Dark Lord Of Optics

Here is a closer look at the fiber illuminated ACSS NOVA reticle in the new SLx 1-6x24 scope by Primary Arms. https://bit.ly/3XjFBY6

Join me at www.darklordofoptics.com for further discussion. Element's Theos was not a particularly well kept secret since Matt has had a version of it on his competition rifle here and there. I have also seen a prototype or two since the scope has been in development for a good amount of time. This time around, I actually got my hands on a scope that is from a very first production batch. I did not have it for very long since it had to go back to Element for SHOT show. I hope to get this scope back for a thorough review at some point. It is not a cookie cutter LOW design. There are some clear differences and the turrets are definitely unique to Element and really excellent. The big question is whether, along with Vortex Razor Gen3 6-36x56, this scope pushed its way into Tier 1 competition or whether it is competing against Mark 5HD and ATACR. I won't know for sure until I do a full review, but I like what I see so far.

Join me at www.darklordofoptics.com for further discussion. Here is a brief initial look at the Primary Arms SLx 1-6x24 with fiber illuminated ACSS NOVA reticle. This is the first $300-ish scope I know of with a truly day bright reticle illumination and the rest of the scope is not letting the reticle down either. https://bit.ly/3QAarcu

Join me at www.darklordofoptics.com for further discussion. There are very few binoculars left with magnification of less than 8x. 6x30 or similar designs really have a lot to offer when you are looking for stability and ease of use in a compact package. As a matter of personal preference, for general purpose use, I like binoculars with the exit pupil around 5mm and Kowa 6.5x32 is a grand example of why. Kowa BD II XD 6.5x32: https://amzn.to/3Z2tgJm and https://bit.ly/3tuBDyT Kowa's YF 6x30 https://bit.ly/3B0dQeL Maven 6x30 https://bit.ly/3QjuITi Steiner Navigator 7x30 https://bit.ly/3OcprKQ

Befitting the end of the year, I have a year worth of impression of the Razor Gen3 6-36x56. Will is gong to join me again to offer his perspective on the Gen3 Razor. He has had a chance to compare it side by side with many other high end precision scopes out there. The specific scope I have is the mrad model: https://bit.ly/3VcAXJD I have had a chance to compare it to the more expensive March 5-42x56 https://bit.ly/3wNfknM and Tangent Theta TT525P https://bit.ly/3HOj5BU quite extensively. Will also looked at it next to ZCO, Kahles, Nightforce, etc.

Join me at www.darklordofoptics.com for further discussion This binocular has really grown on me and it has been my primary glassing tool for hunting for the last year. https://bit.ly/3HCLniA

After some consideration, I decided to expand this "if I could have only one" thought exercise to knives. I was deliberating about it when a very well known knifemaker Shawn Houston agreed to join me for this discussion. Shawn forgot more about knives and knife steels than I will ever know, so view this as an opportunity to pick his brain on everything knife related. I like his take on how blades are supposed to work and I fully expect the discussion to dig pretty deep into how an edge works and how to sharped a knife properly. Shawn and his work can be found on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/triplebhandmade/ and on his website https://www.triplebhandmade.com/

Join me at https://darklordofoptics.locals.com/post/3160022/shield-rms-rmsc-glass-lens-re-cap for further discussion I was doing inventory and realized that most of my handguns wear Shield red dots on them. I thought it was worth noting. Shield Sights are all made in the UK. There are a few retailers for them in the US, but you can also order directly. https://bit.ly/3UuBGFS

Join me at www.darklordofoptics.com for further discussion Since this video was recorded, I replaced the clamp to one that supports both picatinny and arca, so my tripod is now i nthis configuration: https://sunwayfoto-store.com/products/tl3240cs-q-hunting-tripod-for-shooting-rifle-stand-carbon-fiber?_pos=2&_sid=41bdfb961&_ss=r&ref=Oy5imslq

Join me at www.darklordofoptics.com for further discussion. GRS Sporter is an unusually adjustable general purpose wood laminate stock available in many inlet and color variations. The most interesting part is arguable the really well thought out grip configuration. https://bit.ly/3EHxf4E

I've got two reasonable loads going. I will take 185gr CX from Hornady at around 2180 fps with me for mule deer this weekend and 200gr Bulldozer2 at 2100 fps from Badlands with me for elk next week.

Welcome to the yearly edition of the unthinkable scenario where I can only have one gun. We'll discuss what gun and cartridge would be an ideal option in such a nightmarish scenario intermingled with the usual Q&A.

