Vortex Viper HS-T 4-16×44 Review

If you're looking at the Vortex Viper scope, in this review we'll be going over everything you need to know to decide if it's the right scope for you. Whether you’re hunting or plinking or anything in between, it’s worth being sure about the option you’re choosing, so read on to find out if the Viper is the right scope for you.

Review Summary

After completing this review, I would highly recommend the Viper to people wanting a riflescope for hunting. If it's within your price point, the Viper is a fantastic scope with the Vortex VIP warranty and great customer reviews. It is hard to find a better option with this magnification span that is competitive with this price point, and you should always remember that you get what you pay for.

Vortex has a great reputation generally, and they make some very affordable optics as well as some more premium, higher-priced ones, and if you want to shoot out as far as 16x, then it becomes well worth it to invest into the highest quality glass you can manage.

What We’ll Cover

In this review, we'll go over our experience with the Viper, search reviews to see what they have to say, and review alternatives if the Vortex 4-16 isn't your cup of tea. If you don't like the reticle being on the second focal plane, we'll have an alternative that is FFP

Vortex Viper HS-T 4-16x 44 Full Review

What Is It Designed to Do?

The Vortex Viper HS-T 4-16x44 is designed with long-range precision shooting in mind. It is intended for shooting at a target hundreds of yards away, and is not designed for shots within 50 yards. The intention behind the Vortex Viper HS-T is that it will be a scope that people will use for its performance features, and not gimmicks.

Is It Good? Why?

It’s a great scope for long range shooting. The reticle is designed well for longer distances, and from the objective lens to the ocular lens everything is well-designed. It has a forgiving eye box, it’s easy to use, and you have everything you might want from a riflescope for shooting at long range.

If you're ready to pick up this scope and get out shooting with it, you can acquire your target at Amazon or OpticsPlanet and pull the trigger on it there.

What’s In the Package?

It comes with a sunshade, flip-up lens caps, a lens cloths, and the CRS shims, which we’ll explain more about later for those who have never owned a Vortex scope. It does not come with mounting rings, which means you'll need to purchase them separately and make sure they're in alignment, then attach the scope and make adjustments.

Design and Features

Optical Quality

The Vortex Viper has great glass. The color fidelity is strong and the lenses have not just one coat, but multiple coatings and are extra low dispersion, which gives them phenomenal resolution and light transmission. The image is nice and clean, and the brightness is exactly where you would want it to be for this type of shooting.

Vortex Optics uses XD lens elements and their proprietary XR coating for an anti-reflective finish. As you might expect from a scope in this price range, the clarity is there all through the zoom range, and the 16x magnification is powerful enough to help you make shots as far out as 800 yards. 4-16 is a powerful span that gives you wide field of view if you want it or high magnification if prefer that from your optic.

The adjustment from 4-16 will give you sight to a much further distance. If you want your rifle to have an optic that features that much magnification, then the Viper is a good sight. With the fast focus eyepiece, it's easy to get the reticle as sharp as you want it. Side parallax adjustment gives you quick access to adjust for the distance you're shooting, and allows you to remove parallax completely.

The technology that has gone into the Viper HS-T is impressive. 16x is enough power to make long range shots, and the color fidelity and resolution holds very well throughout the magnification range. You can get the Viper HST with the 4-16x44 VMR 1 MOA reticle, which gives you the ability to compensate for different distances. 

Adjustment Turrets

The max elevation adjustment is 75 MOA, and the 75 MOA maximum also applies to the wind turret rotations. A unique feature that the Viper HS-T scope offers is the CRS zero stop, which is what the shims are for that we mentioned earlier. Once your scope is zeroed in, you can pull the cap off the turrets and add shims that will raise the level of the turrets to show at zero stop again. You should also know how to shim a scope, because this will help you get enough adjustment on your riflescope.

This is particularly useful when you’re adjusting for holdover and drift correction, and the radius bar is a clear turret rotation indicator that gives you a hashmark based customizable rotational stop. You can also choose to have .25 MOA clicks or .1 MRAD based on your preference. .25 MOA will be a little bit more precise, so if you're not sure then just go with the MOA.

