Shooting Sports

March FX PRS 5-42×56

March Scopes is known for producing world-class premium optics. But they aren’t very well known, because of their eye-watering prices and because their scopes are only sold by specialty optics stores. Their scopes have been in high demand among professional F-class and benchrest shooters. Last year, March enlisted a professional PRS shooter to help optimize a March-FX High Master scope for PRS and NRL style shooting.

I got a chance to see a prototype of the March-FX High Master PRS Edition FX Gen II at SHOT Show 2025. And I got an opportunity to meet the designer of its FML-WBR reticle, Brandon Rudge. This scope was eye-catching for the silver bands around its turrets. But this wasn’t just for style, Brandon got March engineers to make turrets out of a metallic material that could be written on with whiteboard, dry-erase markers to mark off target dope during competitions. A simple yet brilliant feature that I predict will be ripped off and copied by other scope makers.

The scope has some other differences from the standard March-FX. It has non-locking turrets, so there is no chance of an accidental lockup during a stressful match when adrenaline makes turret adjustments challenging. The reticle illumination has been removed to allow for a thinner, finer etching of the reticle. All of these features enhance this scope’s already stunning glass, exceptional range of magnification, and wide field of view, to make a scope that is optimized for PRS / NRL competition.

One additional note, the testing demo sample I received was missing the break-away throw lever and MD aperture filter normally included with this scope.

BUY

EuroOptic: https://alnk.to/gp2ZhLA

Area 419 Tactical Series Scope Mount: https://amzn.to/3I1qCPI

RESOLUTION

Group 0 / Element 3

SPECS

MARCH FX Gen II PRS
Magnification: 5-42x
Objective: 56mm
Tube: 34mm
Exit Pupil : 5.2mm-1.33mm
FOV @ 100yds 26.2ft-3.3ft
Eye Relief: 73-90mm
Click Adjustment: 0.1MIL
Elevation Travel: 40MIL
Windage Travel: 14MIL
Parallax Focus: 10 yards – infinity
Weight: 1015g (35.80oz)
Length: 355mm(13.98inch)

Geek Out, Travel

Nintendo Store San Francisco

It came as a bit of a surprise when I heard that Nintendo would be opening a new store at Union Square, in downtown San Francisco. When you mention downtown San Francisco nowadays, the image that comes to mind are shuttered retail stores and fentanyl addicts. But in May of 2025, a month ahead of the Switch 2 launch, Nintendo opened only its second store in the USA.

Nintendo’s first store was at Rockefeller Plaza in New York City. I’ve visited there regularly since it opened over a decade ago. The San Francisco store has attracted a line of fans and tourists since its opening. Because of its popularity (and possibly to reduce the risk of theft), the store security has limited the number to 100 customers who can enter the store at a time. When I got there, the line was about a half block long, and it took about 20 minutes in queue before I got in.

The store has two levels. The street level has most of the San Francisco labeled Nintendo Store merchandise, and you will also find sections dedicated to the Mario Bros., Donkey Kong, and Animal Crossing. Downstairs are sections with merch for Splatoon, Pokémon, Pikman, Zelda, and the new Switch 2 console and games.

Whilst the San Francisco store is physically smaller than the New York Store, its design feels more like a boutique for a fashion brand than a retail game store. The San Francisco store offers a wider selection of products, apparel, and merchandise from a wider range of Nintendo franchises. Even if you’ve been the New York store, it’s well worth visiting the San Francisco store for a different experience.

Social

TMI 250625 GTA Report


This is a pre-recorded episode of the Too Much Information show. In this episode, we’ll be talking with 1957 Porsche Speedster and his daughter, Grace about her experiences at the Golden Trailer Awards.  @GoldenTrailerAwards 

This video is sponsored by Aura. Stop leaving yourself vulnerable to data breaches. Go to my link https://aura.com/moondog to get a 14-day free trial and see if any of your data has been exposed.

