Category Archives: Shooting Sports

Firearms and shooting sports

Shooting Sports

Discovery ED-PRS 5-25×56 FFP

I was contacted by Discovery Optics a few months ago to review their new ED-PRS scope. What I got was a scope in a large box filled with accessories. Usually when you get a ton of stuff with a scope this is a bad sign; they are cheap accessories designed to distract you from a mediocre scope. The Discovery ED-PRS on the other hand contained some high quality accessories that were a step above what you’d often get with some other scope brands.

Instead of a simple sheet of fabric cleaning cloth, the ED-PRS came with a soft chamois. In addition to the chamois, it also included a photography lens cleaning pen with an optical nano carbon cleaning tip. It included a set of high-profile scope rings with recoil lugs and printed torque markings.

In the box was an all metal scope level kit which helps you level and square your scope to your rail. I’ve only seen this tool is usually sold as an after-market accessory. And perhaps the most unusual items was a 3-piece sun shade tube which ads about another 10″ to the 13″ long scope.

The scope itself was sizable. It weighs 24oz but feels heavier. Its most notable feature are its oversized turrets. The ED-PRS’s turrets are even wider and taller than an Arken EP5. The turrets are non-locking, resettable and contain a cog wheel style zero-stop similar to Athlon’s Gen2 scopes. The turrets have brass cores and were loud and tactile with no slop.

The turrets, wheels, and nobs feature aggressive fine knurling, which along with being oversized make them generally easy to turn even when wearing gloves. All except for the magnification power ring which was exceedingly stiff and difficult to turn; even with the removable throw lever attached. I found myself really having to manhandle the lever to change magnification which severely impact performance for hunting or competition.

Not that I would take this scope hunting. I think it’s probably too bulky and heavy for most hunters (except those shooting from pimped out blinds or truck beds). The ED-PRS is probably best suited for precision bench-rest shooting with its easy to read markings and fine lined first focal plane reticle. While the scope features a ELR style Christmas tree reticle, serious long range shooters may be disappointed with the glass.

The ED-PRS has what they call a SFIR reticle, which looks a lot like the Arken VPR reticle but with more subtension markings. Like the Arken, the Discovery’s reticle only illuminates the very center cruciform of the reticle, creating something of a red-dot effect when used in low magnification. The illuminator has 6 brightness settings each separated by an OFF setting.

The first unit I received also had a very dim illuminator. Even with the scope cap on I could barely see the illuminated center cross at its highest illumination setting. Discovery sent me and a replacement scope and return label for the defective scope but the process took 3 weeks. They did warm me of the delay due to Lunar New Year which causes many delays in factory production in China. The new scope had a much brighter illumination but even this was not quite daylight bright.

Looking through the scope the image was surprisingly good for a budget scope. Bright with good center to edge sharpness. The other edge of the sight picture had only a hint of distortion even at 25x. The scope kept focus and point of aim throughout its magnification range. The eye box and eye relief were good for a budget scope.

The scope advertises ED glass but I noted some softness in detail at long range that I attribute to chromatic aberration. This was noticeable in mid day light with the target backlight. Overall resolution was better than average for the scopes price tier but not the best in its class. The ED-PRS was still sharp enough to allow me to pick out .22cal holes on paper at 100yrs.

The ED-PRS’ glass is not in the same league as a Leupold VX, Athlon Argos, Vortex Diamond Back Tactical, or even an Arken EP5. But when comparing what you get in the box for a street price of $399 (as of this writing) I would still consider the ED-PRS a good value. If you’re a beginning long-range shooter with a limited budget, this scope is something to consider.

This scope is available through my Affiliate links

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3Ukni4t

RESOLUTION
Group: -1
Element: 3

OVERALL RATINGS (out 5)
Build: 4
Glass: 3.5
Reticle: 4.5
Holds Zero: 5
Box Test: 5
Turrets: 5
Eye Box: 4
Value: 5

ED-PRS SPECS
Magnification :5-25x
Objective Lens: 56mm
Reticle: SFIR FFP
Field of view:4.68°-0.93°
Exit pupil:11.16-2.24mm
Eye relief :87-85mm (3.5″)
Click Value :0.1MRAD
Elv adjust range: :15MRAD
Win adjust range: 8.7MRAD
Tube diameter :34mm
Length :13in
Weight :23.99oz

Gadgets, Shooting Sports

Athlon, what’s with the Greek names?

