@@HigherPrime8 it’s a great rifle. I think my MPA PMR Pro II is quite a bit better for the same price but the D5P is better than any other production rifle I’ve tested.

[@wowguy3562]

This is a great comparison. I bought an ep5 when they first came out and got the rings and goodies as a package intro deal. I have two thoughts. One, I would think the Nightforce would possibly have an advantage with heavy mirage conditions. Two, the Nightforce had a better depth of field, or being able to more quickly spot a target further behind or closer a slight bit faster, as you mentioned the term boca. I understand the need for a drop test, but darn, I hate drop tests, thank you for putting together the video

[@paramounttactical]

After a year of use, you’re spot on. I’m getting to make a 1yr long term review/update. The NF has better contrast and a few other minor advantages as well that become more apparent beyond an initial comparison. Thanks for watching! -Gary

[@chadfran84]

​@@paramounttacticalhow poor is light quality it at sundown/rise?

[@paramounttactical]

@@chadfran84 it’s good. Lowlight and mirage is where Nightforce and the higher end optics start to outperform the Arken but the Arken still performs really well, especially for the price. And I say that as someone who is a Nightforce dealer and not an Arken dealer.

[@Sanwizard1]

Love this comparison. Great job. I liked and subscribed.

[@davidanderson5432]

Great reviews! I'm never going to afford a Nightforce, but I truly want to see the best so I can shoot for as close as I can afford. Thanks!

[@paramounttactical]

Thank you and thanks for watching! -Gary

[@B-rad303]

Man I swear you have the most concise & accurate scope testing I've seen on the youtubes! I'd love to see a test of the Athlon Cronus BTR Gen ll 4.5-29x56, With the MOA FFP APLR5 reticle. That is the scope I traded my Nightforce ATACR for. I actually did a field test with 3 buddies, and we all agreed the Athlon parallaxes better at max power, and was noticeable clearer & brighter optically. And also seems to track perfect hitting 36x36 steel all the way out to 2136 yds. Hope to see an in depth review of this scope compared to the Nightforce you tested in this video, and only paid $1,500. I'm very humbled by the Athlon. Never thought I would fall in love with the scope as much as I did. thanks again for the great test reviews.

[@professor_thunder]

The Cronus is the most overlooked "premium" scope on the market.

[@commonsense5709]

The Burris XTR3 is another one worth considering. Under $1300 currently on sale. Excellent clarity with a huge wide angle eyebox.

[@commonsense5709]

Just pray you don't ever need to send the Cronus in for warranty. They may have had a good warranty in the past but not anymore.

[@DrewPWeenie1]

I bought a few athlons when they first came out. Pretty sure all of them were under $1000 when released many years ago. (Thinking I bought them around 9-10 years ago.) I had a Cronus, Midas, and a name starting with an a and had btr in it. Sold them with the rifles they were on after having to send one back about 3 years ago and not getting it back for a year. The scopes were awesome. The service was not. I think they didn’t want to give it up because of the price difference now for the same scopes.

[@kirkharrison9197]

I have both scopes. I purchased the Arken first and I was happy with it, but had to send it back for failure. When I started learning to shoot long range I broke down and purchased my Nightforce. In my opinion there’s no comparison. Maybe do the Nightforce acceptance test on the Arken and see how it does. Again, for the price of the Arken it actually better than a lot of other brands of the same price. Love my Nightforce for my rest of life scope.

[@TheFrayman]

I own 3 EP5's and they're the bomb!

[@dmhnc07]

I've owned the SH4 6-24x40 for 2 years now. now known as the SH4J because it comes with Japanese glass. And it's a little over $150 less, wow. It's been a good scope and I have no serious complaints. Especially for the price. I recently bought a new bolt rifle and I'll probably, no, I will get another Arken. The money saved over an expensive scope will pay for a whole lot of ammo.

[@TheLeverMonkey]

I have 2 Arken's the SH 5-25 and the 4-16. Love them both. Never have an issue losing the crosshar. But the parallax is a real issue. That is the only real issue for me. Loved the video.

[@Dreamboffin]

Have both. Arken is really good for the money, but it's not even close to NF. ATAKR is waaaaay better in definition, clarity, light transmission and tracking. I had to send my arken back to be fixed because elevation was shifting with windage and poi wasn't same on different magnifications. You always get what you pay for.

[@commonsense5709]

Noticed only Athlon Ares BTR and ETR and Midas Tacs have durable repeatable reliable tracking out of all Chinese made scopes we tested so far and have the least percentage of tracking error with some perfect 0% error. Their cheaper SFP Midas BTR Gen 2 uses the same turrets as the others but haven't gotten the chance to perform any long term tracking tests yet. IMHO durability and glass quality is where Arken Optics scopes lacks and wouldn't use them for anything other than 22LRs since moderate to heavy recoil seems to wear them out and cause them to break prematurely.