This edition of DLO Live! is really going to be centered around a general Q&A, but there are several specific topics I would like to cover as well, as time allows. -It turns out that one of the companies very well known in the photography world, SunwayFoto, decided to jump into the shooting support market. I have a tripod and a few other products from them that I just started looking at. I'll offer some initial impressions. -Why do some scopes weigh a lot and others do not? There is no single simple answer to that, but there are quite a few design aspects that matter. This one might get nerdy. If you want a case study on how to make a high quality light weight FFP scope, Vortex Razor HD-LHT 4.5-22x50 is a good example: https://bit.ly/3KEbZyA -Picatinny 1913 vs STANAG rail clamps. They look the same, but they are not. STANAG is a better standard and here is the "why" of it. Mounts I comfortably recommend: Badger rings and mounts, for example https://bit.ly/3EX6L0F https://bit.ly/3ShDHny Seekins Precision rings https://bit.ly/3CQki7r and mount https://bit.ly/3MNVnGb Element Optics Accu-lite https://bit.ly/3EYhU1s Vortex Pro rings https://bit.ly/3gp5Ag6 This is by no means exhaustive, just a couple of examples.

This time, scheduled for the correct time... We will revisit the origin of the conflict and cover recent events and future possibilities. Eugene and I will offer our take, but more importantly we have a guest with us, Paul, who spent time in Ukraine during the conflict.

Strasser RS14 EVO has been in my hands for a little while, but our time together is coming to the end. If you see me shed a tear during the livestream, do not think badly of me. Sending it back will be hard. If I could afford it, it would be staying here. It is a classically beautiful design on the outside and technically brilliant and innovative solution on the inside. Since most of the time the RS14 was here it had Trijicon's Tenmile 3-18x44 on it, I figured it fitting to review them together.

Join me at www.darklordofoptics.com for further discussion. This is sort of a continuation on the whole theme of getting ready for hunting season. Last year, I did not quite think through my shooting support solutions well enough. This time around, I decided to take a slightly less conventional approach. The basic problem is that I need the means to quickly change between low to the ground (say prone) and higher off the ground (say sitting) solutions. On top of that, I want to be able to use the same hardware, when possible, to support a binocular and/or spotter. The bipod I use is here: https://sovrn.co/13d8c0z The various adapters and other bipods are here: https://sovrn.co/zciiss2 I'll update my impressions after the hunting season is over.

Join me at www.darklordofoptics.com for further discussion. RS14 Evoluton is, in many ways, a remarkable rifle and it firmly takes place at the top of my "bucket list". I tested a 22-250 version, but the gun is available in many calibers. The action can support pretty much anything the length of 30-06 or shorter. If I were buying one (and I assure you that is exactly what I am scheming to do), I will likely get it with three barrels: 375 Ruger, 6.5PRC and 22-250. The scope I tested it with was the rather nice Trijicon Tenmile 3-18x44. I will do a livestream dedicated to the rifle and the optic to answer any and all questions you may have this coming Thursday (September 22nd): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EC8cqOmK-aE

Given that I have released a good number of videos (by my standards) in the last couple of weeks, I figured a general purpose Q&A livestream is in order. I'll take on any questions you have whether they pertain to my recent videos or not. I do have a topic I want to cover since it has been in many conversations lately: DMR Optics, so I will likely start off with that, but the main purpose here is the Q&A.

Join me at www.darklordofoptics.com for further discussion. If you have been following my channel, you know that I have been very impressed with the new PLxC 1-8x24 scope from Primary Arms. It is essentially and alpha level design for mid-range prices once you take into account the overall package: optical and mechanical performance, size, weight and durability. I took my sweet time abusing it and it just kept on ticking. I'll get my hands on another one since I want to also look at the Griffin Mil reticle, but the ACSS Raptor M8 Meters reticle I have in this particular scope (https://bit.ly/3KKNPl9), is one of the better BDC designs out there. This particular video is all about the reticle.

Join me at www.darklordofoptics.com for further discussion. This turned out to be an interesting category of scopes. I have talked about them before here: https://darklordofoptics.locals.com/post/2254866/mpvo-comparison Here is, finally, the accompanying video. It is long, so brace yourselves. The contenders are: Primary Arms GLx 2.5-10x44 https://bit.ly/3Q9zq5i SWFA SS 3-9x42 https://www.samplelist.com/swfa-ss-hd-3-9x42-tactical-30mm-riflescope-demo-b-178649.html Athlon Helos BTR Gen2 2-12x42 https://bit.ly/3c2wXLf US Optics TS-12x 3-12x44 https://bit.ly/3fmvgpD

Join me at www.darklordofoptics.com for further discussion. Every once in a while a question comes up on why we should not judge the optical quality of a scope by "through the scope" videos and pictures. Even more importantly, we should not be using those to compare between scopes. While I was recording the video on the 1-10x24 Ares, I took the opportunity to first go over why this is such a subjective thing. That is about four minutes of the video. After that is the actual review of the scope. https://bit.ly/3QxWOtw

Join me at www.darklordofoptics.com for further discussion. Here is the first look at the new SwampFox Kraken. Compact enclosed emitter red dot sights have been all the rage lately and the Kraken is an interesting entry into this increasingly crowded category. This is a kickoff of a long term test.