Guns Illustrated 2011. Dan ShidelerЧитать онлайн книгу.

      Leupold has re-introduced the Redfield brand, with binoculars and Rifle-scopes built in Oregon.

      Pentax binoculars include a7x50 Marine model with built-in compass on a liquid bearing for fast dampening. Waterproof, with twist-up eye-cups and a click-stop diopter ring, the rubber-armored 7x50 has all the best features of the Pentax roof-prism DCF roof prism binoculars. These come in 8x, 10x and 12.5x, with 32mm to 50mm objectives, with phase-corrected prisms in alloy and polycarbonate shells. A Porro prism PCF line includes 8x40, 10x50, 12x50 and 20x60 binoculars. Among my favorite hunting glasses is an unlikely choice: the Pentax 9x28 BCF LV. Despite its modest exit pupil, this binocular gives me bright images, and at 13 ounces it’s eminently portable. I like the twist-out eyecups, click-stop diopter. The surface is easy to grip. Other good choices for the trail: 8x36 and 10x36 DCF NV roof-prism glasses. (Pentaxsportoptics.com.)

      SCHMIDT & BENDER

      Long revered for excellence in rifle-scopes, Schmidt & Bender has hewed mainly to the European traditions of big tubes and first-plane reticles. Last year S&B announced its first 1-inch riflescope for the American market. The 16-ounce 2.5-10x40 Summit has a rear-plane reticle. Optically, it seems to me the equivalent of higher-priced Classic and top-end Zenith lines. It has the right power range and profile for at least 99 percent of all big game hunting! Recent changes in S&B administration have not shifted its main focus. A small company by most standards, S&B still caters to people who want the very best in optical sights. Its roots lie in the hunting fi eld, but it has brought innovation to the tactical table too. Three years ago a S&B 3-12x was adopted by the U.S. Marine Corps for its 30- and 50-caliber sniper rifles. Its 34mm Police/Marksman scopes rank among the most sophisticated LE sights around. Lighted mil dot reticles, as on S&B’s 4-16x42 P/M II, come with 11-setting turret-mounted rheostats. The automatic shutoff saves battery while the previous setting automatically engages when you hit the illumination switch again. A side-mounted parallax adjustment hides the battery cage. Windows on windage and elevation knobs show you where the reticle is in its adjustment range. Flash-dot reticles incorporate a beam-splitter to illuminate a dead-center dot, which vanishes at a touch if you desire just the black reticle. The Police/Marksman line now comprises 17 scopes with 30mm and 34mm tubes. The latest is a 5-25x56 PM II with locking turrets.

      For hunting, I’ve come to favor S&B’s 3-12x42 Classic, a versatile, durable, good-looking 30mm scope that delivers brilliant, tack-sharp images. I like the 6x42 and 10x42 fixed-power Classics as well, available with 1-inch and 30mm chassis. The Zenith series comprises four 30mm variables: 1.1-4x24, 1.5-6x42 (a great hunting sight!), 2.5-10x56, 3-12x50. They wear the P/M’s “Posicon” windage and elevation dials. (Schmidt-bender. de or scopes@cyberportal.net [the website of its U.S. importer].)

      Author bears down offhand with a Weatherby Vanguard Rifle and Bushnell Elite 6500 scope.

      SHEPHERD

      The advantages and disadvantages of front- and rear-plane scope reticles are clear. A front-plane reticle grows in apparent size as you dial up the power but stays the same size in relation to the target. It does not move out of the optical center of the scope, and as a range-finding device it gives you the same picture no matter what the magni-fi cation. But at long range, where targets appear small and you want precise aim, the reticle can obscure the aiming point. Up close, when you power down for quick shots in thickets, the reticle shrinks, becoming hard to see quickly. A second-plane reticle stays the same apparent size throughout the power range, so it won’t hide distant targets at high magnifi cation, and it won’t vanish when you turn down the power to find game quickly up close. But because its dimensional relationship to the target changes with every change in magnifi ca-tion, range-finding becomes a task best limited to one power setting.

      Shepherd scopes offer both reticles. You get an aiming reticle that doesn’t change size and a range-finding reticle that varies in dimension with power changes. Superimposed, the front- and rear-plane reticles appear as one. The former comprises a stack of circles of decreasing diameter. To determine yardage, match a deer-size (18-inch) target with one of the circles. Correct holdover is factored in because the circles are placed to compensate for bullet drop. A trio of range-finding reticles suit the trajectories of popular cartridges. Vertical and horizontal scales are marked in minutes of angle so you can compensate for wind. The 6-18x M556 Shepherd is specially designed for AR-style rifles. I’ve used these sights; they work as advertised. An amigo has a 6-18x that he says “is really unfair to coyotes.” (Shepherdscopes.com.)

      Dave Anderson’s Weatherby Rifle sports a Zeiss Victory scope. Some now feature FL glass.

      SIGHTRON

      Magnesium is 33 percent lighter than aluminum, so hunters should appreciate Sightron’s SIIIMS line of binoculars. New for 2010, it includes 8x32, 10x32, 8x42 and 10x42 roof-prism, magnesium-frame glasses scaling 20 to 25 ounces. The 8x32 is my choice. All feature phase-corrected, multi-coated optics and twist-up eye-cups. The company is also listing a new ESD – Electronic Sighting Device. It’s a 33mm red dot sight with a 5-minute dot. Choose from eight intensity levels. Recession got you? Sightron’s S1 scopes are bargain-priced but feature multicoated front and rear lenses. Pick from a broad selection of reticles, finishes and power ranges. SII and SIII series are up-grades. Like its competition, Sightron is now offering a range-compensating reticle with dots spaced out on the lower wire. Several high-power variables have joined the Sightron family this year. A new SIII Tactical Fixed Power line comprises 10x, 16x, and 20x scopes with 42mm objectives, 30mm tubes.

      A Swarovski variable on an Ultra Light rifle helped Dori Riggs collect this fi ne warthog.

      All told, the 2010 catalog lists more than 50 scopes in SI, SII and SIII series. Long Range models feature 30mm tubes, turret-mounted parallax dials and reticles that include a mil dot and an illuminated German #4A. Target knobs are tall for easy access. From the 3.5-10x44 to the 8-32x56, these scopes feature fully multicoated optics in one-piece tubes, with resettable ExacTrack windage and elevation adjustments and a fast-focus eyepiece. External lenses wear “Zact-7,” a seven-layer coating to reduce light loss. A hydrophobic wash disperses raindrops. Eye relief approaches four inches. An SII 1.25-5x20 Dangerous Game sight with over six inches of clear tube has replaced the 2.5x20 that has served me well on hard-kicking rifles. High-power variables and 36x benchrest sights have front-end parallax sleeves. I like the dot reticle in these scopes, also available on the 5-20x42. Sightron’s Hunter Holdover reticle for hunting scopes incorporates a couple of simple hash marks on the lower wire. Specify it on 3-9x42, 3-12x42 and 45.5-14x42 SIIs, and on the 3-9x40 SI. In my experience, Sightron scopes deliver great value for the dollar. (Sightron.com.)

      Zeiss introduced its range-finding binocular a couple of years ago. It’s a marvelous instrument!

      Modestly priced, new Redfi eld Rifle-scopes have fi nger-friendly dials, very good optics.

      STEINER

      Aggressively pursuing hunting markets

---

Скачать книгу