Athlon Optics Ares G2 UHD 15-45x65 Angled Spotting Scope

On a long walk into a basin or along a shoreline, the spotting scope that gets used is the one light enough to carry. Athlon calls the Ares G2 UHD 15-45x65 "one of the most versatile spotting scopes in Athlon's lineup" and "light enough for long treks through rugged terrain", and this angled model puts apochromatic UHD glass, a 13.1 ft close focus and an interchangeable eyepiece in an 11.9-inch, 45.9 oz body.

Key Features

• Glass and coatings. Athlon's sheet pairs an apochromatic lens system with extra-low dispersion UHD glass that leaves "little or no chromatic fringe". The lenses are advanced fully multi-coated, and Athlon's page describes "BaK4 prisms with the new ESP Dielectric Coating" and an XPL coating on the outer lenses "to withstand dirt, oil, and grime of constant use".
• 15x to 45x. At 15x the field spans 171 ft at 1,000 yards, narrowing to 81 ft at 45x, as the exit pupil shrinks from 4.3 mm to 1.4 mm. Athlon's manual notes that the image dims as you zoom up in low light. Focus is a ring in the middle of the tube.
• Close focus at 13.1 ft, for a bird or an animal near you.
• Interchangeable eyepiece. Athlon's manual has you push the zoom eyepiece in and turn it counterclockwise to remove it, then align the arrows and turn the new one clockwise until it stops, and asks you to watch its QR-code video first. The swap takes Athlon's 22x Ranging Reticle Eyepiece, sold separately, with a TSSR2 SFP MIL reticle marked in 0.2 MIL hashes and a 143 ft field. Athlon lists it as "currently compatible with the Ares 15-45×65 UHD Straight and Angled Spotting Scopes".
• Weather. Athlon's page says the metal chassis "is fog proof and waterproof and filled with Argon gas to prevent internal fogging and better thermal stability". The sheet names it an aluminum alloy chassis.
• Eyecup, collar and sunshade. Turn the twist-up eyecup down if you wear glasses; eye relief runs 19 to 16 mm. A thumbscrew frees the mounting collar to turn the body, and the extendable sunshade blocks stray light.

Ideal For

• Hunters on foot, with hunting and long range the two applications on Athlon's sheet.
• Birders. Athlon's birding guide shows this scope in both bodies and says an angled eyepiece "provides more comfort for the user" and suits a scope shared by several people, "as there is less adjustment of the tripod required".
• Range spotters. With the 22x eyepiece, Athlon's catalog says you can "accurately estimate game or make calls for your buddy at the range".
• Angled or straight? The Ares G2 UHD 15-45x65 Straight shares this model's field, close focus, eye relief, exit pupil and interchangeable eyepiece at the same price. Athlon's guide says a straight eyepiece "can be easier to track and locate" a bird or a target.
• Need 60x or more light? The Ares G2 UHD 20-60x85 Angled gathers (85 ÷ 65)² = 1.7 times the light and reaches 60x, but weighs 70.0 oz, focuses to 39.4 ft and costs more. The Cronus G2 UHD Dual Focus 20-60x86 adds a coarse and a fine focus. Our Ares vs Cronus comparison covers the whole line.

Accessories & Compatibility

• Tripod. The mounting ring has a standard 1/4-20 thread for your tripod head's quick-release or mounting plate. Our Midas CF32 tripod has an Arca-Swiss ball head and a 55 lb rating, and our tripod guide matches each Midas tripod to a spotting scope.