Rifle Scopes S&B PM II 5-25 vs. NF ATACR 7-35

[Nik H]

Kinda a side bar, but I lump S&B PMII, TT, and ZP5 into the same viewing “class.” I think TT still has the best glass/image, but the ZCO in my uneducated optical opinion is a completely different experience than any of the aforementioned.

Can you summarize what you think about the ZCO? It sounds like you place it above all. Would love to hear about what you think of it. I am very interested in what you think of the turrets. Turret functionality and reticle layout is more important to me than anything else. The turrets sit lower than the NF ATACR turrets so I am wondering if they have good tactile feel and how easy they are to read. This is a hallmark of NF.

 

[blbennett1288]

Can you summarize what you think about the ZCO? It sounds like you place it above all. Would love to hear about what you think of it. I am very interested in what you think of the turrets. Turret functionality and reticle layout is more important to me than anything else. The turrets sit lower than the NF ATACR turrets so I am wondering if they have good tactile feel and how easy they are to read. This is a hallmark of NF.

I don't place ZCO above them all. I still think the Tangent Theta is king in glass/turrets/parallax.

The different experience I think comes from the 36mm tube which gives the ZCO a massive image. It's like going from a medium size TV to an extremely large TV. You immediately notice the image size difference and take a liking to it quickly. It leaves you with that "Holy Sh*t" moment and burns an impression in you. I have looked through 35mm tube scopes before that did not give me the same impression, so I am not sure if it is a function of tube size or something ZCO specifically did in the design. Whatever it is, it is extremely nice. At this time I don't think it is an apples to apples comparison when looking at the 34mm tubes (unless of course it is not a function of tube size).

Clarity and resolution are on par with Tangent Theta. I think the contrast is a bit different and has more of that european "pop"

The controls and ergonomics are excellent. The magnification ring is the best I have seen. The parallax is great, not as good as the Tangent Theta, but if focuses down to 25 meters.

I think the turrets are on par with NF. They are more audible than NF, but slightly less tactile. The are extremely quick, much like the NF. The spacing is good on them also. I could take it or leave the locking feature on the elevation. I would prefer to not have to mess with it.

The reticles are extremely nice and modern. I do think the reticle is a bit thick. The reticle thickness is only 0.036, but in use it looks substantially larger than NF's 0.04 thickness. This again might have to do with the size of the image.

I would not hesitate to run a ZCO over a TT, if simply for the larger image.