The Leupold VX-5HD 3-15×56 rifle scopes are marketed as a premium hunting optical scope and do boast an impressive blend of features and performance.
They are designed to excel in low-light conditions while offering versatility across various hunting scenarios. As you guys might know, at our sister company, South Ayrshire Stalking, we’ve been using the Leupold glass on our deer stalking estate rifles for years. So this review below is based on that experience.
The Range:
Before we crack on with the 3-15x56 review, an overview of the VX-5HD range is below, there’s a variant that will cover off most uses:
- VX-5HD 1-5x24
- VX-5HD 2-10x24
- VX-5HD 2-10x42
- VX-5HD 3-15x44
- VX-5HD 4-20x52
- VX-5HD 3-15x56
The scopes come in a range of reticles that will cover a multitude of applications too, including:
- Firedot duplex
- TMOA
- Duplex
- Impact-29 MOA
- HTMR
- Wind-plex
- Firedot 4 fine
The scope we’re reviewing is the firedot duplex which I personally prefer for deer management, simple, uncluttered, and with the red dot. But as always, it's horses for courses.
Build and Physical Features:
Constructed entirely from lightweight yet durable aluminium, the VX-5HD 3-15×56 boasts a 30mm main tube and a large 56mm objective lens. This combo is great at gathering light and enhances the light transmission for a clearer image.
The scope accommodates external attachments such as night vision or thermal devices with an objective lens outer diameter of 64.5mm.
These scopes are built tough. A robust design and good build quality ensures it can withstand extremes in temperatures and conditions. We use these scope every day and they’ve taken some punishment and keep coming back for more.
If you do ever have issues with them though you have the benefit of Leopold’s lifetime warranty.
Optical Performance
The eyepiece design on the VX-5HD 3-15×56 offers smooth adjustments and a secure grip, ensuring precise control without accidental adjustments. Easy to use with a gloved hand.
The magnification ring operates smoothly across its 3x to 15x zoom range, this gives you quick transitions for varying shooting distances, I find this very useful when I’m moving through forest areas.
Our scope in test is equipped with a second focal plane reticle (SFP) FireDot Duplex this means the scope maintains consistent reticle size as you zoom in and out with magnification. Another great feature that works well in the field is the fibre optic illuminated reticle system, it adapts to ambient light conditions.
Custom Dial System (CDS)
You’re going to like this.
One of the VX-5HD's standout features is its Custom Dial System (CDS), which gives you a great edge for long-range shooting. This system allows you to create custom ballistic profiles tailored to your specific rifle and ammunition setup. By providing detailed ballistic information, including bullet weight, muzzle velocity, and environmental factors, Leupold will produce a custom elevation dial calibrated to compensate precisely for your bullet drop at different distances. Pretty cool.
Installing the custom dial is really straightforward— you simply replace the standard elevation turret with the custom dial provided by Leupold. Easy.
During the red deer hind cull over the winter, we’d be working between forestry and the open hill, in this situation the ease in adjusting zero for various ranges was really useful. It allowed quick adjustments for varying distances without the need for holding over, and gave me great confidence my shots were consistently accurate across these ranges.
User Experience and Functionality
Enhancing usability, the VX-5HD 3-15×56 integrates Leupold's Motion Sensor Technology, automatically activating and deactivating illumination to preserve battery life. With seven intensity settings accessible via a side turret button, users can adjust brightness levels to suit any lighting environment. The scope's parallax adjustment, co-located with the illumination control, ranges from 35 metres to infinity, ensuring precise targeting clarity at different distances.
Turrets and Adjustments
The elevation turret, featuring Leupold's CDS-ZL2 system, incorporates a zero-lock mechanism for secure adjustments and prevents unintentional changes, even during transport or storage. Available in MOA or MIL configurations, the turret provides tactile feedback with each click, facilitating precise adjustments necessary for long-range accuracy. A multi-turn windage turret, while capped, offers similar adjustments and can be reset to zero effortlessly.
Pros and Cons
Pros of the Leupold VX-5HD 3-15×56 include its lightweight construction, superb low light optical performance, and the build quality. These scopes are built tough and are superb workhorses. The lifetime warranty, if you did ever have a problem, is a great plus.
Cons, I’m really struggling here as this scope is a real strong all rounder with no obvious weak points. It used to be that glass from the states wouldn’t hold up to their European competitors, Leupold had sorted that and they are neck and neck!
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, the Leupold VX-5HD 3-15×56 riflescope excels in both performance and reliability, making it an ideal choice for hunters seeking precision optics that perform exceptionally well in challenging conditions. Its integration of advanced features like the Custom Dial System (CDS) ensures you can confidently engage targets at varying distances with accuracy and ease. Backed by Leupold's reputation for quality and a genuine lifetime warranty, the VX-5HD 3-15×56 is a valuable addition to any hunter's arsenal.
Running with the leading pack just behind the Swarovskis of this world, the VX-5HD is difficult to ignore if you're a full bore, centre fire hunter.
If you’d like to know more head over to the product pages below, or better still give us a call, we love to talk kit.
