Rifle Scopes New High End Tactical article

[koshkin]

If I recall, ILya said CA was pretty bad with the M7Xi for the price, I'm going off that as well as a local friend who had one and was not impressed compared to Schmidt and Minox ZP5. At some point I'm going to have to try and test one out to see for myself, I really like the FOV and mag range, the MSR2 is decent but not my favorite.

On the M7Xi I have here, CA on high magnification is fairly prominent. Someone is going to send me two more M7Xi 4-28x56 scopes to compare next week.

Overall amount of CA is somewhat similar to the 5-25x56 Kahles I looked at. Maybe a touch more. However, in other ways, M7Xi is very nicely worked out. Distortion is well controlled. FOV is good. Eyepiece is very easy to get behind.

There is a lot to like about this scope and it is a step forward from M5Xi. It is not for people very sensitive to CA, but for everyone else, it is a very interesting choice.

I am not crazy about reticle selection, but MSR2 is very workable.

I am really looking forward to the smaller 2.9-20x50 M7Xi.

ILya

 

[koshkin]

ILya,

Thanks for your video. If the S&B ultra short’s were thrown into the mix where would they sit in that line up?

I do not think I replied to this earlier.

There are two S&B Ultrashort designs: 3-20x50 and 5-20x50.

The 3-20x50 is not that short, but it is shorter than the full size 3-20x50. It is a rather nice scope as most S&Bs are, but honestly, I think the newer ZCO 4-20x50 is just a better scope. There is nothing wrong with the 3-20x S&B, but it is just a touch lower on resolution. Good FOV and swetspot though.

With the 5-20x50, it gets more difficult because the bloody thing is so short. There are some optical compromises, but if you really need a scope with short that gives you good 20x, your options are the 5-20x50 S&B or 5-25 Vudu. Figure out how much money you will want to spend and get one.

In terms of optical quality, ZCO and TT are better, but if you are looking at the 5-20x50 S&B, you are not looking for the best performance. You are looking for the best performance in a package that short.

The more expensive 5-20x50 Ultrahosrt is better than the Vudu, but I do not know whether the difference is worth it. If it wasn't for the turrets, I would just go for the Vudu because of bang for the buck. However, the turrets on the EOTech are just too tall for this design IMO. The compact S&B turrets are perfect for a scope like this.

ILya

 

[SPAK]

I just picked up a M7xi.... I haven’t had much time to play with it except a rough tracking test to make sure there aren’t any issues mechanically. I only noticed CA at max magnification on white targets when my eye came off alignment. Other than that I didn’t notice it.

 

[Phil A]

As I have mentioned in the past, I am kicking off a new High End Tactical article as scopes I need for that are trickling in. The scope of what I am going to do with it changed a little, so here is the jist of it.

56mm scopes:
I have a Tangent Theta TT525P with Gen 3 XR reticle on hand.
Same for the S&B PMII 5-25x56 with GR2ID reticle.
I will borrow Minox ZP5 from a friend (a forum member here; he can identify himself if he wants).
ZCO 5-27x56 is heading this way from Jeff Huber.

50mm scopes:
I have a Tangent Theta TT315M with Gen 2XR reticle on hand
Same for the Vortex Razor AMG 6-24x50
I will borrow ZCO 4-20x50 from a friend here locally for an optics comparison
Burris XTR III 3.3-18x50 will be here at the same time, so I will add it to the comparison. It is a lot less expensive, so I mostly want to see how it compares to the fancy stuff. No specific expectations there.


Steiner M7Xi seems to be really scarce. It is not clear if I will be able to get my hands on one in time. I talked to the folks at Burris/Steiner this morning and they are trying to locate one. I may have to look at this one separately later on if they can't.

Kahles K525 will probably not be in the mix unless someone here is willing to loan me one for a little bit. I sent a couple of e-mails to SONA with fairly predictable results: deafening silence.

I have looked at K318i fairly thoroughly, so I will be able to ascertain how it stacks up.

Same for Nightforce. 7-35 ATACR would be right at home in this line-up, but I do not have one and they are not in any rush to respond to me. Basically, once Sean Murphy got reassigned to a different job, Nightforce stopped talking to me entirely.

I asked Leupold to borrow the new 7-35x56 a couple of times, but never got a response. The same guy used to be pretty responsive in the past, so I am not sure what gives. I'll give it one more shot and then give up.

As is I have enough scopes here to keep me busy, and I do not like to chase after people anyway.

ILya

Interested in this comparison , just purchased a ZCO420.

 

[CSTactical]

Interested in this comparison , just purchased a ZCO420.

Great choice Don’t miss this detailed review here https://www.snipershide.com/shootin...i-v-schmidt-ultra-shorts-v-minox-zp5.6953016/

 

[Glassaholic]

I am really looking forward to the smaller 2.9-20x50 M7Xi.

ILya

Any news on the new Steiner M7Xi 2.9-20x50, will it make an appearance at SHOT?

 

[D_TROS]

Any news on the new Steiner M7Xi 2.9-20x50, will it make an appearance at SHOT?

I saw several of them couple months ago. Impressive little buggers. Not sure if they will be at shot tho. My guess is yes.


GL
DT

 

[koshkin]

I saw several of them couple months ago. Impressive little buggers. Not sure if they will be at shot tho. My guess is yes.


GL
DT

They will be at SHOT. Not sure about the IFS version, but the non-IFS will be there.

ILya

ILya

 

[jzerfoss]

They will be at SHOT. Not sure about the IFS version, but the non-IFS will be there.

ILya

ILya

Any info on the release date for this? I can't even find it advertised

 

[koshkin]

Any info on the release date for this? I can't even find it advertised

I have no insight on the release date. I thought it was a nicely done scope, so I asked whether it is going to be at SHOT. That's all I know.

ILya

 

[Blackfoot 7]

inbox

 

[AKMarty]

@koshkin have you ever done a reticle comparison/evaluation? Every manufacturer seems to have their pet. This is in the context of precision shooting not hunting.

Thanks

 

[koshkin]

@koshkin have you ever done a reticle comparison/evaluation? Every manufacturer seems to have their pet. This is in the context of precision shooting not hunting.

Thanks

Reticles are very personal. There are some I like, some I can live with and some that make me nauseous.

I am sufficiently picky about reticles that I even designed a few for some manufacturers.

ILya