So all of us are looking for the Holy Grail of Scopes, an end all be all jack of all trades, well this scope might fit the bill. I’ll start by saying that I love Trijicon, but if you have owned Trijicon then you understand why. I purchased this scope to put on my 18inch 3gun rifle, a shooting discipline where you need a jack of all trades optic, because you need to engage multiple targets under 10 yards one stage then later in the match you’ll be shooting at an 8inch gong at 400 yds. On 1x the reticle is very similiar to the VCOG and reminds me of an eotech reticle which is still my preferred red dot sight. However when the user cranks up the magnification you expand the segmented circle to a crosshair with an illuminated cross in the center that is 4 MOA long by 4 MOA tall with a .75 MOA thickness. Some people worry about this cross being too large to punch small groups, this is a possibility but it is thinner than the VCOG cross and has more magnification so should be still possible to punch small groups, however this scope is not a bench rest target scope. The space between each tick mark in the MOA model is 2MOA which allows for accurate holds but does not make the reticle too busy. The eye relief is generous and it has a forgiving eyebox, this is a trademark of both the accupower and accupoint line. The adjustments are in 1/4 MOA which lets you get a precise zero, I do prefer the capped turrets of the other acupowers and accupoints as I do not see the point of dialing on a 223 gun but I know there is a crowd that wanted it. The knobs feel solid and need to be lifted to adjust it to prevent accidental adjustments. This scope is a beast though, I’m used to a 14oz TR24 on my two rifles I use but twice the magnification seems like it could be worth twice the weight. MSRP is $1699 which is actually affordable when you consider the features that it comes with. Street price however is in the 1400-1490 range. I was able to get mine for $1286 so it is affordable when you factor it’s a 1-8, Trijicon durability and glass, FFP, daylight bright. I think this is great scope and it is not only has the potential to be a great 3gun scope it can be a great battle rifle scope. 1-4/6 scopes allow you to be fast up close but having 1-8 lets you get more out of a 308 in my opinion.
[video=youtube_share;4GI3ZdR0vq8]http://youtu.be/4GI3ZdR0vq8[/video]
The illumination settings are on 9, 10, and 11. This was taken around 1:30 the other day and it’s on a white wall almost zero clouds were out that day so yeah it’s daylight bright.
I like the reticle, if it could just be lighter and the illumination much much brighter. This is what I’m used to:
Thanks for the review! I had to watch it on mute and you may have addresses this, but I couldn’t quite tell though, is the reticle GTG at 1x without illumination?
Yes the reticle is good to go on 1x. I’m sorry but my phone doesn’t pick the illumination as good as your eye would. But on 9,10, and 11 it is absolutely daylight bright. I like it a lot.
The illumination is plenty bright on this. Yes it’s heavy but I like it way better than anything leupold will make. In a speed shooting sport I like big bold reticles with forgiving eye boxes an the mk6 doesn’t do it for me. It has clear glass but not my cup of tea.
People keep saying the illumination is bright. Really, I’d like to see for myself. I’ll look around and see if anyone here carries them, as it DOES have me curious.
The red MOA is for sure bright, I would say the MIL is too. Some people who own the geeen say they aren’t bright enough. I hope trijicon can copy the 1-8 red and get the same brightness in the 1-4 accupowers and the vcog. The green vcog are brighter than the red ones though.
Cool, good to know, I’m especially happy to hear that you can run it at 1x without illumination.
I’m in this boat with WS6. If it’s as bright as some are saying I may give one a shot. Haven’t seen any side by sides with a MK6 or something else that actually is, to have me convinced yet.
I got a buddy with a mk6 and I’ll do side by side when I get back from a trip for work. My buddy traded a Monte Carlo for the mk6 he likes the glass and small dot but he doesn’t like the eyebox or how the illumination bleeds.
How is the feel of the magnification knob? My PST is super tight.
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The knob is fine it’s not super stiff but it’s not loosey goosey.
I handled the 1-8 in a store and was happy enough to find it, but I am so wary after my poor experience with the 1-4. I love trijicon as well, but was really disappointed with the accupower 1-4x. I thought the illumination was impossible to use and washed out too easily. Oddly, I think it only became visible on my scope around 200-300 meters and then would wash out before that and after. Had some other shooters with me confirm the same so I know I’m not crazy. I think the reticle was also too hard for my eyes to pick up, BUT I was nailing decent groups with it at mid-long range (300-500).
How has the 1-8x held up with use since this review? It felt heavy and beefy enough to be pretty solid, does it shoot well, maintain zero and all that? I apologize if that is all in the video, I can’t seem to get it to load right now.
So I’ve used it in two 3gun matches so far and will use it in a third sunday, so it is heavy, but now distance shots are easier because of the useful MOA reticle, they were difficult with the 1-4 triangle. So trijicon did have problems with 1-4 accupowers and the VCOG. The 1-8 red accupowers are daylight bright, on 1x it’s like having an eotech. the center crosshair is .75 moa thick so it is more precise than the VCOG, which is a tad thicker but it is a combat optic. The 1-8 is bright and becomes even brighter when you magnify it, on long shots I turn the illumination off. I really want to figure out a way to mount a go pro behind the 1-8 and do a range review to get some good first person views for y’all. I’m really happy with this and some of my buddies who are Vortex razor guys are trying to swap their razors for the 1-8 accupower.
How arey ou liking it vs MK6?
I like it over my buddy’s mk6 and he’s looking to sell his mk6 now.
Of the 1-X optics I have tried it is the lightest, but the flickering was bothersome, .2 adjustments weren’t great in my book. The BDC reticle on 6x is useful but busy at times, it has good glass but it’s not noticeably better than the razor 1-6, accupower 1-8, or vcog. All of those have glass quality that’s great but it’s hard to tell if one is better than the other. I know the mk6 is a good scope but I personally prefer the Accupoer 1-8, VCOG, or the razor 1-6.
How much different does the 1-8 feel up top vs. the MK6, regarding how the weapon handles?
It is heavier, I had my TR24 on my carbine before running 2 matches with the 1-8 and picking the gun up I notice it, but when I’m running around and gunning in a match I honestly don’t notice a difference. The MK6 is lighter no doubt, my buddy did weigh his down with the LaRue mount and the throw lever but in my book the reticle and forgiving eyebox of the 1-8 accupower makeup for the weight difference. I want to like the MK6 but the busy reticle and the flicker bother me.