Recently, I have
had the opportunity to work with a new variation of Tasco's
target scope called the Varmint / Tactical. The scope is much
like Tasco's other excellent target scopes, with the exception
of the reticle. The new scope features a true Mil-Dot range finding
reticle. Contrary to popular belief, the "Mil" in
Mil-Dot does not stand for "Military", even though the
reticle was developed for the U.S. Marine Corp snipers in the
late 1970s. "Mil" is short for milliradian, a unit of
measure. The radian system is a measure of rotation, much like
degrees. Instead of using degrees, minutes, and seconds, the
Mil-Dot reticle uses milliradian to find the distance to a
target of known size.
For most practical
purposes, all we need to remember is that the distance between
the dots, on center, subtends 36 inches (one yard) at 1000
yards, or 3.6 inches at 100 yards. If you know, for instance,
that an average man is six feet (two yards) tall, and covers the
distance of two dots, he is 1000 yards away. If he covers four
dots, he is 500 yards away. It is easier to understand with the
Mil-Dot reticle drawing included at bottom right.
Another very
practical use of the Mil-Dot reticle in the Varmint / Tactical
scope is to use the lower dots on the vertical reticle as aiming
points for extended yardage. By knowing the distance to the
target, a shooter can use the lower dots as reference points to
hold over to allow for the falling trajectory of the bullet.
With the target
turrets provided on the Varmint / Tactical scope, a shooter can
also easily rotate the elevation knob to compensate for bullet
drop at long range. The adjustment knobs on the scope are
precisely repeatable and easily zeroed to a particular rifle.
While testing the
optics and features of the Varmint / Tactical riflescope, I
compared it to another scope that I was using at the time. The
other scope is a very well known American-made variable target
scope costing approximately six times what the Tasco sells for.
To my surprise and regret, the optical clarity of the Tasco was
much better than that of the other scope for which I had paid
dearly just a few months ago. Also, the other scope does not
feature the Mil-Dot reticle of the Tasco, and the power
adjustment ring of the Tasco is much smoother and easier to
rotate. The Tasco comes with better scope covers. Both scopes
have adjustable objective lenses of 42mm diameter, but the Tasco
has the ability to focus much closer than the more expensive
scope. Finally, the power of the Tasco Varmint / Tactical scope
is adjustable from 6 to 24 power, while the expensive scope
adjusts from 6 to 18 power. In every comparison between the two
scopes, the Tasco came out on top. This is not to knock the
other scope; it is a very good riflescope. The Tasco is just
better, and costs much less. I wish that I had seen the Tasco
before buying the other scope.
Another feature of
the Tasco is their lifetime warranty to be shockproof, fog proof,
and waterproof. The Varmint / Tactical has a smooth matte
black finish and fully-coated lenses throughout the scope.
Check out the Tasco
Varmint / Tactical 6 to 24 power scope online at www.tascosales.com.
You can order the
scope at www.midwayusa.com
for less than 100 bucks. That is a great price for a great
scope.
Jeff Quinn
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