Athlon is the name of a Greek city which is one of the oldest cities in Europe. But no that’s not what the company was named for. So what’s the deal? I asked the staff at the Athlon booth this question and got their answer.

The answer was more straight forward and aspirational. The engineers who left Bushnell to found a new company named it after the Greek word for a “prize or sporting competition”; where we get the root of many Olympic sports like Decathlon and Biathlon. They wanted a name that sounded like they were a contender in a competitive market. And in the world of sporting optics they are.

Shooting Sports

New Harris MLOK direct attach bipod

At the Harris Engineering booth at last year’s SHOT Show I got a sneak peek at a prototype of a direct attach MLOK bipod they were developing. This year, they introduced this attachment option to their entire swivel bipod line. This bipod allows you to attach their battle proven bipods onto any MLOK compatible hand guard, drastically lowering the profile of their normal swivel bipods. This new bipod is available on their website and through their online retailers.

Harris MLOK bipod is available on Optics Planet through my affiliate link: http://shrsl.com/3zmli

Shooting Sports

New Aguila 20ga Minishells

https://youtu.be/XJyoV_jHULc

A few years ago Aguila invented the Minishell, a 12 ga. buckshot shell that was half the length of traditional shotgun shells. The Minishell round was released along with Mossberg’s new handheld defensive Shockwave pump shotgun. Minishells sacrificed range and spread but effectively doubled the magazine capacity which is more than a fair trade-off in defensive applications.

This year, they introduced a 20 ga. version of the Minishell for use in 20 ga. shotguns preferred by smaller frame shooters like young adults and many women. Given the increased need for home-defense firearms the last few years, this new load option is sure to find many customers.

Product Reviews, Shooting Sports

Lasting Merino Wool Clothing

A gun industry trade show isn’t the first place you’d go to try wool socks, but that’s where we found ourselves on the final day of SHOT Show. My producer came across Lasting, an outdoors clothing company which makes 100% Merino wool in the Exhibitor map. We stopped by after visiting another nearby booth to see what they had to offer.

Every experienced outdoorsman I know swears by wool as the best material for socks for its moisture wicking and wearing properties. This includes sportsmen, military, and law enforcement, that attend SHOT or cater to that market. It’s surprising therefore, there are almost no outdoor clothing companies at SHOT.

Neither my producer or I were familiar with the Lasting brand. Our goal was to check out their products, especially their socks, and if they were quality, find out from the booth where online or which local retailers carried them. And boy, was I unprepared for what we experienced.

I believe wool is great for outdoor clothing (and many of my business suits are made of it). But I can’t wear wool without wearing a cotton base layer under it. My skin is unusually sensitive and typical wool will raise hives when it brushes against my bare skin, unless its Cashmere, even 100% Merino wool.

But I found out at Lasting that not all 100% Merino wool is the same. They only use 16.5µm thickness Morino wool thread which comes from the softer belly fur of Merino sheep. This makes their clothing feel more like silk or lycra than wool.

Yeah, I’ve heard similar claims about soft wool from clothing reps during Fashion Week in New York City, but my standard for soft is a lot higher than most. I was dumbfounded at how soft Lasting’s t-shirts felt. I’m wearing their t-shirt right now and I’ve never before been able to wear wool on my bear skin before this.

I never heard of Lasting before SHOT. I’m a Lasting fan now. But dang are they pricy. If you need a soft wool base layer, they are worth it.

Shooting Sports

How do you pronounce CZ?

CZ is one of the most well known and Czech gun maker, producing the legendary CZ 75 line of 9mm pistols, the Skorpion mico-SMG, and highly regarded rifles and shotguns. A few people know what the initials C and Z stand for but even fewer know how to pronounce the Czech name of the company: Česká Zbrojovka

To prove this point, at SHOT Show 2023 I asked everybody I interviewed at their booth, how to pronounce Česká Zbrojovka and here are the results and the official pronunciation from a Czech staff member at the CZ booth. I applaud my subjects’ best efforts in this video. To be fair, unless you’re Czech, Slovokian, or Polish, you’ll probably struggle with pronouncing anything written in Czech.


