2,000 dollar sightron s6 or the athlon Helos at 550.00. I’ll take the athlon any day!
MY opinion! I shoot hft.
MY opinion! I shoot hft.
Sightron vs athlon
- Thread starter Hopsing
- Start date
Could very well be. Today the scope game is a beautiful mess. On one hand we can get a lot more for our money these days. On the other it’s hard to tell where the best use of that money should go. If you check out the backfire channel on YouTube they had a video several weeks back showing how something like 15 different companies were selling basically the exact same scope (manufactured in China) ranging from 100-400 dollars.
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This is mostly true but there are exceptions sometimes in features or specifications.
One could be the reticle, another could be a higher grade of glass/coatings, yet another turrets. Upgrades cost the Optics Co more.
The Athlon Talos btr 4-14×44 comes to mind which is quite an upgrade compared to the BSA version though initial appearance seems similar.
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FYI…if you are a veteran, Sightron has a Very Generous discount..not in the 550.00 range but Much more affordable. John
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I looked at Athlon as several of our shooters had them. To me they were dark plus I did not care for the reticle. I will say the guys have had no problems with them but several have moved on to other brands.. I am a big fan of the Sightron STac line. I have 5, many thousands of shots with zero problems including a Diana54. I have 2 more on centerfire brnchrest rifles. Bright glass and totally repeatable adjustments. Vet program is fantastic.
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My local BR competition practice day my friend and i traded scopes . I own Athlon he has Sightron . I did see a slight brightness in his scope . but not a large enough difference for the money . We both shot X's 20 times .untimed
I have never had an Athlon break on a springer .
I have never had an Athlon break on a springer .
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At 16x there isn’t much benefit for the higher price glass, and I’ve owned the S6, the S3 and the S-Tacs. What i want is a useable reticle that works for my eyes AND my brain. Currently i'm playing with a Nightforce NX8 in second focal plane which was good enough to prompt me to sell my two S3's - hope i don't regret that later.
That said, the Athlon Helos line is pretty darn sweet esp the big dog 34 mm tube 6-24x56 woof; but, and here is the rub....can it snap in at 35-40 yards in a way that doesn't make me guess and re-range several times?
As I have learned over the last 3 years, sometimes you have to stick with a scope and LEARN it's idiosyncrasies - case in point...
the Element Titan 3-18x50 is a great ranging scope that spreads the numbers out over 270 degrees on a 6" wheel... and has a very useable reticle, but.... you have to practice with it if you want to get the most out of it... i think many of todays scopes out perform the shooters and the fickle shooters give up on the glass before they learn how to use it to its full potential.
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I've used several Sightrons, not the S6, but SI, SII's and a SIII and they were all nice, I'm sure the S6 would be awesome. That said I have a Athlon Midas Tac 6-24X50 Gen 1 and it has great glass. And, out of all the scopes I've used over the years, this one ranges better, and snaps in and out of focus better to my eyes than the others as far as a HFT scope goes.
I still use a S1 and a SII Sightron, and hope to try a STAC at some point, but in general Sightron has great glass.
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I love my Sightrons,I bet they are both good scopes,I own both and they get along together great.
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I definitely think better performance in optics goes up at a much more gradual pace than the price paid for those performance improvements. You pay a lot more for a little better, especially when you get into that mid tier level. The super expensive ones aren’t that huge of a jump (except price) Especially today.
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I use Sightron SIII’s on my rimfire benchrest rifles, 36x and 45x. My 6mm BR carries a Vortex Golden Eagle which I find superior to the Sightron.
Any advice about Vortex on springers?
Any advice about Vortex on springers?
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I love the Athlon scopes I have had, but I would not take any of them over my fixed power Sightron target scopes.
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Those Athlon Heras 6-24 SFP scopes must range pretty good because Kent in our FT club shot a perfect 48/48 in horrible winds on Saturday in Hunter. He thinks the MT's are a little clearer though.
