A tactical riflescope offers precision engineering, optical excellence, absolute reliability, plus a wide range of tactical reticles.
Tactical Reticle
Most commonly used in tactical riflescopes is the G2 tactical reticle which features a Mil-Hash Close-Up Focal Plane Reticledesigned for alignment correction, aiming height calculation and customer resistance. The reticle in the foreground of the image is positioned closer to the target, i.e. further away from the shooter. In this position, when the magnification of the rifle scope is varied, the reticle changes size proportionally to the size of the object we are looking at.
One rifle scope that features a tactical G2 reticle is the Bushnell Elite Tactical3.5-21X50 T-LOK scope. This G2 reticle allows for quick and simplified windage correction calculations of the height to be aimed at, taking into account wind resistance.
BTR 1 reticle
The ballistic tactical reticle that integrates the Bushnell AR Optics 1-4X24 riflescope. The BTR-1 reticle features a ballistically calibrated illuminated reticle optimised for use with M885 cartridges. It is available in both Close-up Focal Plane and Second Focal Plane.
Setting the reticle in Second Focal Plane means that the image reversal system does not act on the reticle but on the resulting image and because of this the image is only enlarged or reduced when the magnification selector is changed and the size of the reticle remains fixed. It has the advantage of being able to build very powerful riflescopes that can be fitted to rifles intended for hunting or shooting at long distances.
BTR 2 reticle
The BTR-2 tactical reticle, which is integrated into the Bushnell Elite Tactical SMRS 1-6.5X24 scope, features a Mil-Hash illuminated reticle designed to correct for alignment, aiming height calculation and wind resistance.
Mil Hash reticle
The Bushnell Legend Tactical 15-45X60 Monocular's ballistic tactical reticle features a Mil-Hash type reticle in the Close Focal Plane, with an illuminated circular dot, designed to correct for alignment, aiming height calculation and wind resistance. Mil Hash is measured in Miliradians, which allow a quick reading of the distance, and correct the trajectory of the projectile in height when measuring the distance to the target. To measure the distance to the target you can visit this article. Mil Dot reticle.
Close-Up Reticle
The fact that a riflescope uses the close-up system means that the reticle is in front of the magnifying lens. Being in this position in a variable magnification rifle scope, as the number of magnifications increases, the size of the reticle increases proportionally. That is to say, in the case of a high magnification viewfinder, such as 10X or higher, the reticle scales as the magnification increases, increasing in size as well.
The advantage is that the reticle retains its calibration regardless of the magnification you have made, as it scales proportionally to the magnification, so you can use the optimum magnification setting via the MOA to estimate distances. Some riflescopes that have a first focal plane reticle are:
- BUSHNELL ELITE TACTICAL 6-24X50 scope
- BUSHNELL AR OPTICS 1-4X24 VIEWFOLDER
- BUSHNELL ELITE TACTICAL DMR III 3.5-21X50 VIEWER
- KAHLES HELIA C 1.5-6X42 SR SPOTLIGHT
Second Plane Reticle
The second plane reticle, on the other hand, is located behind the magnifying lens. As it is located behind the magnification lens, the size of the reticle remains constant as the magnification increases. With this system, the reticle will be calibrated exclusively for the maximum magnification of the viewfinder.
This system is useful in the case of riflescopes with low magnification, because the reticle is clearly visible at all magnifications, even at the lowest magnification. To estimate the distance to the target, it is calculated using the maximum magnification level, but there is not much difference between the magnifications thanks to the low magnification riflescopes. Some riflescopes that have a second focal plane reticle are:
- KAHLES HELIA 5 1.6-8X42 scope
- BSA SWEET 17 6-18X40 VIEWER
It is important that the scope has a reticle suitable for the use you are going to make of it.
