A Look Into Optics Technology
3 New Tools Border Science Fiction
It used to be that binoculars, scopes and spotting scopes were devices that magnified what you saw in them. Well, they still do that, but a whole lot more. They are now “smart” devices that do an amazing amount of computation for you. They can help you make informed decisions in the field to make a more effective shot, help you see your target like never before, or, perhaps, get you back to the truck. It’s a good idea to look into these recent technological advances to see if they could help you and add to your hunting toolbox. — John Geiger
1) SIG SAUER ZULU6 HDX 12×42
Amazing Image Stabilization
If you’ve ever gotten a bit of buck fever as you spy antlers or horns at a distance, you know how any shaking is magnified as you try to look at the details of your target. The Zulu6 smooths out sharp, small movements and makes it much easier to focus on the image.
Sig Sauer’s new Zulu6 HDX image-stabilization binos may be a disruptive product on the hunting optics market.
The stabilized Zulu6 allows you to easily study distant objects, like antlers or pick apart distant hillsides for signs of bedded animals. When you pick up a pair of traditional binos, you wonder why our gear has not had more image-stabilization technology. That’s probably going to change from here on out.
It’s true that image-stabilizing binoculars and laser range finders have been on the market for years, but there have usually been downsides, like weight, diminished light transmission or price. The Zulu6 has eliminated or mitigated many of those past technological hurdles and brings a bright, stabilized image to your eye. The 12x binos are less than $1,000, while the largest 20x42mm is $1,200.
If there is any downside, it’s the modest 3.6-degree field-of-view in the 12x42mm version we tried. sigsauer.com
2) SWAROVSKI TRACKING ASSISTANT
Direct Access
How many times have you shot a deer or other game animal from a distance, gone to recover it and found yourself saying, “Hmm. I thought it would be right here.”
Or, how many times have you ranged a distant target, lost sight of it in your stalk and then second- guessed yourself about whether it was on one hill or another?
If this has never happened to you, you can skip this part. But if it has, you’ll be glad to know that Swarovski’s new Tracking Assistant is a new technology that’s built to take a lot of that guesswork and confusion out of your hunting adventures. And it comes in many of Swarovski’s EL Range binos.
Glass a distant object, range the distance and then drop a pin on that location on your phone. The phone will then point you in the right direction on your way and adjust as you make your way to that spot.
You don’t have to have cell service for it to work. It will use your phone’s GPS to keep you on track and show directional arrows to get you to your target. Another option is just using the binos themselves, which will tell you the distance to your destination in yards or meters and the direction with arrows.
If you do have cell service, the Tracking Assistant app will show your position on a detailed satellite map, including valleys, rivers, mountains and other features, which is always helpful.
The binos will also lead you back to your original destination, where you took the shot. swarovskioptik.com.
3) REVIC RADIKL RS25B
Robot Riflescope
Scopes are doing more heavy lifting in long-range shooting than ever before. Revic’s new Radikl RS25b is one of those scopes — basically a supercomputer on your gun — and it’s nothing if not radical.
Let’s get this out of the way right away. Even if it runs out of batteries (CR2), it is still an excellent riflescope. But with that lithium power, it’s a powerhouse.
The bottom line is the Radikl RS25b, made by the folks at Gunwerks, replaces a lot of the functions of a ballistic app that we’ve been using for years. It’s as simple as this: you get your range and wind hold, dial the turret to that number and you’re done. When you dial the turret, the scope uses that info to calculate elevation, temperature and angle. It pushes it through the onboard ballistic engine to show your holdover in the scope in nanoseconds.
The scope’s temperature and pressure sensors calculate air density in real-time, while the magnetometers and gyroscopes calculate the inclination angle and the compass heading.
When shooting at extremely long distances, the scope even corrects for the Coriolis effect (the measurement of the Earth’s rotation on the bullet flight) as well as spindrift (the drifting of the bullet in the direction of the barrel twist).
The scope also has a crisp OLED display in the tube, so you can dial the turret without looking at it. That lets you keep your cheek weld and your eyes on the reticle plane instead of looking out over the tube to the turret.
Of course, you must still do the trigger-pulling yourself and input wind speed, direction and range. The scope needs a little help in those areas.
The system even functions with a dead battery, so you won’t lose your settings.
The Radikl RS25b weighs 38.7 ounces and is 13.2 inches long. It’s a first-focal-plane scope now available in 4-25x50mm. $3,900 at revic.com.
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