Fancy an ultra-high-magnification scope that’s equally at home shooting indoor benchrest or outdoor Field Target? Mike Morton enjoys a moment of clarity with the Sightron SIII
Despite its title, the Sightron SIII 10-50×60 Long Range Target Riflescope is perfectly capable of shooting short-range disciplines too
Key Specs
Scope supplier: Optics Warehouse (opticswarehouse.co.uk)
Manufacturer: Sightron
Price: £1,115-£1,395 depending on reticle/turret choices
Magnification: 10-50x
Objective diameter: 60mm
Field of view: 9.6-2.2 feet @ 100 yards
Eye relief: 3.8-4.5 inches
Minutes per revolution: 10 MOA or 2.5 MRAD
W/E travel: 50 MOA or 14.5 MRAD @ 100 yards
Turret style: Target (resettable)
Focus type: Side focus
Parallax range: 13 yards to infinity
Finish: Matt black
Waterproof: Yes
Fully multi-coated: Yes (Zact-7)
Weight: 30.1 ounces
Length: 16.9 inches
Tube diameter: 30mm
Sunshade included: No
Despite its title, the Sightron SIII 10-50×60 Long Range Target Riflescope is perfectly capable of shooting short-range disciplines too. While it’s found favour with both long-range F-Class centrefire shooters and .22 LR Benchrest rimfire shooters, this scope is perfect for airgun use as well, as it will parallax down to 13 yards. And that’s at the full 50x magnification, which is no mean feat.
The main role of the scope enhancer is to block out excess light from the side of the shooting eye, but a secondary benefit is helping to maintain consistent head position and eye relief
There are plenty of high-mag scopes that will snap into focus at shorter ranges, but in some cases this is only achievable on lower magnification settings. I measured the distance myself, and the SIII, I’m pleased to report, will indeed deliver a razor-sharp 50x image at 13 yards – a very impressive outcome.
What does this mean for you? With a large sidewheel and scope enhancer included on the model seen here, it’d be a fantastic choice for Field Target, while anyone wanting an optic for Air Rifle Benchrest might want to put this on their shortlist. Because it will parallax down to such short ranges, it could also be pressed into service as a hunting scope, although its sheer size means it’d be best employed on an ambush rifle being shot off a bipod – just like my old Daystate Mk3, seen here.
A large sidewheel helps adjust parallax with more precision than the basic finger control alone – this is especially important at the very high magnification levels the SIII can deliver
This scope is all about choice. Turret adjustments are available in 0.25 MOA, 0.125 MOA or 0.05 mils per rotation, these can be matched with reticle subtensions depending on which model Sightron SIII 10-50×60 you choose. You might think that matching the gradations of a reticle with identical gradations on a turret would be the natural state of affairs, but it’s only in recent years that scope manufacturers have started to make a conscious effort to do this. If you want a mil-dot reticle, match it with subtensions of a milliradian, rather than a minute of angle – and the same holds true if you’d prefer a reticle gradated in MOA.
An illuminated reticle is an optional extra – but it has more uses than you may think, such as when placing a black crosshair over the black bull on a paper target in poor lighting
While the 30mm-tubed Sightron SIII may sound like a jack of all trades – it’s actually a master of its craft, offering superb optical clarity to boot, and that’s what justifies its price tag, which ranges from £1,115-£1,395 depending on your reticle and turret choices, and whether or not you want illumination.
This article originally appeared in the issue 104 of Airgun Shooter magazine. For more great content like this, subscribe today at our secure online store: www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk
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