Crimson Trace 5 Series Sale 3-18 600, 3-24 700

[S197]

Midway has the 5 series on sale 3-18

Crimson Trace 5-Series Tactical Rifle Scope 34mm Tube 3-18x 50mm 1/10

The Crimson Trace 5-Series is a feature rich 3-18x 50mm mid-range rifle scope that has been purposefully built from the ground up. The scopes First...

www.midwayusa.com

3-24

Crimson Trace 5-Series Tactical Rifle Scope 34mm Tube 3-24x 56mm 1/10

The Crimson Trace 5-Series is a feature rich 3-24x 56mm long-range rifle scope that has been purposefully built from the ground up. The scopes First...

www.midwayusa.com

 

[LRRPF52]

Does anyone have experience with these on an AR-10 over a large round count? Looks to be Japanese glass normally priced into the $1600-$1800 region. A lot of the comments say the reticle is too small on low power, but fine on higher power.

 

[S197]

Does anyone have experience with these on an AR-10 over a large round count? Looks to be Japanese glass normally priced into the $1600-$1800 region. A lot of the comments say the reticle is too small on low power, but fine on higher power.

I thought llya did a review or commented on them, I’ll see if I can find it.

 

[lennyo3034]

I wouldn't mind the 3-24 on my rimfire but that reticle is insane looking.

 

[BLEE]

Nice everything, except reticles, but I'm sure they would be great for some shooters.

 

[Vodak]

I bought and immediately returned the 3 series 4-20. The tree reticle was just unusable unless it was at the top of its mag range. And it’s not great even then. Also the parallax would’t focus as low as they claimed which was a downer. I was planning on putting it on a 22lr and wanted it to be able to come in close. But that may not be relevant to the 5 series.
Everything else felt very well made, especially for the price.
I’ve been considering giving them another try with the 5 series 3-18 because the price is so low, and they are good quality. But if you want a tree reticle look elsewhere.

 

[BLEE]

Seems like the reticle is the scope, these days.

 

[Yoteski]

Midway can choke on them. There's plenty of good companies who sponsor this site, shooting matches, etc. who I'd rather support instead of goug'n Larry.

 

[Neurotic]

I bought and immediately returned the 3 series 4-20. The tree reticle was just unusable unless it was at the top of its mag range. And it’s not great even then. Also the parallax would’t focus as low as they claimed which was a downer. I was planning on putting it on a 22lr and wanted it to be able to come in close. But that may not be relevant to the 5 series.
Everything else felt very well made, especially for the price.
I’ve been considering giving them another try with the 5 series 3-18 because the price is so low, and they are good quality. But if you want a tree reticle look elsewhere.

I have both the 3525 and 5318 and if the diopter is not set correctly, the parallax is way, way off. Both of mine will focus, at maximum magnification, at 25 feet or less, beating the 10 yard specification. It took some time to dial in the diopters, but when set the parallax adjustment worked great and adjustments matched the rangefinder surprisingly closely.

 

[oneforall]

"I have both the 3525 and 5318 and if the diopter is not set correctly, the parallax is way, way off. Both of mine will focus, at maximum magnification, at 25 feet or less, beating the 10 yard specification. It took some time to dial in the diopters, but when set the parallax adjustment worked great and adjustments matched the rangefinder surprisingly closely."
I have the 5324, same finding as you as well. Also parallax need to be right to reduce the CA in the image as well. overall good scope, anyone know how to set the zero stop?

 

[Neurotic]

"I have both the 3525 and 5318 and if the diopter is not set correctly, the parallax is way, way off. Both of mine will focus, at maximum magnification, at 25 feet or less, beating the 10 yard specification. It took some time to dial in the diopters, but when set the parallax adjustment worked great and adjustments matched the rangefinder surprisingly closely."
I have the 5324, same finding as you as well. Also parallax need to be right to reduce the CA in the image as well. overall good scope, anyone know how to set the zero stop?