[@commonsense5709]

UPDATE I caved and bought 2 EP5s and received them earlier this month. They are both crystal clear all the way to their maximum 25x magnification. WAY more night and day clearer than the older ones that simply weren't clear past 20x. They must be using far superior glass on their newest EP5s. I'll buy more and be sure all are crystal clear at their maximum magnification what a pleasant surprise. They compared close to my Tract Toric ELR and Athlon Cronus BTR. I prefer the huge eyebox and sight picture and better feeling turrets over the much more expensive Japan made scopes. The EP5s don't compare to my Vortex Razor Gen 3 though. It's not even close.

[@thesickening0169]

​@@commonsense5709Hey bud, any further update on the EP5? I've noticed you've commented on many different videos, and seem to have tested many different scopes, and have a lot of knowledge about different scopes, their features, warranties, etc. I'm looking for my first true precision shooting scope, and would like to stay under $1000. I'll probably end up getting a Vortex Razor once I settled into the sport a bit (I have a Razor Gen 2 HDe 1-6x and absolutely love it), but don't want to spend that much just getting into ELR. I'm not one to cheap out, but hearing such good things about Arken Optics, and considering their price point, they've got my ears perked. So, now that its a few months later, how would you say the EP5 is, standing on its own? How would you say it is compared to something like a Bushnell Match Pro ED or a Vortex Viper PST Gen 2? Thanks in advance for your response.

[@commonsense5709]

@@thesickening0169 I wouldn't recommend Bushnell due to them being really well known for screwing over their customers come warranty time. I really like the Vortex Razor line. Best no questions asked lifetime warranty in the business period. Arken great for smaller calibers. Probably best bang for your buck however max I'd recommend using them for is for 223 and under.

[@thesickening0169]

@@commonsense5709 Excellent. Thank you very much for the response. I think I'm leaning towards the PST Gen 2. Makes sense for when I grab another Razor, and I like the reticle already. Plus, as you said, Vortex offers the best warranty. I did have to use their warranty for my Razor Gen 2 HDe. Mounted it zeroed, and shot a fee different days. Then took a class with it on my AR. Rained the entire weekend, and after the first day, the scope had fog in it. (Never dropped it or anything, barely had it for 2 months). But contacted Vortex, filled out some paperwork, and sent it in. They sent me a new one without any problem, and still have that scope 3+ years later. Absolutely love it.

[@golfguy6071]

This video helped me out a lot thank you for the detail you went into. Not a lot of people out here doing like this. You saved me some serious cash. I really wanted a NF and after watching this review it was a no brainer. I’m not going to tell that much of a difference myself for what I’m doing.

[@royyates1558]

Great review!i have this arken and a nightforce.i was amazed on the quality of the arken on one of my .308’s.I’m going to be putting my nf on my 6.5 grendel.the only problem i have with the arken is i got the low rings with mine and the scope is resting on my pic rail.tried to get ahold of arken and they wouldn’t contact me back so ijust bought another set of higher rings.

[@longshotdiedtired1582]

I bought the one piece mount with my EP5 , I’ll swap with you if you want mine sit way to high on my Ruger American rifle

[@royyates1558]

@@longshotdiedtired1582 thank you for the offer.but i ordered a cantilever and should get it soon.

[@98red300]

Incredible Video!!! Thank you for taking the time to compare the 2 scopes.

[@dowcrude7425]

Thank you for this review. Here I am about to drop $1200 on a different scope and the fact that this Arken put up a fight vs a Nightforce is crazy. Might have to consider the Arken. Again, not to knock on quality scopes out there I'm just a beginner and do not compete competitively this Arken sounds like a good place to start after building my hunting rifle..... Again, thank you.

[@paramounttactical]

@@dowcrude7425 I need to do a long term update. I’ve changed my position on that considerably. Spend a little more in like an Athlon or something along those lines.

[@elendal]

@@paramounttactical please do, long terms reviews are more valuable then unboxing and first impressions.

[@xXs3renityXx]

Nightforce is way overpriced for what you get... This video just proofs that, well done.

[@brandonchandler9032]

I've been looking at a nightforce atacr just like this for my nemo arms omen. I hear about the only thing that could possibly compete is a Schmidt and Bender but they're even higher dollar and plus I like the fact that nightforce is 💯 made right here in America. I like supporting American companies.

[@paramounttactical]

I agree Brandon. The Arken is good for the money but I pretty much only run NF.

[@brandonchandler9032]

@Paramount Tactical NF is what nemo arms puts on the omen and what they recommend so I said works for me. What's your thoughts on going up to the atacr in the 7-35×56 from the 5-25×56 is there any difference or would it actually not work as well? Also what's your thoughts on Schmidt and Bender? Don't know is there's much difference other than price but I do like that NF is a American outfit.

