Q&A for Athlon Helos BTR Gen 2 2-12x42mm Field Eval

Interesting. Not amazing, but not catastrophic failure like many have had.

I had that on a "looks interesting" list for a dmr-ish AR, removed it after the initial eval. Now, back on the list??
 
eric1115 said:
Interesting. Not amazing, but not catastrophic failure like many have had.

I had that on a "looks interesting" list for a dmr-ish AR, removed it after the initial eval. Now, back on the list??
Click to expand...


Losing zero by 5-6 MOA is pretty catastrophic to me.

Riding in the truck and checking will show how that plays out in normal/light use.
 
Formidilosus said:
Losing zero by 5-6 MOA is pretty catastrophic to me.

Riding in the truck and checking will show how that plays out in normal/light use.
Click to expand...
I don't think I would put it on my deer/elk rifle, but on a coyote/truck/play rifle I might. Relatively low stakes if that one loses zero, and it's still wearing a sfp Nikon m-series scope that I have never really loved (though it has been surprisingly reliable, lots and lots of bumpy forest service road miles with very few issues). It also seems like a good scope to put on a rimfire. I like the magnification range, locking turrets, and think the reticle is at least ok. The scope seems like a baby LRHS (which I have and really like).

It seems like the first sample acted like I'd expect a vortex/Leupold/whatever to act, and I wrote it off as just another one of those. The second one fared better than most of them, and even did ok on some of the 36" drops. That's better than a lot of scopes do! 50% failure rate (with partial failure on the good half) is certainly not confidence inspiring, but it does get me interested in it for certain applications.

I'm interested to see what happens with the truck time.
 
eric1115 said:
I don't think I would put it on my deer/elk rifle, but on a coyote/truck/play rifle I might. Relatively low stakes if that one loses zero, and it's still wearing a sfp Nikon m-series scope that I have never really loved (though it has been surprisingly reliable, lots and lots of bumpy forest service road miles with very few issues). It also seems like a good scope to put on a rimfire. I like the magnification range, locking turrets, and think the reticle is at least ok. The scope seems like a baby LRHS (which I have and really like).
Click to expand...
Serious question - why would you consider a scope on any rifle if it has a questionable zero retention? Even if it has great turrets and the best reticle and you are “only” using for coyotes (or play)? Being Devil’s Advocate against my own question, I suppose if I had a rimfire and it was without a scope and someone *gave* it to me, I’d try it, but if something is worth shooting at, I’d rather hit the intended target, or not wonder about it.
 
fwafwow said:
Serious question - why would you consider a scope on any rifle if it has a questionable zero retention? Even if it has great turrets and the best reticle and you are “only” using for coyotes (or play)? Being Devil’s Advocate against my own question, I suppose if I had a rimfire and it was without a scope and someone *gave* it to me, I’d try it, but if something is worth shooting at, I’d rather hit the intended target, or not wonder about it.
Click to expand...
Fair question; I'm certainly not ready to go ahead and pick one up, just expressing renewed interest in seeing how they fare under further use/evaluation. If they really do take the 18" drops (and some 36") and if it survives truck time, that is pretty solid in the grand scheme.

A swfa 3-9 is a solid contender, but availability is really rough. Good reliability with an ideal feature set may beat bombproof and less ideal features, especially if I can't get the bombproof one.

Credo 2-10 is the one that was basically my entire short list, and still at the top. Several hundred bucks difference in price is not nothing though.

I'll not lose sleep over a missed coyote of a lifetime like I would with a great buck or bull.
 
Castle Rock said:
2004 Landcruiser, they are primitive but tough
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2004 70 series kinda is an '80s Toyota though 🙂

I've had a handful of trucks and 4runners over the years, but my 60 series LC is the one that's going to stay with me for good.
 
Sort of, it is a 75 series 6
That was one of my old work trucks, photo is a couple years old
The V8 diesel is a beast and is a change of character altogether
 
eric1115 said:
It seems like the first sample acted like I'd expect a vortex/Leupold/whatever to act, and I wrote it off as just another one of those. The second one fared better than most of them, and even did ok on some of the 36" drops. That's better than a lot of scopes do! 50% failure rate (with partial failure on the good half) is certainly not confidence inspiring, but it does get me interested in it for certain applications.
Click to expand...

Yes, but with this model of scope the first didn’t hold zero during drops, lost zero riding in the vehicle, and ended up having to be replaced with a new scope. This one so far doesn’t hold zero from 36” drops which historically has shown it will lose zero in use at some point.


eric1115 said:
I'm interested to see what happens with the truck time.
Click to expand...

Me too.
 
Ok, this is super interesting to me now... I just read the VX3 test posted yesterday and my initial response was "yep, that failed like I expected." I don't really have any interest in an SFP MOA scope, and am generally inclined to assume a Leupold is not going to do well in this sort of exercise.

My second thought was that this target actually looks quite a bit like this Athlon that I wanted to see do well and expressed a pretty different (hopeful and much more open to seeing how it does going forward) set of thoughts about upon seeing round 2 on the warranty replacement scope.

Eye opener for sure, how much what we "want" to have happen can impact our characterization (even to ourselves) of what did happen.
 
eric1115 said:
Ok, this is super interesting to me now... I just read the VX3 test posted yesterday and my initial response was "yep, that failed like I expected." I don't really have any interest in an SFP MOA scope, and am generally inclined to assume a Leupold is not going to do well in this sort of exercise.

My second thought was that this target actually looks quite a bit like this Athlon that I wanted to see do well and expressed a pretty different (hopeful and much more open to seeing how it does going forward) set of thoughts about upon seeing round 2 on the warranty replacement scope.

Eye opener for sure, how much what we "want" to have happen can impact our characterization (even to ourselves) of what did happen.
Click to expand...

A very solid introspection.

The difference between the Leupold and this Athlon is that the Athlon held through 18” drops, the Leupold did not. I am not saying that’s hugely significant, but it is a bit different.
 
Formidilosus said:
A very solid introspection.

The difference between the Leupold and this Athlon is that the Athlon held through 18” drops, the Leupold did not. I am not saying that’s hugely significant, but it is a bit different.
Click to expand...
I'm for sure hanging on to that difference to maintain my identity as a non-emotionally driven, objective person.

Gotta keep at least a shred of my dignity, right?
 
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