Sightron SIII LRMOA

[Si-snipe]

SIII review

I have used a Sightron scope on my 6.5x47 for the last 18 months for mixture of target shooting and long range varmint work . I initially had an SIII with the LRTD (fine cross hair with 0.125MOA dot) reticle which I found excellent for shooting at long range during the day. The limitations of the reticle became obvious to me and I started to miss the aim points of a ballistic reticle offering for long range correction/follow-up shots.

So recently I decided to go for the new SIII with the LRMOA reticle, tactical turrets and in the same mag range (8-32) as well as a 6-24x50 LRMOA for my 17 Remington.

Immediate impressions were that the glass was of the same high quality I expected from the previous scope. The turrets were slightly more 'chunky' with sharper more prominent edging. They are permanently exposed (unlike the target turrets) and are adjusted via a single torque bolt at the top of the turret (instead of 3 sunken grub screws like on the target version). This single top bolt system has both a positive and a negative from my perspective. The negative point being that when you reset the turret there is a chance of rotating the turret as the bolt is slackened thus losing the exact zero point if you're not careful. The flip side is the speed and ease of resetting to zero. By backing off the single torque bolt the turret has immediate freedom to reset to an infinite position of your choosing. The trick is to lightly nip them up lightly to minimise the chances of making this mistake when you have to loosen them. Although the gold labeling on the turrets and zoom ring may not be to everyone's taste it is clear to read.
Tracking is well known to be superb on these scopes. I regularly dial in out to 900 yards and always returns to zero without fault.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u...971916-1-1.jpg

The mag zoom ring is smooth and easy to adjust. There is a marker dot on 24x to remind the shooter that on this mag setting the reticle subtension markers represent 2MOA. Incidentally on 32x these markers have a value of 1.5MOA between each line.

The scope comes complete with sunshade, lens cloth, scope bag, lens flip-up covers, MOA reticle subtension info and scope manual.

In the field the scope offers a crisp picture with neutral colours. Not a vibrant colourful picture like a Bushnell 4200 (which we compared it to also) or a Swarovski but rather a flat, neutral colour image with good sharpness which offers a good sight picture in most conditions. I compared the scope to Richness's IOR 9-36 which I thought it stacked up well against. Comparable sharpness and resolution. We weren't able to try them in low light so i can't comment further.
We tested the reticle sub-tensions many times for their practical use in the field.
I will share an example of this now. As a spotter and shooter team my friend dialled in elevation and windage and sent a shot at a target 450 yards away. We both had our SIII's on 24x and I knew the point of his aim through prior conversation. I held my centre dot on his POA. The shot landed right of the target and I could see immediately it was half way to the first windage marker so I called 1MOA adjustment. He dialled (instead of holding off) and sent the next shot which landed centre target.
I have used mine for long range vermin control over the last few weeks. Hold off shots are ideal with this reticle. If the first shot lands off the target due to incorrect windage then holding the centre dot on the target as part of the follow through allows the shooter to quickly measure the correction needed according to the bullet splash and shift the reticle section where the bullet strike was over to the target centre and follow in swiftly (before the wind changes). Nearly all ballistic type rets allow this type of shooting. The MOA reticle also allow you to measure group sizes and change between dialling and hold off techniques for follow up or correction shots.
I was shooting into a snow patch at 890 yards and was clearly able to measure the shot impact spacings using the reticle and also measure any correction needed the same can be done on short grass etc.
If I was being critical I would like to have seen 1 MOA spacing at 24x instead if 2.
The centre dot is a perfect size to offer a blend of precision and visibility in low light.
It is not too large to obscure small vermin or targets and still remains perfectly visible when used in conjunction with a lamp.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u...1333971720.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u...1333971652.jpg

How does it perform with NV?
I have used the 6-24 with a gen 1 add-on NV unit and IR lamp/filter. With this combination as was able to shoot rabbits out to 180yds.
My friend using a gen 3 add-on and IR laser was very impressed with it and can shoot foxes and rabbits in excess of 200 yards with ease.

The finish on I feel the Sightron SIII range is of good quality and are consistent from scope to scope. I would happily have a third one if I get another CF rifle.

If you want any further info please contact me.

Si

[Spanner.]

Very good review. I would agree on resetting the turrets as I have done it twice now without detecting any movement when loosening the turrets but both times the POI changed by a couple of inches.

I now have a thin sliver of a sticker on each turret to mark the zero point which slightly defeats the object and is annoying but I will forgive it this as most of the rest of the scope is very very good for the money I paid from the US.

