I have a few Trijicons and a few Leupolds. No VX3's or Credos though.
Trijicons - I like the feel of the turrets, mag ring, and other controls on all three of these scopes. They all seem very well built
Accupoint 3-9x40 - Mine has the green triangle post reticle, which i really like for shorter range hunting applications. The glass is pretty decent and bright, but it's an older design and starting to show its age. Mine is about 10 years old but the tritium is still bright enough. Probably the lightest illuminated option available. Within your budget with room to spare.
Accupoint 2.5-12.5x42 - This one is a newer design. Optically it's quite a bit nicer than the 3-9 to my eyes. Mine has the mil-dot reticle. The only thing I don't like about it is that there's a little permanently attached nubbin on the magnification ring that will not clear the bolt with either low or medium rings on two different 90 degree bolt guns. It lives on a rifle with a lower bolt lift for this reason. I have not tried it on a Ruger, so not sure if it will clear. I paid $840 for mine, so a little bit of budget stretching here.
TenMile 3-18x44 - Optically similar to the 2.5-12.5 Accupoint. Doesn't have the obnoxious permanent nubbin. I really like this scope, but the reticle is a little hard to see at lower magnification without the illumination on. Kind of par for the course with most FFP scopes it seems. This one is about double your budget and FFP, so probably not what you're looking for.
Leupolds - Most of mine are discontinued, but could probably be found used. IMO, the best things about the Leupolds in general are that they're usually fairly lightweight and that you can get the Alumina scope caps for them.
VX5-HD 3-15x44 - Optically a little better than the Trijicons. Lighter weight than most comparable options. The alumina caps (not included, I added them) are awesome. The turrets are a little mushy and the mag ring is a little stiff. I would prefer a dial for illumination control instead of the button. That said, I'll probably buy a 2-10 version to replace the 3-9 Accupoint eventually. Firedot models are usually $1200, but a few places have them on sale for $1000 now. They make illuminated and non-illuminated versions in various reticles.
VX-R 2-7x33 - This one is discontinued, not sure about used prices. Optically it doesn't quite match a VX3, but it's not bad at all. It's in a market niche that really doesn't exist anymore, unfortunately, namely low-ish cost, lightweight, low magnification, illuminated, non-LPVO scopes. Mine lives on a .375. To be honest, I haven't touched the turrets in years, so I don't remember how they feel. Mag ring isn't quite as stiff as the VX5, but it's been used more too. As with the VX5, I'd prefer a knob for illumination control.
The other Leupolds (vari-x 3 3.5-10 and VX-R Scout) really aren't what you're looking for and are both discontinued, so no further comment needed on those.