[@paramounttactical]

@@brandonchandler9032 we’re a NF dealer and I have both, the ATACR 5-25 and the 7-35. My recommendation between those two always comes down to caliber/distance shooting. A 7-35x is kind of wasted on .308, 6.5 and anything with less legs than those two calibers (other than competitive .22 as the extra mag helps there). Looks like the Omen only comes in 300WM from what I can see on their site so there’s a strong case to be made for having 35x for it but 25x is definitely adequate but 35x could be nice to have in some situations where you’re stretching it out. I have used S&B. Good glass, nice features but I question their durability. When I was in Special Operations we did have some S&B’s that couldn’t withstand abuse. Not sure if that’s still the case today but it’s still my perception that they’re not as durable as NF. NF, I’ve seen dropped, banged up to the point the optic should have been ruined and they still functioned flawlessly. NF you get amazing quality glass, awesome functionality and peace of mind. I am getting ready to review a Zero Compromise 5-25x. We’ll see how that goes.

[@brandonchandler9032]

@Paramount Tactical OK. That makes sense as far as durability I think I'll stick with the NF. I'm actually getting the omen recon model with the 18 inch barrel. It's a tough call between 5-25 & 7-35 then being 300 win mag. Like you said probably couldn't go wrong with either just more about the extra magnification. From what you're saying NF is a tried and true combat proven, reliable and durable scope and that says a lot. I was told NF is behind on some innovation but obviously they work and are proven. With mine being the omen recon model in your opinion with your experience and background would you choose the 5-25 or 7-35 in this instance? I noticed they have different lens types to like the MOAR and others idk much about that.

[@brandonchandler9032]

@@paramounttactical How much do you charge for those scopes with mounts and all to?

[@backwoodscharlie8483]

The best is the enemy of good enough. The e p five will get the job done I shoot steel out to 1000 yards. Keep your night force.

[@paramounttactical]

Words to live by! The EP5 is more than good enough for 90% of shooters and I have no affiliation with Arken, am a Nightforce snob and dealer. Thanks for watching! -Gary

[@jeffhdpd782]

I have the Arken on my ar10 and it really is amazing stuff

[@KingLoopie1]

Even with the shaky setup both scopes are impressive! You might try a removable lens camera with the sensor positioned in the eye box instead of an additional lens. To do that you'll need another setup for that camera behind the scope with x, y, z and both up/down and side to side tilt to get the alignment perfectly aligned on the optical axis while still maintaining square with respect to the sensor plane to image plane relationship. BUT, what I saw here was truly impressive for the cost of the arken... Especially after the 10 ft drop! 👍 (I have the same model arken but no NF)

[@neilwatson4562]

Have 2 Arken scopes, EPL series. The 4-16X44 works like a champ. Still need to get the out and try the 6-24X50 though. Best value in optics I've come across.

[@nicsu2128]

I think the Arken would be a fine plinking scope. I wouldn’t trust it if my life depended on it, or a competition, or an ethical shot on game at distance. When you buy a flagship NF optic, you’re paying for reliability and consistency. You ask 10 Arken owners what they think, and you’re going to get some that had a good experience and some that had a bad experience. You ask 10 people who own a NF and there is a 99% chance they are all happy with the optic.

[@paramounttactical]

@@nicsu2128 agreed

[@BigTee3099]

Very informative video! I enjoy your video content. I’m going with Arken EP-5 25x56. I have the 4-16x50 and it’s an awesome scope. I’ll also be checking into attending your long range course next year!

[@MrKKUT1984]

I'm no expert but I love the ep5 so far. Got it on my rpr in 300prc with a few upgrades and a accutac fc4. I ain't no Mark Walburg in shooter but I feel cool af shooting that setup 😎 😂

[@paramounttactical]

You sir are cool af just for watching! -Gary

[@mattg2596]

mark walturd is a pos sold out garbage fck.

[@HigherPrime8]

My EP5 comes in tomorrow! Cant wait to slap it on my CZ457 VPC. 500 yds should be achievable

[@InfoNotWars]

Thank you for your service first and foremost and I try to do the same exact thing, just let the review and the item speak for themselves and others can make up their own mind.

[@InfamousTactical]

A couple observations as I have used both quite a bit. You mentioned that you had to adjust focus as you adjusted magnification. And also how the image beyond the target was blurred. Both are a result of lens packs being oriented in the optic in a way that not everything focuses on the same plane. This is a large factor between the Arken and high end scopes. Increased parallax shift and just a harder time getting a good balanced focus at distance. This exact same construction factor will affect seen mirage. Which the Arken sees a lot of. I also saw a slight inaccuracy in tracking. About .1mil over 10 mils. Not a lot but for prs it’s a quarter of a target

[@alanmeyers3957]

I’ve got the ep5 and I can only stand looking through it on 10x because of the things you mentioned.

