Nikko Stirling Long range 4-16x50i

Nikko Stirling scopes have come a long way since they first appeared 60 years ago, way back when I was a lad. I think most shooters will agree that their massive range of products strikes a good balance between ability, features and price. However, they are also perceived as mainly airgun-orientated, which is not the case. As they are equally geared towards centrefire rifle shooters, which I can also attest to, but their latest the Diamond Long Range is set to crush the myth of airguns/ rimfire only forever!

FEELS GOOD!

The Diamond Long Range offer two models – 4-16x50 (on test) and 6-24 x 50. Both are identical apart from size, weight and magnification range with: 30mm one-piece body tube, glass-etched HOLDFAST reticule, fully multi-coated lens, Microlux ETE GEN III glass coatings, Zero-stop (RTZ) elevation turret, ¼ MOA click values, lockable turrets, side parallax, dual-colour illumination, extra blank BDC turret drum, zero stop, sunshade and an optional large sidewheel.

A pretty impressive build sheet for just shy of £300, so let’s look a bit closer! At the back is a fast-focus eyepiece with ridged magnification ring with raised, dialling fin. Elevation and windage turrets pull up to unlock and dial then can be relocked at any position. They offer 20 MOA per rotation (80-clicks) with both windage and elevation offering four full turns. The drums are large and clearly marked in 1 and ¼-MOA divisions. Elevation goes from 0-20 MOA and windage is spilt with a central 0 and 10 MOA in each direction so making dialling in for wind a tad easier. Operation is smooth and easy!

On the left of the saddle are the combined parallax and rheostat drums. The former goes from 10, 15, 20, 30, 50, 75, 100, 200, 300, 500 yards and ∞. Illumination offers red and green with five graduations of each with only the reticule being lit. General view and image quality seems improved from previous Nikko’s and the whole scope just feels slicker and more upmarket!

HOLDFAST?

Surprisingly, they have not gone for a Mil-Dot reticule; instead they have what they call a HOLDFAST. Nikko say this about it: “The HOLDFAST reticule has been developed to take longer distance shots quickly by using lines that match the known point of impact of popular ammunition. A wide variety of ammunition can be accurately used when you adjust the image size in relation to the reticule by adjusting the magnification power.”

This ballistic reticule looks like a crucifix with a series of vertical and horizontal hash marks on the 6-12 and 3-9 o’clock axises. This floats in the centre of four, shorter, thicker outer stadia. I have included an image with MOA subtensions set for a magnification of x10. I have looked on the NS website and can find no reference to any ballistic resources as some others do. However, the facility offered by its multiple holdover points is obvious and as I always say you just get out on the ground and shoot your calibre at the distances you want and note where they fit in on the HOLDFAST pattern.

STOP GAP

Of course, the Long Range also offers you the facility of dialling in specific corrections, which and as long as you know the drops, is a proven recipe for hitting the target at any range you can shoot too. They also supply a blank turret, so that you can go calibre-specific too, by entering your own drop data. They have incorporated a zero stop feature, where you can physically stop it turning back past your zero position, meaning you can never get lost in elevation. Great idea and something that has been around for some time now, but I think it’s NS’s first attempt at it.

Much like Zeiss’s ASV and Swarovski’s ballistic turrets, you get under one turn of useable elevation once all is set, which is usually more than enough given your calibre and drop. NS supply a plastic multi-spanner that allows you to remove the turret and also adjust it. Usually this generic system uses a pair of limiter pins; one fixed in the turret body and the other in the rotary drum that acts as the physical stop and they generally rob about one or two clicks of movement.

NS have chosen to use a fixed block in the body with a pin in the drum; problem is it takes up 4 MOA of movement; that’s 16-clicks. It just seems to me they could have made it slimmer! Saying that, it still leaves 64-clicks (16 MOA) which is still generous given where you set your zero point. I have tested a lot of Nikko scopes and have to say that the new Long Range is a quantum step forward in their product development. Optical quality is good, the build is clean and precise, as are the controls, and even the illumination is solid and does not flare out either, along with some useful and practical design features.

PRICE:
£291.99
£305.99 6-24x50
Code: NDSI62450LRHF