Customer Reviews

NIKON M-223 BDC 600 8489 3-12x42SF Riflescope (Black)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Before buying this scope, I must say that I'm very familiar with Nikon's products. The fact that Nikon makes very high quality lenses really pulled me towards their line of scopes while considering other options such as Leupold, Weaver, Swarovski, etc. In the end, I obviously chose this scope because:
1) it listed at a very reasonable price during the time of my purchase (it actually is cheaper in price right now!);
2) the quality of the lenses are superb and allowed sharp focus;
3) it is an appropriate scope that suited my AR-15 (LMT CQB MRP 16 Piston);
4) the reticle has a bullet drop compensator (very easy to understand as well; goes in increments of 50 yards up to 600 yards)

I took it to my favorite rifle range (Angeles Range) to test it out. After zeroing it in along with a shooting session, my jaw literally dropped. This scope is amazing, on my first few tries of using it, I was able to hit the steel targets dead center beyond 400 yards. It made me feel like a marksman at the range and the best part was I didn't have to adjust anything on the scope when I wanted to transition from close to far shots and vice versa.

Pros:
- Excellent value for the money
- Reticle is amazing and ingenious, it has a simple to understand bullet drop compensator which goes in increments of 50 yards!
- Smooth and easy to adjust zoom and focus
- Nitrogen-filled and O-ring sealed; minimizes image distortion, no fogging
- Has focus parallax adjustment on the left
- Comes with a two lens caps/covers and also an ARD removable anti-reflective Device which eliminates objective lens glare
- Easy to zero-in and reset the crosshairs back to zero
- Plenty of eye relief

Cons:
- None

Other Notes:
- Made in the Philippines

Suggestion(s)/Recommendation(s):
- Make sure you get this model, the one with the BDC 600 reticle (NOT the scope with Nikoplex reticle)
- If you're going to be using the suggested Nikon scope mount listed here NIKON M-223 743 AR Mount (Black), make sure you lap it (look up "Lapping scope mounts"). It is absolutely necessary that you lap your scope mount before using this scope with your rifle otherwise you can scratch the scope as you shoot since it's not seated in the scope mount properly.

Overall, I highly recommend this scope. It works very well with all 5.56mm/.223 chambered rifles.

Thank you for reading this review.

Great scope!! Optics are very clear. the only way this scope could be any better is if it went from 4-16 power instead of 3-12. But the reticle is dead on if your bullet is going the right muzzel velocity. Fun scope to shoot with, makes it very easy to adjust for the wind and there is no guess work with this scope if your distance is known. I would recommend this scope to everyone!!

This is an awsome scope the bdc reticle is useful. With this scope i am achieving 1/2 inch groups at 100yds with bulk factory ammo and 16" barrel. Nikon also has a program called spot-on on their website for using the bdc with other bullet weights and velocities.

Exactly what I expected from Nikon. The scope works great on my AR and was easy to sight in. Quality craftmanship at a very reasonable price compared to retail.

If you want to make a purchase that will, out of the box, improve your shooting/hunting experience this is the optic for you. Easy to use and with the "Spot on ballistic match technology" it makes figuring out using the turret system a breeze. If you are looking for a mid-priced high quality scope, jump on this train!

I was looking forward to using this scope after reading the positive reviews, but didn't have good luck with it. Since you've probably read all the positive attributes by now, I'm going to concentrate on what umpleasantly surprised me.

First of all, the "free" anti-reflective device (ARD) is of surprisingly cheap construction and I couldn't get it attached to the scope. The threads did not appear to be compatible. There is a note included with the device saying that it should be compatible with most Nikon scopes, but Nikon expressly refuses to support it (you have to go to Nikon's ARD distributor to get support.

Next, I used the Nikon mount, and it seemed to have almost no repeatability in the horizontal plane when removing and replacing the scope. It appeared to primarily vary according to which of the three screws were tightened first. I wanted to be able to swap between iron sights and the scope, but replacing the scope required a recalibration of the windage. (The elevation held pretty constant.)

The scope itself seemed to be a winner. I got it mounted and bore sighted, although it took about five attempts to get the vertical crosshairs to be in the center 50% of the adjustable range. I liked the eye relief. It had a great image, and I could still easily reach and pull the charging handle with two fingers. The vertical crosshairs looked to be just slightly warped, but I disregarded that as a potential problem with my eyesight (it is no longer warped by the way).

My experience at the range however was not good. I sighted it in at 25 yards to get it on paper for the outdoor range this weekend. After about 10 rounds, I had adjusted it over right by about 2 inches and down about 3 inches. It was still hitting about an inch high, but I left it there to finish it at 100 yards. I shot 5 more rounds at 3x, and got all 5 in about a quarter sized group, with 3 of the 5 overlapping. (If you're not impressed, keep in mind that it was me shooting. Trust me, it's impressive.)

I then turned the zoom to 6x to try 5 more shots, and to my surprise, I couldn't see a thing. It looked like there was a washer inside the scope. I turned back to 3x, and it was better, but I could tell it wasn't right. So I packed up and came home. I removed the scope and was shocked that it now appeared to be fine. It's like something slipped at the range and then slipped back into place. But after some close examination, I no longer think its fine. It is now almost impossible to get a full sight image at any zoom level other than 3x. At 6x, there is about a 1mm sweet spot where it still looks ok. At 12x, there is always a shadow. I posted a photo showing the "washer" effect I saw at the range.

I haven't decided yet if I'm returning for a replacement or a refund, but I'm currently leaning towards refund. After searching for this problem on the web, I got the impression that Nikon's lifetime warranty is frequently voided due to what Nikon terms abuse (I guess abuse like shooting about 20 rounds of ammo.)

I got this scope to mount on an rra lar15. I also got the m-223 mount. This scope has great clarity. Easy to zero in. All turrets worked great. Has held zero through about 100 rounds. I haven't had the chance to do any long shooting yet. I will try to update after I have done some.

This is a great scope both mechanically and optically. It's Nikon, what would one expect? I mounted it on a Savage Edge .223 and used it for the fist time last Satruday. The ammo I was using wasn't that great (reloads) but the scope was solid and crystal clear. I'm looking forward to using it with better ammo. I would recommend it to anyone. The best price I found was on Amazon.

this scope is exactly fit for my rifle, the best value i found after searching the internet for days/weeks ..... Amazon beat everyone