[@commonsense5709]

I recently bought and received 2 new EP5s earlier this month and neither of these newest ones exhibited the parallax focus issues when backing down their magnification. I think he either got a defective EP5 or the newest ones are far superior. I compared these newest EP5s to my Athlon Cronus BTR and Tract Toric ELR and was totally surprised their glass were really close. I still can't believe it. I actually prefer looking through these newest EP5s over the more expensive Japanese made scopes due to the noticeably huge eyebox and sight picture. You have to see it to believe it. It's like comparing a Vortex Razor with huge eyebox and sight picture to all other brands of scopes. The EP5s don't compare to my far superior Vortex Razor Gen 3 though. Not even close. The Nightforce ATACR also doesn't compare to the Vortex Razor Gen 3 in optical quality.

[@marklloyd4153]

For the money it’s absolutely incredible

[@givemethemusicd]

Cool testing. I just ordered my 5th Arken scope. The new 35x. The only issue I've ever had with their optics is the cap screws. Vibra-tite is a must!

[@shirolee]

Thank you so much for making this video!

[@roofymark]

If you need to take pretty pictures the night force wins over the Arken but you’re not out there to take pictures of what you’re about to shoot or read writing on that animal or target about to shoot are you 😂 love the Arken

[@FearlessMagpie]

Could you do a review for the Arken EP5 gen II? THanks

[@caseyl3631]

Excellent video, best scoop review ive seen so far. You really made a much better attempt to be objective than any video ive seen yet. I like the format. I gather the clarity of both scopes is enough to read mirage to gauge wind down range?

[@paramounttactical]

Yes. I’m getting ready to do a long term review of the Arken. High mirage and low light is where you see the big divergence in performance. EP5, while still very good doesn’t so well in those areas. Thanks, Gary

[@InfamousTactical]

I also own both the Nightforce ATACR and Arken ep5. I also own a Tangent theta. The Arken out kicks it’s coverage at its price point. But the short coming is the glass. And after owning the tangent for some time now, the Nightforce is far less impressive

[@sandman3246]

Well in that case the nightforce would be the best because it’s cheaper and it’s been battle proven

[@paramounttactical]

I’m finalizing a review on the Zero Compromise ZC527. It’s impressive compared to the NF. It’s more than NF but significantly less than Tangent Theta. Image is significant brighter and the controls are much better. I love NF (we’re a dealer) but always hated the lack of locking turrets and the diopter adjustment.

[@commonsense5709]

You should really try the Vortex Razor Gen 3 next time they go on sale for $2000 or less Black Friday sale or the new black ones for $2450 regular price. They are the closest you're going to get to the Tangent Theta and comparable to if not better than ZCO depending on who you ask and better than the ATACR.

[@antiquepurveyor]

I wonder if the depth of field, "focus" and parallax results you pointed out with the Arken resolve themselves as you go out further in distance. Obviously, unless you are a 22LR comp shooter, these scopes are designed to shoot long distances and the "Bocra" might resolve itself as you go further out. Im somewhat familiar with photography, and as the subject goes out further in distance, the depth of field GREATLY increases with the same aperture settings. I just got a scope from Arken, I will look into this as well. Great observation and thanks for this awesome review.

[@alanmeyers3957]

They get worse.

[@markrhodes5474]

Excellent in-depth review budget wise it’s the Arkan for me

[@john-michaelself9429]

Well done, sir. Well done!

[@ADKwarriors]

Just found your channel and the content is excellent! Not sure how it took so long to run into your channel honestly. I have been looking at an EP5 for a long time now thanks to TiborasaurusRex and finally pulled the trigger on one yesterday. As much as I would love a NF scope, the cost put its way outside my abilities at the moment. Your review is outstanding and while I imagine it's not the intent, but it has made me confident in my decision. I scored the scope and accessory kit for under 600$ and the Navy Seal Foundation donation / discount code.

[@paramounttactical]

Glad you found us! My only intent with every review is give honest, objective info along with providing some of my own subjective thoughts on any piece of kit. I just want to provide the good, the bad, the ugly so people can decide for themselves. I think it’s a hell of a value. Hope it works well for you! Thanks for watching! Gary DOL!

[@90pioneer]

Do you have a discount code for Arken Optics?

[@joncavallo4391]

Damn good synopsis on the overall quality of the Arken vs the Nightforce! 👍

[@AP2020_Outdoors]

@Paramount Tactical, honestly the Tactacam FTS is a hit/miss proposition. I cannot get it to achieve a full f.o.v. on most scopes above 12x. This includes Vortex Razor, Athlon Ares and Cronos, Leupold Mark V. I have since migrated away from the Tactacam FTS for these and other reasons when trying to capture gunsight video footage. Phoneskope is a better option, however it cannot work a higher recoiling rifles systems.

