All posts tagged Sniper Scopes

Visibility and profile of firearms

With all of those new hi-visibility gun sights out there the look of the traditional firearm is changing.  It’s not that uncommon to see a firearm like an AK with bright green, yellow or red sights.   Changing the sight color of your gun may dramatically speed up your target acquisition.   I really don’t mind people doing something like this because it’s better than putting optics on your firearm.  Some of the small red dot optics like the RM1 from Trijicon are nice, but they still make holstering the firearm or carrying a firearm like this a little too bulky.  If there was a way to get the sights to fold down, that would be a better setup.

Folding pistol sights would be something that I would love to see some day, if they can do it for a carbine they should be able to do it with a handgun.  Trijicon Rifle Scopes have varying profiles and some of the ones that are used by the military are meant to limit the need for batteries, but there are always trade offs.   I like Trijicon optics, but I do  not like the idea of having a hi-viz target indicator on my carbine and announce where I am.   The TA01NSN is still my favorite ACOG, but been low-profile means less of a chance of getting targeted.   The Trijicon Kill Flash is a much for all owners of Trijicon ACOGS.

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Dots, Chevrons, Crosshairs and horse shoes

Rifle scopes  and gun optics have gotten easier to use in some regards, but the diversity of the reticles from various manufacturers is something that is starting to give me a headache.   Things were much simpler when it was about a thin crosshair a duplex, European reticle with a pole, illuminated reticle, dot or Eotech gun sight.   Its far more complicated now, but somebody finally realized that not all rifles are designed for the same thing.   When ACOGS started getting a lot of notice and showing up on a firing range I was in awe, but then I realized that the eye relief on them was a limiting factor in close range fighting and you really might want to keep those iron sights on the gun just incase.

I really don’t like deviating from thin crosshairs on a rifle scope because I’ve already seen one too many time that many reticles can obscure your target and what is the point of not being able to see an enemies head pop out behind a tree at 200yds  because your red dot is blocking the entire target.   If you get a CQB optic you may be limiting your rifle scopes ability to see further out and now you’ve got a problem with medium to longer range targets.   The TA01NSN will always be my favorite Trijicon ACOG just because you can quickly transition from glass to iron sights with very little movement.  Mechanical devices like the Eotech magnifier are nice but that is one more thing that can break or come loose on your gun when a simpler approach might be a better option.

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Magnification and sending long distance phone calls

Ok, that was a dumb thing to say, but I still chuckle at one of my buddies comments whenever we’re on the long range.   Reaching out and touching someone at 600yds is precisely what a sniper does.  I have learned to notice that clarity of rifle optics but one thing that is becoming more and more of an experience is looking through all of the optics out there and their reticles.   A long time ago, people were more concerned with the durability of the optic and making sure it wasn’t going to fog up on them when they took the scope caps off in the early morning when they went out chasing whitetails.  Now some of your least expensive rifle optics don’t fog up.

I have a few Zeiss Conquest scopes that I’m quiet happy with, but I think I could go with less magnification on some of them.   When  you are trying to hit a 6ft target at 600yds, it’s really not that hard to see it.   When people try and see an X on a 2ft piece of paper in their rifle scopes, that’s a whole other thing and in my opinion something not worth pursuing.   I have walked off shooting ranges in the summer time because the mirage given off from the  heat was so bad that it was completely impossible for me to even see a target at 100yds and testing my hand loaded ammunition would have been a waste.

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Bringing an old gun to the range

I have some funny experiences to share when it comes to choosing guns and calibers for long range shooting.  I use to be a member of a gun club that went out to 600yds, but it has long been closed down.   When I was working on zeroing a DSA STG58 rifle at a 500yd target, I wasn’t getting any better than 10 inch groups at 500yds, but that wasn’t too bad considering I was shooting military ammo.   That is just roughly 2 MOA at that range and for a gun that was a standar barrel and not match grade, I was pretty happy with it.   I have had some issues with the DSA FAL mount I have, but since I have loctited the mount, it hasn’t come loose on me.

