I'm new to the benchrest world. I'm looking for at least 10-50 power, from the Athlon Ares ETR UHD 15-60 ($1100) Sightron SIII, $1400, Kahles, NF, March ($3300). Want to buy once and not afraid to spend for the right scope, but also not looking to waste money if not necessary. If you've got some time, send some input. Thank You
Best 25-100 Benchrest Scope for PCP
- Thread starter mocoman
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If you have a chance, go to a competition and see if you can look down some of these scopes. People can say that this is the clearest scope i have looked through, but you can never tell how good until you can compare.
The Delta Stryker 5-50 x 56 is the best scope i have owned.
The image is bright and clear at high magnification.
The turret clicks are crisp and repeatable
Small target dot with illumination
Can see .22 holes in target at 100yards
looked at the Sightron III, but preferred the glass on the Delta, however, the military discount on the Sightrons are worth looking into. Maybe the S5
10m to infinity on parallax..300cm of vertical adjustment(Huge)
They have a retical in mil and moa ...i prefer the moa for it's slightly smaller increment adjustment
The one downside is that it is a beefy scope..1100g weightand 36.3cm long, but shouldn't be a problem to a bench rifle
saving for another
Edgun west has them on his website
The Delta Stryker 5-50 x 56 is the best scope i have owned.
The image is bright and clear at high magnification.
The turret clicks are crisp and repeatable
Small target dot with illumination
Can see .22 holes in target at 100yards
looked at the Sightron III, but preferred the glass on the Delta, however, the military discount on the Sightrons are worth looking into. Maybe the S5
10m to infinity on parallax..300cm of vertical adjustment(Huge)
They have a retical in mil and moa ...i prefer the moa for it's slightly smaller increment adjustment
The one downside is that it is a beefy scope..1100g weightand 36.3cm long, but shouldn't be a problem to a bench rifle
saving for another
Edgun west has them on his website
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I am just up to replacing my long range scope from .25x700 Impact BR setup and moving it to a new F-class project 308.
This will be my next purchase for 100 M benchrest.
Floating center point.
www.airgunnation.com
This will be my next purchase for 100 M benchrest.
Floating center point.
New Falcon X50
I have the Falcon X50T (Long Range X504LR) on my Impact MK2 for almost 4 years, and I am very satisfied with the Japanese glass clarity. Falcon have a parallel version of that scope meant for FT as well what is called X50FT. Shopping now for a long range scope again - preferring with a floating...
www.airgunnation.com Upvote 0
Vortex Golden Eagle 15 - 60. I bought one a couple years ago with the dot reticle. I also have leupold target scopes that are 35x and 45x as well as a nightforce that I believe is 45x at the top magnification. I compared it to all those side by side at different distances out to 1,000 yds+. My eyes say the golden eagle beat them all in clear sight picture as well as brightness and it also has higher magnification. The turrets on the golden eagle are very solid with very audible clicks.
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I second the suggestion to try and get behind as many scopes as you can. I’d really like to get time with the Athlon 15-60, but it hasn’t happened yet. The Delta Stryker 5-50 would be my recommendation as the best value scope. Comparing it to my Sightron SVSS, I would guess they use the same glass with different coatings. Very similar image characteristics. Stryker seems to do better in hazy, diffused lighting conditions, while the SVSS seems to handle intense light and mirage a bit better. To my eye the Golden Eagle falls behind both with a very washed out image under most conditions. So hard to say what you will experience, and what sample variation will add to the equation. I will note my Stryker dials accurately, but the clicks are mushy and indistinct. However, the whole travel range is useable. The SV has about half the elevation travel of the Stryker. Mine will physically dial about 74 minutes, but the image distortion on either end of the travel makes it 50-55 minutes in practice. Sightron has acknowledged that it is a limitation of their design, not a defect. The SVIII is their super high travel model. Unfortunately no first hand on that one.
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My guess is either Athlon would be the best value and I highly doubt one could tell a major difference in IQ compared to much more expensive scopes. Like for example my S&B 5-25 or my March Genesis both being only the slightest bit different that my ETR 10-60.
I wouldn't have even thought that was possible until I compared these scopes in some side by sides shortly after mounting my ETR. Too say the least I'm VERY HAPPY with my ETR! No way I'd spend the extra money for a high end target scope now.