[@pepperoni-prepper]

apart from being accused of trying to scam Arken when i paid for a scope, not knowing they could not send directly to my country....Arken had good communication. Unfortunately i had to purchase my scope through a third party company and it ended up being $1200. its not a bad scope, but if i could go back and do it again, i would probably have got a Zeiss for $1800. the glass quality of the Arken ep-5 does let it down.

[@3lilfishys]

The more bokeh is from a higher aperture allowing more light in but the trade off is a shallow depth of field, so makes sense that it lost focus more than the NF

[@mattg2596]

its a cope not a camera that wants the trendy bokeh balls lmao. tf

[@trevorkolmatycki4042]

I would love to see an outfit like Arken or whoever put out a top end premium rifle scope to compete with Night Force, Kahles, Schmidt & Bender, Zeiss, Swarovski, Leupold, etc. With tippy top quality glass on par with the best of the best… at 25-50% lower price. This will be the game changer that will put downward pressure on price across the board and force all manufacturers to be more cost efficient.

[@paramounttactical]

Talking with the rep from Arken, they would argue that's what the EP5 represents. I think that's truly what they believed they were doing with it. It's a great optic but as you build in those tiny improvements that do separate budget optics from the top tier, those features, the R&D, and the materials to make it all happen are what get expensive. Thanks for watching! -Gary

[@2S1L3NT]

Eh, I own both, and the glass may look similar in certain light at 100 years, the difference becomes blatantly obvious at 1000 yards or more with mirage. Arken is not even in the same league. It's still an awesome scope for the money, and I'll be getting more for my short range rifles.

[@commonsense5709]

The Vortex Razor Gen 3 is the only high end scope actually worth buying and I already owned most of the overpriced underachiever high end scopes. Kahles and S&B were the biggest disappointments and most waste of money for me. I chose not to buy an ATACR because the Kahles was enough of looking through a drinking straw.

[@alstar300]

@@commonsense5709 we get we get it... you love the Razor Gen 3

[@justsnuggle]

25:45 photography guys can jump in but this is depth of field and I think it has something to do with the overall length of the scopes affect this, longer scopes have a larger depth of field than shorter scopes.

[@benjaminbrown1179]

Great Great Great video! Looking for part 2 now!!

[@Ron-ni8uu]

I remember using dumb 1 inch tube scopes so 1970 .horrible eyebox and relief when 30 mm tubes came out we were blown away. Now with the sightron s8 40 mm tube it is now game over for everything.

[@Ron-ni8uu]

Arken is a incredible value

[@Ron-ni8uu]

I love special operator built company

[@chriscausseaux4793]

Did you try adjusting the reticle focus ring on the Arken with the TactiCam attached instead of the parallax?

[@bryannani4829]

Great detailed comparison.... will have to pick up an Arken

[@jlb194]

I sold the night force just to recope some money from buying the Arken not believing IT was that good then ordering all of their scopes lol I can say all of Arken offerings are that good

[@6Dasher]

Nice review. I’m going with the Nightforce for the sake of longevity. Long term, Nightforce as a company will most likely still be around to provide customer service and warranty. Not sure about Arken, good scope they make for the price though.

[@paramounttactical]

I don't disagree with you. You will never go wrong with Nightforce and it's what I personally use and recommend. The confidence, reliability, better tracking... etc, they're worth the price to ME, but Arken is a good option for many people just getting into LR or that will not spend over $1K for an optic. Thanks for watching! -Gary

[@mattc1248]

Chinese scopes frankly aren't worth it. They are fly by night operations sometimes. They might survive for a few years, and then will get overtaken by ANOTHER chinese company.

[@paramounttactical]

@@mattc1248 maybe, but that doesn’t negate the objective value that you get out of this optic for the money. I’m as bougie as it gets when it comes to glass and still WAAAY prefer, recommend and sell NF (we don’t sell Arken or have any affiliation, nor make any money in any way off them or this review) but even after a year this optic is still holding its own and its bang for buck is hard to dispute. Not everyone can afford American or high end glass and good yet cheap optics like this are getting more people into shooting, and that’s overall a good thing. I don’t think Arken is going anywhere anyhow. Their optics are made in the same factory as Vortex and many others btw. Thanks for watching! -Gary

[@commonsense5709]

@@paramounttactical Sure hope not, I can no longer trust Chinese made Vortex scopes. Their Japan made ones are fantastic though.

[@niio111]

The tacticam was not focused properly as the reticle was blurry. This would also make the target blurry but you used parallax to compensate, throwing parallax off as well. Make the reticle sharp as seen by the tacticam then get the target sharp with parallax. That will help us see what you see.

