Operation: Bad Blood is an annual JDRF charity airsoft event that I created to raise money to help find a cure for diabetes. The game is produced at EMR Event Park in Pennsylvania and is also the official East Coast Customer Appreciation Event for Evike.com. The event attracts 1000 players from all over the country.
My dedicated staff of volunteers help me plan and execute the event every year. We’ll be starting weekly Sunday Q&A Livestreams to help players get the most out of the event. I posted this video to answer some basic questions about our gun and gear requirements for the event. The biggest change for this years game will be a switch from FPS chrono measurements to Joule based limits.
When I was a boy, my uncle let me borrow his B+L Discoverer. I used this scope to spot my hit on paper . It’s a straight tube refracting telescope of the kind that looks like a classic telescope. In fact I used to see the rings of Saturn for the first time.
Last year, I indulged in a little nostalgia when I purchased a 1980’s vintage B+L Discoverer spotting scope on Ebay. This 15-60×60 spotting scope was made by Bausch and Lomb, a brand best known today as a maker of contact lenses but back in the 1980’s, B+L was better known as a maker of military grade optics. B+L made binoculars and target scopes for US Army tanks and planes in the WWII, and invented RayBan sunglasses for bomber pilots.
The Discoverer dwarfs most modern 60mm spotting scopes. It is over 17″ long and weighs 3lbs due to its all metal tube construction and glass. Modern spotting scopes typically utilize a prism to bend the light and make the overall length, shorter. Most modern scopes are far lighter using more plastic parts. And most importantly, modern ED glass has higher light throughput, specialized coatings to reduce chromatic aberrations.
Most modern spotters over $250 in the 60x class will offer better image quality due to advancements in computerized glass fabrication and optical coatings. But compared to budget scopes, the Discoverer can still hold its own with superior sharpness and detail. If you’re lucky, you can still find this scope on Ebay, estate sales or garage sale for under a $100 (mint condition in box models go for much more). Just be sure you give the glass and the body a good inspection.
While visiting the Pardini booth at SHOT Show 2023, I was introduced to their partner Vanguard Outfitters which had a display case of bullets with an almost sci-fi looking construction. Blackfang (aka Black Dragon Fang or Obsidian Dragon) ammo originally came out in 5.7x28mm, the PDW round developed for the FN P90. While the original 5.7×2 military specs had armor penetrating constructions, the round was neutered for the civilian market.
The Blackfang was developed as a workaround that met civilian ammo restrictions, while delivering higher tumble damage and the ability to defeat soft-armor and hard-armor at CQB distances. This round is made of solid copper with a black iron anodized coating. At SHOT this year, they showcased a 300 Blackout version of the round.
Since I don’t own any firearms in this caliber (nor have any plans to) I won’t be testing any of this ammo in the near future, but I appreciate the engineering and ingenuity that goes into making this ammo.
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
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.
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
At a quiet corner SHOT Show 2023 next to the Media Lounge we came across the the RapidStop booth. The RapidStop design was inspired by the need for a rapid self-deployable tourniquet after horrific Boston Bombing. This innovative tourniquet features a quick release buckle and ratchet system, which doesn’t require the hand strength to turn a windlass/stick.
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.
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.
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.
