A member recommended this scope to me and the more I read about it the more interested I am. I played with a Ares BTR a while back and was not all that impressed, but this evens better. How are people that either do or have owned them liking them? How is the tracking and durability as these are my main two concerns in any scope. I would like to hear positives and also negatives. Thank you
Rifle Scopes How is the athon Ares ETR treating you?
- Thread starter smokinbobf4
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I’m loving mine, but it’s still pretty new, so the long term durability has yet to prove itself. I will be at the vprc match at vir in a couple weeks. Maybe we could chuck it off the top of the tower a couple times to see if it holds up!
I bought a pst 2 and a etr to try out. I kept the etr. I liked everything about it over the pst. I don’t do matches just range use so not beating on it so I can’t help with durability. Shot With it out to 1020 a Couple times and return to zero was good but never did a y’all target test.
I sighted mine in last Saturday just before a 5 stage practice match. Put the reticle into Strelok Pro and shot the match. One stage was holdovers only on 4 coyotes at 4 different yardages. I really like the reticle for holding wind and elevation, (12-17 mph from 90 degrees) and was able to clean the stage. One stage was a kyl at 577 yards, another was 850, the rest we dialed between 3-5 targets out to 1050 yards. Really like the .2 wind hash marks.
I definately feel like I made a good choice with this scope so far. I have a LRHS and a LSTi, both 4.5-18 and the extra magnification and larger fov was nice. Turrets were good and parrallax was forgiving enough to put it on 500 for most of the day.
I definately feel like I made a good choice with this scope so far. I have a LRHS and a LSTi, both 4.5-18 and the extra magnification and larger fov was nice. Turrets were good and parrallax was forgiving enough to put it on 500 for most of the day.
Very nice review. Thanks! How are the turrets on this scope. The early Ares BTR turrets were very mushy. Have they fixed that?
I have one on a 6 fat rat. Nice scope for the money. Wish it had larger turrets. Glass is good. Shot it in a couple local PRS matches on my gas gun and haven’t had any malfunctions.
Turret clicks are firm and audible, no complaints so far. I will check them side by side with one of my Bushnells.
Yes the turrets have an audible/tactile “click”. The diameter is small and I prefer large diameter turrets when time is ticking. Just going to the range and haveing fun it wouldn’t make much of a difference.
Agreed, I like the size of the turrets better on my razor gen 2.
Not much under 1k that competes. Only reason Id sell it is to replace it with a gen2 razor. The vortex PST 2 was inferior to the ETR in my personal opinion. If you buy one and get it for a fair price you should be able to resell it if you wish for minimal loss.
I was in the hunt for the best bang for buck on optics around 1k..the Athlon Ares Etr was my choice. The second and third would have been the Athlon Midas Tac and Sig Sauer Tango4. Both are 30mm main tube compared to the 34mm of the Ares. The reason I didn't go with the Tango was lots of reviews said they had issues with parralex turrets falling off. Sig has since then fixed the problem according to Frank Galli(on a podcast from shot show 2019). Right now you can get the Sig Sauer tango4 from optics planet for 769 dollars with coupon. Also the Athlon midas tac has the exact same erector system as the Ares..so tracking should be just as good. Keep in mind the dimensions of the 34mm Athlon Ares ETR vs the other two scopes I talked about..the Ares scope is 'huge' and heavy. Not always a bad thing..but depends on what you want to do with it. I honestly would go with the Midas Tac or the Sig Tango4 next time if I were to build a 6.5 CM again.
It is holding up very nicely. I am pretty impressed with the one I've been testing.
ILya
I had two tango 4’s. The parallax knob on mine broke with only rubbing against me on a sling while walking. Cs said it happens a lot but not enough for a recall. I won’t be buying sig scopes again. I lost my ass selling both of them but just didn’t trust them anymore
Could you elaborate a bit more on the comparison to the PST.
I've more or less decided on the G2 PST for my 22lr, but if the Ares ETR is a huge improvement for a minimal price increase, I may go that way instead.
