First Look: Leupold Mark 5HD MOA Riflescopes

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posted on January 9, 2019
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Building on the success of the company's elite Mark 5HD riflescope lineup, which won Shooting Illustrated's 2019 Optic of the Year Golden Bullseye award, Leupold Optics announced the addition of new, MOA-based models for 2019.

“From the beginning, the Mark 5HD project team set out to deliver riflescopes that had all the features long-range shooters have been calling for, but in a user-friendly package,” said John Snodgrass, product line manager for Leupold & Stevens, Inc. “Competitive shooters across the country have been impressed by what it’s capable of, and we’ve been fielding calls asking for a model designed for the minute of angle shooter ever since. We’re ecstatic to be able to deliver the industry’s best long-range tactical optic to both the Mil and MOA communities in 2019.”

Initially, two Leupold Mark 5HD models launched in 2018, 5-25x56 mm and 3.6-18x44 mm options, and both optics featured milliradian adjustments and MIL-based reticles located in the first focal plane, leaving long-range shooters who preferred MOA-based systems in the lurch. However, for 2019, two MOA-based models offer the same magnification ranges and objective-lens sizes as the initial MIL-based optics, giving MOA rifleshooters the same long-range capabilities as their MIL-focused friends. 

In developing the Leupold Mark 5HD lineup, the company's product specialists sat down with today's elite, professional shooters and asked them exactly what they needed in an optic in order to be more accurate, more precise and faster. Many of today's elite shooters, particularly in military and law-enforcement applications, are dependent on MIL-based systems, which led to the company's initial milliradian-focused launch. The other stand-out feature of the Mark 5HD is the lightened weight. All of today's must-have features of an elite rifle optic are contained in a package that weighs up to 20 ounces less than competitor scopes.
The Impact 60 reticle available on the Leupold Mark 5HD MOA riflescope.

At the core of each Leupold Mark 5HD riflescope is the company's M1C3 ZeroLock turret adjustments, offering tactile, consistent adjustments with an accurate return-to-zero. Depending on the model selected, shooters have the benefit of either 100 or 120 MOA of elevation adjustment, while the windage-adjustment turret is capped and features a zero-indicator mark on the main-body tube of the scope, allowing users to view it from a mounted position on their precision rifle.

Three different reticles are available in the Mark 5HD MOA lineup: Impact 60, PR1-MOA and Illuminated PR1-MOA. Suggested retail pricing on the 3.6-18x44 mm model starts at $2,339.99, while the 5-25x56 mm optic sells for $2,599.99.


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