Sightron S-Tac 2-10x32 HHR2

Tactical scopes come in all shapes and sizes (well, maybe not the former, as most scopes have the same basic shape!) but you get my drift, I’m sure. If you compete in Civilian Service Rifle competitions, you can either shoot in ‘Service Optic’ with a maximum magnification of 4.5 power, or ‘Practical Optic’ where the sky’s the limit!

You can therefore either go compact, with something like a 1-4 x 24, or go large with a 5-25 x 56. It’s possible to hedge your bets though and go for something in the midrange magnification-wise and choose a less dedicated and more versatile model like the scope I’ve been testing lately, the Sightron S-TAC 2-8 x 32. I’d read good reports on various Sightrons in the past, so I was keen to see one for myself.

First Impressions

From the box, it’s clear that the S-TAC 2-10 X 32 is an impressive product. The aircraft grade, one-piece, 30mm alloy tube is well made and finished with a matte black anodised coating and the body is said to be twice as thick as those used on one-inch tubed scopes, so should stand up well to rigorous use. All of the precision ground lenses have been coated with ‘ZACT-7 Revcoat’, which is a seven-layer coating and results in superior light transmission through the scope to produce an enhanced image; it goes without saying that the scope is sealed against moisture ingress and is filled with inert Nitrogen to prevent fogging in adverse weather conditions.

Starting from the front, there’s a 32mm objective lens, which is a good compromise between light gathering and size. The relatively small front lens also allows the scope to be kept closer to the bore, using relatively low mounts if required. The target style, open turrets have ¼ MOA clicks and use Sightron’s ExacTrack system, which ensures alterations are accurate and repeatable, more on that later. Moving back, the zoom ring operates smoothly from two- up to 10-power and there’s a flip up lever that makes magnification changes a doddle and it’s very handy in we weather. The fast focus eyebell makes adjustment a simple affair and the diopter adjustment goes from -2 up to +1. The adjuster is easy enough to adjust, without it being sloppy and stayed in place during use. There isn’t a parallax adjuster and like a lot of fixed parallax scopes, it set to 100-yards. The scope weighs in a 16-ounces and is 11.8-inches long, so fairly compact.

Clever Reticle

The S-TAC on test has Sightron’s second focal plane Hunter Holdover Reticle Gen-2 (HHR Gen-2) and can be used to shoot easily out to 500-yards or more. The reticle is of the multi aimpoint style and when zeroed at 200-yards, there are markings for 300, 400 and 500 on the ret itself. The scope comes with several sheets of data relating to commonly used calibres, such as .243, .270, .308 etc. and various loads from the major manufacturers such as Remington, Hornady and Winchester. Both drop and elevation adjustments in Minute Of Angle (MOA) are included, so it’s possible to work out which aimpoints are needed from 100-yards to 500-yards.

There are also figures for wind drift in a 10mph wind, so all in all a very comprehensive system. There’s obviously a bit of fine-tuning needed if you’re using handloads but if you know the speed and BC of your bullet, the chart should be able to help. If you don’t fancy using this clever reticle, you could simply use the scope’s elevation and windage turrets…

It’s a Wind Up

The Sightron’s elevation turrets, as mentioned, have ¼ MOA adjusters and at 100-yards there are 15 MOA of movement available per revolution and a total 100 MOA, plenty for anyone really.

I mounted the S-TAC on my .30 Carbine calibre Southern Gun Speedmaster and after bore sighting the scope I was on at 100-yards. I then started giving the turrets a good work out, counting full revolutions up and down, left and right and when set back to their original positions, everything was on the money as far as the original zero is concerned.

The poor marker in the butts was given a good work out as well and probably thought I had some sort of scope problem initially, as the point of impact shifted all over the target!

The .30 Carbine round, using standard round nosed bullets is really a 300-yard gun at most but as I dressed further back with other rifles, I still had a good look through the scope and the image was clear at all ranges out to 600-yards. I really should have mounted the scope on a .308 rifle and shot all the way back to 600 but I’m confident that it would have performed perfectly.

Conclusion

The Sightron S-TAC 2-10 X 32 is an impressive scope, with a bombproof construction, an excellent, multi-aimpoint reticle, repeatable, accurate elevation and windage adjusters and high quality glass. It’s also very good value for money at £395 and backed up by a lifetime guarantee. I’m sure this scope will prove to be very popular for Aim Field Sports, not just with ‘Tactical’ type shooters, as it’s extremely versatile magnificationwise and not overly bulky.

PRICE: £395
CONTACT: Aim Field Sports, www.aimfieldsports.com