Description
The Leupold VX-5HD 3-15×44 FireDot Duplex is item 183850, a Generation 2 hunting scope on a 30mm main tube. It pairs a 5:1 zoom range with a daylight-bright illuminated centre dot and precision side focus, which is an unusual combination at this size.
What the Leupold VX-5HD 3-15×44 FireDot gives you
Three to fifteen power covers close timber and open country on one rifle. At 3x the field of view is 37.8 feet at 100 yards, wide enough to find a moving animal; at 15x you can pick apart a target across a canyon.
The FireDot Duplex is a plain hunting crosshair with an illuminated centre. Eight brightness settings run off a CR2032 from a push button, rated 1600 hours on low, 1000 on medium and 300 on high. The manufacturer rates the illumination daylight bright and states it is not night vision compatible.
This is a second focal plane riflescope, so the duplex holds the same apparent thickness through the whole range rather than thinning out at 3x. There are no holdover stadia to read; you aim with the dot.
Side focus and turrets on the Leupold VX-5HD 3-15×44 FireDot
Precision side focus adjusts parallax down to a 50 yard minimum. On a scope that reaches 15x that is not a luxury, because parallax error you never notice at 4x turns into a measurable miss at the top of the range.
Elevation is the CDS-SZL2 locking dial with a revolution indicator and SpeedSet rezero. Windage is a pop-up rezero turret. Both move in 1/4 MOA clicks, with 85 MOA of total travel each way, or 24.7 MIL, at 20 MOA per revolution and a 38 MOA dial travel limit.
A note on the turret name: it is CDS-SZL2, with the S, not CDS-ZL2. Several retail listings drop the S. The S denotes the side-focus and SpeedSet variant, and it is what the manufacturer prints for this item.
Size and mounting
The scope weighs 20.1 ounces and measures 13.5 inches. Total mounting space is 5.4 inches, but it is split unevenly: 1.3 inches in front of the turret housing and 2.3 inches behind it.
That 1.3 inch front section is tight. On a receiver with forward-mounted bases you may find the front ring has nowhere to sit. Measure your bases before you order rings rather than after.
Honest notes on the Leupold VX-5HD 3-15×44 FireDot
Illumination means a battery. The etched reticle stays perfectly usable when the cell dies, but the glowing centre does not. Change it at the start of each season rather than discovering the problem at last light.
A 44 mm objective is a sensible middle ground rather than a low-light specialist. If you hunt the final ten minutes of legal shooting light regularly, a 50 mm objective will do more for you than the illumination will.
No finish colour, coating list or light transmission figure is published for this model. Retail listings print all three. We do not put numbers on a page that the manufacturer does not state.
Who this scope suits
Hunters who want one scope for timber and open country, anyone who values a lit centre dot over a holdover grid, and shooters who want parallax control without a tactical turret stack. The Leupold VX-5HD 3-15×44 FireDot is guaranteed to perform for life, with no warranty card and no time limit.
Skip it if you need first focal plane subtensions, night vision compatible illumination, or a bigger objective for low light.
Leupold VX-5HD 3-15×44 FireDot full specifications
- Item number: 183850
- Generation: VX-5HD Gen 2
- Magnification: 3-15x variable
- Objective lens: 44 mm
- Main tube: 30 mm
- Reticle: Illuminated FireDot Duplex
- Focal plane: Second focal plane
- Illumination: 8 settings, push button, daylight bright, not night vision compatible
- Battery: CR2032, 1600 / 1000 / 300 hours low / medium / high
- Eye relief: 3.8 in low, 3.9 in high
- Field of view: 37.8 ft at 3x, 8 ft at 15x, per 100 yards
- Angular field of view: 7.2 degrees low, 1.5 degrees high
- Click value: 1/4 MOA elevation and windage
- Total elevation travel: 85 MOA (24.7 MIL), 20 MOA per revolution
- Elevation dial travel limit: 38 MOA
- Total windage travel: 85 MOA (24.7 MIL), 20 MOA per revolution
- Parallax: precision side focus, 50 yd minimum
- Elevation turret: CDS-SZL2 locking, revolution indicator, SpeedSet rezero
- Windage turret: pop-up rezero
- BDC dial included: no; custom BDC dial compatible: yes
- Weight: 20.1 oz
- Total length: 13.5 in
- Total mounting space: 5.4 in (1.3 front, 2.3 rear)
- Warranty: lifetime guarantee, transferable, no warranty card
Manufacturer specifications are published by Leupold. Compare it against the rest of our optics range before you settle on a zoom range.
Ships from our Collegeville, Pennsylvania shop, guaranteed to perform for life whether or not you are the original owner.
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