Athlon?

[ArkiePaul]

I love my Leupolds and Burris scopes. Won't buy Chinese simply because they are our foes in so many ways and areas. To each his own however.

 

[Texanjohn]

I love my Leupolds and Burris scopes. Won't buy Chinese simply because they are our foes in so many ways and areas. To each his own however.

I love my Leopold's to , However depending on what I want as far as magnification and level of scope I can't always get the reticle that I desire, As has already been said, Seems like everything we buy today is made in China, I would prefer to buy American , And I will when they produce what I'm after at a decent price.

 

[Oldtime Shooter13]

I no longer buy Athlon. Have a Ares ETR and a Midas BTR. The Ares never held zero well. It will take a .5 moa round and produce 1.5 moa groups. And the Midas worked for a few years and then wouldnt hold zero as well. I also got and returned a Argos BTR that the parralax adjustment was broken out of the box. I have gotten bad SWFA's as well, but they cost half as much and I have never had a SWFA that was good fail. So far, and I have a few. So imo go SWFA(cheap) or buy Razor HD LHT or Mark 5 for hunting.
And Athlons are heavy, ok for a target/tactical stick but not good for hunting, unless you only hunting from a bind.
The only 2 scopes for a LR hunting rig is the Vortex Razor HD LHT ffp or the Leupold Mark 5. The Razor HD LHT sfp is ok for closer ranges. Athlon does have some nice reticles. I really liked the Ares though. Its sitting in a box waiting to go back. Will see how good Athlons warranty is. Vortex's is solid. I wore out my elevation turret on a Razor HD 5x20x50 and they replaced both turrects with the newer 10 mil rotation ones. Nice. Dont forget both Leupold and Vortex have MIL/LE/FR discount programs.

My experience with Athlon Warrantee has been much better than other scope manufacturers. I do not remember the guys name that took care of my Warrantee issue, but Athlon was more than fair in replacing a discontinued model and upgrading to a much better model fairly.

 

[74honker]

I own 3 . A Midas Tac , Ares 8-32 gen 2, and a 1-10 Ares on my Grendel "pistol". I like them very well. I've not had a chance to stretch the legs in any of them , but they move like they should, hold zero very well, and clarity is better than their price point. Whats not to love , other than their country of origin. But these days , its hard to find anything that's made at home thats doesn't cost too much for me to enjoy this sport . Its either shoot something I can afford that works or just listen to stories from those with deeper pockets .

A lot of truth right here.

 

[beretzs]

That Helos BTR GEN2 2-12 is a cool little scope! I am putting one on a DMR 6mm ARC gas gun today. Love the reticle and package for that setup.

That's where I was thinking of setting one as well.

 

[Starbuck]

That's where I was thinking of setting one as well.

I hope guys keep buying the 2-12. If it gets popular enough, perhaps some companies will bring out their own versions.

Likewise, please report back when you get them mounted up and used. I'm on the fence about them because of coo, but seeing as there's not really direct alternative, I still might pick one up.

 

[SSG Graybush]

SSG:

IME, Vortex and Leupold are 2 brands that I wouldn't buy at this point. To be fair, I don't have direct experience with the Mk5's, but I do have experience with the Vortex model cited and a pile of other Leupolds. I know everything can fail, but there's a reason a lot of people know first hand just how good both of those companie's warranty and CS are.

There's other options out there for a LR hunting rig that go 25 ounces or less and are reliable.

I pretty much agree with you about Leupolds CS, before. I was told about 8 years ago by their CS guy they wouldnt replace a VX-3 partol firedot that the firedot was off center slightly. He said it was a reference. Terrible CS! But I believe after getting their market share taken, they have got it together, fixed the CS issues and came out with a couple new reticles. Last year their CS/VIP program woman was a pleasant surprise to deal with.
But Vortex has been good to me, and I get the mil discount of 40% off msrp, from Sportoptics.com. who have great CS as well. But until Vortex screws me, I will continue to buy their Razor HD LHT line for my hunting rigs.

 

[DocB]

I asked this question because I bought two Aries BTR 4 1/2–27 GEN twos, I have had zero issues, they tracked beautifully, always return to zero, my big gripe if you can call it that, Is that it weighs too much , But it seems like all scopes with those many features are all about the same weight, heavy. With that being said I just never seem to see them recommended like other scopes, I got both of mine from Camera land, Neal treated me Like I had been buying there for years, just can't imagine anyone not liking them, and this from a guy who has at least 15 Leopold scopes

"Weighs too much"... Really? That's your complaint? Maybe you just need to get in the gym more often? Buff up if 2 or 3 oz of extra scope weight is kicking your butt. Athlon is an excellent product, like my Horus steel scope. Basically, if you can't hump it, don't buy it.

 

[Texanjohn]

Doc B , really? That's what you took from my post? Perhaps you need your eyes examined , I ASKED why more people don't recommend/ use Athlon scopes, I HAVE ONE, and it's only down side is it's weight, Leupold can make a similar scope in a lighter configuration. I'm not complaining about Athlon scopes, I merely want to know why they are not more recommended, Nothing kicks my butt, except people who ASSUME they know me, to them I say Kiss my A%&

 

[Starbuck]

Doc B , really? That's what you took from my post? Perhaps you need your eyes examined , I ASKED why more people don't recommend/ use Athlon scopes, I HAVE ONE, and it's only down side is it's weight, Leupold can make a similar scope in a lighter configuration. I'm not complaining about Athlon scopes, I merely want to know why they are not more recommended, Nothing kicks my butt, except people who ASSUME they know me, to them I say Kiss my A%&

I'm not so sure that Leupold can build a similar scope but lighter. The Athlons seem to have built a good reputation for reliability.

 

[Deleted member 48126]

Doc B , really? That's what you took from my post? Perhaps you need your eyes examined , I ASKED why more people don't recommend/ use Athlon scopes, I HAVE ONE, and it's only down side is it's weight, Leupold can make a similar scope in a lighter configuration. I'm not complaining about Athlon scopes, I merely want to know why they are not more recommended, Nothing kicks my butt, except people who ASSUME they know me, to them I say Kiss my A%&

Texanjohn just quit being a sissy and buy a 50 oz scope already! This is a scope weight thread isn't it?

 

[JWhitty]

I got real into the Athlon lines when prepping for out west. My recommendation is anything Midas line or above. All their glass is Chinese except the cronus scope line. They are from Japan.
I currently have my midas 12x50's in for warrantee work due to one of my eye pieces being locked out. Mind you I'm NOT EASY on equipment, and they've tumbled from the truck numerous times..

Update:

Athlon sent me a brand new pair of Gen 2 Midas 12x50 binos. As they've redesigned the outer aesthetics of the line. They are just as good as the Gen 1

 

[Chas1]

Won't buy Chinese simply because they are our foes in so many ways and areas. To each his own however.

Totally agree.

 

[ducky]

I love my Leupolds and Burris scopes. Won't buy Chinese simply because they are our foes in so many ways and areas. To each his own however.

My brand new Leupold SX-4 HD Pro Guide 15-45X65 spotter says "Made in China". Not happy about it, but I'm not going to throw it out either.