I just purchased an Ares ETR and so far it is an fantastic optic especially considering the price. When I purchased it I asked about it compared to the Viper PST and S3th posted a fantastic review comparing the two. You can get to it from the link below. Hope this will clarify the differences.
https://www.snipershide.com/shooting/threads/athlon-ares-etr-vortex-viper-pst-gen2.6923283/
https://www.snipershide.com/shooting/threads/athlon-ares-etr-vortex-viper-pst-gen2.6923283/
I liked my Ares ETR quite a bit. Problem was it gave me a bit of a taste for the finer things in scopes and I ended up jumping on a deal for a S&B.
That said, I had no issues with the Ares. The glass quality is good, the turrets feel great, and the magnification rings and parallax have the right amount of tension to them to feel right. My only complain was that the screw holding the turret on top was a coinslot screw, which just felt out of place on a scope clearly aimed towards the growing precision rifle market.
That said, I had no issues with the Ares. The glass quality is good, the turrets feel great, and the magnification rings and parallax have the right amount of tension to them to feel right. My only complain was that the screw holding the turret on top was a coinslot screw, which just felt out of place on a scope clearly aimed towards the growing precision rifle market.
Let me say if I hadn’t bought both I would be very happy with the pst. With them both side by side the glass was better in the etr to my eyes. U might like the pst better. I’m splitting hairs with these two. They are close just liked the etr better.
The pst got a little dark at max magnification. The etr was not as bad at 30x as the 25 on th pst. Also u have the extra 5 power that helps a little spotting hits at long range. Etr also has more elevation adjustment.
I like the size of the pst better. The etr clicks are really loud and crisp. Don’t really know how to say it. They are both good. Neither are mushy. I think I prefer the pst and razor turrets being bigger around though.
A lot more travel on the ETR compared to the PST, which is a function of the 34mm tube in the same way that the better optical clarity can be somewhat related to the 56mm vs 50mm objective (in similarly priced optics with similar glass).
I personally like that the turrets on the PST don't move up and down as you dial, while the Ares does, but I prefer the feel of the turrets on the Ares compared to the Vortex (more tactile IMO). The Ares also feels more readable to me since the numbers and markings are larger, though the turrets on the PST are more compact if that's a concern.
A lot of good infor here, keep it coming! I don’t know if I could swing it, but is the razor that much better of a scope?
I had an ETR I borrowed from a friend that I was using before I got this pre BTR Cronus. Its a very nice scope, the glass between the ares etr and the pre BTR Cronus is pretty close. Locking turrets and reticle on the ETR better than my Cronus.
Just shot a hog with my ctr topped with an ETR. Scope is a little overkill for the woods but wanted to get something with my 6.5.
I’m liking the scope a lot though
I’m liking the scope a lot though
Be financially responsible. If the ETR meets your needs and the razor is out of your allotted budget for a scope than stick with the Athlon.
However, the G2 razor is that much better than the ETR. You can pick one up on the used market to avoid the initial depreciation.
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I mean, that's what I ended up doing after using my ETR for a while
. It was the best scope I had at the time and gave me a taste for what it's like to run scopes with more and more clarity, so I ended up saving and taking the plunge when I found a good deal. I would absolutely buy another ETR though if I was putting together another rig for hunting, since their warranty is worry free and I wouldn't be concerned about it accidentally banging around in the timber.
I haven't had the opportunity to get being my ETR, but am looking forward to it. Sadly yesterday my AthlonBTR broke so its heading back to Kansas as we speak. (It had tracked spot on, on a 300 WM for slightly over a year, with LOTS of shooting.) On the BTR, the Elevation turret quiet adjusting, and there was some movement in the exterior tube housing same.
I'm thinking of putting the ETR on a 338 Lapua to.. give it a real torture test. Will report back when I have some solid data.
I'm thinking of putting the ETR on a 338 Lapua to.. give it a real torture test. Will report back when I have some solid data.
I prefer screws that use hex wrenches instead of a coin to undo them. Easier to use and harder to slip out and scratch the scope during use.
Better glass, turrets, and reticles in the ETR. The ETR is also only available in a 4.5-30x magnification range.
Splined turrets are mechanically superior to set screw turrets.
The turrets on the Ares ETR is splined. The turret can only be placed on one of the markings.
The turret is still held down on the spline with a screw.
