Your choice for a 'high end' value long range scope?

[Glock 40]

1500 yards isn't childs play. Your gonna have to spend some coin. First your gonna need a good mount. I would check out the Griffin SPRM mount You need a serious mount for a serious scope. Then I would look at the following scopes. They are bit above your price range but lets be honest. If your shooting that far. Money shouldn't be an object of concern.
My first choice. https://www.eurooptic.com/Swarovski-Z8i-35-28x50-P-SR-4A-I-Riflescope-68410.aspx

second https://www.eurooptic.com/Nightforce-NX8-4-32x50-TReMoR3-Riflescope-C633.aspx

Third a little more pricey but amazing https://www.eurooptic.com/Schmidt-Bender-PMII-5-45x56-H2CMR-Scope-666-911-942-G8-E8.aspx

If you really want to go budget you can find these used on Snipers Hide https://www.opticsplanet.com/vortex-razor-hd-amg-riflescopes.html

 

[tRidiot]

1500 yards isn't childs play. Your gonna have to spend some coin. First your gonna need a good mount. I would check out the Griffin SPRM mount You need a serious mount for a serious scope. Then I would look at the following scopes. They are bit above your price range but lets be honest. If your shooting that far. Money shouldn't be an object of concern.
My first choice. https://www.eurooptic.com/Swarovski-Z8i-35-28x50-P-SR-4A-I-Riflescope-68410.aspx

second https://www.eurooptic.com/Nightforce-NX8-4-32x50-TReMoR3-Riflescope-C633.aspx

Third a little more pricey but amazing https://www.eurooptic.com/Schmidt-Bender-PMII-5-45x56-H2CMR-Scope-666-911-942-G8-E8.aspx

If you really want to go budget you can find these used on Snipers Hide https://www.opticsplanet.com/vortex-razor-hd-amg-riflescopes.html

Now, don't you be belittling my budget here - I already nearly broke the bank on my DPMS 20" off-the-rack (with a super solid A2 stock), so I'm thinking with some decent glass, I can get those 77-grainers out to 1500 yards purty easy.

 

[k4ylr]

Athlon is a value brand I have been seeing a lot more about as of late - although I don't know much about their customer service and/or durability. I saw a bunch of them at the Wanenmacher's and didn't pay much attention, as they seemed to me to be pretty brand new on the scene - I also wasn't in the market for that at the time.

The Athlon stuff is all mostly well received; especially in their higher-tier offerings. Thoughtful reticles, nice features and a warranty comparable to Vortex. There's a dealer in Ponca City (A&J Sporting Goods) that will bend over backwards to make sure you're squared away.

I shoot an Argos BTR Gen I on my .308 and it's a perfectly fine optic for the job and I have a Sightron SIII on my creedmoor/6GT rifle. That being said, you should be comfortable buying at the upper end of your budget; whatever that may be.

 

[Glock 40]

Okay since you wouldn't bite on the SPRM mount. In all seriousness in your budget. You can find deals on used Vortex glass on SH or get into new Ahtlon easily. Absolutely no reason to buy a scope for over 1k that doesn't have zero stops with a good reticle and no caps on the adjustments. A guy I have shot with has an ARES ETR and its impressive. I would suggest one of those two if your worried about hurting your hand and dropping the rifle or scope. Vortex has made its reputation on selling above its weight and having a warranty that is second to none.

I can tell you my personal experience. I am not terribly impressed with Vortex cheap scopes. Glass isn't that great to me. I have looked though @Cowcatcher PST Gen 2 and its a nice scope for the money. I would hazard a guess that is probably the most popular scope that Vortex sells after you jump above $200.

The majority of scopes are made in the same factories in China, then some step up to Philippines then finally Japan or USA. You can gamble with an Arken or some other new to market scope that may not be here in a year or two.

