20-60X82MM
Picked up optic, tripod and box from Paul at Mustang Corner in Whetstone. Discussed briefly why the optic wasn’t fitting well into his commo class. Once home, conducted an inventory/inspection of the items; after which it was too dark to do anything else but read the owner’s manual and record some notes. The manual was short and sweet and only reviewed components, simple set up, troubleshooting tips and warranty info. I think I was expecting more in the way of best employment practices and/or how to get the most out of the optic. I guess if you are laying down the kind of coin needed to purchase this optic, you have an idea of how it should be used afield. The infinite warranty read so good, I read it twice just to ensure I understood how good it was.
-Box contents- owner’s manual, eyepiece cap, objective lens cap
-Optic- Sig Sauer Oscar 7, 20-60×82 Spotting Scope w/ ballistic nylon cover. Surprisingly no serial numbers found although the part number from the back of the owner’s manual states: P/N 7400363-01 ROO.
-Tripod- Manfrotto, serial number 3265G
Notes: Initial impressions.
-Optic. In a word…solid. Had just enough heft to it to inspire confidence but not so heavy as to think that it will never go into a pack. Pretty clean presentation with very few moving parts to get gummed up with dirt, snagged on or broken off. Seems built to last through a war, not just a deployment. Granted, I don’t know how long this optic has been on the market or how it was tested. Time will tell though.
-Ballistic nylon cover. Thankfully purpose built. Not so tight that it is a chore to get on and off but form fitting and snug where it needs to be. Removable end covers have snaps to keep them out of the way when the optic is in use. The eye piece cover also has lanyards so the cover can be dropped away and still be secured to the unit. Rethreaded the right lanyard so the clip stays secured.
-Tripod. This is one solid piece of kit. The pistol grip adjuster is an added bonus and should come in handy when presented with just a flash of a whitetail before it disappears into cover this season.
Dilemma #1: Securing the optic. Seeing as the optic costs more than any single thing in my gun safe, I’ll need to do something. I have only a small gun safe and a smaller safe for documents, so how am I to keep this thing secure? Solution: kick out my SBR from the gun safe, case it and throw that in the corner of the closet, remove optic from tripod and store in safe. I wrapped the bipod legs with the supplied T.A.B. gear thingamabob and stored that in the corner as well. Don’t know if that is how it is to be used but it worked and made sense to my monkey brain. Sig Sauer, you now have my interest.
Range time!
I’m spoiled. Took optic to the Sierra Vista Range to use while sighting in hunting rifles for my neighbor and I. In a word, effortless. Shots on paper from 25 to 200 yards were easily seen at 20 power. Transitions between targets with the Manfrotto grip system were equally effortless. I found that if I would point with my index finger with the hand gripping the release, I was able to find new targets much quicker. I will have to revisit this technique in the field.
When raising the power up to 60 or so, I had to lower the tripod legs in order for it to remain stable. I doubt I’ll be fully extending the tripod legs in the field so this shouldn’t be an issue.
This scope appears very capable in any environment, not that I have even begun to scratch the surface with its capabilities. I hope to get it afield this coming weekend for some pre-hunt scouting. The worse part of my range time with it was fending off admirers who wanted to finger-bang this beauty. Seriously, most everyone who stopped by was impressed except for the one hater, who stated “mine’s better”. When asked where it was so I could check it out, his didn’t get out to the range that day. Right. A bird in hand my friend… Sig Sauer, you now have my attention.
Field time!
I’m not smart enough for this thing. Took the optic afield into a canyon on the South end of the Huachuca Mountain range. Had to do some packing/repacking the night before to get this thing wrestled into my North Face Stamina internal framed pack. Once in there, it rode very well without a lot of slosh or me worrying about it although I did have a hunting seat cushion protecting it from a spill, should I take one. Thankfully I was able to keep my feet underneath me so I didn’t have to test my packing skills.
The temp was in the 60’s, sunny with a light breeze moving through the canyon. While driving up the canyon, we passed numerous lazy hunters sitting in the back of their trucks glassing North facing ridgelines in hopes of seeing the big one. We left them in our rear view and drove on until we couldn’t drive no more. After which we hoofed it for another mile or two. Once at our Observation Post (OP) set up was as simple as getting into a comfortable position, setting the bipod up and snapping the optic into place. That’s were things got difficult. The following is a classic example of reality meeting expectations times human error. “I can’t see a thing; big focus knob; ok a branch, what branch, which branch? Dial zoom down, nothing; big focus knob, oh a bunch of branches. Fine focus knob, lets burn through…nothing but slightly blurred sticks…that’s right…you need binos to burn through vegetation! I’m a dumbass! Neck is uncomfortable, spin optic, nice. Something blurry in the sight picture, remove piece of grass two feet in front of optic, better. Then another, and another. Grip not working as well as I think it should, put optic on backwards? Spun optic only to have the same feeling with it on the other side. Disconnected and reworked the mounting attachment, then reassembled with the grip lever facing back, nope. Spun the optic 180*, yep. I’m a genius and Bob’s your uncle! Point to target area with the index finger of the hand on the grip and find it faster. Support optic with other hand stupid, more stable. Monkey brain working now!” Discovery learning at its finest; shame on me.
Once I got over my initial dumbassness with the optic, I was able to properly chastise myself for not being more familiar with it prior to crossing the Line of Departure (LD). I had confidence that my experience at the range previously would carry me through my time on the mountain…epic fail. It is almost cliché that flat range does not compute to real world environments and the same held true here. Had I thought it through, from body position to ease of use to how to best get on target, I could have had most of my fumblings worked through. Once past all that, I really enjoyed having the ability to zoom way into the deepest recesses of a North facing ridge or into the darkest shaded area of a well-lit South facing ridge. The clarity never wavered no matter what I chose to look at; clear enough to know which area was hotter by comparing the heat vapors in the target area. The magnification was downright impressive once on target, which is where the finest focus knob was ideal. Of the few does I was able to spot, I could see which ones were chewing and which ones weren’t. My crappy little range finder doesn’t read past 400 yards so I can’t offer any distance except for 400+ yards from my location. I offered this information to my hunting partner who couldn’t find the doe to begin with using hand held binos. In fact, he chuckled when I told him, “I’ve got a doe, over 400 yards, bedded below that large overhang in the smaller shaded area. She is chewing something and her right ear just twitched.” Until he took a look for himself. My previous experiences with a scope such as this have been limited to military issued optics circa 1990’s will assigned to various Army Infantry units, 82nd Abn Div, 2nd ID and 10th MTN while serving as a mortarman, Infantry Squad Leader and Scout Team Leader. I may need to point out that there wasn’t any commercial off the shelf items back then and military issue was a good as it got. Conversely, the Sig Sauer Oscar 7 is better than anything I put my eye through in those days. Granted, this type of scope was reserved for hard site/target observations while binoculars picked up the rest of the duties. That being sad, that is where most of my experience and comfort level lies. It would be a great addition to any quiver a man might have but might be a bit much for the generalist out there.