This video is sponsored by Venice.ai. Go to my link https://venice.ai/moondog to enjoy private, unscensored A.I. Get 20% off a Venice Pro Plan using code: moondog

Read my notes https://moondogindustries.com/tmi-250625-gta-report/

SPONSOR

Aura https://aura.com/moondog

EARLYBIRD Clue: No logo quiz this week.
Instead I’m giving away ZKT wipes via email to those watching. ZKT Wipe giveaway
Be one of the first 3 people to email me at moondogairsoft@gmail.com with the SUBJECTLINE #zkt with your name and adress.

THIS WEEK

Moondog2A

Moondog Reviews

Moondog Go

BRAND CONTEST CLUE

No live contest this week. Instead, we’re doing the ZKT wipe giveaway via email


DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE

Todays guest is a retired biotech engineer, who spent over 30 years developing and manufacturing Medical Diagnostic Testing regents. He’s worked in California, Deleware and the UK. He won last month’s prize of tickets to the Golden Trailer Awards. His daughter who is studying Marine Biology at UCLA, went to the awards show earlier this month.

SPECIAL GUEST:
Lee aka 1957 Porsche Speedster and his daughter Grace

Golden Trailer Awards: https://goldentrailer.com/

CONTESTS

June 2025 IONJET2 Contest

BRAND CONTEST CLUE

No live contest this week. Instead we’re doing the ZKT wipe giveaway via email

ZKT Wipe giveaway
Be one of the first 3 people to email me at moondogairsoft@gmail.com with the SUBJECTLINE #zkt with your name and adress.

Next Livestream Wed July 2

Product Reviews, Shooting Sports

Monstrum Challenger 5-25×56 FFP

https://youtu.be/vez2wjy7HNw

Monstrum released the Challenger 5-25×56, a new budget FFP long-range scope. This improves upon their older G3 4-24×50 long-range scope with features appealing to PRS style shooting with a larger 56mm objective lens, zero-stop turret, and a Christmas tree reticle. Remarkably it has all of that at a lower price than the G3.

The Challenger ships with several accessories including a decent set of high-height rings. It does not include a sun shade which many budget PRS scopes include. The Challenger has a built-in fin on its magnification ring so doesn’t need an additional throw lever.

The illumination knob has 6 levels of brightness with an Off in between the settings. The elevation turret is non-locking but has a built-in Zero-Stop activated by screwing down a worm screw accessible under the turret cap. An odd design feature is the screw-down turret top on the elevation which covers the turret screw and access to the Zero-stop worm screw. This makes resetting the turret zero a little bit more work.

The windage turret is a more typical, push-down-to-lock design. It has an exposed slotted turret screw top to reset the turret to 0. Unfortunately, my model’s turret markings did not exactly line up with the tube’s indicator dot, a tell-tale sign of cheaper, budget construction.

Glass and optical quality are also where Monstrum compromised to achieve its low price. The image at its lowest of 5x shows noticeable chromatic aberration. The image was not sharp from center to edge, with noticeable softening and distortions at the outer 1/4 of the scope image. Color fidelity was good but with a slightly warm balance. The was average for a budget PRS scope: tight.

The new reticle is the Challenger’s best improvement over the G3. It is a more tactical style reticle than other PRS Christmas tree reticles, with a thick “+” as its central aim point. This made the reticle much more usable from 5x-16x than typical FFP reticles but was too thick for Precision target shooting as it obscures the central X ring of a bullseye. This reticle will be more appealing to hunters than Benchrest shooters.

For long-range hunters or gong plinkers on a budget, this scope is priced low enough to be worth a try. As a competition PRS scope it has disappointing optical performance. But factoring in its jaw-dropping street price of $199, the value calculous for this scope shifts radically toward its favor.

