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Athlon Cronus 15x56 Binos - Review

Olen_4504

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Minuteman
May 16, 2018
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Montpelier, Virginia
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I just got my Cronus 15x56 binos in the mail yesterday. First off - they came in a bad ass hard case. +1 point for Athlon. They are beefy - 45oz and definitely large in the hand. I'll be using these primarily on a tripod for spotting at matches.

I'll be posting my review and pics here once I mess around with them more.
 
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I took these out shooting yesterday. Spotting out to 730yards. I am very impressed with them. 6 months ago I handled some 15x meostars which were very nice. these are fairly comparable. I was not able to do a side by side comparison - but they are very clear. A little heavier than the meostars by 5oz.

as you would expect - no weird coloration - no tint. no distortion at the edges.

one thing we did notice is if you aren't perfectly behind them, and you kind of wiggle your head - the image seems to shift/distort in the middle slightly. not a deal breaker by any means , just an observation.

at 10am the sun was shining toward us - and there was some haze, but once the sun got behind us they were very clear. Spotting trace was very easy.

They are worth checking out.
 
I had hoped Athlon would come out with a good set of 15x56 binos for a few years, but when Leupold dropped the MSRP on their BX-5 15x56 binos last spring, I bit. So right now, I'm looking forward to seeing a pair of the Cronus 15x56, and hopefully being able to do a side-by-side comparo with my Leupolds, the new Cronus, and a set of Swaro SLC 15x56s.
 
iPhone pics never quite do optics justice. But here’s a snip when we were shooting the 735y plate last weekend
 

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I specifically asked at SHOT and was told, and shown, that the tripod adapter does indeed come with it. May I suggest you contact the place you purchased from and inform them that you did not get the tripod adapter so they can correct this for you. If they do not come through please give me a call and even though you did not get it from us I will see to it that you get the tripod adapters for those 2 units.
Have a great weekend
Doug
 
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How do these compare with the Meostar's Doug? I bought a pair of the 10x42 from you and have been really impressed with them. I have a couple of Cronus BTR scopes and have been really impressed with those as well from an optical performance standpoint.
 
How do these compare with the Meostar's Doug? I bought a pair of the 10x42 from you and have been really impressed with them. I have a couple of Cronus BTR scopes and have been really impressed with those as well from an optical performance standpoint.
IMO, The MeoStar is a superior optic, however, these Cronus 15x56's are pretty darn good and for the price nothing in a big eye option comes close
 
I received my Cronus 15x binos today. There was no tripod mount in the package. I guess I will have to contact the seller or Athlon.
 
I had hoped Athlon would come out with a good set of 15x56 binos for a few years, but when Leupold dropped the MSRP on their BX-5 15x56 binos last spring, I bit. So right now, I'm looking forward to seeing a pair of the Cronus 15x56, and hopefully being able to do a side-by-side comparo with my Leupolds, the new Cronus, and a set of Swaro SLC 15x56s.
Did you ever get to do a side by side comparison of these 3 Binos?
 
Did you ever get to do a side by side comparison of these 3 Binos?
I did go ahead and order in a set of the Athlon Cronus 15x56 binos, but haven't had the opportunity to handle or use the Swaro. A friend was going to try to swing a deal on a set of the Swaros, but bought the Leupolds instead.

I feel the set of Leupold 15x56 binos are superior to the Athlon Cronus 15x56, but I haven't worked very hard to set up a good set of tests to give a really valid comparison. Really should set them both up on good solid tripods where I can sit relaxed while comparing resolution, color rendition, ease of focusing, etc. And it would be a good thing to get a younger person with better vision to compare their opinions/conclusions with mine at the same time.