MOA stands for minutes-of-angle, and it's a measurement for a certain amount of the circumference of a circle. One MOA is 1/21600 of the way around a circle. Don't worry too much about it, just know that at 100 yards, one MOA is 1 inch.

MRAD is also a measurement for the circumference of a circle, and an MRAD is slightly bigger, which makes it not as precise as the MOA.

Tough Construction

Beyond the aircraft quality aluminum tube construction and 30mm tube diameter, Vortex also puts their ArmorTek coating on the exterior of all lenses, which keeps them from getting scratches or other damage from dirt. 

Vortex has also put an anodized finish on the outside of the scope. A 30mm aluminum tube size gives you a more forgiving eye box and better light transmission

The Viper HS-T also has Vortex Optics Precision-Force Spring System, which is designed ensure that the scope has maximum repeatability, and their Precision-Glide Erector System with O ring, which keeps all the lens elements moving smoothly even when bumped.

The elevation turrets give you accurate holds at extended ranges, and you have good eye relief-4 inch. It also comes with the VIP warranty that covers it for life whether you're hunting, shooting tactical, or just doing target practice. At the widest magnification, this could even be a good timber scope or in bright sun.

While you should always be careful with your riflescopes and try not to bump them, the recoil alone can wreak havoc on the fragile glass elements inside. The Viper is built to withstand this recoil and is tested extensively to make sure that it can handle anything your rifle can throw at it. Shooting at long distances means heavier calibers and more recoil, and the Viper should be able to handle it all.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Choice of VMR 1 or VMR 2 Reticle
• Vortex Viper HS-T 4-16 has forgiving eye box
• Viper HST has tactical style turrets
• Great for hunting rifles

Cons:

• The Viper HST has a SFP reticle
• Not good in short range shooting applications
• VMR 1 Reticle isn't so easy to use

Now is a great time to pick up the Vortex Optics Viper HST 4-16x44 VMR 1 or with a different reticle. 

Alternatives

1. Leupold VX 3HD 4.5-14x50mm

This scope is a great alternative if you're looking for a similar scope but with even better optics. This is a great scope for image quality. It has a similar eye relief, and you get three choices of reticle on this riflescope, one of which is similar to the VMR 1 MOA reticle. They have great customer service and an impressive warranty.

This scope uses Argon to make it fog-free, which is supposedly better than Nitrogen. The rigidity of the adjustment turrets makes it easy to change their position while it's on your gun. It's light enough, has similar dimensions to the Viper, and can handle the impact of a powerful rifle from Browning, Tikka, and others.

We haven't done a full review of the VX 3HD yet, but we're looking forward to it, and other reviews are great for it so far.

2. Viper PST Gen II 3-15x44 FFP

Generation II is the latest installment of the PST line. If you are interested in a Vortex Optics scope, but don't want a second focal plane reticle, then you can go with the Vortex Optics Viper PST, which is a very similar riflescope to the HS-T 4-16x44, but has a slightly narrower magnification range but comes with a first focal plane reticle.

Vortex has a lot more models of scope besides the Viper HST, and the PST has great reviews, but is a little more expensive.

3. Bushnell AR Optics 4.5-18x40 (illuminated multi-turret)

This is a great budget alternative scope. It also has a second focal plane reticle that is designed similar to the VMR 1 reticle, and comes with great reviews.

Most riflescopes will come with one elevation correction turret and one turret for wind. The Bushnell AR optics scope comes with five different versions of their elevation turrets, along with a side focus adjustment. Each version has adjustments that correspond with the amount of bullet drop for different cartridges.

If you want to know more about that scope shims, then must check out our article on how to shim a scope.

Conclusion and Summary

If you felt this review was helpful (or you have any hunting tips), let us know in the comments. The verdict of our review is that the Viper is a great SF plane scope for target shooting, hunting, or whatever else you might be doing with your rifle at long distance. Scopes that perform well at high magnification in different conditions can be hard to find.

Our thoughts after this review are that the Viper has high versatility and will serve you well after you mount it on your favorite hunting rifle. It may not have illumination, but most scopes in this range will have few options or features for illuminated reticles.