While I was shooting there,  an old guy showed up with a 45/70 and a 12 inch box that he was going to shoot.   He fired at 200yds to check his iron sight zero and it was dead on, he moved the box out to 500yds and asked me to spot his bullets for him.   He took one shot and hit just in front of the box and then made an adjustment.  I had one of several Leupold 3-9×40 tactical rifle scopes A few seconds later he fired a second round and nailed the box.   He said I could shot at the box if I wanted to so I did.   My gun could hit it, but I had about a 50% hit rate when shooting off of the bench while this 70yr old guy hit the box every time with iron sights.   I’d like to know where that guy is these days because it made me realize that just because you have a modern firearm, doesn’t mean you are going to be a better shot them some old guy with his 45/70.

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Ruger 10/22 range day and scope options

I’m brainstorming with this blog post so give me some of your advice if you have any on what to put on my Ruger 10/22 rifle.   This is a standard 10/22 and not a tricked out barrel or trigger.   I purchased all of my 22lr for new shooters to learn on and didn’t want to get too fancy with optics in the beginning.   After picking up a Marlin Model 980 bolt action and having the rear sight replaced with an adjustable elevation like the standard 10/22,  I haven’t had the urge to buy another optic for this gun.   Many bolt actions are capable of shooting quarter size groups at 100yds with the right kind of ammo, but even though my bolt action has that capability, I still wanted it for novice introduction to firearms.

My ruger 10/22 was a training gun, but after recently doing some aggressive testing between the two, there was no comparison in accuracy.   The bolt action was shooting dime size groups at 50ft and the Ruger was shooting 2 inch groups with the same ammo.   I’m thinking about picking up a rifle scope for this gun that is either a fixed power or a red dot.   I have a Butler Creek 25 round magazine that I have yet to test out, but it could be a good close quarters combat training tool for wiping out soda cans and other carbonated reactive targets.   I had an Eotech 552 on a Ruger Mini 14 and had fun with it, but went back to a 3-9x40mm scope because it just seemed more practical.

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Combat optics something else to consider

rifle scopesI’m so old that I can tell you about the day I was on a firing line and saw my first Trijicon ACOG.    The first time I saw it I thought it was some kind of toy.   The bright neon strand stood out that I just couldn’t understand why a combat optic was so visible.    I guess I read too many sniper stories where optics gave away a snipers position due to sun glare, and it was always something I thought about even when hunting.   I’ve spotted other hunters before just by see that split second flash from the tree line and I can completely understand how patience can be the key to winning a sniper battle.

Trijicon optics are a tool for modern day fighting, I still prefer the Eotech combat sights for close up fighting,  but the battery issue is a big problem for longer operations.   Trijicon rifle scopes have become more diversified and aren’t just meant for being mounted on an A2 carry handle anymore.    There are red dot and close up fighting optics and reticles now and the accupoint rifle scopes are very practical for hunting.   One thing to seriously consider for combat optics is along with giving you pin point accuracy, the objective lenses that are showing up on standard issue rifles these days make it real hard to hide in shadows.   If you put a flashlight and optic on your gun, those two tools can be a dead giveaway in even the lowest light.   I strongly recommend putting a kill flash or removeable scope cover, flip up covers are fine.

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LWRC Range Trip

rifle scopesToday I took my newest LWRC rifle to the range to break it in.   This is a combat rifle and I expect that it eventually get pretty beat up, but it’s always a  good idea to run through some firing drills before you rely on it.   Some of the biggest malfuntion problems I have seen on the firing line were with supposedely brand new out of the box rifles.   Sometimes there are bugs or issues that are easy to fix, but you really need to put some lead down range with your rifle or pistol before you rely on it.   I’ve mentioned before about a time when I saw a guy show up with a Beretta 92FS inox pistol and it jammed after every round.   The shooter was very frustrated because this was it’s first range trip.   Well, turns out that the pistol was bone dry and had absolutely zero lubrication on it and with one wipe down, the gun ran flawlessly.    The same should go for any firearm.   I strongly suggest cleaning guns every once in awhile, even if you haven’t shot them.    Lubrication can run off of guns or drain off, and I also highly recommend using a small level of grease on even pistols, especially if they may sit in a gun safe for long periods of time.

