Leupold VX-5HD 4-20×52 FireDot Duplex Riflescope, Accurate 34mm Tube

Description

The Leupold VX-5HD 4-20×52 FireDot Duplex is item 183858, and the first thing to know is the tube. This is a 34 mm scope. The other two VX-5HD Generation 2 scopes this shop carries are both 30 mm, and the store titles do not distinguish them.

The Leupold VX-5HD 4-20×52 FireDot is the 34 mm one

Item 183858 takes 34 mm rings. Item 183854, a 3-15×50, and item 183850, a 3-15×44, both take 30 mm. Nothing in a title reading VX-5 HD Generation 2 tells you which is which, and rings do not adapt between them.

The larger tube is not decoration. This scope carries 100 MOA of elevation travel against 85 MOA for the two 30 mm models, and 80 MOA of windage. If you intend to dial for distance rather than hold, that extra range is the reason to be here.

It is also the biggest of the three: 24 ounces and 14.5 inches, against 21.3 ounces and 13.5 inches for the 3-15×50. Some retailers print 23.5 ounces for this scope; the manufacturer publishes 24.

Magnification, reticle and illumination

Four to twenty power behind a 52 mm objective covers a wider working envelope than the 3-15x scopes at the top end and gives up a little at the bottom. Field of view is 27.7 feet at 4x and 5.8 feet at 20x, per 100 yards.

The reticle is an illuminated FireDot Duplex: a clean hunting crosshair with a lit centre, no holdover stadia and nothing to interpret. Eight brightness settings run off a CR2032 through a push button, rated 1600 hours on low, 1000 on medium and 300 on high.

The Leupold VX-5HD 4-20×52 FireDot is a second focal plane riflescope, so that duplex holds the same apparent thickness from 4x to 20x. The illumination is rated daylight bright and is not night vision compatible.

Turrets, parallax and mounting

Elevation is the CDS-SZL2 locking dial with a revolution indicator and SpeedSet rezero; windage is a pop-up rezero turret. Clicks are 1/4 MOA, at 20 MOA per revolution with a 38 MOA dial travel limit.

Precision side focus adjusts parallax down to a 50 yard minimum. At 20x that dial matters; parallax error you never notice at 6x becomes a measurable miss at the top of the range.

Mounting space is 6.2 inches, split 2.1 front and 2.4 rear, which is more generous than the 30 mm models and easier to work with on a long action. No BDC dial is included, but the turret is custom dial compatible and every VX-5HD Gen 2 is eligible for one free custom dial.

Honest notes on the Leupold VX-5HD 4-20×52 FireDot

Eye relief is 3.8 inches at both ends of the range, so the eye box does not move as you change magnification. On a hard-recoiling rifle, mount it so that 3.8 inches is what you actually have with your normal cheek weld.

Illumination depends on a battery. The etched reticle stays fully usable with a dead cell; only the lit centre goes dark. Change the CR2032 at the start of the season rather than discovering it at last light.

No finish colour, coating list or light transmission figure is published for this model. Retail listings quote them anyway. We print what the manufacturer prints and nothing else.

Who this scope suits

Open-country hunters who dial for distance, anyone who wants a lit hunting reticle with a serious elevation range, and shooters building on a 34 mm mount. The Leupold VX-5HD 4-20×52 FireDot is waterproof, fogproof and guaranteed to perform for life.

Skip it if your rifle is set up for 30 mm rings and you do not want to replace them, if you are counting ounces, or if you want first focal plane subtensions.

Leupold VX-5HD 4-20×52 FireDot full specifications

• Item number: 183858
• Generation: VX-5HD Gen 2
• Magnification: 4-20x variable
• Objective lens: 52 mm
• Main tube: 34 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, 3.8 in high
• Field of view: 27.7 ft at 4x, 5.8 ft at 20x, per 100 yards
• Angular field of view: 5.3 degrees low, 1.1 degrees high
• Click value: 1/4 MOA elevation and windage
• Total elevation travel: 100 MOA (29.1 MIL), 20 MOA per revolution
• Elevation dial travel limit: 38 MOA
• Total windage travel: 80 MOA (23.3 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; one free custom dial available
• Weight: 24 oz
• Total length: 14.5 in
• Total mounting space: 6.2 in (2.1 front, 2.4 rear)
• Objective length: 5.1 in; objective diameter: 2.4 in
• Warranty: guaranteed to perform for life

Manufacturer specifications are published by Leupold. Compare it against the rest of our optics range, and check your ring diameter against the 30 mm VX-5HD models.

Ships from our Collegeville, Pennsylvania shop with the Leupold lifetime guarantee.