I wouldn't have even thought that was possible until I compared these scopes in some side by sides shortly after mounting my ETR. Too say the least I'm VERY HAPPY with my ETR! No way I'd spend the extra money for a high end target scope now.
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Athlon makes some nice scopes. Zeiss, Swarovski, Leica and Schmidt & Bender are also very nice.
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Athlon ARES ETR UHD
15-60x56 BLR1 SFP IR MOA is a really nice scope but I'm not a fan of sfp and moa. Why I posted mine. I'm sticking with my Cronus
15-60x56 BLR1 SFP IR MOA is a really nice scope but I'm not a fan of sfp and moa. Why I posted mine. I'm sticking with my Cronus
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Sightron SVED 10x50x60. Fantastic glass. The dual parallel control is unequaled in the industry.
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For distance shooting I would get an Athlon ARES ETR 4.5 to 30 x56. By distance I mean 75 yards and longer. For 75 yards and in I would use something less powerful. Why because minimum distance on this scope is 25 yards.
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I’m in the same boat and there isn’t too many places to look around here. I’m considering the ares, trijicon 10mile, golden eagle, delta or sightron s6. I need to find somewhere to look through them.
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After using it for a month, the clarity on the Athlon Ares ETR 15-60 starts going away after about 45 power with my eyes.
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As that can be really hard, my advice is to buy them and sell them to try them out. Buy used, so you don’t take the hit. I have tried many that way!
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I was going to reply earlier, but saw this post was a little older and you already made a purchase. But because you might not be perfectly happy…
The best advice I can give is… ”Don’t think you are going to find the perfect scope on the first try”, especially when asking others for their favorite.
Our eyes are different and there are going to be things you prefer that others don’t. Like I told the other guy, buy and sell and try many. You had some good examples from people that I have liked and hated (every expensive options).
I would start with the reticle. People too often overlook that most important aspect. Make sure you like the reticle layout and look at the thickness. I can’t stand a fine reticle and others wouldn’t haven’t anything else. Some scopes favor contrast and other resolution. Some seem really bright/blue and others more neutral.
Don’t be afraid to try cheaper scopes too, especially if you don’t dial elevation.
The Sightron SIII was a good pick for a long time because of the price. They aren’t as cheap as they used to be. They aren’t amazing, but they are still very good if you like the reticle options. The IV is just a bigger version, and the IVED adds better glass. The focus on the IV is pretty cool.
The Vortex GE is a really good scope, better glass than an SIII, and was a better deal back in the day before price hikes as well. Reticle choices are very limited.
Delta/Trijicon are about the same and are nice if you like the reticles and weight. I didn’t like the reticles, as they were much too fine on the Delta.
Athlons, I’m a big fan of the company but haven’t tried the high mag scope because the fine reticle turns me off big time.
NF - I haven’t tried the Comp, but only FFP versions. Loved the ATACR, but not for the price. Again, make sure you like the reticle options, and confirm they focus close enough for your uses, as many don’t focus close.
S&B was a good scope, but didn’t think it was worth the money.
March, still haven’t tried, but only because the right deal never came up when I was looking.
Kahles - My favorite scope ever. Not all agree here, but the optical formula for my eyes is amazing! Loved the reticle size and what it gave me. Amazing in low light where most of my shots are, and was amazing quality. Only really expensive scope that I thought was worth it. I have seen others try it and say they don’t like it. It isn’t as “bright” as some like.
Anyway, only you will know what is perfect for you.
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Thanks for help. I have a couple of NF ATACR's 7-35 F1 that I'm going to play with as well. I agree, we all see differently.
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I like the ATACR 7-35. While it is nice to have 50x, i normally would prefer a FFP in 35x. I only feel like I am lacking when using it right after using 50x. Ha!
Really depends what type of benchrest shooting we are talking. Shooting off the bench or true benchrest. True benchrest, I would like having the extra magnification to really dial in the shots.
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It's pretty much like that with all the 45 plus power riflescopes no matter how much money you spend. I had a $3500 March HM 5-42x56 that got much dimmer on 42x than my Athlon ETR 15-60 does on 45x. My very expensive March Genesis does slightly better than the other March did in this regard.
I had a Pentax PF 100 spotting scope that started to dim out at 50x and that beast has a 100mm objective lens. It gave significantly superior image quality than any riflescope I've looked through.
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The Falcon X50i seems very interesting to me. There is a youtube review that is very favorable. It is assembled in China but the price is under $500. 5-50 power.
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