[@paramounttactical]

Lol.. that’s great advice. The problem is 2 fold: A) That’s not how the Tactacam works. It doesn’t have an independent focus. When the diopter/reticle and parallax is adjusted correctly and the image and reticle clear to me it’s out of focus on the Tactacam. B). Even on a larger screen like on an IPad the resolution isn’t good enough to tell if it’s perfectly in focus. This is why I recently purchased the Triggercam which does have an independent focus, allowing it to adjust to the image after I have the optic adjusted to me. None of that changes the fact that the parallax on the Arken does work completely different than any other parallax I’ve ever used. There are defined weird things going on with it, and there seems to be some sort of ape rational in there that makes it work more like a camera lens with a variable ape rather than a traditional scope. I have over a year experience now with the Arken and all that remains the same. I will be releasing a one year long term review on the Arken soon. Thanks. -Gary

[@niio111]

@@paramounttactical Very interested in the year review. Thanks for making these videos.

[@HarryStone]

that run-on mess you say after Paramount Tactical broughtoyouabysaas;'lasjexpersence is absolutely hilarious

[@paramounttactical]

Cool, do you have 4 combat deployments, 1st was initial invasion to Iraq as a sniper team leader, 3 more SF, multiple more training missions? How about any time as a Unit Chief and special tactics instructor for a Federal agency? Or maybe another 7yrs as owner and lead instructor for a training company? You know what I find hilarious is POS like you that sit and hide behind the security of their keyboard and talk shit to people they would never run their mouths to in person GFYS. Thanks! -Gary

[@johndoe-sf6hk]

got my ep5 little over a year ago and its great. Even better is arken will put them up on sale for $100 cheaper from time to time so sub $500 scope

[@RCR740]

Either mill out an oversized mounting rail or use a sacrificial one and mount the scopes to that rail, and place in a vise that is mounted to a rock steady table. There will be no movement from this setup and will allow repeatable tracking tests to be performed without all the wobble and variables while sitting in a rest

[@paramounttactical]

Solid advice. This video is almost 2yrs old and I’ve since come up with some better testing equipment. Thanks for the advice and thanks for watching! -Garyb

[@RCR740]

@@paramounttactical I shoulda paid attention to the dang date a little more! My bad boss Good deal!

[@mastermoarman]

ultimate reloader has a nice setup for doing this it uses a dslr on a rig

[@Solidbuilthomes]

On the color chart comparisons, the black colors from the Arken scope look kinda blue...

[@jacobdeem8187]

Comprehensive Nice job

[@TheIslandExpat]

There's more chromatic aberration with the Arken (blacks have a purple tint to them), but the clarity vs cost difference is wildly in favor of the Arken. The Japanese glass in the EP5 is nothing short of incredible for $600. And the reticle is easily better than any of the Vortex offerings, imo. I run a Bushnell 4.5-21x with a Tremor 2 reticle which I absolutely love, and have owned an ATACR 5-25x with Tremor 3...I'll never buy another NF like that again. It just doesn't make sense for me, and there's nothing on the NF that compelled me otherwise.

[@yugbe]

I have the EP5 on my 338 and it has handeled hundreds of rounds without issue thus far. Some day I hope to upgrade to a NF or something in the same tier (If there is something better. lol) But, so far the arken has not let me down. I have not hand a tracking issue with either of the EP5s or the 1 SH4 that I own. Hopefully the Arken EP8 LVPO that I just ordered will treat me just as kindly. :)

[@paramounttactical]

For the price they are hard to beat. I’m interested in seeing the EP8 as well.

[@m.k.k.4931]

Horus Tremor 5 is on my list...

[@Diamondback30-30]

I think Vortex and Leupold is better worth the money than Arken for about same price point. Arken doesn’t track nearly as good as Vortex or Leupold

[@commonsense5709]

The only logical upgrade over the Arken EP5 is the Vortex Razor Gen 3. Most $1000-$2000 scopes are not that much of an upgrade over the newest EP5s. I actually prefer the newest EP5s I recently bought over my Tract Toric ELR and Athlon Cronus BTR due to night and day huge eyebox and sight picture difference and better feeling turrets and glass is really close, in fact closer than anyone can ever imagine have to see it to believe it and I'm still blown away. My Vortex Razor Gen 3 is a huge noticeable step up from the EP5. It's not even close. I can pretty much be content with only Arken EPL4s and EP5s and Nightforce NX8s and Vortex Razor Gen 3s. Maybe even a couple of Vortex Strike Eagle 3-18x44 FFP 34mm in between.

