Estimated reading time: 16 minutes
The Burris XTR PS 5.5-30x56mm let me dial 1,080 yards and hit steel on the first shot without counting clicks or digging through a DOPE chart. After a week of hard shooting, the bigger question was whether this $2,760 scope makes long-range shooting better, or almost too easy.
Table of contents
- 1,080 Yards at Elk Boot Camp: The Burris XTR PS Gets Real
- Burris XTR PS Meets the Tikka T3x Ace Game
- One Zero, Multiple Loads: Where the XTR PS Gets Clever
- Forget the DOPE Card: Dial the Distance and Shoot
- Burris XTR PS 5.5-30x56mm: Glass, Turrets, and Electronics
- Does the Burris XTR PS Make Long Range Too Easy?
- Who Should Spend $2,760 on the Burris XTR PS?
1,080 Yards, One Dial, and No Fear of Missing
Cicadas were clacking all around as I raised my hand, volunteering to take the first shot. This was the final target opportunity of a week packed with excellent shooting and hunting education. The late morning sun hadn’t quite crested onto the north side of the draw where I was splaying out the legs of my tripod. The prone position put my head slightly downhill of my feet, forcing me to crane my neck up to see through the Burris XTR PS scope. Although the target steel was 1,080 yards and 300 vertical feet away, the only thing that concerned me was getting scoped in the brow because of the weird angle. Missing the target wasn’t a concern: This scope had proven itself completely reliable throughout the week. I dialed the distance with the top turret, never taking my eye from the scope.
I nailed the steel with my first round. And my second and third. Then the other guys in my group walked up and nailed it, too. And we did it using only the box-posted ammo specs and the Burris app.
1,080 Yards at Elk Boot Camp: The Burris XTR PS Gets Real
The event was a hunt training camp sponsored by Burris Optics. Elk Hunting Boot Camp has become an annual event hosted by Process Based Hunter at the exquisite Day Mountain Ranch Resort outside Preston, Idaho. DMR boasts marvelous shooting facilities, including a covered long-distance range with benches, plus high-angle situational targets throughout its extensive mountainous acreage. During the boot camp, students from across the USA learned to use their rifles to shoot in all kinds of situations, from sitting at benches to lying on hillsides to shooting off-hand at long distance. They shot targets from 15 yards to over 1,000 yards and learned the limits of their gear and their skills.
Boot camp instructors included competitive pros and lifelong hunting guides, including the instructors Burris supplied. Situational shooting events filled each morning and afternoon, while classes on elk hunting techniques filled the hottest parts of the day and the evenings. The guides teaching the classes had all hunted elk and other critters around the world for decades. They were all experienced teachers, and I was impressed by their patience and generosity more than by their hunting knowledge.
Of course, the food and accommodations were excellent. Process Based Hunter supplied wild game from around the world for several of the dinners.
Burris XTR PS Meets the Tikka T3x Ace Game
I was at boot camp to put the Burris XTR PS 5.5-30 x 56mm scope through its paces. Before I arrived, I mounted the scope to a Tikka T3x Ace Game chambered in 6.5 PRC. This 8.8-pound chassis rifle with a 1:8 twist 24″ barrel and single-stage trigger is exceptional in its own right. Intended for both competitions and mountain hunts, it certainly made me a better shooter. I was shooting well under 1 MOA at the range at both 100 and 200 yards. Priced at a competitive $1,500, it deserves your consideration.
I’m not sure why, but zeroing this scope and rifle combination was the easiest it’s ever been for me. I mounted the scope with low Burris’s XTR Signature 34mm rings. The rings include Pos-Align inserts for various amounts of decline. I ended up with +40 MOA decline inside the rings. I like that I got that amount of decline without having to buy a different base, and the results were good out of the box without lapping the rings or any customization. I removed the action and boresighted the target at about 20 yards, then adjusted the top turret so the reticle was on target, too. Within three shots, I was hitting the center of my target at 100 yards.