Oh, wait, you mean to say you prefer splined turrets but with a hex screw on top like a Bushnell?
Errrr, my bushnells (lrtsi on the right) have the coin slot but yeah, the screw that holds it on is what I think pretzel is referring to.
I've been shooting several 22RF bolt repeaters with mostly pre-BTR Cronus scopes, and have been very pleased with these scopes. A year or so ago, I put a pre-BTR Cronus on a Bighorn TL2 Dasher, and took it and a custom 7-08 Improved 30* with an Ares ETR down to the 600yd line on my range. It was an unusually dark, overcast day, and my impression was that the ETR was very bit as clear & bright as the Cronus. To be fair to the Cronus, I noticed some water spotting on its objective lens later while cleaning both rifles at home. I'd had it out on a day with some really light drizzle, and hadn't wiped the objective lens clear afterwards. That could very well have been the reason I thought the ETR's glass was at least as good as the Cronus on that dark afternoon. Whatever - the ETR didn't get any darker at 30x than the Cronus did at 29x, so there isn't a tremendous amout of difference on that point. I do believe the Cronus has a little bigger eyebox than the ETR, noticeable when both are set to approx 24x-25x, and more pronounced when you're running them both at max power. Some guys categorize the Cronus' knobs as mushy, but personally, I find it easier to dial one click at a time with them compared to the very sharp/distinct clicks of the ETR. Now that I've run this ETR on a 40XB 22RF repeater, the 7-08 Imp mentioned above, and a M70 in 6x47 Lapua, its elevation turret has smoothed out a bit, or worn-in, and is now easier to get that one click when that's all you're after. Never had a complaint on the click/detent of my Cronus turrets, and I'm running four of them.
I really need to run a tall target & box test with this ETR - have done so with all four of the Cronus scopes on the 22RF repeaters, and having had excellent results with them, it boosted my confidence in their tracking. Have not had any memorable issues with the tracking of this one ETR, but doing the tall target & box test would only increase my confidence in its tracking & repeatability.
I really need to run a tall target & box test with this ETR - have done so with all four of the Cronus scopes on the 22RF repeaters, and having had excellent results with them, it boosted my confidence in their tracking. Have not had any memorable issues with the tracking of this one ETR, but doing the tall target & box test would only increase my confidence in its tracking & repeatability.
Exactly this.
The tradition of coin slots on any scopes except the most basic ones meant for hunting needs to die a quick dealth. They're garbage and you always end up slipping out of the coin slot and scuffing up your turret.
Until they redo the turrets in the Cronus and make it like the ETR. I would get the ETR... the turrets in the ETR blow away any i felt at that price range there is nothing even in the ballpark.
yea im wondering if the fact that the cronus BTR is made by Light Optical Works in japan is worth the extra cost. the make stuff for NF, Vortex Razor Gen 2, and a lot of other high end optics and I think that says a lot about how robust and well machined the cronus btr will be compared to ares etr. as an aside, the reticle in the cronus BTR has a bigger floating dot (.04 vs .03) and thinner lines (.25 vs .3). on the other hand the ETR has waaay more windage and a locking wind turret and is made in china hmmm.
i know that the turrets on the ares etr feel better, but that aside, are they structurally better in any way or is it just a bigger detent/hole for the metal to make the clicking feeling with?
i know that the turrets on the ares etr feel better, but that aside, are they structurally better in any way or is it just a bigger detent/hole for the metal to make the clicking feeling with?
I've been running my etr pretty hard. Hard enough I put a dent in the end of it. My tracking test has me off by 1/10 mil right around 13 mils. Parallax has been forgiving enough for me in prs style matches. I do lose the floating dot at times when I've got a dark grey steel plate or a ragged hole paper group if I dont turn the illumination on. Return to zero has been perfect so far.
1 click at 13 mils is pretty good honestly. this test was in 2014, but still.
Budy of mine has the Cronus BTR... He bought 2 ETRs already this year instead of more Cronus...
Resurrecting a three year old thread (don't say I didn't use search!) To see how long term Athlon ETR owners have had their scopes fair?
Looking at this for a 308 bolt gun
Looking at this for a 308 bolt gun
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