My LWRC defanitely runs on less lubrication that any direct impingement rifle, but I am going to use small amounts of Break Free CLP on it just to help reduce the amount of wear on the parts.   I have tested previous LWRC rifles out and they have all lived up to my expectations.   The product has been modified over the last 3yrs, but I’d have to say that they were big improvements, mostly on the bolt carrier and short stroke piston designs.   My favorite configuration is the shorter version that is close the militaries version of the M4 Carbine.   The M4 Carbine is the fastest CQB rifle, but it is possible to inhibit the speed of the rifle by putting too much optic on the rifle.   The rifle is meant for close range fighting and anything more than 4X is too much.   The lethality and ballistics of the M4 make it a very good close range fighting rifle, but even though the rifle is accurate out to 600yds, it is a very week round at those distances.   You may be better off with a longer barrel AR15 variant and mounting 4-10X rifle scopes if you aren’t looking for a close range fighting rifle.   I am starting to see a trend away from magnification on the M4 and even many of the Trijicon ACOGS are now mounting red dots because we know that even 3-4x magnifications will slow you down at pistol range distances.

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Top tier rifle optics

Zeiss rifle scopesThere is a point where people have to learn to realize that there are a great many firearms manufacturers out there that are making suberb firearms.    I’ve heard people claim that a certain firearm was superior in reliability over another.   Well, that is true to some degree, but I’d have to say there are some firearms that are in the top tier category and the durability and reliablity differences may vary in extreme circumstances.   Take a Glock 17 and put it up against a Sig 226 and you’ll see what I mean.   I’m sure the Glock will reguire less lubrication, but there won’t be much difference in 98% of circumstances.

Those of us old enough to remember when people told us that putting Glass on a battle rifle was not a good idea because they were brutal to optics and most scopes wouldn’t hold up are now old news.   Rifle scope have come a long way just as firearms have.   I’ve seen optics come back from Iraq that had bullet holes in them and they were still sighted in.   The differences between Leupold rifle scopes, Zeiss rifle scopes and Trijicon rifles scopes tends to really be about preference.    They all have moderate to expensively priced optics and the glass on them is superior to anything that was out 20yrs ago.   With a good pair of scope rings, these optics will work reliable in just about any hunting or military application.   I’ve seen all of the above mention optics on M14 rifles in Iraq.

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Modern Optics and Reticles

Tactical Rifle ScopesAnother evolution has occured in the tactical rifle scope market.    First we saw all kinds of tactical sniper optics and now we are seeing more and more innovation as far as rifle reticles.   No longer are we peering through rifle scopes and seeing crosshairs in dot or duplex.   We aren’t just seeing illuminated reticles either.
Rifle scopes are now available in various reticle colors and the biggest thing we see in hunting and rifle scopes are diverse bullet drop compesators.    I remember back in the day that I though magnification was really what people worried about and the obvious clarity of rifle scopes, but no more.   Speed with follow up shots and hold overs for hunting and tactical purposes with fixed power scopes is now much more important.

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Serious shooters and serious gear

Tactical Rifle ScopesThere is no need to trash people that are using inferior optics.   Somtimes a $100 scope that holds zero is all that is needed and long range shooting isn’t a reality.   Plenty of people get there kicks out of inexpensive optics and aren’t concerned about how bright their optics are or if they’ll hold up to thousands of rounds.   Most optics that cost $200-$300 are probable all you need for most hunting, plinking purposes and some manufacturers make some great optics in that price range.   There are levels of gear though and there is a certain point that you have to realize that your gear isn’t up to par.
When do we need to upgrade our gear?   Serious shooters usually go there from trial and error and there is plenty of info on the internet about which optics are better than others.   Most of the info you hear about might need to go through a BS meter to determine if people are full of it, but the real test of what holds up is pretty much a proveable fact and the evidence is out there.   Nikon, Trijicon, Leupold and Zeiss are  a few of the manufacturers that will come up whenever you get a Top 5 long Tactical Rifle Scopes level optics.   Keep in mind that optic durability and holding zero also depends on what type of rings you are using and you can easily void a scopes durability out with 2nd rate scope rings.

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