[@hunt1198]

Why not do a comparison between Arken 5-5x25 Vortex diamondback tactical 5-5x25 Burris signature HD 5-5x25 That’s what I need to see which is best all around the same price point

[@clintmurray208]

Great test's thanks for your time and putting a good review together for the armature people like myself who don't know all that tech stuff about the scopes I definitely have a better understanding of what to look for now .

[@ronmartblog]

Did you have to re-release because KZbin had a problem with the original? (loading mags)?

[@paramounttactical]

I decided to reupload it after going through it again and making sure it didn’t violate any rules. I talked to other 2A channels where they had a video that was demonetized, pulled it and re-uploaded and then had no issue. Kind of an experiment TBH. Also uploaded to Rumble.

[@ellipsis9573]

Wish you had this on the nightforce nx8 4-32x56 and the athlon etr 4.5-30x56.

[@user045-key77]

Recently Element Optics seems to have gained traction for its amazing tracking in budget models too. my be you can have a look at it. It amazes my how difficult it's been to make a good tracking turrets just can't get over it, basically two screws at 90°

[@paramounttactical]

I’ll check them out. When you get into the mechanics of tracking it’s actually very difficult to do with any level of precision. It’s why the optic companies that do it well cost so much. I’ll look into Element Optics. Thanks for watching! -Gary

[@commonsense5709]

Checked out their Helix, Titan and Nexus and compared them to the Athlon Midas Tac and Ares BTR and the Athlons were in fact, much better quality especially in regards to clarity on high magnification. Element Optics have nice turrets almost as good as the Athlons. I think the prices for Element Optics are too high for what you get when there are much better options to buy from other brands at similar cost or even cheaper such as the Athlon Ares BTR 4.5-27x50 vs Nexus 5-20x50 where the Ares is better for less than half the cost and closer to 1/3 the cost when on sale such as right now at $565.49. The Nexus vs the much cheaper Ares BTR was a real shocker. I haven't tried the Nexus Gen 2 and Theos yet. I'd like to compare the Nexus 2 4-25x50 with the comparably priced Nightforce NX8 4-32x50 as well as the much cheaper $1500 Tract Toric ELR 34mm 4-25x56 and the Theos 6-36x56 with the cheaper $2000 (on sale) Vortex Razor Gen 3 6-36x56 and the new $2450 (regular priced but still cheaper) black Razor Gen 3 6-36x56.

[@commonsense5709]

Updates - I bought an Element Theos and the Vortex Razor Gen 3 is clearer and seems more durable and heavier. The Theos has tool free adjustments and much lighter. I have an issue with the Theos and Element Optics is extremely slow at responding to me literally non responsive regarding my extremely expensive Theos scope needing warranty already and looks like due to factory defect. I simply cannot recommend ever buying anything from Element Optics brand due to sheer lack of customer service and warranty support. I'm going to buy more Vortex Razor Gen 3 scopes moving forward at least Vortex has no questions asked about their customer service and warranty. I also bought and received 2 of the newest Arken EP5s earlier this month. They're a lot clearer than the older EP5s that were sold 2 years ago and last year which weren't clear past 20x magnification. The 2 new ones I bought are incredibly clear even at their maximum 25x magnification. I'd say they are noticeably clearer than the $1500 Element Nexus 5-20x50 at 20x. I also compared these newest EP5s to my Tract Toric ELR and Athlon Cronus BTR and they were really close in regards to optics and am still rather shocked about it. The eyebox FOV and sight picture in the EP5s are night and huge compared to the much more expensive Japan made scopes too. Better feeling turrets too and I don't think I can justify buying any more Torics and Cronus after this comparison. I'll still buy more Nightforce NX8 4-32x50s and Vortex Razor Gen 3 6-36x56s though and more of these EP5s and EPL4s. These Arkens are the nicest scopes coming from China for sure. I don't think I'll be buying any more Athlons either after this. Their huge sight picture is also superior compared to the more expensive Midas Tacs and Ares BTR Gen 2s. If anyone receives a new EP5 or EPL4 that isn't crystal clear all the way to their maximum magnification then it's defective and need warranty exchange and Arken sends a free prepaid return shipping label for warranty so you won't have to pay out of pocket to ship.

[@thehun06]

Great review!

[@mehlcarelse4319]

Engage optics is the Arken dealer in Cape Town South Africa. There are two scopes I want to get and the Arken EP5 5-25 is the one selling for R13850 (Rands). The other scope is at a company called Suburban Guns here in Cape Town as well. The other scope is the Hawke Frontier 30SF 4-24X50 with the mil pro reticle and it is selling for R13829. I do have a Hawke Sidewinder 8-32x56 SF with the SR PRO II reticle and I am quite happy with it two years later. But I am so confused between these two products. Hell the Arken is a whole R10000 cheaper than the top of the range Hawke Frontier and I am starting to wonder how good is the Hawke really or is it simply over priced.

