First Impressions on the Barra FT 5-25X50 Scope

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scratchcoobster

scratchcoobster

Member
Apr 6, 2020
392
17
NM, United States
I've seen a lot of nay-sayers and non-believers posting about the reality of this scope on this forum. Some of it quite vitriolic, but I would like to give you my honest impression of this economically priced, and well made scope.

At $224 on Ebay (and available as a "Make an Offer" Item) I was able to snag this scope for $190. Fast delivery, well packaged and no problems with seller.

What can you expect from a $190 scope? Well the scope is a surprisingly good one. It is Second Focal Plane, non-illuminated, Mil-Dot reticle with Parallax (focus) down to 10 yds. It has extremely clear glass - all the way out to full magnification. No chromatic aberrations, full edge to edge clarity and an excellent eye box. The brightness and clarity of this scope cannot be matched by most $600 - $800 scopes I've used including Hawke, Athlon, Arken Bushnell and others. The reticle is uncluttered and easy to sight, and is not too thick as to cover your target unless your shooting flies at 100 yds. The Mil-Dots are nicely spaced and clearly delineated.

The high profile turrets are easy to grip and adjust. The side focus knob is smooth and easily operated. I can't find a fault with this scope at this price. Be aware that it comes with a lifetime, transferable warranty. For those who doubt the credibility of this company check out their website - https://barraoptics.com/. Their offices are in Alpharetta Ga. and they are legit.

I'm not interested in all the hype or comparisons to $1,000 and up scopes. What I'm interested in is how great this scope is. It is outstanding in all aspects of construction, build, glass quality and a fully transferable lifetime warranty. What more could you ask of any scope manufacturer? Until you have looked through this scope and realize what a deal it is you will never know what you could be missing.

I just know that I got a terrific scope at a phenomenal price and am extremely happy with it. Hope some of you will give it a shot, there is a 30 day return on it (backed by Ebay and PayPal), so nothing to lose. 
 
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scratchcoobster,,nice write up,thanks,,mine spent 4 days in an atlantic area PO, it finally got accepted and and left the building, There have been a couple of neg posters, but they attack the person or they are judging a scope they have not looked through. Your opinion is about your scope in hands, that my friend is an honest review...Mr.H, says it is heaver than he likes for a hunting scope, he is being honest about what he wants,,I respect his opinion because it is about the scope,,for me 32 oz is acceptable for my use...that is why we come to this forum,to share our experience with our fellow humans and,, ODoyle,thanks for your opinions, you keep things interesting😃 , my barra will be home soon 
























 
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@Mr.H - It weighs in at 30.4 Oz. - for comparison my Athlon Midas Tac weighs about 25 Oz. The Barra is 16" long and the weight is no doubt due to the glass and magnification range, remember (5-25 for Barra, 6-24 for Athlon). I use it for bench shooting - so no problem. I certainly understand the concerns of hunters here though. It could get heavy with a day in the field.

The eye relief is about 2 3/4" to 3" with a nice centering for an easy eye box. I find I can look through this scope and get the whole field without a lot of head movement or trying to climb up and down the stock to find the sweet spot. Field of view is nice too.

@jarmstrong - Thanks and I really hope you enjoy your scope. You'll be amazed at what a great buy you just nabbed. Those shipping delays were due to the tropical storms and flooding the area, usually shipping is fast.
 
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Jack,

help me out, here, plz. I thought that I had overlooked the Barra brand, and I appreciate your helpful review!

But prompted by your review, I went to look at the brand again: https://barraoptics.com/

And now I know what their scopes didn't make it into my Scope Specs Tables. Because most of them are far above my $500 give or take limit.





Here's Barra's page for the FT 5-25x50: https://barraoptics.com/ft-5-25x50sf.html

The Barra is sold there for a cool four-digit amount.... (o well, they give you back 1 cent... sticker price $999). 😉 







So, I went to Ebay, and found the 224$ scope: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Rifle-Scope-Barra-Hero-FT-5-25x50-Long-Range-Precision-Shooting-Mil-Dot-Reticle/173171855705?epid=2154175667&hash=item2851d8d159:g:7X8AAOSwgGFajaUb



And right beside it, from the same seller, the same scope, for $455: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Rifle-Scope-Barra-Hero-FT-5-25-x50mm-Precision-Shooting-Long-Range-Optic-Mildot/173151106173?epid=2154175667&hash=item28509c347d:g:GYMAAOSwPtZafehV







The plot thickens.

Then, I went to Amazon to see how Barra is selling them there for, and surprise. Also that $999 price: https://www.amazon.com/Barra-5-25x50-Tactical-Shooting-Precision/dp/B01MXXUWGQ



So now I'm utterly confused.... 😵 HELP!!

Matthias




 
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They are the same scope. Clever marketing strategy. I bought in on the $455 and it's the same damn scope as the $224 which I also bought. 

If it were me as a business I would price them for $599 and $799 for a similar marketing strategy. You get what you pay for right? Well it's clearer than the $699 SWFA SS and the $1300 retail Bushnell TAC Optics also Japan Made that's on clearance for $599 that's not clear all the way to max power and the Barra is clear all the way making it night and day optically superior.

I would NEVER sell them for cheap as $455 let alone ridiculously stupid cheap $224 it's crazy.

It should be everyone's scope list just to use as a reference how bad other scopes glass really are.

Perhaps use it as a minimum guideline to expect clearer glass than this when spending more than $200 for any scope?
 
