ATACR vs Maven vs Tenmile vs LRHS2 vs MK5HD

[Shortschaf]

Optical comparison of

• Nightforce ATACR 4-16x42
• Maven RS1.2 2.5-15x44
• Trijicon Tenmile 3-18x44
• Bushnell LRHS2 4.5-18x44
• Leupold MK5HD 3.6-18x44

I also had a mk4 12-40 spotting scope and an SWFA 10x42 on hand that I included as a reference










I used this resolution chart:



Scoring was done like so:




RESOLUTION
I have to admit this was hard to finish. All optics were so close to one another you would probably never notice in a hunting environment. Parallax and the eyepiece were adjusted several times on each scope to get every ounce of clarity. I have 20/20 vision or better

*The 0.1 element on the chart was accidentally cropped out when printing. Anything that could not quite resolve 0.2 was given a score of 0.1




EYEBOX
This was done at max magnification. At anything below 12x I would consider all the optics Excellent. The Tenmile was noticeably tighter than the ATACR and Maven. But any two optics ranked next to one another were very hard to tell apart





HOW "NICE" IS THE IMAGE?
I used chromatic aberration to rank this because it was the easiest feature to pick up with my eyes to compare. This was done at max mag. At anything below 9x, the image is very sharp and clear with no real optical deficiencies.




Other notes and background:
I had the LRHS2, Maven, and Tenmile on hand and needed to pick two, so I already had intentions of comparing them. The ATACR is owned by a friend, and MK5 by a brother - both within a few minutes drive. So I added those two to the mix out of curiosity. My history with each optic is:

• ATACR I used to own the same model and hunted one season with it before selling
• MK5HD I used to own this exact scope and hunted one season before selling
• Tenmile I picked up last November and have not hunted with it. Few hundred rounds of target and competition shooting with it
• LRHS2 and Maven were recently acquired. ~20 rounds fired with the LRHS2 and 0 rounds with the Maven.

 

[eLightfoot]

Interested in your opinion of LRHS2 vs maven. Those are pretty much the only scopes on my radar for next purchase.

 

[Shortschaf]

Interested in your opinion of LRHS2 vs maven. Those are pretty much the only scopes on my radar for next purchase.

Well... of the Tenmile, LRHS2, and Maven--I got rid of the Tenmile.

LRHS2 is extremely sharp. If there was a 3-12 version, I likely would have purchased one instead of the Maven.

A large reason why I got the Maven instead of another identical LRHS2 was because I wanted one of the guns to have a minimum magnification at/under 3x. Plus, I could sell the Maven in a second if I was disappointed.

But as it stands, they are a coin flip. Get whichever is cheaper IMO.
After some use I may start to like one more than the other

 

[TxLite]

Thanks for putting this together. Very well put together.

 

[texag10]

Thanks for putting this together. Very well put together.

Agreed, thank you very much for taking the time to perform this comparison and post your conclusions.

Now.....given that we're on rokslide, it's time to start dropping rifles....

 

[willfrye027]

Good comparison. I’ve used the LRHS and maven quite a bit, looked through a tenmile and I’d agree with what you have there. Except I feel like the LRHS has a better eyebox than the maven.

If bushnell could back up their warranty of them I’d not have switched to maven.

 

[Shortschaf]

Except I feel like the LRHS has a better eyebox than the maven.

I don't really disagree here... They are so close. If I did the comparison 5 times, I would probably rank those "top three eyeboxes" different each time. But at the time I did the comparison, I wrote down on the paper that the Maven was a little better. So I'll leave the "finding" as is unless I change my mind after using them more

Ultimately I want people to know that between the ATACR, Maven, and LRHS2 I would never choose one over the other because of eyebox.... They were all comfortable to get behind

 

[smax]

Thoughts on the turrets and magnification controls for each?

 

[Shortschaf]

Parallax knob:
Maven and Tenmile are stiffer, the others are great

Magnification ring:
All of them were fine. The maven just lacks a throw lever. ATACR's whole eyepiece turns which is lame

Turrets:
ATACR is the gold standard if tactility is your thing. Maven really tactile. Mk5 pretty tactile. LRHS2 a little mushy. Tenmile is mushy.

I'm not really a turret snob. The only one I don't like is the LRHS2, and it is because it is splined to sit squarely in the middle of two lines... not on a line. And there is just enough backlash that you don't know what exact click you might be on if you aren't the owner

 

[lcx321]

I can`t remember when I listened, probably from shot2hunt podcast, they did a drop test of some sort on all the major scope brand, only trijicon remained zero throughout the test, , not even the nightforce. That`s why I bought the tenmile. I would rather have an okay optic than a failed one.

 

[Shortschaf]

I can`t remember when I listened, probably from shot2hunt podcast, they did a drop test of some sort on all the major scope brand, only trijicon remained zero throughout the test, , not even the nightforce. That`s why I bought the tenmile. I would rather have an okay optic than a failed one.

I'd be curious to give that episode a listen if you wouldn't mind linking it. Or are you referring to the drop-evals on this site in the Long Range Hunting section?

 

[lcx321]

I'd be curious to give that episode a listen if you wouldn't mind linking it. Or are you referring to the drop-evals on this site in the Long Range Hunting section

If I remember correctly, that podcast was a summary of the drop evals. But I could be wrong, I’ll do some digging and see if I can find it. I do have to admit the glass and the eyebox can be better, with the price for the tenmile. I’m fine with it.

 

[Formidilosus]

I can`t remember when I listened, probably from shot2hunt podcast, they did a drop test of some sort on all the major scope brand, only trijicon remained zero throughout the test, , not even the nightforce. That`s why I bought the tenmile. I would rather have an okay optic than a failed one.

That’s not correct.

 

[lcx321]

That’s not correct.

Yeah you are correct. I was wrong, it has been awhile.

 

[lcx321]

Here is the podcast I listened

 

[wind gypsy]

@Shortschaf - I see you recently sold a klassic 3-12, any thoughts on how that compares?

 

[Shortschaf]

@Shortschaf - I see you recently sold a klassic 3-12, any thoughts on how that compares?

I did not do a direct comparison to anything in the short time I owned it, so I won't formally add it to anything above but as a standalone summary:

• Resolution was good. I would not need more inside the ranges that it can dial
• Eyebox was good/great. Easy to get behind. No complaints
• Overall image quality was good--I was not blown away by it. Had fishbowl effect in outside 15% of image at max magnification. So, it honestly just ranks in mid-pack of the scopes compared above

Shortcomings:

• On a 0moa mount, I had only 4.2MILs left to dial. I would need a 5moa to 10moa mounting system to use the full turret, which in this case would add weight (and cost). A 4.2MIL gun is not appealing to me personally
• straight MILDOT reticles are not my jam for wind holding. Especially did not like this one because of the gaps in center crosshair
• Windage turret does not have markings on the circumference (not visible to the shooter when it is uncapped). So dialing wind is not feasible without counting clicks

Those shortcomings outweighed (no pun intended) the ~5oz weight savings it offered for me, a person who lives in a wide open, high wind state

If I absolutely needed to have a 20oz optic I would look at an SWFA 3-9 before another Klassik even if prices were the same (full disclosure I have never used a 3-9)
Glad I got to try it and thanks to @SamsonMan22 for doing a trade. I traded a Maven RS1.2 for it, and I'm replacing it with another Maven RS1.2