Vortex Strike Eagle Review

The New Vortex Strike Eagle 5-25 x 56

 

Being a competitive shooter and instructor, I am constantly on the lookout for new gear and equipment that can better suit my needs and those of my clients.  So naturally, when Vortex announced that they were releasing another first focal plane optic, I had to give it a try. I was in the process of transitioning from my Ruger American .22 to the Vudoo Gunworks V22, so it was perfect timing to also upgrade my optic. I had been using the Vortex Diamondback Tactical FFP for .22 competition for over a year with great success. That scope hit all the major wickets I needed for .22 competition, with the exception of a zero stop, for a very affordable base class price. But there was definitely room for improvement.

 

The New Strike Eagle has filled all those needs to perfection, without the need for me to take out a small loan. The biggest downside to the Diamondback was the lack of a zero stop. I was able to mitigate this by using a 20 MOA scope base, but it was still inconvenient. Not only does the Strike Eagle have a zero stop, but it has my favorite feature for it, the ability to go .5 mils below zero (Almost like this scope was made with .22 PRS in mind). The precision optic I learned to shoot on professionally was a Schmidt and Bender M8541. This scope also allowed for the user to go negative .5 mils from “0” before stopping. This made life a lot easier after drastic atmospheric changes and is key for .22 when targets often are placed well within the zero range.

 

 

Next was the reticle. Vortex opted to put the EBR-7C in the new Strike Eagle. This is awesome because now both my precision rifles share a reticle between the Strike Eagle and my Gen II RAZOR. The reticle also comes with the ability to be illuminated. This is helpful when targets are hidden in tree lines, and trying to find black reticle lines while looking at shadows can be troublesome.

When comparing this scope to something like the RAZOR, Nightforce, or Leupold the turret “clicks” leave a little to be desired. But factoring in that this scope is 1/3 – 1/2 the price off those that’s something I can get over very easily. I would say that the “clicks” are on par with the Diamondback tactical, which are a little mushy. Yet, by no means are they inaccurate or leave doubt about your adjustment. I have already shot .22 LR out past 240 yards with it matching perfectly to applied ballistics data. Some good things about the turrets are that they have a locking feature, and they are a 10 mil rotation. I have never really minded non-locking turrets but some users like the confidence of knowing the turret hasn’t changed after moving positions. The 10 mil rotation for the elevation turret is a welcome upgrade for me from the 6 mil rotation of the Diamondback. I am a simple man, and I, like most sane people, hate math. Under the pressure of a stage, trying to dial between multiple long-range targets with a turret that resets to “0” every 6 mils was frustrating. Not only is it now a 10 mill measurement but each mil is labeled for both the first rotation (1-10) and the second rotation (11-19).

 

When it comes to products that I use and recommend, I keep an open mind and prefer to analyze an individual’s needs and budget before recommending a particular brand or product. No one company is capable of providing the best product for everyone, for every use, within that individual’s budget. That being said, I usually end up recommending Vortex more times than not. There is a reason they are one of the most widely used scopes by competitive PRS shooters, and with the addition of the Strike Eagle FFP, I believe that will become true for .22 competitions as well.

 

 

Lengths
L1	L2	L3	L4	L5	L6
14.6	2.0	2.6	6.4	4.75	3.6

Heights
H1	H2
2.5	1.8

 

Magnification 5-25x

Objective Lens Diameter 56 mm

Eye Relief 3.7 inches

Field of View 24.0 – 5.2 ft @100 yds

Tube Size 34 mm

Elevation Turret Style Locking/Zero Stop

Windage Turret Style Locking

Adjustment Graduation .1 MRAD OR 1/4 MOA

Travel Per Rotation 10 MRAD OR 25 MOA

Max Elevation Adjustment 31 MRAD OR  110 MOA

Max Windage Adjustment 23 MRAD OR 78 MOA

Parallax Setting 15 yards to infinity

Length 14.6 inches

Weight 30.4 oz

 

Written By Sr Reviewer- Johnathan S.