Well said Pete,
I've used a Lightstream 4.5-14x44 for a full year of FT (SFT Grade), HFT and I have one on my CZ rimfire too. I use it for HFT between 9 ad 45 yards, FT between 8 and 55 yards and all the way up to 115 yards for long range rabbits with the rimmy (Leaving parallax set at 70 yards). Typically i use 12 mag for SFT, 9 mag for HFT and 10 mag for the rimfire.
The Lightstream has performed outstandingly well for target work (according to my trophy cabinet) and hasn't let me down in the field (according to my freezer!), even with all of the different mag and parallax settings. Myself and Pete had a one-two in the Anglo American last year using lightstreams, and I also won the UKAHFT Matchplay with mine.
In all my years of shooting (airgun, small bore, full bore and big game), I have been fortunate to have used some of the very finest optics ever built, and I can say with some certainly that the Lightstream offers a level of performance far beyond its pricetag. But like anything else, you have to put the work in to get the best out of it.
It all really comes down to setting up your stock properly so that your eye falls consistently and effortlessly behind the scope, and then concentrating carefully on your position. I have tested over 20 different air rifles over the past year using a Lightstream, and only 2 have allowed me to position my head in a way that I am consistenly at the centre of the eyepiece. Both had adjustable stocks.
I originally used 10 mag for HFT, but switched to 9 because with a 25 yards parallax setting I could still see the exact point of impact of my pellet as it hit a target at 45 yards (kill or plate). 10 mag was a little too blurry for this, but the point of impact is still identical (according to my paper targets).
I don't sell Lightstreams, nor am I sentimentally attached to the brand. However I do feel that they have been given a bit of a rough time by a few shooters, and this has led to others choosing not to give them a fair crack of the whip. Everyones eyes are different, and everyone wants something different from a scope, so you owe it to yourself to try as many as possible. Everyone thinks their kit is best, but with such a wide range of rifle and scope combos winning each week, everyone must be right!