Optics/Sights

The brand new Meostar 1-6×24 RD is the first in the new R2 line. Light transmission is one of the most important factors in the performance of any optic, and this series knocks it out of the park with an incredible 99.8% light transmission per glass. The result is clear, bright, sharp images that make acquiring your target faster and easier. In the faster and easier category, you have to also include the two reticles that are available, both with an illuminated red dot in the center. In 1 power, you see a clear, edge-to-edge image with both eyes open for quick target acquisition in fast moving scenarios. But you also have the option to go all the way out to 6 power for those long shots. The eyepiece is a fast-focus design allowing you to quickly zoom in or out for the best solution on your target. The red dot illumination system is also new from Meopta. It’s bright enough to see in the brightest daylight yet can be dimmed enough for low light situations, like at the end of the day when the animals are coming out to feed. We’ll be doing a full review soon. In the meantime, check out this video of the latest offering in compact yet high performance and rugged riflescopes. MSRP is $1,595 for a high quality scope that may be all you’ll need to get the most from your rifle.

EOTech holographic sights have earned worldwide popularity in law enforcement, military and civilian markets. In fact, there are a half million Model 512 and 552 sights in circulation. EOTech’s newest product, the Model 552 Laser Battery cap, adds to the capability of these popular sights by adding a pair of lasers. Available as an option on a new Model 552, or as an upgrade for sights already in the field, the Laser Battery Cap simply replaces the existing battery cap. On one side is a red visible laser. On the other side is an infrared laser for use with night vision devices. The addition of an optional remote pressure switch lets you turn them on or off as your needs dictate while keeping both hands on the weapon.

You can always tell which guns are surprisingly good by how many fans they have. Howa, a Japanese firearm maker that dates back to WWII Arisaka rifles, is one of those companies that if you say a bad word, hundreds of defender fanboys and girls will appear out of the woodwork to explain how you are mistaken. Maybe not the biggest kept secret in the gun world, Howas are great guns, and they are imported exclusively under their own brand through Legacy Sports International. Howa also makes the Weatherby Vangaurd, and the two rifles are for the most part interchangeable. This Howa 1500 Zeiss combo is a new gun for 2014, and we were able to test it before SHOT Show. Our test gun is a .308 Winchester, with a 3-9x power Zeiss sporting optic. The Zeiss is likewise made in Japan, not Germany or America like the flagship Zeiss products, but like most Japanese optics we have tested, it is clear as a bell with great edge clarity. The rifle itself is flawless, and a tack driver with factory Hornady ammo. Howa also has a nifty three-position safety, so you can open the bolt to unload your round with the trigger blocked. The Howa 1500 is a high-end rifle with a middle-of-the-road price. We don’t have a price for this gun yet, but most Howa rifle/scope packages go for $650-$800, and this one should fall somewhere in there as well.

When you think of laser sights, you think of Crimson Trace. A pioneer in civilian and law enforcement aiming tools, Crimson Trace has earned its place at the top by providing high-quality products at reasonable prices for a wide variety of firearms. Now, when I say ‘reasonable prices’, I don’t mean cheap. A decent laser sight for your pistol has been a decision that would set you back a few hundred bucks easily, making it a hard purchase to justify for a lot of folks. For 2013 however, Crimson Trace has created a new model line to address the market for a lower-cost but fully functioning laser sight. At a list price between $129 and $149, or roughly the price of a good set of night sights, you can now equip your self-defense handgun with an easy-to-use laser. it is currently available for all Glock and Springfield Armory XD/XD-M handguns, as well as the Ruger LCP and most Smith & Wesson and Taurus J-Frame and small revolvers.

It wasn’t long ago that Vegas would have given you better chances of capturing Yeti and domesticating him into a beer-fetching manservant than finding a decent American-made riflescope for around $200. The Redfield Revolution 2-7×33 mm beats the odds, but its performance proved far from flawless after finding the scope’s mechanical zero proved an elusive, time-draining challenge during testing.

AR-15s are everywhere. With a couple mods, we even have them in the civilian market in California. There are all kinds of things I can do with this 50-year old platform, from different barrels, mounts, or stocks I can find with the click of a mouse. I can make it look like a Christmas tree with all the gizmos and gadgets I’ve found. But really, the trick is to pick the things you really need on your AR. For me the most import thing is an optic. I can make do with iron sights fine, but as I get older, an optic makes it much easier to actually see my sight picture and hit my target. My problem is that scopes are just plain pricey these days. If you want a name brand, many of which are battle tested by our military, you’re looking at the $600+ range new, which is almost like buying another rifle. Going into SHOT Show this year, I was curious about the optics that are under $200, and that seem to be reliable for the AR-15 platform.

Blowing the shot can be caused by a lot of things. You may not have zeroed your rifle properly. You may not have been able to get a steady rest in time, or more often than not, you may have figured out the wrong holdover. Even the best shooter, given the pressure of a shot that needs to be shot right now, can blow a big shot, without even having to do quick math and calculate a holdover. Anyone can blow a shot, all factors considered, so any advantage you can pick up from your gear, the better.

We have covered several “rangefinding” scopes in the past. Some require math and some don’t, but by far the most advanced range estimating scope out there is the Burris Eliminator Laserscope. It has a built in rangefinder, and after you set it up for the ballistics of your rifle and cartridge, it gives you a .33 MOA dot for exact holdover. Sounds too good to be true right? At a pricetag of $949 MSRP, this is not an inexpensive toy mind you, but it does work. We got a chance to put the Burris Eliminator through its paces, and it works pretty good actually

Carlos Hathcock is probably the most famous sniper of all time. He had 93 confirmed kills in Vietnam, and until recently held the world record for a sniper shot at over 2500 yards, using a Browning M2 .50 cal. machinegun. During his entire career as a sniper, Carlos Hathcock used a U. S. Marines version of a Unertl precision riflescope. This was standard issue on his Winchester Model 70 sniper rifle, and he even used the same scope on the .50 cal. for his record shot. It is an odd scope by today’s standards. There are no internal adjustments to zero these old style Unertls. The scopes adjusts with turrets integral to the rear scope mount, and the tube of the scope floats inside adjustment pins. To buy an original of this USMC scope today would cost you thousands, but Hi-Lux/Leatherwood this past year released an exact replica, called the 8X Malcolm USMC, and the scope really great, but hard to mount. It has an MSRP of $549 and the internet and street price is slightly below that. Hi-Lux sent us one, with the mounting hardware, and we were able to have it mounted for a full range test. Our friends at the American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) agreed to help us and you by making an instruction video on the difficult mounting process, included here, in the style of their monthly magazine and DVD subscription called GunTech that is available to their Gun Club of America gunsmith student members. If you have any interest in mounting this scope, the video will save you or your gunsmith a lot of headaches.

Even though there were little .380 pistols on the market before it, the introduction of Ruger’s LCP set off a .380 buying craze to such a degree that there were localized ammunition shortages. These guns are now so prevalent among the concealed carry crowd that shooting schools are, for the first time I can recall, teaching specialized little gun tactics and courses. There are a lot of benefits to such a compact defensive package, but as with many things in life, to get something you have to give up something.