I'm really curious.....

[Gerry52]

In the few years I've been involved with PCP's I've probably tried 8-10 different scopes, the majority of which have had illuminated reticles (IR). Other than putting a battery in to see if they work properly I've NEVER used that feature. Even Joe Rhea (Cyclops) mentioned in one of his videos that they're mostly a "gimmick". 5+ years of hunting & I've never had the need to use it. How many of you really use IR on a regular basis. Is it a deal breaker/maker when buying a scope & WHY? I'm really curious.

 

[Gr8Recreation]

In the few years I've been involved with PCP's I've probably tried 8-10 different scopes, the majority of which have had illuminated reticles (IR). Other than putting a battery in to see if they work properly I've NEVER used that feature. Even Joe Rhea (Cyclops) mentioned in one of his videos that they're mostly a "gimmick". 5+ years of hunting & I've never had the need to use it. How many of you really use IR on a regular basis. Is it a deal breaker/maker when buying a scope & WHY? I'm really curious.

Just reread fully-yeah, mostly a gimmick. Shooting in dusk for that last hour of daylight, that’s pretty much it.

 

[hawkeye69]

I have several IR scopes. Obviously it's for low light situations and I almost always shoot in full daylight, but there have been a few occasions at dusk and inside barns where it's been useful, especially when using a scope cam which cuts light going to the eyepiece.

 

[delooper]

I haven't used mine, at least, not on my natural light scopes.

I imagine you'll want it when you have a sufficiently-dark background. That doesn't seem to come up very often for me. When I have a dark background, I'm using either an infra-red scope or a thermal imager. My infra-red and thermal scopes do have "illuminated reticles" but they're digital creations.

 

[Kgphotos]

I have never once used an illuminated reticle. I have several Hawke scopes with that feature but I just haven‘t needed to use it.
Kenny

 

[thammer]

I've used mine many times at dusk and dawn while hunting in the woods and also during HFT matches when the target is under cover and can be highly shaded. A black reticle on a black target in the woods under heavy shade can be difficult to see.

 

[Gerry52]

I DO UNDERSTAND the PURPOSE of the illumination but was wondering how often people use it. I guess I'm lucky that my eyes are probably better than the average 70 year old but even in low light conditions I've not needed it & wanted to get an idea of how many do.

 

[Franklink]

Very similar experience here, IR is just not a feature I look for. I've even bought some specifically b/c they didn't have the IR (saves weight).

I've read some field target shooters say they like IR on a dark lane/target but I've yet to be confronted with a target where I couldn't see a simple non-IR reticle. And we often have ft matches in some pretty dark and shaded areas of the woods over in western NM.

I didn't use an IR scope for the Xtreme Field Target night match we had a few months ago and could see the targets just fine. Same thing when I shoot at night at my house. Although, in both those cases the target has a light a few feet in front of it illuminating it.

I've shot late into the dusk part of the day without IR and been able to see the crosshairs.

Generally, I think the IR feature is like a lot of the discussion on scopes, very subjective. We each have our preferences and even differences in vision from one guy to the next could have an impact on whether or not a guy values IR as a feature on a scope.

 

[WorriedMan]

I've a couple PCPs with IR scopes, but only keep a battery in one, my designated "night hunter." Racoons raided my neighbors trash cans nightly, tipping over, spreading trash everywhere. Neighbors were at a loss, asked me to handle. Trash cans in pitch black corner with only faint glow of distant garage light for illumination. I can hear the cans crashing down while watching TV and could make out racoon silhouettes after clearing the corner of my house, however, scope reticle was useless. Solution; IR on least bright red setting. Problem solved except for occasional "night school" refresher course. WM

 

[Revoman]

I agree with most here, I don't use it either. When searching for a scope, I would prefer to buy the scope chosen without the IR, instead of paying for something that I won't use. Unfortunately, they normally don't come that way. It's more like buying a car that has "option packages" that you don't want but gotta pay for.
mike

 

[BC]

Having shot with both non illuminated like my Leupolds, and a few Sightrons, and illuminated ones like my Kahles 10-50 and Sightron FT scopes, I will tell you that shooting field target around the world, I will NEVER AGAIN buy another non illuminated scope. When shooting targets in the shade and especially dark colored targets (like my match director buddy Carey in Baton Rouge, Louisiana), the illuminated reticle has made it possible to knock down many targets that I would have missed without the illuminated reticle. The same while shooting targets in the woods in Puerto Rico. Illuminated always.......BC

