Thread: Tactical High Powered Scope Confusion

Originally Posted by Dermastor

What's with this "Tactical" bullshit. Does everyone want to be in the armed forces?

"Tactical" is just a convenient term to use, you could just as well say practical or precision.
Unfortunately "Tactical" comes with a lot of negative connotations.

Tactical scopes are typically different than hunting or benchrest/target scopes do deserve their own category.

Originally Posted by Dermastor

What's with this "Tactical" bullshit. Does everyone want to be in the armed forces?

The main "issue" with the scope in question is the mismatched reticle and turrets, whilst it used to be common to have a Mil reticle and MOA turrets you won't find it on any new scopes.
Mismatched is certain not unusable by any stretch but being able to measure misses with the reticle and then dial the correction into the scope with no mental gymnastics is a big advantage.

SFP vs FFP is a different argument with pros and cons for each.
Generally speaking for a hunting scope SFP is probably the way to go, for targets/longer range/higher magnification you want FFP.
The advantage of FFP is the reticle subtensions stay the same at all magnification, in your SFP scope the reticle is correct at 12x so if you were around 15-20x you can't use the reticle for holds without some form of mental arithmetic, not impossible to do in the field but with FFP you don't have to think about it.
Biggest issue with FFP is not so much the reticles being too thick at high mag as most reticles are well designed for that but that they are very thin on low magnification.
If your 6-24 was FFP it likely wouldn't be an issue on 6x but my FFP 3-15 has a very fine reticle on 3x. I've done enough shooting with it that it's not really an issue and illumination can help but a big ol SFP duplex reticle would be a better choice if shooting close range deer in the bush were the rifles main purpose.

People used SFP MOA/Mil scopes for decades with great success so it's not like they are worthless but in the last 10 or so years the tactical/precision scope market has changed dramatically for the better.
Basically since Vortex released the Gen1 Viper PST for 1000USD the market in that price range has improved greatly.

Originally Posted by Dermastor

What's with this "Tactical" bullshit. Does everyone want to be in the armed forces?

The answer is yes and no. Yes they want to be edgy and militaristic and the spartan gear that is all ugly and angular, good stuff.. No, they don't want to do a lot of sweating, getting yelled at and shitting to schedule. Also probably not too hot on running into machine gun fire.

I prefer "clicky dially scopes"

I've been sold on top end military grade scopes since I realised that while weighing a metric ton, you can drive a nail with it and it will hold zero.

Really nice to leave rifle in jet boat or 4x4 and not worry about the scope.

If you ever get the chance to look through some of the higher end "tactical" scopes, like the Schmidt and Benders or the nightforce range of FFP scopes, you'll see that the issue of a reticle which is "too thin" isn't actually an issue at all.

As has previously been mentioned, the fact that reticle subtensions on FFP scopes remain the same over all magnifications is an advantage. No need to worry about what power you're on, the measurements are always the same.

Light transmission on the newer high end scopes is also pretty mind blowing. I use leica products for my binoculars and spotting scopes, and as good as they are, light transmission on a nightforce scope leaves them for dead.

Originally Posted by grandpamac

Again quite true Tussock,
I expect you would be both surprised and disappointed to find how many still zero dead on at 100 metres or yards. This was the case in the examples I mentioned. In my long distant youth centre fire rifles were always zeroed at 200 or 300 yards (or 2 or 3 inches high at 100 yards) but when scopes became common many felt the need to zero dead on at 100 and some still do. Not for me however.
Regards Grandpamac.

This part of the world is littered with drench containers with holes all over them. Minute if drench container is normal shooting.

Originally Posted by Tussock

This part of the world is littered with drench containers with holes all over them. Minute if drench container is normal shooting.

In the Highlands of Scotland you will see 'Passing Place' signs on single track roads, some of which have nice groups on them.

I have all my center fire rifles zero'd at 100m if feel the need to have a 200m or 300m "zero" on for a pop shot would just dial it to 2 or 300m and carry on walking till game appears.

I have been using FFP scopes more or less exclusively for >10 years now and the idea that the reticle is too thin/thick at low/high power has never once been an actual problem in the real world for me with the scopes I've had