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I had been lately comparing the Barra to my Nightforce SHV and Sightron SIIIs and they appear to be on par with a slight edge on the Barra vs SIIIs.

I would seriously like to hear how it compares to the Tract Toric, Delta Stryker and the Athlon Cronus and it has to come from anyone that's not me to be believable.
 
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They are the same scopes Matthias! Crazy, right? 🤪

Some people wont “waste their money” on a cheap $200 scope, but when they see it priced for $450 or $1000 they assume it must be a much higher quality and worth buying! It’s a marketing trick that still has its occasional sucker fall for...


BTW I have 2 of these coming from the same eBay seller @ a cost of $321 delivered after tax. Thanks Yo’doyle!
 
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Jack,

help me out, here, plz. I thought that I had overlooked the Barra brand, and I appreciate your helpful review!

But prompted by your review, I went to look at the brand again: https://barraoptics.com/

And now I know what their scopes didn't make it into my Scope Specs Tables. Because most of them are far above my $500 give or take limit.





Here's Barra's page for the FT 5-25x50: https://barraoptics.com/ft-5-25x50sf.html

The Barra is sold there for a cool four-digit amount.... (o well, they give you back 1 cent... sticker price $999). 😉 







So, I went to Ebay, and found the 224$ scope: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Rifle-Scope-Barra-Hero-FT-5-25x50-Long-Range-Precision-Shooting-Mil-Dot-Reticle/173171855705?epid=2154175667&hash=item2851d8d159:g:7X8AAOSwgGFajaUb



And right beside it, from the same seller, the same scope, for $455: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Rifle-Scope-Barra-Hero-FT-5-25-x50mm-Precision-Shooting-Long-Range-Optic-Mildot/173151106173?epid=2154175667&hash=item28509c347d:g:GYMAAOSwPtZafehV







The plot thickens.

Then, I went to Amazon to see how Barra is selling them there for, and surprise. Also that $999 price: https://www.amazon.com/Barra-5-25x50-Tactical-Shooting-Precision/dp/B01MXXUWGQ



So now I'm utterly confused.... 😵 HELP!!

Matthias

You might want to give Barra a call on Monday and inquire if that Ebay dealer is an authorized dealer. I do understand marketing strategies, but I also know there was and still is a tremendous amount of counterfeiting coming from that part of the world.



Click to expand...


 
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It's all about marketing and merchandising and the huge mark up that exists for scopes, and most optics. Heck, the telescope was invented in 1608 with the minimal optics, and production capabilities available at that time. The advances in glass making, optical science, space age materials and production line manufacturing have increased the precision of optical instruments and greatly lowered the price of fabrication. 

Computer aided design and easy access to global manufacturing means quality optics can be created at a nominal cost and profit margins can be greatly expanded. Mark ups of 300% to 500% and more are not unheard of. It doesn't cost that much to create a good scope, relatively speaking. There are already many existing plants ready to produce very good optics to multiple scope companies on demand.

It is the consumer that has been manipulated to believe that more expensive is always better. Then there is always the brand conscious buyer who will only buy a certain brand because he heard it was the best regardless of better existing products or price. Don't forget about the loyalty factor or the warranty guys that insist that the warranty terms and conditions are crucial to the quality of the scope. Then want to show how many scope repairs were done for that brand to prove customer service and that the company stands behind their products. Really? If it was a quality scope I would expect that warranty repairs would be at a minimum. 

If most people would take the time and effort to actually compare items that they bought because they were expensive, to items that they passed on because they were cheap, there would be a lot of buyer's remorse. Yeah, the fancy name brand sticker, the shiny heavy duty box, the cool factor or name recognition are all components of a buyer's purchase. But sometimes that is trumped by quality, dependability and affordable pricing, as in this case.
 
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I feel bad hearing people say how good the scope warranties are for many popular brands because its many victims bragging they got bad quality products having to send them back to exchange for brand new ones that the company tosses their old ones into the trash or sell refurbished with only a 30 or 60 day too bad for you warranty. Goes to prove their own confidence in their own brand products. The non transferable warranties also really really bugs me too.

I would rather hear no news about anyone having to send anything back under warranty and just get good products they spent their hard earned money on that work as they should.

Not Too bad if they were cheap in purchase price no big deal but they are $300-$500 and up scopes. You get a brand new replacement so they're markup must be really high compared to those who actually repair and send you the same scope back.
 
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I have to state I even bought the lower cheaper end a made in China stamped Barra H30 4-16x50 BDC illuminated for half the price that Optics Planet sells them for and man it's pretty damn clear for a Chinese made scope it's unbelievable. It is super clear all the way to max power too but the Barra HERO FT is brighter and clearer than this. This one is also clearer than the Alpha6.
 
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Honestly sometimes I feel like justifying a bad purchase by trying to convince myself its a good quality scope like some here often do but wouldn't want to be blamed if someone else buys it and gets really pissed off at me for recommending it on an open public forum. Has to pass the ants at 100 yards test.

I recently bought a 34mm Discovery HD 5-30x56 based on several saying it's probably equal to if not better than the Alpha6. What a really big disappointment this 34mm Discovery HD really is..

I could try to sell the POS Discovery 34mm HD 5-30x56 I recently bought by stating it's clearer than the $649 MTC VIPER PRO which is also a big POS (not volunteering this though) on high magnification which is actually true but I would feel really bad for the poor sucker who buys it.
 
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Not real unless there is a pic. The Barra on my Red Wolf.



Red Wolf .177 with Barra Scope.1601189732.jpg

 
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