The only other two negatives for me are I am a leftie and adjust the Parallax with my right hand when shooting over the top of the scope, the PA ring was very stiff for me using it this way. It now wears a Coaster which has sorted the problem.

The flip ups provided I also found crap and pull off the scope when you try and open them.

However as I have said it is still an extremely good scope, optically and for tracking it is spot on with a great reticule.

[Si-snipe]

Covers provided are good enough to get perhaps a years use out of but need replacing really depending on the intended use etc. I replaced them on the 6-24 with BC's as it is always getting thrown about in the truck on the 17 Rem and used frequently. The standard ones would not last with real field usage.

[WINK]

should have one off the above to play with shortly be nice to compare with the weaver classic extreme 2.5-10x56 s/f another jap scope..which i will add is superb with a pvs 14 on the back..letts see how the sightron stacks up.

[Si-snipe]

should have one off the above to play with shortly be nice to compare with the weaver classic extreme 2.5-10x56 s/f another jap scope..which i will add is superb with a pvs 14 on the back..letts see how the sightron stacks up.

Cool. Feel free to add the results to this thread.

[Tommo]

Got the 8x24x50 LRMOA today. An excellent scope purchase justified even more so by your excellent review.

[Dodder]

Great review, I am contemplating the purchase of one of these for my .17 (if I ever find one!) - Are these also 1/8MOA clicks and are you able to give us an idea of cost and where best to get one please?

[Tommo]

.... are you able to give us an idea of cost and where best to get one please?

Here you go...

http://aimfieldsports.com/epages/www...SS6-24x50LRMOA


Give them a ring, ask for John. Cost as advertised.

[WINK]

should have one off the above to play with shortly be nice to compare with the weaver classic extreme 2.5-10x56 s/f another jap scope..which i will add is superb with a pvs 14 on the back..letts see how the sightron stacks up.

got the scope last week first impressions looks very we'll made..very stiff clicks..but VERY stiff side focus on this scope looking through the the scope..first impression's..very sharp clear optics decided to get the weaver classic extreme out for a comparison both were similar priced jap scope's the weaver is a .2.5-10x56 set both scopes on the same mag 6.5 it was a bright sunny day ...looking at a chiminey 50 yards away it was immediately apparent there was a difference in mag the weaver brought the chiminey a lot closer confirmed by 3 sets off eyes 2 old i youngoptically it was found the weaver was slightly sharper but colour retention was a lot better in the weaver and object's looked more natural. also more colour fringing in the sightron looked more off a milky image especially when you increased the mag' the weaver never gave this impresion colour's were viberant and the image stayed very sharp and bright even in bright sunlight. i will put the sightron on a .22mag and box test it' not expecting any probs in this department. a good all round rifle scope even cheaper in the statesthe weaver was the deal off the century..300.dollers on a closeout....ok with nv i put a 14 on the back..very similar in performence with no apparent mag differences when set at the same mag..the weaver was just that bit sharper and brighter up to 10 magthe weaver on lower mag's was superb..from 2.5.to 8.

[Ruger_shooter]

That was a great review, informative and objective. Thinking of one of these scopes so found this very helpful. Is this the scope you were using in the 800+ yard shooting on Sir-Slots recent video???

[Parabuteo]

I recently got hold of an 8-32x56 LRTD for F/TR shooting. An excellent piece of kit, great optics, and it works exactly as it should except for one aspect.

Why, in the name of all things that go bang did Sightron have the vernier scale on the turrets with zero in the middle, going up from the centre in both directions?

In other words, if the turret is wound down, as you wind it up, the ruddy numbers decrease....so you have to anottate any note +3 or -3 etc depending what side of zero it is.

This is not a problem with the windage, as I am hoping not to wind it a full turn either way...ideally

Given the turret has 10MOA per turn, and the vernier hash marks are 10MOA apart, why not just leave them unmarked, or mark them 0,10,20 etc like a target vernier would be?

This way you have a workable, readable, repeatable way of setting and recording elevation and zeros.

That said, at least they actually have something useful on there (unlike a lot of scope manufacturers).

I had a chat with John Dean about this. I am going to pop my elevation turret off and cover the numbers with some very fine graphic film, then re-mark them so as to avoid any confusion. John indicated that this would not invalidate my warranty, and was intererested to see how it goes.

My scope is being fitted to a brand new F/TR rig as I write this, so the repeatable/dialable zeros is a must in my opinion.

It is the only slightly niggly fault that is just frustrating, but otherwise a fantatstic bit of kit

[junkyard dog]

I recently got hold of an 8-32x56 LRTD for F/TR shooting. An excellent piece of kit, great optics, and it works exactly as it should except for one aspect.

