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Hunting Guide Reviews

Sighting in with Sightron

Brad Swadley - JHO ProStaff - Dallas, TX
February 07, 2008

Proof of Performance
The author's test scope performed quite well at low light, taking two hogs and a nice eight-point buck.

Sightron, Inc. has introduced a new general line of hunting scopes. The SII Big Sky premium riflescopes have an enhanced ExacTrack windage and elevation adjustment system, along with an enhanced ZACT-7 Revcoat lens coating. The riflescope carries a generous eye relief of 3.8 inches and is fog, water and shockproof. I was pleased with the way these features helped to build a good foundation for the scope.

I received the model SII3942. It came with the duplex reticle and in a matte black finish in 3X9X42mm. Packaged snugly in the box was a plush carry bag and lens covers. Upon removing the scope from the packaging and taking a quick look through the eyepiece, the clarity of the optics was quite evident. I was pleasantly surprised as I was new to Sightron scopes.

Mounting the scope was a breeze. It was mounted on a Remington 7mm Magnum rifle using Leupold scope mounts. My friend helped me to mount it and he was impressed with the eye relief and clarity as well. We used an alignment tool to ensure the mounting rings were aligned properly. For bore sighting purposes, we chose to use a basic BSA™ bore sight system. The “target” on the bore sight is used to do the final alignment and several things were noticed during this stage of the review.

The first things we noticed were the windage and elevation knobs that you can turn with your fingers. No dimes needed here! The focus on the eyepiece worked quite well and the 3.8 inches of noted eye relief was very noticeable. Once we mounted and adjusted the eye relief to my liking, the clarity of the glass really was quite impressive. Using mesquite trees out to 100 yards, I rolled the magnification knob back and forth to verify how easy it was to adjust. We noticed how the scope really brought clarity to the distant landscape and animal features as you zoomed up to the highest power.

We took the scope and rifle to the range to test and see how well they interacted together. Several rounds of ammunition were run through at various distances, from 50 yards to 200 yards. Adjustments made during the first range at 50 yards were easy to do with the knobs. Scopes on either side were using dimes or screwdrivers for adjustment, but for the SII BigSky, just fingers were needed. It was somewhat overcast, but the riflescope was pulling in quite a good bit of light. After the 50 yard range we proceeded to the 100 yard range. The scope performed well and no adjustments were needed. To give it one more test, it was taken to the 200 yard range. First shot at 200 yards with the 7mm magnum was dead bullseye! While not a typical outcome to shooting at this range for me, I felt as though the SII BigSky helped to accomplish this task with the clarity of the optics it had provided.

Next step was to test the rifle scope during hunting conditions. First weekend of rifle season in Texas started out warm and not real conducive to deer hunting. In fact, we debated about whether we should hunt in shorts or not. We had seen some wild hogs so they were an option to take as well. After a few hours of not seeing any deer old enough to harvest, I decided that it would be a good weekend to take a hog. Sitting in the blind, a hog was cutting through the area and decided to stop for a quick snack. The mesquite trees and half-dead bushes provided reasonable cover for the hog. Another hog showed up and spooked it off back into thicker cover. The first hog was a sow and was really what I was looking for. Fortunately, the first hog decided to come back and have some more corn. The 7mm peeked out the blind window and the SII BigSky locked onto the hog at about 70 yards. The hog was approximately 100 pounds and initially did not give a good angle for a shot. Finally it took a few more steps and the rifle and scope took over. Success was the hog down about 30 yards from where it was shot. The rifle and scope had worked well, and at that point, was a winning combination.

The following evening found me in much the same predicament as the afternoon before. Few deer were moving with a brief glimpse of hogs in the morning. It was decided that unless a shooter deer showed up by 5:30pm, that another hog would be an option. At 5:35pm that evening, there had not been any animals spotted. Another wait of 30 minutes finally provided one lone 120 pound hog. Unfortunately, it was starting to get dark and the binoculars couldn’t give a good clear picture of the hog. I picked up the rifle and it was amazing to see that even at closing light, the hog could still easily be seen through the SII BigSky riflescope! The shot was carefully aligned and I took a neck shot. The result was a hog down instantly with minimal meat damage. The riflescope had performed exceptionally well during the low light conditions.

I used the scope later to take a nice 8 point buck in velvet (which was odd for December in Texas). At the deer camp, my buddies wanted a closer look at this Sightron scope, as they had not heard of them before. All came away impressed based on the late shot on the hog I had taken the previously, and add to that the performance over the past couple of weeks, they were surprised by what it had accomplished and how it had held up.

Overall, the SII BigSky was everything that had been advertised. Through it all, several things became apparent: large eye relief, easily adjustable knobs, clarity of the glass and very effective in low light conditions. List price goes for around $475, but they can be found online at around $350. It’s well worth the price and definitely a good option when you are looking for a high quality optic to mount on your rifle.