Some early morning observations.

The Weather Channel app claims sunrise was at 0631 EDT here. I was scanning around the back yard in the twilight, comparing the 1.5-6 Burris against a 4x32 Conquest with Z-plex reticle (on the rifle the Burris might be migrating to), and a 2-7x32 Viper with duplex reticle (handheld, from the rifle that the Burris is now atop). I'm not saying the scopes should be compared against one another, merely that they were at-hand at the moment, and I have hunted hogs with all of them.

The back yard is open, with honeysuckles backed up against the split rail fence in the back. The East side is open (split rail fence between me & the neighbor's equally open yard), and the west side has a 6' wooden privacy fence. I suppose one could compare the yard to a clearing in the woods, but it's a pretty clear clearing.

5:15 am

Already some ambient neighborhood light, and the first purple tinges of daybreak. The Conquest & Viper show blurs in the open, and not much against the dark honeysuckles. I can kind of make out the rails in the fence. The posts of the Burris reticle are visible, but not sharp. More contrast is visible in the open areas than with the other 2 scopes. With the reticle lit on #1 setting, lots of things quickly come into focus. I can make out more details, and the dot is clear & sharp. If a critter wasn't black, I could make a clean shot at the 35-ish yards presented here. I tried the #10 setting, and my vision was immediately thrown-off: it's way too bright for this hour. For curiosity's sake, I looked backward from the barrel through the objective at the #10 setting, and saw much bleed-through from the dot. I guess one shouldn't hunt tactical deer with it, at least not with the dot's light set that high. Overall, it feels like the unlit Burris is noticeably, if not significantly, brighter than the other 2.


5:40 am

Much more light now. Our street slopes downward to the East, so it's almost like a funnel that shovels light from all the neighbors' open yards up into ours. I can make out many more details of the grass, trees, & fence with all 3 scopes, but the reticles on the Viper & Conquest still aren't useable. The posts of the Burris reticle are far sharper than the others, even unlit: however, the inner crosshairs still aren't visible. When lit, it's good to go. At this point, the Viper appears to be the brightest of the 3, though the least sharp. The Burris is showing better colors.


6:04 am

It's bright enough to shoot with all 3 scopes now. The Burris is now the brightest & sharpest of the 3. Surprisingly nice color, even compared to the Conquest. I'm now able to make out the inner crosshairs & unlit dot on the Burris.



6:32 am

All 3 scopes are good to go. Burris still has the best color, while the Conquest and Viper are equally bright, and the Conquest is nearly as sharp as the Burris.


Summary:

What's this prove, aside from that I have no idea what the hell I'm doing? I tried to look through all of them the same way that I hunt: I listen, then glass anything that sounds "quarry-ish", then put the scope on it if the glassing shows it's game I'm after. In this instance, the Burris would have allowed me to shoot way before the others.

"What about at 100 or 200 yards this morning?" Dunno.

"What about in a tiny clearing in the middle of a dense forest?" Dunno, though I expect I'd have had to wait longer to see well enough for the shot.

"Is it fair to compare a German #4 (even unlit) against a standard duplex (Viper) and heavy-ish (Conquest) in low light?" Probably not. Then again, I've never owned a scope with a German #4 duplex, nor an illuminated scope, so y'all get to watch me as I learn.

"What happens in daylight, at longer ranges"? I'll tell ya this afternoon.

FWIW, the 2-7 Viper & 4x32 Conquest are some of my favorite scopes: I have multiple rifles adorned with each. I thought the Viper was competitive at $259, and a steal when they were $199. The Conquest Z-plex was about my favorite reticle, and they were well worth the $300 I gave for them. While there are aspects of this Burris that I don't care for, it appears to hold its own optically with some scopes I really value.

The range opens at 10:00 today... wink

FC

"Every day is a holiday, and every meal is a banquet."

- Mrs. FC