SS10xHD mounted on GAP 6.5 Creedmoor at the local 510y range
Ok, so a few months ago there was a thread in which scopes were being compared (go figure) and the Super Sniper 10xHD got thrown in the mix being compared to a USO ST10. Well, seeing as I used to have an old SS 16x, and an ST10, my reply went something to the effect of "you're smoking crack if you think that POS SS is anything close to as good as a ST10..."
It didn't take long before I was corrected in that the new line of SS scopes were totally different, and completely re-vamped. I was told that I was comparing apples to oranges, and that my lack of experience with the new line of SS scopes really made my opinion uneducated and therefore, worthless.
So I ate my crow, and went upon my business. There's where I thought it was over.
Later, I get a PM from SWFA saying that they really wanted me to try out the new SS scopes so that I could make an honest opinion. Chris and Brady had seen the thread, and asked if I would be willing to let them send me the scopes, try them out, and then give them my honest opinion after using them.
While I appreciated the offer, I told them it wasn't really necessary, that I realized after watching/reading FRANK'S REVIEW that there were differences with the new line, and that it was my mistake.
So a few months go by and I see Brady at SHOT show. As we were talking we got on the subject of the SS scopes and he let me know that the offer was still open to try them out.
I get home and think, what the heck. So I contact Chris and Brady and tell them game on, send the scope. Now if you think about it, the fact that they were so eager to send me these scopes, knowing my affliction for high end optics, show's their confidence in their product. They could only expect that if not comparing their scopes to other high end optics I owned like Hensoldt, S&B, and USO, I would at least have a high standard that I would be holding them to. Also, I was told to take the scopes, use them for a while, and give us your <span style="font-weight: bold">honest</span> opinion. Good, bad, or ugly... I don't think you can ask for more than that, and I generally have no problem giving my opinion...
Fast forward, my box from SWFA arrives!!!!
I was expecting a 10xHD, they sent a 10x, 3-9, sunshade, ARD, Butler Creeks, and a BOBRO QD mount. I could tell that this was gonna be fun....
Initial impressions were good. Everything looked good, and the glass seemed to be nice, reticles straight, etc. I very much liked the fact that the parallax on the 10x adjusted down to 50y. Very nice touch. I was initially bothered by the lack of parallax adjustment on the 3-9x, but soon realized that I never had issue with parallax in the scope, and that it wasn't needed. The BOBRO mount looked to be very high quality, and I liked the single lever with the safety.
So the first thing I did was pull the turrets to check out the new internals. BEEFCAKE. A much better improvement over the one that I used to have many years ago! The adjustments were positive, no mush, and audible. Not one complaint here...
Next I made a chart to test the sub-tension of the reticle, and mounted them up.
Both scopes reticles were spot on, sub-tended correctly, so now it's time to shoot. I first did a basic "ladder test" in which I just dialed a mil and shot, all the way to 14 mils. I did this just as an initial test on tracking/repeatability. As you can see here, again spot on.
Next I did a box test with both of the scopes. I have video results of that I plan on getting up ASAP.
Now while I wasn't going to take scopes that weren't mine and throw them or blow them up, I did ask Chris about putting it on the .50 BMG. He replied not a problem at all, wear it out. I put around 50 rounds through the AR50, never once did it not return to zero.
I have some footage of the test as well as testing the BOBRO mount that I'm trying to edit together. I'll hope to have the video up soon, but here's a quick summary of what I found.
The SS scopes are probably one of the best values out there I've seen recently. I put a few hundred rounds through them, enough to say that I was impressed. While I won't waste my fingertips trying to compare glass, I will say that there was never a time that I felt like I was hindered by glass quality. At low light I could still see .223 bullet holes in paper @ 100y. I could see 6.5 bullet holes in paper at 300y, and resolution was fantastic. I will say that I was overly impressed by the glass quality in such an affordable scope, the dead nuts tracking was a huge added bonus.
Complaints I have with the SS scopes....
Mil-Dot reticle! While it's nice to finally having matching turrets/reticle, I really wish there was other reticle options (which it looks like soon, there will be!). Other than that I really tried to find more things wrong with the scope, but just couldn't. I know the lack of illumination and zero stops is features that most people cry about, but those are two things I could care less about. I literally never use my illumination in my other scopes, and personally I'd rather have the cheaper cost than a feature I never use, but I know some people do use it, and can see where it would be a valuable feature. As far as the zero stops, it's no secret of what I think about those.... I think it's a "buzz feature" that people feel they have to have, when really they don't need at all. Is it nice? Yes. Worth adding cost? Not in my opinion... The SS has a very user friendly azimuth indicator that can be utilized very easily to know where your zero is.
The eye box is good and eye relief is very generous. The hash marks on the turrets stop exactly on the indicator and never once did I get a POI shift. I even wailed on the turrets both bottoming them out, and toping them out hard on the stops, and the scope always tracked true, and returned to absolute zero.
The BOBRO mount is a nice piece. I have limited experience with QD mounts so I don't think I can offer much advise on this, but after pulling it on and off the groups stayed somewhat tight. I'll let the video footage show the results, and you guys with more experience with QD mounts can be the judge.
My only complaint with the BOBRO was that since the cap bolts fasten from the bottom, you have to take apart the latching system to properly torque two of them. Kind of a pain, and you damn sure better be careful when you take it off, there's springs and detents in there! LOL
All in all I have to say that it was a pleasure getting a chance to use these scopes. I loved the crap out of them, and they are really excellent. So good, one of the guys helping me out called SWFA and bought the 3-9x we had here LOL.
I think SWFA hit a home run here, and commend them for taking the reins and making an awesome affordable product for us. I think any of you hesitant to try out a SS due to past reputation like I did, will be missing out on a great product, and only doing yourself a disservice.
We all like high end optics, but lets face it. I, like most of you I'm sure, can't afford $2500-3500 optics on all of our rifles. There HAS to be a scope that can fit the bill for under or around $1k that has the features that we as long range shooters need, and I think that the SS is filling that vacuum. I now highly anticipate the new variable SS, and after a few months shooting these, if it's cut from the same cloth as these scopes I've been using, I can honestly say it's on my "buy list".
Stay tuned for the video. It's nothing fancy like one of Franks videos, but it will add image to text, which everyone likes.
Meanwhile, I encourage new comers, or people who haven't seen it, to watch Frank's review that I linked previously. He really hit all the same points I did, and my conclusions pretty much mirrored his.
Jason
*VIDEO*
Part 1
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Part 2
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