Anyone using the Sig BDX scopes???

[Hhardrockminer]

I just bought the 6.5-20x52. It will not replace my Swarovski 4-12x50 or the Zeiss conquest 5-25x50. I am almost disappointed, but got it on sale.

Hey iow, Just seen you had bought a Sig 6.5-20x52 and I was thinking about one as I have the Kilo3000BDX bions.
What is your impression of the scope and how could you compare it to a Nikon F-1000 or something else.
Just wondering before I throw some money down on something I have not really seen, touched or know anyone who has.
Your help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks Hhardrock

 

[Hhardrockminer]

Hardrock, I have a review on the scope here: https://www.longrangehunting.com/threads/sig-bdx-scope-review.219995/

Hopefully helps answer some questions for you, feel free to reach out if I failed to answer any you might have. Overall, glass is better than my Viper HST, about the same but slightly better than my HD5, but behind my VX6. Though we no longer had the VX3i to test formally when I wrote this article, we did look at them side by side before swapping, and they seemed pretty much equal, informally.

So I would not call the glass poor at all, but as Tsquare mentioned, the electronics/shooting solution is what makes this system special.

HTH.

Hey Cat, It's your problem child again(lol) I'm looking at getting the BDX scope 6.5-20x52 would you happen to have any knowledge about that scope or would I be as well off getting the scope you had reviewed
Thanks Buddy,
Hhardrock

 

[catorres1]

Hey Cat, It's your problem child again(lol) I'm looking at getting the BDX scope 6.5-20x52 would you happen to have any knowledge about that scope or would I be as well off getting the scope you had reviewed
Thanks Buddy,
Hhardrock

Hardrock,

No problem at all, glad to help if I can, but in this case, other than a brief look through the scope, I don't know much about it's performance. I do know that it has less elevation adjustment than the 4.5-14, but other than that I can't say much.

I do have a source at Sig I can talk to, but that's probably not the most unbiased opinion!

I guess one question is what are you planning to use it for? General hunting? Or is this more for long range shooting at a range etc.?

 

[Hhardrockminer]

Hardrock,

No problem at all, glad to help if I can, but in this case, other than a brief look through the scope, I don't know much about it's performance. I do know that it has less elevation adjustment than the 4.5-14, but other than that I can't say much.

I do have a source at Sig I can talk to, but that's probably not the most unbiased opinion!

I guess one question is what are you planning to use it for? General hunting? Or is this more for long range shooting at a range etc.?

Cat, Thanks for the super fast response.
I had bought a different scope to maybe start getting into longer range of shooting but not sure if I'm going to, the scope I had bought thinking it would be able do the two but it's more for range than hunting so I'm opting to put it on a .204 and get one mainly for deer and elk.

 

[catorres1]

Gotcha. So the BDX is going on your deer and elk rifle. Well, I don't know how long a shooter you are in terms of game, but I chose the 4.5-14 instead of the 6.5-20 because I think it's a more versatile range. Others will feel different, but I'd prefer a lower power for those close up shots in dark timber, and I only really use 20 power when I am at the range, personally. But that's just me. As far as how far you can shoot with 14.5 power...we have exceeded 1300 yards and never had a problem seeing the targets.

Unfortunately, all that is to say is that I might consider the 4.5-14x44, which is what we ended up choosing. Talking to my guy at Sig, I would expect the 6.5 to perform the same as the 4.5 in terms of coatings and optical quality, but that's just speculation on my part, unfortunately. It is generally true that larger objectives do generally suffer from flare more easily than smaller objectives (all things being equal), but then they will also have a better exit pupil at the same magnification than their smaller brethern, so there is that too. But based on our conversations, I expect that optically, they are on the same level.

But again, I have not tested the 6.5 so I can't really be of too much help here unfortunately. If you really want that particular one, and have no place to look through it (a situation I have been in before as well), I would order from a place with a good return policy and try it out, especially and hour before through 30 mins after sunset. This is where flare problems often rear their head. If it does not meet your expectations, then send it back in return for something else. But other than flare performance (unknown on that size of objective) and the fact it will have less elevation, I think you will probably be happy if you are expecting the level of performance I mentioned. If you are looking for Swaro....mmm no.

Sorry I don't have anything more empirical, but I hope it helps you figure out what's best for your needs and situation!