Why, in the name of all things that go bang did Sightron have the vernier scale on the turrets with zero in the middle, going up from the centre in both directions?

In other words, if the turret is wound down, as you wind it up, the ruddy numbers decrease....so you have to anottate any note +3 or -3 etc depending what side of zero it is.

This is not a problem with the windage, as I am hoping not to wind it a full turn either way...ideally

Given the turret has 10MOA per turn, and the vernier hash marks are 10MOA apart, why not just leave them unmarked, or mark them 0,10,20 etc like a target vernier would be?

This way you have a workable, readable, repeatable way of setting and recording elevation and zeros.

That said, at least they actually have something useful on there (unlike a lot of scope manufacturers).

I had a chat with John Dean about this. I am going to pop my elevation turret off and cover the numbers with some very fine graphic film, then re-mark them so as to avoid any confusion. John indicated that this would not invalidate my warranty, and was intererested to see how it goes.

My scope is being fitted to a brand new F/TR rig as I write this, so the repeatable/dialable zeros is a must in my opinion.

It is the only slightly niggly fault that is just frustrating, but otherwise a fantatstic bit of kit

I have the 8.5*32*56 LRMOA 2 and the turrets on that scope are great 15 MOA per turn. The turrets are marked 1-15 each one in 1/4 MOA increments, couldn't be simpler. Shot this scope the other week at4, 5 and 600yds, with the scope zeroed at 100yds just dialed in the the required MOA and the only thing left was to sort out the windage.

[Parabuteo]

I have the 8.5*32*56 LRMOA 2 and the turrets on that scope are great 15 MOA per turn. The turrets are marked 1-15 each one in 1/4 MOA increments, couldn't be simpler. Shot this scope the other week at4, 5 and 600yds, with the scope zeroed at 100yds just dialed in the the required MOA and the only thing left was to sort out the windage.

Likewise, I shoot F/TR.

There is nothing wrong with the turrets on my scope either. The MOA and divisons are very clear. But check out the stadia/Verier lines on the area beneath the turret (If you have target turrets).

Mine is 1/8 MOA adjustment, and is a fantastic scope. Very simple as I say because it has 10MOA per turn.

But, given you may use different rounds, and have to dial in zeros from 300-1200, you have a hell of a lot of potential zero's that dont lie within a 10MOA range of one turn, so you need to be able to read the vernier beneath the turret and it be instantly obvious where you are, or when you go past one turn....

Now, since each line is not numbered, it is not readilly obvious which way the numbers go, so, if you are between say 30-40MOA, the next range could appear to be 20MOA, or 40MOA, but you wont know as the line has no number, and the next one is obscured by the turret.

It works once you are aware that it numbers either way of zero (which lets face it, it does not need to, target verniers dont do this, only for windage) and its values increase either side of zero (again, fine for windage in a PH type sight where you can see the zero, but useless on a vertical turret) then you are fine, but it would be better if it started at 0, and went up in 10MOA values (in line with the vertical stadia and the MOA per turn in the case of the LRTD).

It also means you may have to have + and - values for elevation, but only if the turret goes above zero and starts counting up. Not ideal on a plotting diagram.

I have split hairs a bit here, as I am refering to a different scope, but it is a bit odd given its design for target use. There is a lot going on in an F/TR comp, and the last thing anyone wants to do is wind the scope the wrong way or to the wrong zero, which is easy to do under comp conditions.

I ran this past John Dean (AIM) and Mik Maksimovic and the both agreed that all needed doing was the numbering sorted out (which I am going to try with some fine matte film I have).

But as I say, a very minor (but odd) niggle. A fantastic piece of kit and I would buy another in a blink.

[junkyard dog]

I get what your saying but I was pointing out that on the LRMOA2 model (with the larger exposed target turrets) the stadia/Verier lines on the area beneath the turret are all numbered albeit either side of zero.

[Parabuteo]

I get what your saying but I was pointing out that on the LRMOA2 model (with the larger exposed target turrets) the stadia/Verier lines on the area beneath the turret are all numbered albeit either side of zero.

Yea...and in what order???

See my point though JYD? A straight vernier starting at 0 and going to 80 (or whatever these go up to...I cant remember now, I get min eback on thursday lapped to a brand new Dolphin), would be much more useful as elevation tends not to go from 50-0-50...ono

Its a real shame with such a superb scope, still, nothing some patience and a bit of sticky backed plastic wont sort!!

What's yours bolted to chap?