Next, I connected the scope to my phone with the Burris Connect app. Using the app is simple enough, though it’s not quite as intuitive as I’d like. Still, I did it at the range, and within a few minutes I had found my cartridge information in the built-in catalog. You can customize the ballistics with actual speeds, etc., but I just used the data posted in the app for Hornady Precision Hunter 6.5 PRC 143-grain ELD-X ammo. I also tapped a button to instantly retrieve my elevation, current temperature, and density altitude. Then I pushed the button to upload the data to the scope. I’m not going step-by-step through the app, but this video from Burris is worth watching.
Watch Burris demonstrate the XTR PS and Burris Connect app.
As described in the video, there’s a display inside the scope. Using this, I zeroed the display with the turret. It’s worth noting that with the 40 MOA shims in the rings, I was at the absolute minimum setting on the turret, but it was just right. The top turret doesn’t have detents that click as you turn it. It turns smoothly all the way around, and the display shows you how far your reticle is targeting.
One Zero, Multiple Loads: Where the XTR PS Gets Clever
My favorite thing about using the app with the scope is that it allows you to instantly change ballistics if you switch ammo. Say you shoot one load for competitions, another for varmints, another for deer, and yet another for elk. In the app, you just select the ammo you’re using and upload the settings to the scope. Now, your turret is automatically calibrated to that ammo. There’s no looking at a different column on your minuscule DOPE printout on the stock. You just range it, dial it, and shoot. I think that’s rad.
Forget the DOPE Card: Dial the Distance and Shoot
My local range has steel plates at various distances. I ranged one 300 yards away, looked into the scope, and dialed the top turret to 300 yards. I pressed the trigger and rang the steel. I ranged another at 405, dialed it in, and rang the steel. I did this past 600 yards and never had to count clicks or consult a DOPE chart. I ran the turret up and down several times to see if it kept calibration, and rang the steels again. I was impressed.
This scope removes the in-the-moment distance calculations from the shooting experience. Because the turret lacks detents for MOA or MILs, it dials to the exact distance you range, not merely within 1/4 MOA of it. It dials to 1/30 MIL resolution.
Does this make shooting too easy? Does this remove the skill from long-distance shooting? Is this like AI in your rifle? Does it make you a dumb shooter?
Burris XTR PS 5.5-30x56mm: Glass, Turrets, and Electronics
When I was new to shooting, I would have appreciated understanding all the numbers in scope designations. The 5.5-30x is the magnification range. At its lowest zoom setting, the scope magnifies your view 5.5 times, and 30 times at its highest zoom. This is about a six-times erector ratio, and that’s a high ratio, which is technically challenging for the engineers to make work well. But the folks at Burris pulled it off very well.
It’s got a crisp image even at 30x, and I didn’t notice any chromatic aberration (fringes of color in high-contrast areas) even at the edges of the view. Because of the high erector ratio, the scope requires a 56mm diameter objective lens on the front and a 34mm body tube. These allow more light in, as well as more room for distance adjustments. The top turret moves the reticle vertically for varying distances, while the right-side turret adjusts it left and right to account for wind (windage). The 34mm tube is amongst the largest for scopes, and 34mm mounting rings cost significantly more money than smaller rings (1 inch, or 30mm).
This is a front focal plane scope (FFP, also first focal plane). The result is that as you zoom in, the reticle zooms larger, too. Whereas on second focal plane scopes, the reticle appears the same size and thickness no matter the zoom setting. This means that here the reticle is very fine at 5.5x, but when you zoom in, you can see stadia lines and numbers up and down the reticle to help with distance and measuring. FFP scopes are generally more costly.
The XTR PS, which also comes in a 3-18x zoom range, includes a parallax focusing knob on the left side behind the electronics controls. That focusing knob helps you get a clear image at any distance from 20 yards to infinity. Before using this knob, however, you need to focus the eyepiece for your personal vision. Do that by pointing the scope at the sky and adjusting the eyepiece until the reticle and display are in clear focus, then use the knurled ring to lock the adjustment in place.
Electronics in consumer scopes are relatively new and offer interesting possibilities. To be clear, this is NOT a rangefinding scope. It will not tell you how far your target is and adjust accordingly. The display in this scope tells you how far your reticle is set for, whether your scope is level, what windage setting your phone uploaded, battery life, and, most interestingly, your shot timer. That’s pretty cool for competition use. I particularly like the level feature.
