Guys, "the hype" about Athlon, ""is only what preferred features one might find desirable at a price point"". IMO, like superior well thought tree reticles not having obscuring numbers next to the vertical crosshair, or often a little better glass than other brands near the same price point and close focus with some of the offerings as close as 10Y. That's pretty much it - that one can have those cool features in less expensive scopes. Remember, it was only a few years ago these features existed only in certain expensive scopes with the S&B 5-25/H59 coming to mind first and why I bought them pre Athlon. Of course these are the features I prefer which is why I got excited about them and why I have continued enthusiasm. If those features aren't important to you then spending more money might be a better idea, might not be either though???
I look at it this way...Pick any scope on the market and one can find things they like about it and things they don't. Any scope you just picked could break at any point and maybe multiple times regardless of cost. For the most part scopes track good enough to hit 1.5 moa steel out to 1000Y no problem. So the question I've asked myself is - why spend more money which could be hundreds, if not thousands, on a more refined optic for general shooting??? In other words, yeah sure I'd like a TT, but I dislike their only reticle and it doesn't focus close, but it has the best glass and the best tool less turrets around. I can afford to buy one at a sacrifice, but no way will I, because it's disqualified by lacking some features important to me, so okay we're talking about saving over $2000 bucks and having the features I want but knowing full well a Cronus won't measure up to TT in refinement, I can live with that. Or, will I buy another S&B???, not likely, because that Cronus is 97% of an S&B to me but half the cost. Yuh know, life is rough.
Take that little Athlon Talos BTR 4-14x44. Let's just say the build quality could be better in this $300 scope. I don't like the stiffer action on the parallax and illume knobs and the turrets could stand improvement. I do like the size, the weight, the 10Y focus, the awesome reticle, the good glass, that it does have illumination, the tracking and the reliability so far. Now take the SWFA 3-15, it's more refined and over twice the cost. If comparing, I like the turrets better, the huge elevation travel, and the 6M focus on the SWFA, I don't like the reticle and that the focus stops about 700Y out. Nope, to me there's enough distaste there that I find myself wanting to use the Talos because I like it's combined features a lot more. Plus they are so inexpensive I have put them(and the Argos BTR) on all my rifles I deem not needing a more expensive scope! That right there is a biggy!
Every Wednesday we meet at a friends house to shoot. Often I'll have some high end rifles and some regular rifles. I don't find it any harder to hit our 1122Y steel/ 19"x21" using any of the scopes I/we own. It's the cartridge, the wind and the accuracy of the rifles that hinders, not that one scope is $300 and the other $3850. Most memorable was hitting that steel many times in a row on a calm day with the Talos BTR mounted on the 6mmFatRat.
The Ares just brings the value of price per feature up a few more notches is all with it's 10 mil knobs, a ZS, the new APLR3 reticle and wide 6 times mag range.
Perhaps the "hype" should be...spending the money you saved on buying other cool gun stuff!
