[tpcollins]

I know there are some that have to have it for low light shooting. Up until about 6 years ago, the only illumination I had was a 1X red dot scope on a shotgun for turkey hunting.

My first illuminated scope was the Hawke XB1 and those crosshairs sort of “ghosted” when on. I had looked at them in low light but don’t recall what it did to the target (deer) if I was planning to shoot at it.

My XBR has just the dots (and numbers) that’s illuminated so the target isn’t hardly affected. But what about the scopes that have every crosshair lit up - is the deer and any brush/limbs that might be in the way and obliterated from your view?

I’ll drag out the XB30 Pro again tonight to see what it does when looking at my deer target. Whether a bow scope or a firearm, I’ve always tried to concentrate on the target and pick up the pin or crosshair with my peripheral vision.

Just wondering what other’s thoughts are?

 

[Iron Duke]

My Vortex … 3-15x MOA reticle is "busy" for the way I kill deer. It's designed for long range shooting. Personally I prefer a single illuminated dot on the crosshair, but it's impossible to find everything you want in a scope. Lighted or not, the concentration has to be on NOT letting it be distracting. Fortunately the illumination is so controllable that "low" illumination only shows the crosshairs as a visible almost grey when the black disappear into the last light and/or under a dark canopy. I just concentrate on the center main stadia and zone out all the rest.

 

[tpcollins]

That is a tad busy Duke. When I had the Zeiss Duralyt with the illuminated 60 reticle dot, I thought it was the cleanest reticle I had ever seen. It was just too big and sort of overwhelmed my ML.

Plus I had a guy offer me $250 more than I paid for it. I put the smaller Conquest on it instead.

 

[Iron Duke]

Zeiss Duralyt … is nearly perfect. It would be perfect if it had an adjustable objective lens. It has by far the finest illumination system I've seen.

 

[burky247365]

I have found for me that most crossbow dedicated scopes when illuminated , will over whelm a target or make it disappear . At least that is my experience with them anyway .
I moved over to the Vortex crossfire II line with a V-brite retical .
Only problem i have with them is they are sent with a 100 yd parallax .
I am looking at the


Vortex Crossfire II 6-18x44 AO V-brite Scope
scope in the pick is missing the light dial on the rear .
To me this is the right scope for my faster bows especially on one of my EZ-D adjusters .
in low light on low power you can barely see the dot in the middle .

My next favorite is this scope below .
it comes with a 50 yd parallax and i like it out to 40 yds on 4 power .
also in a V-brite retical .

 

[Spot-on-arrow]

Recently I was shooting 100 yards for fun. I finished with light going away so I flipped the red on my XB30 compact SR. I found it to be user friendly. I only illuminated tge crosshairs enough not full. The crosshairs are thin the way I 👍

 

[Spot-on-arrow]

Here a snap shot of the Hawke XB30 Compact SR lens scheme.

 

[JOE PA]

Everyone’s eyes are different. With a compound bow, it got to not being able to use a peep because a deer in low light would disappear, though the fiber optic pins were very bright. I simply cannot use a scope in which the whole reticle lights up (ex. TR 525), the lit reticle eliminates anything behind it to my eyes. Best lit scope for me is the Parker pinpoint, though I’ve never owned a Leupold fire dot. I know others would (strongly) disagree, or they wouldn’t be able to sell half of the crossbow scopes on the market.

 

[Spot-on-arrow]

I wish everyone success in finding the scope that performs as they like. I have and it's married to a fine Ripper 415 crossbow. Together they have may me a better shooter. It took a while but I am soooo....happy with it. 🏹 🎯

 

[Moon]

Sorry about the above screwed up post by me. Had a little distraction here.
I doubt we will ever get a consensus on what scope features are the best. Too many visual variations to achieve that.

 

[Spot-on-arrow]

I agree with you Farm Deer. That will never happen and it is natural we all have or own opinions and likes/dislikes. But it good we share our thoughts because it is fun to bounce ideals off the other members.

 

[tpcollins]

Best lit scope for me is the Parker pinpoint,

I thought about the Pin Point after I posted about the Zeiss 60. If I recall, there was no vertical line in the upper half, reticle was clean as a whistle. I recently sold the one I had a while ago.

