We have been reading about a potential issue with the Elcan Specter DR line of scopes, particularly that some might be experiencing a zero shift when going from 1X to 4X or in this case 1.5X to 6X. It's a lot of rumor and hearsay but there is also the possibility this is happening so I decided to test it out this morning.
I had a 1.5-6X SpecterDR here on site so I mounted it on my 14.5" Noveske and took it out to see for myself. We have seen these scopes with the SOCOM units that come through, and most tend to like them. So the idea there was any big shift was something I wanted to look at.
To start, the scope was zeroed at 50 yards on the Rifles Only short range using Mk262 Mod 1 ammo. This is the 77gr LR stuff we have here. Also I decided so I was not unduly influencing the groups, I would shoot the rifle in the prone using an Atlas Bipod. I set up two targets, one for the shots on 6X and one for the shots on 1.5X where I would simple toggle the lever and transition to the next target without any unnecessary movement. I shot the rifle at 50 yards, 75 yards and 100 yards. Immediately I noticed that on 1.5X power the center dot pretty much covered the 5" Shoot "N" C I used. At 50 yards on 1.5X the dot appeared to be about 4 MOA and at 75 and 100 yards it completely covered the 5 inch target. For these yard lines I turned the lit reticle on at the lowest visible power so I could more easily hold center. I have to say, it's not as easy as it would appear to hit a 5" target on 1.5X accurately with a dot that is 4MOA more in size. So I concluded there is a potential for a lot of shooter error in the reports of the zero shift.
But here are the targets:
Here are the shots on 6X
And the set up used
Now does this mean there is no shift possible ? No I don't think so, Elcan acknowledges the possibility of a shift, and because this is a second focal plane optic there is to be some shift expected specifically when using the hold over reticle, but as far as a shift due to the mechanism I am not seeing it with my test here, nor have we seen it in the past. But anything is possible, and what I will do is a get a hold of a 1-4x and test that one in a similar fashion. Again, the dot is very big, even though it doesn't appear so, I feel the room for error to be pretty high. Would I have any hesitation using this optic, well clearly not, I have no problem with the accurate or the function of this combination of rifle and scope. It's pretty much dead on by my standards.
I had a 1.5-6X SpecterDR here on site so I mounted it on my 14.5" Noveske and took it out to see for myself. We have seen these scopes with the SOCOM units that come through, and most tend to like them. So the idea there was any big shift was something I wanted to look at.
To start, the scope was zeroed at 50 yards on the Rifles Only short range using Mk262 Mod 1 ammo. This is the 77gr LR stuff we have here. Also I decided so I was not unduly influencing the groups, I would shoot the rifle in the prone using an Atlas Bipod. I set up two targets, one for the shots on 6X and one for the shots on 1.5X where I would simple toggle the lever and transition to the next target without any unnecessary movement. I shot the rifle at 50 yards, 75 yards and 100 yards. Immediately I noticed that on 1.5X power the center dot pretty much covered the 5" Shoot "N" C I used. At 50 yards on 1.5X the dot appeared to be about 4 MOA and at 75 and 100 yards it completely covered the 5 inch target. For these yard lines I turned the lit reticle on at the lowest visible power so I could more easily hold center. I have to say, it's not as easy as it would appear to hit a 5" target on 1.5X accurately with a dot that is 4MOA more in size. So I concluded there is a potential for a lot of shooter error in the reports of the zero shift.
But here are the targets:
Here are the shots on 6X
And the set up used
Now does this mean there is no shift possible ? No I don't think so, Elcan acknowledges the possibility of a shift, and because this is a second focal plane optic there is to be some shift expected specifically when using the hold over reticle, but as far as a shift due to the mechanism I am not seeing it with my test here, nor have we seen it in the past. But anything is possible, and what I will do is a get a hold of a 1-4x and test that one in a similar fashion. Again, the dot is very big, even though it doesn't appear so, I feel the room for error to be pretty high. Would I have any hesitation using this optic, well clearly not, I have no problem with the accurate or the function of this combination of rifle and scope. It's pretty much dead on by my standards.
