Athlon Optics Ares ETR GEN2 UHD 15-60x56 ABLR3 SFP IR MOA

At 40x and up on a benchrest or F-Class target, a heavy reticle can cover the ring you are trying to hold, and every correction you dial has to be small. The Athlon Ares ETR GEN2 UHD 15-60x56 answers both with a 0.018 MOA line ABLR3 reticle with an illuminated 0.09 MOA floating dot, 1/8 MOA clicks and UHD extra-low dispersion glass; Athlon designed the ABLR3 "to maximize your performance for both Bench Rest and F-Class shooting applications." A zero stop takes the elevation turret back to zero, and the windage turret locks against accidental turns.

Key Features

• A fine reticle with a lit dot. The ABLR3 SFP IR MOA reticle has a 0.018 MOA line and an illuminated floating center dot 0.09 MOA thick, which Athlon says "provides a precise aiming point." Marks run in 0.5 MOA steps from the dot and are numbered every 2 MOA, out to 10 MOA left, right and below.
• Calibrated at 40x. It is a second focal plane reticle, so it stays the same size as you zoom and its subtensions read true only at 40x. Range or hold at 40x; at 60x each mark covers two thirds of its printed value.
• 1/8 MOA turrets. Each click moves 0.125 MOA, eight clicks to the inch at 100 yards, with 10 MOA per turn and 56 MOA of elevation and windage.
• Zero stop and windage lock. After zeroing, you set a brass plate under the elevation knob, and from then on the knob turns down until it stops at your zero. The windage knob pulls out to turn and pushes in to lock; it has no zero stop.
• UHD glass. Athlon says its extra-low dispersion glass gives "an image that has little or no chromatic fringe," behind advanced fully multi-coated lenses and an XPL coating that protects the outer lenses from dirt, oil and scratches.
• Side focus from 10 yards. Parallax adjusts from 10 yards to infinity, and the larger fly wheel in the box fits over the side focus knob with the supplied Allen wrench.
• Illumination with off positions. Numbers on the dial set the brightness, with an off position between each setting. One CR2032 battery powers it.
• Sealed one-piece tube. A 30 mm one-piece aircraft-grade aluminum tube, argon purged, waterproof, fog proof and shockproof.

Who It's For

• Benchrest shooters, the use Athlon names first, who want an aiming point that, in Athlon's words, "alleviates target obstruction." Side focus down to 10 yards also covers 50-yard rimfire benchrest.
• F-Class shooters. Athlon centers the reticle at the factory, so roughly half of the 56 MOA, about 28 MOA, is left above a 100-yard zero. Compare that with your load's 1,000-yard drop; for more, Athlon's manual points to "an offset 20+ MOA scope rail."
• Choosing between Athlon's 15-60x56 scopes. The Heras SPR 15-60x56 has the same field of view, eye relief, 1/8 MOA clicks, 56 MOA of travel, side focus, zero stop and locking windage turret, weighs 35.3 oz to this scope's 38.4 and costs less. The Ares ETR GEN2 adds what the Heras sheet does not list: UHD glass, the XPL coating and an illuminated reticle.

Accessories & Compatibility

• Rings. It takes 30 mm rings. Athlon's drawing gives 2.25 in of tube ahead of the turret housing and 1.6 in behind it, so check ring spacing on your rail, and mount it "as low as you can without it touching the rifle or impeding the operation of the action of the gun," as Athlon's manual puts it.