I am by no means a writer. English is not my first language. Hell, it’s not even my secon language, so please forgive the grammar and syntax errors you will find.
I recently purchased a Ruger Precision Rimfire to practice fundamentals, and had to find a scope that wouldn’t break the Bank. as I’ve never owned a FFP scope before, I really wanted to try one to see what the fuss was all about. I enjoy researching anything firearms related, and I think I’m kinda knowledgeable when it comes to scopes, but never really looked at some in the sub 500 dollar price segment. I found the Arken by watching some YouTube videos, and thought I give it a shot.
the scope comes in a standard box, with bikini cover, sunshade, a lens cloth and a tiny Allen wrench for the turrets. Full stop. In front of the turrets was a small paper sleeve with the recommended ring torque, which saved me a lot of Google time. First impression? Damn, those turrets are huge! The finish is what you would expect, probably anodized. The sunshade screws on easy, and once mounted, one can barely tell where it meets the scope.
When i First took it out of the box, I was surprised by the weight (almost 37 ounces). Seeing that the scope is on the rather compact side (14 inches), this might be an indicator that it is built like the proverbial tank, like other scopes that are on the heavier side (Vortex Razor or the Nightforce NXS line, to name just two).
THE GLASS: the glass is, according to the manufacturer, Japanese. I can’t speak for the coating, as there’s nothing I could find on the internet about it. I will contact Arken about it, but don’t really have much hope that they’ll answer. It is clear for the price. I recently had the opportunity to look through a Vortex Diamondback and an Athlon Argos, and I can say that the Arken‘s glass is better (to my eyes). Please keep in mind that describing and judging clarity is always subjective, so someone else might not see things my way. theres no fisheye effect or edge distortion at any magnification level, although from around 16x to max, there’s a little chromatic aberration going on. Not enough to make it unpleasant, but it’s clearly there. The ocular (eyepiece) has a slight taper to it, reminiscent of the old Hensoldt scopes. I have no idea why, or if it brings any advantages. The eye relief is 3.5 inches, which is middle of the road. But… the eye box is tight. When they write three and a half, they mean three and a half. When I checked my paralax and moved my head back and forth some, i got scope shadow almost right away. Not a huge deal, as the rifle this scope is on had adjustable cheek and comb rests, so I can get get my noggin in the same position every time, but it could become somewhat of an issue with a sporter stock. You guys know the deal.
During my research, I’ve read about some cases of stiff magnification dials and fast focus rings, but in the case of my specific scope, I can not confirm. Actually, they are both quite smooth, and the fast focus is even a little lighter than I like, seeing that it’s a “set it and forget it” kinda thing.
THE TURRETS: IMO, the adjustment mechanisms are the “piece de resistance” of this scope. They are what makes the Arken really shine. Those turrets are definitely oversized, diameter wise. You get 8 mil per revolution (counter clock wise) and because of the larger circumference, the clicks are more spaced out than on turrets with smaller diameter. This results in easy dialing (I even tried dialing with a Mechanix glove on). There’s no mushy going on, the clicks are precise, tactile and audible (at least without ear pro on). I did some tracking checks, although no ladder or box test yet. What can I say? The model I received tracked like a bloodhound on either vertical and horizontal axis. I noticed no blind clicks. Unfortunately, and this is the only very minor fault I can find with these turrets, there’s no cap on the wind age knob, something I’ve come to appreciate on my Nightforce. There is no way to upgrade to one either. But it really is no big deal.
The elevation turret has a genuine zero stop. I can’t say anything about it, as I haven’t zeroed it yet.
On the left side sits the parallax (aka side focus) and the illumination switch. The focus is clearly marked, starts at 25 yards and goes to infinity. Now, we all know that these marks are more of a suggestion rather than corresponding exactly to the indicated number. Lots of higher end scopes don’t even mark their parallax dial anymore because of it.
THE RETICLE: the reticle is a Christmas tree style one, and looks useable. Clear hash marks with an open center cross and a dot. The reticle is also one of the weak points on this scope. It is FFP, but the lines are so thin that the optic is basically not useable as an aiming device from the lower (6-10x) settings. Against a Lilly white background, maybe (and that’s a big maybe), but anything darker than that, and your guess is as good as mine where that center dot might be. The illumination is not bright enough to be of any help. But from 10x up, that problem disappears, and the visibility gets better as reticle gets bigger.
Speaking of illuminatio, only the center cross and dot are lit up. The rest, well, isn’t. While it works great in dusk and dawn situations, it just isn’t bright enough to be of any use in daylight, which is kinda standard for scopes in that price class. Also, note that while most competitors now have an off position in between every illumination setting, so does this scope.
TLDR: THE GOOD. Very decent glass for the price point. Build quality seems to emphasize on ruggedness. Some of the best turrets I’ve handled. The price! $450 makes you feel like you got a steal.
THE BAD. Heavy. Eyebox is tight. Weak illumination.
THE UGLY: the reticle is of no use up to 10x. The company is in the market since 2 years. Means that if you have a warrantee claim (Vortex style lifetime warrant), you better hope they’re still in business. I wish they would be, but at this point, it’s a gamble.
SUMMARY: I’m extremely happy with my purchase, and I’ve been called an optics snob. It’s not a S&B, Nightforce or higher end Leupold. But at that price, it doesn’t claim to be and blows most competing products out of the water.