When your gun isn’t level, your bullet won’t hit where you expect. Seeing the level at the bottom of the display is so nice. Long-distance shooters have all kinds of contraptions to mount levels outside of the scope, but this one is right where you can see it without shifting focus or switching eyes. That feature made me a better shooter at boot camp. You can set the level style using the app.
The scope is 15.5 inches long, machined from durable 6061-T6 aluminum with extra-low dispersion glass elements. The electronics require a CR123A battery (included).
Burris XTR PS 5.5-30x56mm Specifications
| Model | Burris XTR PS 5.5-30 x 56mm |
|---|---|
| Magnification | 5.5-30x |
| Objective Lens | 56mm |
| Tube Diameter | 34mm |
| Focal Plane | Front focal plane |
| Length | 15.5 inches |
| Weight | 37.5oz |
| Turret Resolution | 1/30 MIL |
| Parallax | 20 yards to infinity |
| Battery | CR123A battery (included) |
| Construction | 6061-T6 aluminum |
| MSRP | $2,760 |
Does the Burris XTR PS Make Long Range Too Easy?
New applications of technology always make us wonder if it’s a good thing. AI debates are raging, and Idaho just declared thermals illegal for scouting while hunting most game animals. As it happens, this scope isn’t legal for hunting game animals in Idaho because of the electronic display.
As far as hunting goes, I like tools that make me more lethal, not necessarily tools that make hunting easier. Thermals make it easier to find game animals, so I appreciate the rules against using them. This scope, however, doesn’t make hunting easier. It could make you a more lethal shooter, though, and that is good. The difference in a 1/4 MOA click adjustment on your scope could be the difference between wounding a critter and killing it dead. From that perspective, I like the display and turret operation.
Does removing the calculation of real-world distance to MOA clicks make you a dumber shooter? Does it require less skill to achieve long shots? It’s certainly a little faster than consulting a DOPE chart, but does it change the shooter’s competitive value? I’m not a competitive shooter, so I’d love to hear what you think in the comments.
I can tell you I’ll use this scope to hunt coyotes, and I won’t feel like it gives me more of an advantage than other scopes.
Who Should Spend $2,760 on the Burris XTR PS?
Burris’s XTR PS 5.5-30 x 56mm is aimed at the competitive shooter, but I think it has applications for hunters if it’s legal in your state. Weighing in at 37.5oz, it’s a pretty hefty tool if you’re going to be packing it any distance. Its MSRP is $2,760, so it’s definitely for those shooters who truly value getting on target at long distances quickly.
Throughout the Elk Boot Camp, I was impressed with this scope. At every distance, it put me on target with the first shot. As a hunter, I like to get the right shot the first time. Now, I plan never to try to kill anything at 1,080 yards with a 6.5 PRC. But man, was it satisfying to walk up to a target with the confidence that I could hit it, even though I’ve never shot that far before on my own. That kind of shooting is truly fun. With emerging ammo like the 6.5 Creedmoor +PEAK ammo, I could use a single rifle with many profiles saved in the app and switch them easily for various hunting situations. While I’d never suggest that you don’t need more guns, I do like the idea of putting a little more into making one setup that’s really good at several things.
Burris XTR PS Pros and Cons: Fast Hits Come at a Price
- Pros: Fast distance dialing, repeatable turret tracking, crisp image even at 30x, multiple ballistic profiles, built-in level, useful shot timer, 1/30 MIL resolution, and first-shot confidence at long range.
- Cons: 37.5oz weight, $2,760 MSRP, more expensive 34mm mounting rings, an app that is not quite as intuitive as I’d like, and electronic-display hunting restrictions in places including Idaho.
The Verdict: This Scope Made Me a Better Shooter
The Burris XTR PS review kept coming back to the same result for me: range the target, dial the distance, and shoot. The scope doesn’t find the target for you, and it isn’t a rangefinding scope. What it does is strip away some of the translation between knowing the distance and getting your rifle configured for that distance.
What do you think? Is this scope for you?
Watch the Burris XTR PS in action.
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Levi is an avid hunter, and an increasingly avid shooter. He strives to make delicious and simple recipes from the game he kills. He makes a living as a professional photographer and writer. Check out his work.