I would think Athlon is safe to drop coin even on their top of the line. Everything I have read is its guys that left Bushnell and had all the connections already but made service a #1 priority like Vortex along with being nimble and changing quickly to market conditions. I have a cheap Althon that I had an issue with a couple weeks ago. I went online filled out the warranty form shipped it to KC 2 day usps. They turned it around in 1 day and I had it back Friday of the same week. That is strait impressive and I got emails when it was received and in the lab along with tracking when replacement was shipped. Now I will say the replacement needs kung-fu grip to turn the paralax but since its on a gun that shoots at 4.5x at 100 yards im not worried about it.

On a side note I would suggest avoiding the following Bushnell, Weaver or anything else Bushnell owns. I sent a couple scopes into them 2 weeks ago. They have thankfully changed their policy where they don't charge you return shipping or want a proof of purchase and such. The problem is when I had to call into Bushnell via Weavers site. They sent me to a different site to do the warranty. The guy said they are 3-4 weeks behind on repairs. So they have two scopes I am waiting to see what they do as far as repair. One was less than 2 months old and started having black specs flake off inside. Their websites aren't up to date and their phone numbers they tell you to call have terrible wait times. Not impressed at all.

Anyway I would suggest waiting till after Shot show and see what new stuff is coming. It will lead to lots of stuff on the used market probably. Otherwise I would go look through lots of scopes before dropping the kind of money you are talking about.

 

[Lonewatie]

A midas tac 5-25x56 would be a great choice for long range, i am an athlon dealer and their customer service is top notch. I owned many athlon optics before i became a dealer which is why i chose them as our main line. I had to use their warranty once 3 years ago on a new scope and i had mine back in less than a week. They are located in olathe kansas which is a suburb of kansas city. I have a few models on the shelf right now and waiting on a couple new models to get them in. The midas tac i listed above checks in at $849. They are also releasing a line of precision rings which i have not touched yet but the other dealers i have talked to have nothing but good to say.

Now, This isnt the salesman talking as i can order any brand of scope anyone wants and still make money so.... I personally own leupold, burris, vortex, simmons, redfield, leica, bushnell, weaver, and nikon optics. I will reach into my bag of athlon first for any new scope. I put a neos (lowest line) on my muzzleloader last october and it has held up quite well.

You can see our stock at 6emunitions.com. if i can be of any help just let me know and i can let you check out any athlon i have.

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[Aries]

Take a look at Riton. Their prices are competitive for similar scopes. Mine seems to be good quality, and it's not a top-of-the-line model. Your problem will be finding one that you can actually look through before buying, and I personally wouldn't spend $1000 on something without having it in my hand first.

Their warranty is as good as anyone's, though I haven't had to see how their customer service is so that's theoretical.

 

[tRidiot]

Yeah, I am looking at a few weeks before I drop the dime, so I'm not in a big hurry. It'll be at least a few weeks before my action is ready. We just ordered it today and it's ready to go (that saves me 5-10 weeks), but I wanted it nitrided, so they quoted me around 5 weeks for that. Barrel came in today, and that may go off for fluting and Cerakote, too. I haven't decided 100% what I want to do with that.

The way things are looking I may be ready to put rounds downrange through the rifle by mid-March or early April.

We'll see. If I need to wait on glass to save up a bit, I can use one of my Vortex Crossfires in the short term to get me out to 300-500 yards. It's a long term investment, so another month or two won't be a big deal. If I sell a pistol or two in the meantime, I can put those funds towards better glass, as well.

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[chazroh]

Might take a look at crimson trace scopes, I know it sounds crazy, but I’m super impressed with them. I sold two nightforce nxs scopes and replaced them with crimson trace. I also have a vortex gen 2 razor and a nightforce atacr. The crimson trace glass/ reticle stays clearer than the nightforce to me. Haven’t shot the gun with the razor on it in a while, but I remember it being very clear.

 

[chazroh]

If we can make it work, I’d be willing to meet at red castle and let you see some scopes and try them out

 

[Gunbuffer]

Just buy a good vortex and put the rest towards those loans.