 

[Scotty1]

I didn’t use illumination for a long time, and didn’t think I would. In the last few months I’ve been shooting almost exclusively at dusk and into dark. I only shoot paper and plink and find the wind dies at the end of the day as does the heat. I can shoot out to 100 yards and have lights on the targets for nighttime. Being able to light the reticle can be very helpful for me, and I actually just returned a Midas Tac because I decided I wanted illumination. I find some scopes have better illum than others, but I am pleased with my 2 Athlon’s IR.

 

[Ranchibi]

Use mine each and every time I shoot rats at night. But have used this feature occasionally when out hunting or pesting against a dark background. Indispensable when needed but use only occasionally .

 

[dizzums]

i rarely use the feature and generally the bulk they add cancels any benefit BUT ... there are situations its useful, like right at dusk or like the other day - it was bright out but this sneaky pos critter was back under the thick bushes in a dark spot by the coop and it was hard to pick up the crosshairs .. so it can help, although the situations for me anyway, are rare .. like i said i prefer a clean light scope .. sometimes the apparatus can interfere with mounting location for rings to, so theres that ..

 

[beerthief]

used but not needed one or two times "just to see "

 

[DaveSa]

Like most I don't use the feature often - only a handful of times but it is one of those things that I would want on my scope - and I do look at the reticle and see how it is illuminated when I buy the scope - so it is a differentiator. On a couple of my 1-10x and 1-8X they have a "red dot" mode on 1x that is interesting - although I have not used that in practice. Not sure how much weight you are saving on a 30-40 oz scope for the battery and diode but I would guess not a lot compared to the other components.

 

[Moog]

For my shooting I've never had use for an IR. I did try it and found I really don't need it. Don't need mil dots or any of that other stuff that they clutter up the lens with these days. It's become increasingly hard to find a scope that has just a duplex or good old fashioned cross hair.

 

[esingle]

Hello I have several Meopta Optkia6 scopes with an illuminated red dot in the center of the reticle which I use every time I use the scopes. The dot is daylight bright and both scopes have a 45 yd zero (length of my range). The scopes are repeatable BUT I just use holdover and it works great especially in heavy brush or shady/ dark areas. Hope this helps Eric.

 

[Gerry52]

Well, next time out hunting I'm going to "futz" with the IR just for giggles. Want to see how it works with my Tactacam when filming too. Yet another level deeper into the Rabbit Hole

 

[Ezana4CE]

@Gerry52 Like several commenters here I find it essential to hunting, especially around dawn and dusk. Occasionally crows around here get the inclination to use my roof as a trampoline around sunrise, or at least that’s what it sounds like to me. Within the last couple of weeks this occurred and I snuck outside with my Prod to knock one off to send a message. I ran into an issue by circling west instead of east. By the time I got to the west side of the house I was facing the sun or caught a glare of some sort, now that I think about it I don’t know why it was hard to see with a kill flash. Could be the sun wasn’t high enough. Whatever the cause I could not distinguish my Vector Veyron reticle agains a jet black crow atop a black roof. By the time I had an acceptable shot I saw fanned tail feathers and wings flapping. If I had an IR scope mounted he’d have gotten a Texas heart shot. On the way in I encountered the rabbit that I fried in another post.

Honestly out in the timber, especially when trees are full of leaves, when the wind blows the canopy allows sunlight in bright bursts. When it happens after being in the shade for a while, it causes my pupils dialate making it hard to see squirrels because I’m looking my up a lot. This makes seeing the reticle against a darker background more difficult. Additionally, they tend to move in larger numbers around sunrise and just as the sun finishes setting. I’ve had some silhouettes located in trees with the naked eye and couldn’t put a reticle on them through a non-IR scope. So for me in these types of circumstances it’s needed. Also coyotes tend to hug the tree line and have learned to not come out of the timber since I’ve blown a couple of stands. Putting a black reticle on them in the shade of the treeline helps acquire a good shot. Even if I used the reticle on a lower light setting like “3” it’s helpful to me. My two-cents.

Edit: sorry for the weird errors in the post. Trying to multitask.