Gear Review: Weaver Super Slam Tactical Scope

The Colt LE901 is a bad-ass rifle.  It may be the perfect gun for those anyone looking for a truly multipurpose firearm.  The .308 chambering allows for heavy hitting, decently long range accuracy.  While this makes the Colt useful for tactical applications, it also makes for a great hunting rifle.

Time for fold down sights, or maybe some offset irons. (Photo by David Higginbotham)

The 5.56, with more manageable recoil, higher capacity magazines and lighter weight, may have more realistic tactical uses.  Regardless, the rifle is greatly improved with a good optic on top.

The third nob controls illumination. (Photo by David Higginbotham)

The Weaver Super Slam Tactical 2-10×36 is a great option.  The low magnification on the bottom end makes for easy and accurate close range targeting.  The higher magnification is ideal for longer ranges and optimizes the potential of a round like the .308.

Weaver Super Slam Tactical 2-10×36

The Weaver tactical scopes come in a variety of sizes and configurations.  Choosing the right one isn’t easy.  The choice depends entirely on what you expect the scope to do.  Some are decidedly multi-purpose.  Others incorporate more task-specific reticle patterns.

The 2-10×36 is a solid, all purpose platform.  In the low end, the scope offers a minimal amount of magnification.  While this is more useful for competition shooting and 5.56-tactical applications, it also allows for a very wide field of view at longer distances, which makes finding your target easier.  At the high end, at 10, you have more magnification than you would on a typical 3-9 sporting scope.

The etched reticle sizes up with the magnification. (Photo by David Higginbotham)

Why settle for 3-9 when you can have a 2-10?  I can’t see a good reason. The Weaver 2-10×36 offers a field of view at 100 yards that ranges from 50.2-feet at the lowest magnification, to 10 feet at the highest.  It is 13.1-inches in length and requires 3.9-inches of eye relief.  The 13-inch scope will dominate the top of a rifle, for sure, but the relatively narrow front lens isn’t going to get in the way.  What you may sacrifice in the field of view will be made up for in ease of use.

Sighting in is very easy.  There are various types of reticles available.  This one has a very simple Mil-Dot set up.  The bold cross hairs come in from the perimeter, but stop short of the center.  The Mil-Dot crosshairs pick up in the middle, but stop just short of the very center, which is left open.  The reticle is also etched.

The lens on the 2-10×36 isn’t going to be obtrusive. (Photo by David Higginbotham)

The broad bars of the reticle are great for fast, close target acquisition.  The narrow cross-hairs and Mil-Dots are great for long range work and fine accuracy.  And if you’re gifted enough to gauge distance and size using the Mil-Dot system, the scope offers that benefit, too.

But there’s more.  The center of reticle is also illuminated.  Red or green.  The dial on the left side of the scope houses a flat battery and adjusts brightness.  It is super subtle.  I found the black, unilluminated reticle far more useful for daylight work, but it is nice to have the green and reds for low light shooting, or dark targets.

The 30mm tube on the scope is all one piece.  It is argon filled to prevent fogging.  The etched reticles are in the first focal plane, and the lenses are multi-coated and wonderfully clear.  The turrets don’t have caps, which is great for boneheads like me who lose them.  All of the controls are easy to find without looking.  The adjustments require a bit of muscle, which means they’re aren’t going to change accidentally.

Sight-in target for the LE901 .308 at 100 yards. The last five shots in the same hole. (Photo by David Higginbotham)

Shooting the Super Slam

This is the ideal scope for the .308 upper on the Colt LE901.  I don’t know that I’d ever take it off of the rifle.  Weaver’s excellent mounts, which are some of the easiest I’ve ever used, make it easy enough to take the scope off and put it on the 5.56 upper.  And it works well on both.  As I don’t typically shoot 5.56 at any real distance, I’m used to non-magnified optics on my ARs, so it is different.  But the scope works great.  It is accurate, easy to use, and reasonably fast.

In the end, it is all about the do-it-all potential.  Tough enough for combat.  Easy enough for weekend hunts.  Not bad.  The scope sells for somewhere around $700 online.  For that price, this is one hell-of-a-scope.