I looked through this Heras in MOA and the reticle does appear to be about the perfect thickness and also thought the glass was very nice at 16x.
I looked through this Heras in MOA and the reticle does appear to be about the perfect thickness and also thought the glass was very nice at 16x.
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I think it comes down to how much do you want to spend? here is a dollar value for each. For myself on a pcp, I refuse to spend any more than $700.00 so that would be ATHLON.
Dollar Value Verdict
- Athlon dominates the $400–$1,200 range with more features (FFP, illumination, zero stop) and modern reticles. If you want versatility and tech without breaking $1,000, it’s hard to beat.
- Sightron starts to shine when you’re chasing optical purity and tracking precision above $1,200. Their SIII and SV lines are built for shooters who demand repeatable accuracy over bells and whistles.
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I took a LONG look at the Athlon 15-60x56 offerings during the Oregon Extreme match. It was the ARES ETR versus the HERAS SPR. At 120 yards (more than 2x the longest AAFTA FT shots) I could not tell the difference between the glass or how they ranged, they were essentially identical. The ARES may have had a slight edge on glass quality but at that distance it was not overly obvious.
At 700 yards the ARES ETR was like looking at a 4k tv compared to the sub 1080p TV quality HEARS SPR. The difference was drastic, the HERAS was distorted kind of like zooming in digitally on an old iphone (a pastel like rendering quality), the ARES was crystal clear and bright.
For field target the ARES would be a waste of money if all else is equal between the two scopes.
At 16x its more of an internals competition over a glass quality competition (Sightron and Athlon) and if you are shooting Hunter you only need the scope to hold zero as there is no clicking.
I would find it difficult to spend 2x the money (or more) in this situation.
Hell my 10-50 Nikko glass is right up there with the Sightron glass and I think the Nikko ranges better even though it is my backup scope (reticle is not wide enough, I run the Mil hash on the Sightron because it is almost twice as wide as the moa reticle).
At 700 yards the ARES ETR was like looking at a 4k tv compared to the sub 1080p TV quality HEARS SPR. The difference was drastic, the HERAS was distorted kind of like zooming in digitally on an old iphone (a pastel like rendering quality), the ARES was crystal clear and bright.
For field target the ARES would be a waste of money if all else is equal between the two scopes.
At 16x its more of an internals competition over a glass quality competition (Sightron and Athlon) and if you are shooting Hunter you only need the scope to hold zero as there is no clicking.
I would find it difficult to spend 2x the money (or more) in this situation.
Hell my 10-50 Nikko glass is right up there with the Sightron glass and I think the Nikko ranges better even though it is my backup scope (reticle is not wide enough, I run the Mil hash on the Sightron because it is almost twice as wide as the moa reticle).
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I'd like to mention that if the diopter isn't adjusted perfectly for each individual's eyes and special care isn't taken to also adjust focus perfectly that one will not be able to judge IQ fairly between scopes.
Just last Wednesday I saw this looking through my friends scopes. It can make two of the same scopes viewing hugely differently. Especially between younger vs older shooters.
But I love my ETR 15-60!
Just last Wednesday I saw this looking through my friends scopes. It can make two of the same scopes viewing hugely differently. Especially between younger vs older shooters.
But I love my ETR 15-60!
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I’m not a FT shooter and 100Y is about far as I shoot my pellet guns. For 50Y BR I prefer SII 36X. For 100Y, I am still searching. I’ve owned 2 Golden Eagles, Delta Stryker, Athlon 15-60, SIII 36 and 45X’s and I still can’t see tiny 22 holes @100Y so I’m still one hunt. It’s likely not the scope but my aging and poor eyesight is to blame. I own 6-24 Talos and find they work really well for inside 50Y and just the bare minimum for 50Y. My SII 36 is still the best I have found so far for 50Y.
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These 177 pellets all look pristine without my glasses. No defects!
You might need one of these next to you
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