Rifle Scopes Eye focus question.

[Jayhawkhuntclub]

I've noticed for years that almost every scope I have seems a bit blurry at the center of the reticle. I've come to the conclusion that my eye wants to focus on the reticle and not the target. Does that sound right? This would explain why my Viper HST with a simple reticle, looks as good or better as my Ares BTR, my Viper Gen II or my Razor Gen II.

 

[ck79au]

your eye should focus on the reticle, not the target.

 

[hlee]

More precisely, when the scope is adjusted correctly, the target and the reticle should both be in focus. If not, your diopter or your parallax/focus is not set correctly. Though, on some scopes, proper parallax is achieved where target focus is not perfect. Not uncommon, but I’d consider this a defect...

 

[Jayhawkhuntclub]

I've been following standard procedures for setting diopters. Just wondering if my eyes are weird.

Also, it seems odd that people spend so much on "clear" glass if they are only going to focus on the reticle. I've been shooting for 50 years (damn I'm old) and know about focusing on the front sight. Never really thought about it that way with a scope.

Now the truth is I really don't notice this issue when shooting steel out to a mile (that's the furthest I shoot). When I'm shooting paper at 100 yards is when I notice it.

 

[hlee]

Could be an affect of the target. I’ve seen “bleed” on very bright targets (hunter orange spots on white background, for example) in bright sunlight. It’s not blurry, per say, but the color of the spot seems to bleed out onto the background...

 

[smoothy8500]

but the color of the spot seems to bleed out onto the background...

That's probably Chromatic Aberration, the color "fringe" along the edge.

 

[Glassaholic]

I've been following standard procedures for setting diopters. Just wondering if my eyes are weird.

I used to follow "standard procedure" as well - max magnification, parallax to infinity, blue sky. And I found that not all my scopes performed like I wanted them too, it wasn't until I read a thread by hk dave some years ago when he was having issues with his Tangent Theta (supposed to be the best right) not looking as good as he thought. Ever since then I use the standard procedure to get me close and then I fine tune the diopter after that - since I've been doing this process my experience behind my scopes have been much better.

Here is my process:
Here is my recommendation, but I don’t take all the credit, much of this comes from advice provided by hk dave, ILya and my eye doctor:

• Initial setup: Loosen the lock ring in front of the eyepiece (if it has a lock ring) and while looking at a blank wall or the sky, rotate the eyepiece several turns counterclockwise (in the positive + direction) until the reticle is visibly out of focus. Then turn back clockwise until the reticle is focused as sharply as possible (but be careful not to go too far; however, when doing so be sure you are not staring through scope while turning back clockwise, you should glance through the scope for no more than a few seconds then stare out into the distance while making a small adjustment and then glance back – do this until the center and the edge of the reticle appear sharp.
• Fine tuning: Find a target that is very far away, so that it looks sharpest when the side focus is at the infinity setting. As you look through the scope (important that it remains steady) you can mess with the diopter by making minute adjustments either CW/CCW and see if the reticle and/or image improves any. You can also check parallax to ensure that small head movements don’t cause the POA to shift.
• Closeup tuning: Now find a target that is closeup, say 100 yards away, set your side focus until the object comes into best focus, does the reticle still look sharp? Check parallax to make sure there is no shift.

Once you’ve performed the above 3 steps you should be set with your scope, it might be wise to mark your ocular and the scope tube with a pen or marker (especially if you don’t have a locking diopter) so you can return to this position if your scope is ever bumped out of alignment.

This is a great video from ILya

 

[hlee]

Not very popular, but I wrap the diopter ring with a bit of electrical tape. This keeps the non-locking diopters from moving when bumped. Low speed, high drag. But it works...