Shooting Sports

New Aguila Rata 22LR

At the Aguila booth this year, Luis showed me their new packaging for the relaunch of their 22LR shotshell cartridges, renamed “Rata”, spanish for rat. Aptly named as this speciality cartridge was designed for dispatching fast moving pests at close range. Rata is unique in that it uses #10 bird shot, which are larger balls than their competitors such as CCI and Federal.

Because of the low recoil energy of this shells loading, this round does not cycle reliably in semi-auto firearms and should be used single-shot or in revolvers. Luis provided me with their gun range ballistics gel footage showing how effective it is in squirrel sized target. While not immediately obvious due to the small shot size and clear gel, on closer review of the footage, you can see multiple concurrent hits on the gel and an obvious transfer of energy. That varmint is d-e-a-d.

Gadgets, Shooting Sports

New NexTorch Products 2023

NexTorch is a flashlight and tactical accessory company that most consumers aren’t aware of. Primarily its because they primarily market to law enforcement, military, and first responders. And they’re German, preferring to promote themselves more by reputation than advertising.

NexTorch’s new TA30C is a tactical light outputs 1300 lumens with a rechargeable lithium battery. While these specs are pretty standard for flaghship tactical lights, what sets the TA30 apart from the category is its controls. Instead a memorizing a series of tailcap clicks or side button taps, the TA30 has a clear and intuitive control ring on the tail with power level symbols.

What isn’t as obvious from the photos but you can perceive when holding NexTorch flashlights, is the quality of their materials, construction, and thoughtful design. The TA30 can also sport a tactical carry ring that functions like an accessory handle and “brass knuckle” in melee. Unlike some gimmicky metal rings, their carry ring is made of polymer and can break away to reduce the risk of injury to the user if the flashlight is caught or trapped.

This practical design extends to their NEX security baton. This steel baton telescopes from a foot long steel rod and extends to 28″. It can accessorized with a 4 section cross-guard designed to defend the user from blade wielding assailants (England much?)

NexTorch is designed in Germany but produced in China to lower costs. Their products are priced at a premium compared with mass market Chinese brands like Olight and Fenix. But are still only half the price of comparable SureFires tactical lights.

Shooting Sports

Winchester Xpert 22LR

It’s been 40 years since Winchester stopped making the legendary Model 52. Last year, the Browning company that still bears the Winchester name, released their first .22LR rimfire in decades: the Xpert.

In many ways the Xpert is the diametric opposite of the Model 52. The Xpert shares the polymer body and 10/22 compatible magazine of the Winchester Wildcat. It uses an adjustable M.O.A. trigger from the Model 70 (which can be adjusted down to 2.5 lbs) and has a Bentz chamber.

With a street price under $300, the XPert is priced to compete with the base model Savage A22 and less than half the price of a Bergara B-series or the CZ 457s. It remains to be seen if the XPert can compete with those bolt-action rimfire rifles or live up to the legend of the Model 52.

Shooting Sports

New Integrix ELR Scopes

https://youtu.be/kN9Fc6hh3A0

Leapers is best known for the UTG brand of high-quality accessories and budget tier optics (my UTG Bugbuster is not awesome but for the price, one of my favorite scopes). Last year I was introduced to their Integrix brand made with German and Japanese glass and sporting premium features. They released their LPVO but delayed the launch of their PRS/ELR targeted scopes until now.

On Industry Range Day, I was surprised to stumble upon a small UTG booth at the end of the firing line. There I ran into our old friend Kiyo who set me up at the bench with an Accuracy International precision rifle chambered in .338 Lapua Magnum, the same rifle used by the Canadian sniper who scored the worlds farthest confirmed kill at 1.3 miles! Atop this rifle was Leapers new Integrix 4.5-27x56mm FFP scope.

Dealing with a 20-30mph crosswinds and intermittent rain and hail, I managed to get at least 1 solid hit on a gong over 900m downrange. The scope brought the target sharply in focus and the image was bright and clear from edge to edge. And I’m told all of Integrix scopes are tested to withstand the recoil of .338 Magnum rounds.

Theis new ELR scopes contain premium components and are expected to have a commensurate price with an MSRP over $1500. This year I hope Kiyo and Leapers comes through with a sample model that I can test and review at the range.