I waited too long to do my test last night plus I was getting some flare in the scopes from the parking lot light from the school in back of my home. The paper deer target looks lighter than an actually deer would.

Both pics are with my iPhone as my Nikon o]point and shoot wouldn’t work well this dark. The XB30 starts at 20 yards and each crosshair is 10 yards part. The XBR is 30 yards at the top and 20 yards between the dots - there’s a dash mark in between those dots (would gap shoot in near dark light).

Based on the manual, the XB30 Pro was on about 3.3X, the XBR was exactly on 4X. Both pics show the illumination image much smaller than it looked with the naked eye. Not sure how the Crossfire crossbow reticle will look with its 20-60 yard large cross in low light but I should find out in a few days. I just hope it’s useable for me in regular light as I don’t stay on stand till last light - we’ll see how it goes.

 

[BULLDOGGBOYZ]

I went Evo X over the Rangemaster Pro, because the RM dot's just didn't do it for me. They weren't small enough MOA, so I felt like they would obscure the target at any real distance. The fine crosshairs of the Evo X suit me much better.

 

[SEW]

Zeiss Duralyt … is nearly perfect. It would be perfect if it had an adjustable objective lens. It has by far the finest illumination system I've seen.
View attachment 182392

‘Though I want as accurate a crossbow/MLer as practical, I have a Duralyt lighted on my SWAT and SWAT XP, a Conquest 4.5X 14 on my Aculeus 460, Sightron 3, 6x24 on my longer range 40 cal , smokeless MLer and a Duralyt on the lighter 40 smokeless MLer.
Why the above post/narrative? Because optics matter!
Scopes with lifetime warranties are available , used. They can also be found on eBay, especially off season at unbelievable prices.
I still believe that the arrow/BH and the optics are more important that what’s shooting the arrow.

 

[tpcollins]

Good point SEW.

It’s sort of like the old days - if you were happy going out with 3’s and 4’s, then you probably thought that’s all there was and they were good enough.

But if you had the opportunity to snuggle up to some 8’s and 9’s ( I wasn’t rich enough growing up to date a 10), then those 3’s and 4’s just weren’t going to cut it.

I guess it gets down to the optics you’ve had in the past that determines what optics you want in the future.

 

[Iron Duke]

I still believe that the arrow/BH and the optics are more important that what’s shooting the arrow.

Obviously … you never saw me shooting an arrow. If you did, you might well consider that the "what" shooting the arrow needs more of an upgrade than the arrow/BH & optics. 😂

 

[SEW]

Tim,
I married an “8”, “10“ to me 52 years ago. Today, even others think of her as a “10” and 15-20 years younger. We are health food and exercise addicts. It helps, but not my looks .
‘Not until the past few years have I discovered “great” optics. Will never go back.

 

[Iron Duke]

Too soon old … and it's never too late to get smart. Good optics make better shooting easier to attain, and add value to the quality of life. Make the whole hunting experience more rewarding.

 

[SEW]

Obviously … you never saw me shooting an arrow. If you did, you might well consider that the "what" shooting the arrow needs more of an upgrade than the arrow/BH & optics. 😂

No, but I’ve thought about it. I think that a SWAT XP, with an ATA of 14 1/2“ having a speed of 390’/se /400g arrow and easily rope cockable, or as it comes, would be a good upgrade. I am a Scorpyd fan and love my Aculeus 460, but it’s size makes it yesteryear’s technology.

 

[Iron Duke]

No, but I’ve thought about it. I think that a SWAT XP, with an ATA of 14 1/2“ having a speed of 390’/se /400g arrow and easily rope cockable, or as it comes, would be a good upgrade. I am a Scorpyd fan and love my Aculeus 460, but it’s size makes it yesteryear’s technology.

I wasn't … talking about the BOW, I was talking about the shooter...lol The shooter is "what's" sending the arrow/BH out of the bow. 😂

I'm thinking of starting a poll, "Who loves their favorite platform more, SEW/SWAT or Moon/Ravin?"