Gear & Equipment > Optics

Nikon P223 3x

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jon_schram:
Heres a review I wrote on Amazon after trying out a Nikon P223 3x.  I like to buy entry level gear and beat the snot out of it.  Some stuff ends up suprising me...most of it ends up broken.  I've had this P223 for a couple of months now, and its survived about 2,200 5.56 rounds and a good deal of rough handling.  I used this set up in a 3 gun match.  I'm not going to blame the optic for my subpar scoring (I didn't do too hot with pistol or shotgun that day either!).

I now have it mounted in a P223 mount as well.  Sits a bit higher then the high Burris rings I originally had in mounted in, making it a little easier to see through.  My wife and I even attended a small "tactical" shoot put on by a local police department where she used the optic.  She did pretty darn well with it.  I think sitting a bit higher helped speed up this setup.

I have to say I am pretty impressed by what Nikon was able to put together for such a modest price.  The glass is pretty decent (Pro-Staff level lenses), the adjustments are good, and the scope has held zero through plenty of rounds and rough handling.  I wouldn't want to take it to war with me (too many better, proven optics out there), but for range use and the occasional 3-gun style competition it would work fine. 

Here is my review below:



This review is from: Nikon P-223 3x32 Matte BDC Carbine (Sports)
I bought this scope just to see how well a $139 scope would do. I mounted it on a 20" 1:7 Del-Tonics upper paired to a Stag lower with Geissele trigger. This combination has proven to be a 1MOA shooter with a Nightforce 5-25 ATACR scope attatched. Handloads that proved accurate with the above combination were tested with the p-223, as well as milsurp 55gr (to verify the BDC) and Federal MX855CS 62gr bulk pack.

Upon recieving the scope I thuroughly inspected the contents and read the supplied literature. I ended up mounting the scope in high Burris Signature Z-rings, so as not to scar up the scope tube if I decided to sell/trade the Nikon at a later date. For those that might not know, these rings have a plastic insert that is installed between the ring and the scope itself.

First and only issue I found with this scope is that the elevation turret is not parallel to the scope reticle. I tried using Wheeler Engineering magnetic scope leveler system, but I could tell something was amiss. After nearly an hour of fiddling with the scope and leveling system, I had to use a leveled piece of paper on the wall with the upper reciever locked in an action vice to get everything lined up correctly.

The optics appear bright and of high quality. There is some "bluing" around the edges of the image, particularly in bright light. It performed decently at low light. While the glass may not be on the same level as high end Leupold, Schmidt & Bender, NF, etc, it is pretty darn good for this price range. The turrets seem very well constructed and have a positive click to them. The turrets do not actually free-wheel as was initally reported, however, and require the user to continue pulling on them while bring the turret back to zero. This isn't a big deal, as many high end companies have the same system.

At the range the little p223 3x did very well. I bore sighted the scope and fired a group at 100 yds. 2 clicks (1/2 MOA per click) to the right and I was in business. After 5 shots to verify zero and let the scope settle in, I performed a "box test" to see how repeatable the scope adjustments were. I went ten clicks up and fired a 5 shot group, followed by moving ten clicks to the left and firing another group. I repeated this procedure by going back down and finishing with ten more to the right. The scope tracked very well, and each group moved to the cooresponding distance. It returned to zero perfectly when the test was completed.

This scope is not a target scope. The reticle is fairly thick, and covered most of my 1" and 2" aiming points at 100 yds. Cloverleaf groups were tough to achieve with such a course reticle. The reticle IS fast and easy to pick up, an important feature on a "tactical" scope. The low power magnification made it very easy to shoot with both eyes open.  Some people struggle with anything more than 1x using both eyes, but for shots under 100 yards it doesn't bother me.

Later I moved out to 200 and zeroed there. The BDC performed very well with 55gr ammo closly apoximating the 3240fps that it is calibrated to. I fired several groups at 400 yds, and the hash mark correctly put my rounds on a IDPA, man sized target at that distance once I corrected for wind. Getting hits at 600 yas much more difficult because of the conditions, but the second hash mark does seem to be calibrated correctly.

I took this rifle/scope combo with me in the woods at dusk. The picture is clear even in low light. Contrast into dark or shaded areas is not as clear as higher dollar optics I have used, but servicable. If a lot of low light shooting is required, a scope with a larger objective lens or better coatings may be a consideration.

The objective adjustment is kind of "gritty", but works well enough. I found that the 100 yd factory paralax to be about perfect for this scope. It could be me, but I feel that some of this "grittiness" went away after a couple of range trips. It will likely never be as smooth as higher end optics, but it is deffinetly functional.

I relly like how compact and light this unit is as well. Field of View is excellent, and 3x is plenty for a fighting carbine. For $139 I doubt there is any other scope that will be as functional and clear as this one is. It has held up to several hundred rounds, and one 3 gun match.

In conclusion, this is a heck of a scope for $139. Discounting the elevation turret not being parallel to the reticle, it has performed very well for me. I decided to leave the scope mounted on this upper, quite the endorsement considering the optic it "replaced." While it may not be up to the task of going to the sandbox, it should be perfectly adaquate for plinking and range use. The BDC is functional and will allow hits out to 600 yards if the shooter does his part to read the conditions.

Good buy for less than 150 bucks. Hopefully the elevation turret was a anomoly, and not the norm with these scopes. All in all I would buy it for a plinker or entry level 3 gun competitor.

gsd:
I had looked at this for a build I was doing a while back. I passed on it due to a couple hanging points for me, one being the thick reticle.

After reading this I probably would have bought it.

jon_schram:
gsd:

Yeah, the crosshairs a pretty thick for precision shooting.  Not sure what kind of build you put together, but its deffinetly not a scope you could throw on and shoot itty bitty groups with.  The reticle completely covers a 1" circle at 100...and I can only see the faintest edges of a 1.5 or 2" dot at that range.  Its not an Acog or Nightforce, but good enough for what I do with this rifle.

Saw this scope at Wal-Mart tonight for $129 on clearance. 

MHicks:
I know this is resurrecting an older thread but these scopes are pretty good.

I picked up the 1-4 M223 and am very happy with it.  I opted for the P223 mounts just because I prefer two piece mounts to one piece. 

The 1-4 model does have a 3 or 4 moa circle in the middle of the crosshairs but I was able to get some pretty good groups with it.  I found a target that had a 5 inch circle and just centered the crosshairs in it at 100 yards.  Making sure that an equal amount of the target circle was around the crosshair dot I was able to sight it in well.

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