The easiest way I found to set the zero stop was the following. The turret does not raise or lower upon adjustment, and the stop is a basic ratcheting mechanism that allows (nearly) two revolutions. By trying to manually set the ratcheting position I would sometimes out think myself, put it in the wrong position thereby setting the stop in the middle of the two rotations.

1) find your zero
2) loosen the three turret cap screws (the cap should rotate freely on the turret)
3) rotate the cap in the down direction until it's stopped by the zero stop (my manual states it stops at 0.4 mil under zero, but mine stops at 0.2)
4) rotate the cap back the 0.2 or 0.4 mil to zero
5) retighten the turret cap screws (holding the cap to prevent it shifting upon tightening)

 

[oneforall]

Thanks Neurotic, that really helps.

 

[Old97]

Found a sunshade for the CT 5318
Riton model RS-50 works. Thread is M53x1.25
Since the Crimson Trace, Riton X7-Conquer and Brownells MPO 3-18s are all essentially the same scope from JOL, I gambled $25
Fits perfect, anodize shade slightly different

 

[LRRPF52]

I got the 3-24x56 with tree reticle just to see if it’s a POS or not.

Initial impressions of the glass clarity and reticle contrast are top notch, especially on 24x, which isn’t normal for most scopes unless you pay well into the mid/high $1500-$2000 range plus in my experience.

Elevation turret clicks aren’t as positive as I would like, but I don’t really care since I’ll be using the tree. The tree reticle has plenty of definition for aiming, as well as empty space for registering impacts

Several reviews said they didn’t really see a clear aiming point, where their eyes weren’t drawn-in to a specific crosshair on the scope, but I don’t get that. They admittedly said they were more of a traditionalist in that respect though, and that people used to Horus or tree reticles would like it.

The center intersection of the horizontal and vertical elements give you a pretty clear reference for close range center holds, or dialed elevation solutions.

You start to lose the bottom of the tree once you get into the 12x magnification position and higher.

Illumination knob is really stiff, which should prevent inadvertent turning of it there on the left side.

It comes with flip caps, which I didn’t know.

The packaging is top-notch, which is indicative of a company that cares about the first impression of the product. The cut foam and external finish of the box are pretty high-end.

I looked at some lower tier series of theirs at Cabella’s, and this 5 Series comes across as having better glass and features, though I wasn’t able to assess the lower-tier models outside.

This 3-24x56 is on the heavy end for my taste, as I’m more of a lightweight/high portability type of guy who mainly shoots lightweight ARs with good barrels and the lowest profile optics possible.

I have at least 2 heavier-barreled ARs where this optic would be appropriate, one a Seekins billet upper with Lilja 22” 6.5 Grendel heavy fluted pipe, the other my GA Precision-built 22” LR-260.

 

[Old97]

All essentially the same scope from the OEM Japan Optics Ltd.
In the 50mm version the three available reticles from Riton, Crimson Trace, and Brownells
Approximately to scale via cut and paste

 

[Hickswr]

How is the tracking? That’s my biggest concern by far with a scope meant to be dialed constantly.

 

[lennyo3034]

Ordered one. 3-18 for my 22.

 

[srt-4_uk]

Several reviews said they didn’t really see a clear aiming point, where their eyes weren’t drawn-in to a specific crosshair on the scope, but I don’t get that. They admittedly said they were more of a traditionalist in that respect though, and that people used to Horus or tree reticles would like it.

The center intersection of the horizontal and vertical elements give you a pretty clear reference for close range center holds, or dialed elevation solutions.

That's because the 0 horizontal line is the top of the hashes vs the middle. It's counter intuitive to literally every other scope on the market.
My biggest issue with the scope was the reticle. If the minimum magnification was truely like the picture, it would help. The scope is unusable as a rifle scope until 6-7 power unless you are shooting at a completely white target where you have significant contrast w/ the reticle.