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    Ongoing NF 1-8 ATACR F1 thoughts

    Like my previous MK6 thread, this is not a one and done post. I'll post thoughts as I continue to use the scope if there continues to be interest. As I quickly approach a career change, I plan to have some extra free time over the next few weeks, so will hopefully be able to play with this setup more in the near term.

    The optic is attached to my M4 Block 2 upper, but the upper has also received a new V-Seven barrel. Probably more precision than necessary with this optic, but I was ready to have a sweet 14.5" shooter that I could compete with and know any misses weren't the gun. (Mission accomplished, by the way)



    I should first state my intended use for this type of optic. After seeing the reticle choices, I was a little disappointed that there was no simple cross-hair type reticle (like the NF MIL-C), but I also understand what they're doing on the 1x spectrum. So I planned to make this optic work on a carbine for drills/2-gun competition and not for a precision gun. Part of that is also the artificiality of the precision shooting I do sometimes, specifically at a local SPR match where the match director doesn't understand the true purpose of a SPR versus a PRS gun, but I digress...

    After doing some ammo testing this week to see what the barrel likes, here's some initial thoughts on the ATACR. I did some prone work and then some simple target acquisition drills up close. Round count is only at 93 currently.

    - It's definitely heavier than the NX8. I was fortunate to shoot and handle a NX8 last weekend at a competition, which was also on a 14.5" gun, and I can feel the heft of the ATACR.

    - Eye-box: I don't have enough time on either the ATACR or a Vortex HD 2, but what little I've messed with the Vortex, it seems like the ATACR is a close contender at 1x. Bringing the rifle up, it's very forgiving to find the dot and some view of the target. Whether the optic is where you want it is another story...

    - Optic height: Because I haven't found "the" LPV optic that's worked for me, I've run my LPVs in a more precision role and then used an off-set RDS for close work. With the ATACR, it appears it's capable of moving between both regimes pretty well, so having the optic at 1.5" (my preferred height for other optics) may not be a requirement. And for me, it might not be as compatible for regular use. I find that on a Larue 1.5" mount, I really have to cheekweld the stock to get a good scope picture at 1x. With a SOPMOD stock, that also pushes me left slightly, so I'm now skewed left in the eye-box. When I mount the ATACR rifle with the same basic "feel" that I would with my Aimpoint 1/3 uppers, I'm looking through about 1/2 the scope, with the other half of scope shadow. Because of that, I'm thinking a 1.93" mount may be the perfect spot. In the meantime, I'm going to throw a half-inch riser under the Larue mount just to see how I like the idea.

    - Optics: On a bright sunny day, I do notice some slight dimming of the image compared to reality. I was a little disappointed to see that, but then I also didn't notice it the next day when actually shooting. I did also see some barrel distortion (I forget the correct term for gun optics, but I think that's the term for camera lenses) at 1x. It was certainly and completely functional, but it was there. At 8x and 100y, I was able to see all my hits on a Shoot-n-See with almost no issues. Any issues I did have were due to grass in the way or aging eyes.

    - The dot: I've taken this out in the Florida sun several times now, both shooting up close and then playing with it in the back yard. I can get the dot Aimpoint bright if I turn it to 10 (max setting). It's not blooming in the bright sun at that setting, but will do that in darker settings. Pointing the dot at a white fence in the sun, the dot struggles, but is still visible. Pointing it at anything else that's less than white, and it's perfectly viewable. Like the MK6 controls, the ATACR lets you have "OFF" spots between each intensity setting, which I really like. One last thing about the dot for now...I have seen it "dim" if you come out of the perfect eye-box position, but it is NOT like the MK6 where the dot disappears, and the ATACR is still very usable. Also, the "dot" (which is really the donut and the center dot) is 8 MOA across, so it's not small. Certainly useful up close. The center dot is a 1.25 MOA dot. So at 300y, you have a ~3.75" black dot hovering over your target. Just something to be aware of.

    That's it for now, and certainly a low round count to make too many decisions on. That said, I was pretty impressed by the NX8 the other day and I kind of want to get one too. I think on a smaller rifle, the these two optics could compliment each other well, depending on usage.
    Last edited by gatordev; 12 July 2018 at 13:21.

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