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Legacy Reviewer's Review of Barska 6-24x44 SWAT Rifle Scope
The high points of this scope to me are 1. The Mil-Dot reticle, very nice, and accurate once you find the correct magnification to use it at. The reticle is "glass etched", which means there are no wires to break. This in theory makes it acceptable for use on high recoiling rifles.
I used this scope to complete a 10" box test at 100 yds, and it came around full box back to the original zero without any problems. It has an advertised 50 MOA windage adjustment, and 50 MOA elevation adjustment. The scope I received actually had 52 MOA windae, and 53 MOA elevation. With the 30mm tube I was hoping for 75+MOA of elevation, but 50 MOA is sufficient to zero out to 600-700 yds with a .308 Win. If you add a 20 MOA slanted base it will get you to 1000 yds. The click adjustments are 1/8 MOA adjustments. I prefer 1/4 MOA, but 1/8 isn't too bad if you count carefully. One full turn of the target turret is 7.5 MOA, which seems odd at first until you realize that two full turns is 15 MOA, which is common for 1/4-MOA click scopes. So now I think of a full turn as "half of 15 MOA". The Windage adjustments are a bit funny if you need to adjust to the left, since it starts at 0, then counts backwards from 7.5. Not a big complaint, but something worth noting. It has nice "come-up" markings under the turret, so you can quickly see how many revolutions you have dialed in.
The rings it comes with feel a little cheap, but haven't let me down yet. The flip-up covers and sunshade are functional and sturdy. No need to order Butler creek's, since the flip up scope covers are of comparable quality.
The overall optical qualtiy of this scope is not bad. For the price, I would say it's great. The glass quality is not on par with a $800-$1000 scope, but you wouldn't expect it to be. For about 1/5 the prie you get 85% of the quality. For me that is an acceptable compromise, and I have not found a situation yet which I think that the extra quality would have helped me make a shot. That being said, the low light gathering capability of this scope is a bit fuzzy around dusk, especially at the higher magnifications. At the highest (24x) maxnification there is apparent optical distortion around the edges of the view. There is some light shadowing at the higher magnifications as well. But if you keep it under 10x then it is serviceable all the way up until dusk. The illuminated reticle is good for shooting into dark hollows or forest, where the black crosshairs would otherwise get lost in the shadows.
The scope is heavy (24 oz w/ rings), and feels well built. I have rattled it around on several rifles and it's getting a bit banged up now, but it still works as good as it did when I bought it. Any 30mm scope with a 4x zoom range is going to weigh a bit more. If you are looking at putting it on a medium to heavy barreled target rifle then it should be no problem, but you might avoid weighing down a lightweight sporter with such a hunk. I've had it on a 6.8mm SPC AR-15, with 20" HBAR. It was a heavy gun with a heavy scope. I also put it on my Rem 700 .308 Win VSS. I have since taken it off to lighten the rifle up, and have a fixed 10x scope in its place.
When compared to higher end scopes, it holds its own. The comparison isn't laughable as with some budget priced scopes. While it does not have the refinement of a Leupold or high end Nikon, it's not too far off either. It's durable, strong, and accurate, with acceptable optics. For the price, I give it a 9/10. Overall, I give it an 8/10.
As far as the price goes, it is well worth the money in my opinion. A great deal of the cost of higher end scopes is the internal quality control required to ensure every product shipped is a good one. Barska has a few horror stories about their quality control, but I have also heard they will stand behind their product if you get a lemon. They offer a limited lifetime warranty, so if you get a defective one in theory they should replace it. I have not used their warranty service and can't speak to it's quality.
Pros: Optics aren't bad, tons of features, great price
Cons: Could have more elevation adjustment (50MOA is standard)
I used this scope to complete a 10" box test at 100 yds, and it came around full box back to the original zero without any problems. It has an advertised 50 MOA windage adjustment, and 50 MOA elevation adjustment. The scope I received actually had 52 MOA windae, and 53 MOA elevation. With the 30mm tube I was hoping for 75+MOA of elevation, but 50 MOA is sufficient to zero out to 600-700 yds with a .308 Win. If you add a 20 MOA slanted base it will get you to 1000 yds. The click adjustments are 1/8 MOA adjustments. I prefer 1/4 MOA, but 1/8 isn't too bad if you count carefully. One full turn of the target turret is 7.5 MOA, which seems odd at first until you realize that two full turns is 15 MOA, which is common for 1/4-MOA click scopes. So now I think of a full turn as "half of 15 MOA". The Windage adjustments are a bit funny if you need to adjust to the left, since it starts at 0, then counts backwards from 7.5. Not a big complaint, but something worth noting. It has nice "come-up" markings under the turret, so you can quickly see how many revolutions you have dialed in.
The rings it comes with feel a little cheap, but haven't let me down yet. The flip-up covers and sunshade are functional and sturdy. No need to order Butler creek's, since the flip up scope covers are of comparable quality.
The overall optical qualtiy of this scope is not bad. For the price, I would say it's great. The glass quality is not on par with a $800-$1000 scope, but you wouldn't expect it to be. For about 1/5 the prie you get 85% of the quality. For me that is an acceptable compromise, and I have not found a situation yet which I think that the extra quality would have helped me make a shot. That being said, the low light gathering capability of this scope is a bit fuzzy around dusk, especially at the higher magnifications. At the highest (24x) maxnification there is apparent optical distortion around the edges of the view. There is some light shadowing at the higher magnifications as well. But if you keep it under 10x then it is serviceable all the way up until dusk. The illuminated reticle is good for shooting into dark hollows or forest, where the black crosshairs would otherwise get lost in the shadows.
The scope is heavy (24 oz w/ rings), and feels well built. I have rattled it around on several rifles and it's getting a bit banged up now, but it still works as good as it did when I bought it. Any 30mm scope with a 4x zoom range is going to weigh a bit more. If you are looking at putting it on a medium to heavy barreled target rifle then it should be no problem, but you might avoid weighing down a lightweight sporter with such a hunk. I've had it on a 6.8mm SPC AR-15, with 20" HBAR. It was a heavy gun with a heavy scope. I also put it on my Rem 700 .308 Win VSS. I have since taken it off to lighten the rifle up, and have a fixed 10x scope in its place.
When compared to higher end scopes, it holds its own. The comparison isn't laughable as with some budget priced scopes. While it does not have the refinement of a Leupold or high end Nikon, it's not too far off either. It's durable, strong, and accurate, with acceptable optics. For the price, I give it a 9/10. Overall, I give it an 8/10.
As far as the price goes, it is well worth the money in my opinion. A great deal of the cost of higher end scopes is the internal quality control required to ensure every product shipped is a good one. Barska has a few horror stories about their quality control, but I have also heard they will stand behind their product if you get a lemon. They offer a limited lifetime warranty, so if you get a defective one in theory they should replace it. I have not used their warranty service and can't speak to it's quality.
Pros: Optics aren't bad, tons of features, great price
Cons: Could have more elevation adjustment (50MOA is standard)
This review was written in the old system and had content requirements that are different than reviews written today.
Would Recommend:
Yes
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