[@gt1601]

I have the Night Force Actar 5x25x56 and the Arken 5x25x56. Was talking to another range officer at the range yesterday, and we both agreed I should have spent the $2,800 on a new 7mmPrc and not the Night Force. Arken cross hairs are much better to see. Both have the same glass from Japan I believe

[@paramounttactical]

When you get out to distance and in lower light you do start to see a difference in glass quality and clarity but…. Is it a $3k difference? Probably not. I still think NF is money well spent given the durability, reliability, and I believe significantly better tracking than the Arken but all that said, Arken is probably the best value on the market. BTW we just got in some ready to ship MPA 7mm PRC on our site. Thanks for watching! -Gary

[@gt1601]

@@paramounttactical I'll trade you for the Night Force..lol

[@paramounttactical]

@@gt1601 hell yeah, I’ll trade you my Arken for your ATACR! 😂

[@gt1601]

@@paramounttactical 😆 🤣 😂 nope.

[@gt1601]

Love it! I guess you put my comment on the 2 scopes I made on video. My Night Force is also on my Delta 5 pro

[@trevorhawkins8757]

Great review. I don’t own NF but I do own a couple Burris XTR III’s. Picked up an EP5 last year and they are almost on par with the 1500+ dollar scopes.

[@Diamondback30-30]

Almost don’t count

[@trevorhawkins8757]

@@Diamondback30-30 you’re right, “almost don’t count” I also own a MK5 HD and Steiner T6Xi and I can set them up side by side with the EP5 and new shooters can’t tell a difference. I can, but for a new shooter, that’s all they need. Tracks well, large FOV and decent clarity.

[@commonsense5709]

​@@trevorhawkins8757I prefer the huge eyebox and sight picture with the EP5 as compared to my Athlon Cronus BTR and Tract Toric ELR. Glass is close I'm still rather surprised. My Vortex Razor Gen 3 is better though. Not even close. I agree the EP5 is close to the scopes in the $1000-$2000 price point. EP5 Turrets feel better though. Glass almost there not quite but plenty good enough and HUGE EYEBOX is almost like looking through a Vortex Razor.

[@wheelmanjosh1982]

Great video. Do you think Hex caps should be utilized on optics?

[@josephsawicki9335]

Great video I have my arken coming and the 3000 I save I am investing in brass bullets powder and so on considering you can get almost 5 arkens to share with your buddies or hoard for yourself ah yea let's be serious you are going to do everything with the arken that you are going to do with the NF

[@Dragon-yw4xw]

Imagine your enemy can equipement four set of sniper systems using the same budget as the US equip only one.

[@timothyward7381]

I love myn I usually get luepolds and this Arken is more clear than my luepold mark 4s and my hd5s

[@D148521]

Great review. Thanks!

[@lonestarpatriot876]

I generally have found with GOOD budget items for not just firearms but many things that, when compared to premium priced gear, there is diminishing returns with the premium items. Are they better? Usually, they are. Are they significantly better to justify the massive increase in cost? Usually, they are not. I would like to see a comparison with the Primary Arms PLX series of scopes compared to Arken.

[@flyingirish31]

At the very least if you need a backup optic, hard to not buy the EP-5. Not a lot of money for an insurance policy scope. Why I purchased mine.

[@flyingirish31]

The eyebox of NF scopes, even the older NXSs were always the limiting factor. Why my last build I went with Mark5 instead of ATACR. I don’t need the “tactical” durability edge of the NF for my LR hunting and occasional comp rig. And the eyebox is soooo much better.

[@CutlassOutdoors]

Great review! One thing to consider is that the tracking, dial accuracy, backlash, etc. might be great out of the box, but how is it going to perform 5 years later after you’ve dialed those turrets thousands of times? Long term performance is one of the areas where a NF is going to perform because of their spring that doesn’t take a set and their tight tolerances.

[@427SuperSnake1]

How does long term even matter when in 20 years you can buy 4 EP5’s and still be under the price of one NF? Assuming that the EP5 would wear out every 5 years and require a replacement. Even which the warranty would probably cover the worn out parts being replaced by Arken. The long term game just doesn’t hold water when you consider the warranty and the price.

[@commonsense5709]

The most important question is will Arken still be in business to actually honor their lifetime warranty 5-10 years from now.

[@commonsense5709]

I personally prefer the Vortex Razor Gen 3 over the ATACR. Just can't get over looking through a straw. I do like their NX8 though.

[@joshwebb609]

Arken all day

[@richardmondelli8894]

I just received my Arken 5x25. I mounted it on my AR-10. I did like you said to making sure both adjusters were set to zero. Now the question is is there a basic starting point to set the scope to.

[@paramounttactical]

You zero it.