BUY

Monstrum Challenger on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4gSoS7J

RESOLUTION

Monstrum Challenger: Group -1 / Element 2

SPECS

CHALLENGER
Magnification: 5-25x
Objective Lens: 56 mm
Tube Diameter: 30mm
Focal Plane: First
Reticle: CM4 MOA, MM4 MIL
Illumination: red
Battery: CR2032
Eye Relief: 3.5-4 in
FOV @ 100 Yards: 25.3-5.06 ft
Parallax: 25 yrds-Infinity
Elevation Adj: 45 MOA
Windage Ad: 45 MOA
Per Click: 1/4 MOA
Per Rotation: 20 MOA
Length: 14 in
Weight: 37 oz

Gadgets

SHOT 2025 Fenix mini EDCs

I stopped by the Fenix booth at SHOT Show to see Fenix’s new offerings for 2025. I had tested the EO3R, which is a small flat EDC flashlight, about the size of my car’s alarm fob. The new E06R extends this design with a higher output and higher battery capacity. It’s also a bit longer by about 50% so it’s no longer a keychain sized EDC but not quite long enough to be a knife sized flashlight like the OLight Arkfeld. It’s about the size of the SW05R clip-on light that they sent me to test. I hope to get a sample of the EO6R to test out too.

BUY

Get 10% off using code AF-MOONDOG
Fenix https://alnk.to/eDSFSD5

Amazon https://amzn.to/4iqPSMg

Product Reviews

Swarovski AX Visio 10×32

Swarovski is known for some of the highest quality glass in sporting optics and some of the most expensive. The AX Visio 10×32 binoculars are nearly $5000. But that premium price isn’t just because it’s a Swarovski, it’s because the AX Visio has built-in visual A.I. components, allowing it to identify birds and wildlife.

When the user aims the binoculars at an animal and activates its ID system, it checks its internal database and displays the name of the bird or animal to the viewer. It has built-in GPS to reduce false positives by excluding animals that would not normally be located where the viewer activates it. For example, if the unit was used in California, it would not identify birds normally found in Australia.

I hold a slim hope that I can get a sample to test out.

BUY

On Amazon https://amzn.to/41qCgtK

Travel

NYC Fifth Avenue Apple Store

The Fifth Avenue Apple Store is Apple’s flagship store in Manhattan. Opened in 2006 and with its iconic glass cube installed in 2011, this store was built on the site of the General Motors Gardens. It still contains potted trees which are carefully illuminated by sunlight and artificial lighting.

The store was originally designed by Bohlin Cywinski Jackson. Its renovation in 2011, which included the construction of its iconic glass cube entrance, was by Foster + Partners and Apple’s chief design officer Jony Ive. It visually harkens to I.M. Pei’s Louver pyramid. The Apple Store sits at the corner of Fifth Avenue opposite Grand Army Plaza at the corner of Central Park.

Social

TMI 250618 Gizzard Gary Genealogy


Too Much Information live chat show. In this episode, we’ll be talking with Gizzard Gary, about genealogy and researching your ancestors. Gary is a retired nuclear IT specialist and YouTuber https://gizzardgary.com/.
Read my show notes https://moondogindustries.com/tmi-250618-gizzard-gary-genealogy/

This video is sponsored by Aura. Stop leaving yourself vulnerable to data breaches. Go to my link https://aura.com/moondog to get a 14-day free trial and see if any of your data has been exposed.

This video is sponsored by Venice.ai. Go to my link https://venice.ai/moondog to enjoy private, unscensored A.I. Get 20% off a Venice Pro Plan using code: moondog

Read my notes https://moondogindustries.com/tmi-250625-gta-report/

SPONSOR

Aura https://aura.com/moondog

EARLYBIRD Clue:

#[WORD] channel

THIS WEEK

Moondog2A

Moondog Reviews

Moondog Go

BRAND CONTEST CLUE

This cable channel covers a wide range of historical periods and topics including warfare, superstitions,  warfare, inventions, technology, science, monsters, unidentified flying objects, conspiracy theories, aliens, cults, survival scenarios, and alternate history.


DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE

Genealogy is the study of family history and ancestry, focusing on tracing lineage and compiling family trees. It involves researching and documenting family relationships through various records like birth certificates, census data, and marriage licenses. Genealogists use these records to construct family trees and explore the connections between generations. 

Todays guest is a retired IT specialist in the nuclear energy industry. He hails from Kansas and has a number of YouTube channels and programs, including Gizzard Gary, Gary Reviews, Boomer Listens, and hosts a weekly livestream Fowl Territory.

SPECIAL GUEST: Gizzard Gary

Golden Trailer Awards: https://goldentrailer.com/

CONTESTS

June 2025 IONJET2 Contest

BRAND CONTEST CLUE

This cable channel is owned by A&E and while it started of showing history doctumenatries it’s most well known programs have little or no connection to that topic: Pawn Stars and Ice Road Truckers.

ZKT Wipe giveaway
Be one of the first 3 people to email me at moondogairsoft@gmail.com with the SUBJECTLINE #zkt with your name and adress.

Next TMI will be a pre-recorded episode Wed June 25

Shooting Sports

CVLife Bear Swift 1-10×28 FFP

CVLife is known for producing basic budget scopes. Some would derisively call them airsoft grade. Recently, they’ve upgraded their product line with more feature-rich optics. The Bear Swift is a 1-10×28 LPVO with a wide 34mm tube for an impressive 80 MOA range of adjustment. The box includes the scope with flip-up lens caps, 2 button batteries, and an offset mount. The mount is basic with unmatched rings and lacking recoil lugs but they are marked with their recommended torq settings for its screws. The scope costs just under $200 on Amazon https://amzn.to/3FcbDl6​ which puts it in the same price tier as a Montstrum Panzer. The Vortex Crossfire is also the same price but it is only a 1-4x SFP.

The scope appeared nicely designed and constructed. Better than most expect for a budget scope. It has resettable, locking turrets that are tactile positive with loud and distinct clicks. Its illumination knob has 5 brightness settings in red and green with an off in-between each color half. The magnification right turned smoothly and comes with a very short screwed in throw lever.

The scope has a First Focal Plane (FFP) reticle that appears to be a copy of the Vortex Razor HD. The reticle is very thin and hard to see at 1x but unlike the Razor HD, the illumination of the Bear Swift is only average in red and not daylight bright. It’s green brightness is rather dim. At 10x the reticle is much more usable but like many 1-10x FFP, the eyebox is tight and unforgiving.

Optically, the scope exhibited a slight image distortion and wasn’t the flattest image at 1x. But the glass had good clarity and sharpness and reduced chromatic aberration. The initial sample I received from CVLife had a small optical defect. The reticle was parallax focused at 100 yards and exhibited a slight 1/2 shift at 100 yards. Despite this parallax shift, I was able to stay on target during live-fire testing, and the scope retained zero after 50 rounds of .556. I sent photos and a short video to CVLife to explain this issue, and they quickly sent me a replacement without defect.

The Bear Swift’s features and glass clarity make it a good value for a $200 scope, putting it on par with the Monstrum Panzer series and better than most entry-level FFP LPVOs from bigger-name brands. If CVLife could improve its weak reticle illumination and the overly thin 1x reticle design, this would be an amazing budget scope.

BUY

Amazon https://amzn.to/3FcbDl6

RESOLUTION @ 50yrds

Group -1 / Element 3

SPECS

BEAR SWIFT

Magnification: 1-10x

Objective: 28mm

Tube: 34mm

Click Adj: 0.5 MOA

Elevation Adj: 80 MOA

Windage Adj: 80 MOA

Eye Relief: 3.5mm

FOV: 11.7 fr. @ 100 yrds

Illumination: Red & Green

Battery: CR2032

Weight: 29.03 oz

Length: 295mm

Gear Reviews, Education, and Adventure