I recently purchased a Ruger Precision Rimfire to practice fundamentals, and had to find a scope that wouldn’t break the Bank. as I’ve never owned a FFP scope before, I really wanted to try one to see what the fuss was all about. I enjoy researching anything firearms related, and I think I’m kinda knowledgeable when it comes to scopes, but never really looked at some in the sub 500 dollar price segment. I found the Arken by watching some YouTube videos, and thought I give it a shot.
the scope comes in a standard box, with bikini cover, sunshade, a lens cloth and a tiny Allen wrench for the turrets. Full stop. In front of the turrets was a small paper sleeve with the recommended ring torque, which saved me a lot of Google time. First impression? Damn, those turrets are huge! The finish is what you would expect, probably anodized. The sunshade screws on easy, and once mounted, one can barely tell where it meets the scope.
When i First took it out of the box, I was surprised by the weight (almost 37 ounces). Seeing that the scope is on the rather compact side (14 inches), this might be an indicator that it is built like the proverbial tank, like other scopes that are on the heavier side (Vortex Razor or the Nightforce NXS line, to name just two).
THE GLASS: the glass is, according to the manufacturer, Japanese. I can’t speak for the coating, as there’s nothing I could find on the internet about it. I will contact Arken about it, but don’t really have much hope that they’ll answer. It is clear for the price. I recently had the opportunity to look through a Vortex Diamondback and an Athlon Argos, and I can say that the Arken‘s glass is better (to my eyes). Please keep in mind that describing and judging clarity is always subjective, so someone else might not see things my way. theres no fisheye effect or edge distortion at any magnification level, although from around 16x to max, there’s a little chromatic aberration going on. Not enough to make it unpleasant, but it’s clearly there. The ocular (eyepiece) has a slight taper to it, reminiscent of the old Hensoldt scopes. I have no idea why, or if it brings any advantages. The eye relief is 3.5 inches, which is middle of the road. But… the eye box is tight. When they write three and a half, they mean three and a half. When I checked my paralax and moved my head back and forth some, i got scope shadow almost right away. Not a huge deal, as the rifle this scope is on had adjustable cheek and comb rests, so I can get get my noggin in the same position every time, but it could become somewhat of an issue with a sporter stock. You guys know the deal.
During my research, I’ve read about some cases of stiff magnification dials and fast focus rings, but in the case of my specific scope, I can not confirm. Actually, they are both quite smooth, and the fast focus is even a little lighter than I like, seeing that it’s a “set it and forget it” kinda thing.
THE TURRETS: IMO, the adjustment mechanisms are the “piece de resistance” of this scope. They are what makes the Arken really shine. Those turrets are definitely oversized, diameter wise. You get 8 mil per revolution (counter clock wise) and because of the larger circumference, the clicks are more spaced out than on turrets with smaller diameter. This results in easy dialing (I even tried dialing with a Mechanix glove on). There’s no mushy going on, the clicks are precise, tactile and audible (at least without ear pro on). I did some tracking checks, although no ladder or box test yet. What can I say? The model I received tracked like a bloodhound on either vertical and horizontal axis. I noticed no blind clicks. Unfortunately, and this is the only very minor fault I can find with these turrets, there’s no cap on the wind age knob, something I’ve come to appreciate on my Nightforce. There is no way to upgrade to one either. But it really is no big deal.
The elevation turret has a genuine zero stop. I can’t say anything about it, as I haven’t zeroed it yet.
On the left side sits the parallax (aka side focus) and the illumination switch. The focus is clearly marked, starts at 25 yards and goes to infinity. Now, we all know that these marks are more of a suggestion rather than corresponding exactly to the indicated number. Lots of higher end scopes don’t even mark their parallax dial anymore because of it.
THE RETICLE: the reticle is a Christmas tree style one, and looks useable. Clear hash marks with an open center cross and a dot. The reticle is also one of the weak points on this scope. It is FFP, but the lines are so thin that the optic is basically not useable as an aiming device from the lower (6-10x) settings. Against a Lilly white background, maybe (and that’s a big maybe), but anything darker than that, and your guess is as good as mine where that center dot might be. The illumination is not bright enough to be of any help. But from 10x up, that problem disappears, and the visibility gets better as reticle gets bigger.
Speaking of illuminatio, only the center cross and dot are lit up. The rest, well, isn’t. While it works great in dusk and dawn situations, it just isn’t bright enough to be of any use in daylight, which is kinda standard for scopes in that price class. Also, note that while most competitors now have an off position in between every illumination setting, so does this scope.
TLDR: THE GOOD. Very decent glass for the price point. Build quality seems to emphasize on ruggedness. Some of the best turrets I’ve handled. The price! $450 makes you feel like you got a steal.
THE BAD. Heavy. Eyebox is tight. Weak illumination.
THE UGLY: the reticle is of no use up to 10x. The company is in the market since 2 years. Means that if you have a warrantee claim (Vortex style lifetime warrant), you better hope they’re still in business. I wish they would be, but at this point, it’s a gamble.
SUMMARY: I’m extremely happy with my purchase, and I’ve been called an optics snob. It’s not a S&B, Nightforce or higher end Leupold. But at that price, it doesn’t claim to be and blows most competing products out of the water.
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![[rofl]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/013.gif "ROFL [rofl]")
