You've likely seen the report on this website on my 7mm Backcountry 16.5" Proof Research PXT Carbon Fiber barrel topped with a Kahles 3-18i scope. This is the one that is so hyper accurate as to be nearly unbelievable.
Went to the ranch in Ennis very early on the Morning of September 4th. My plan was to take two of my 7mm Backcountry rifles to test them with the Federal loading of 195 grain Berger bullets. Both of these rifles are superbly accurate with Federal 170 Terminal Ascent bullets but I wanted to try the Bergers as they are super high ballistic coefficient bullets that on my Kestrel looked like they still be way supersonic at a mile which is what I intended to use them for. Imagine shooting a mile out of a gun with a 16.5" barrel! Insane.
I got to the ranch West range and set my gear up, first to set zero for the 195' at 100 and then to work up dope on my Kestrel based on environmental conditions, wind, and muzzle velocity. I was planning on truing my Kestrel at 700 yards.
Three shots off the bench with the MDT 26 chassis forend resting on my Huxmaw portable benchrest bag and the stock on an Armageddon bag. I could see the Birchwood Casey Shoot n' C targets and the bullet impacts perfectly. I could not believe what I saw. You see for yourself what my three-shot group looked like.
As I was admiring my handiwork, Lloyd Hill of Genesis Rifles pulled up in his RV and, as he started unloading his gear for doing his work, he told me to come and look at this crazy setup he was going to test. It was identical to mine but with a major twist. It was topped by a Swarovski DS 4-24 rail mounted scope. I'll do more detail on the scope and rail mount system but I was smack talking Lloyd because he has been a bit less enthusiastic about the 7mm Backcountry than I have been so I asked him what got him interested in this arrangement? Two things: 1) the 195-grain Berger bullet—his preliminary testing in this gun with a regular scope suggested it could be very accurate at very long ranges, and 2) the Swarovski DS Generation 3 super scope. I was unfamiliar with this scope and asked him to tell me about it.
Lloyd is a Swarovski fanboy—he has tested, used and built many custom rifles using every scope in the Swaro line. They are fantastic quality and no one builds a scope that functions better in ultra-low light. The DS is a 4 x 20 and looking through it, I thought the glass clarity and brightness was spectacular, as usual. There are no turrets on the scope nor any rings in which the scope is mounted. These need explanation.
No turrets as this is an electronic marvel. The scope allows you to set up a rifle profile in a companion app, much as you would do with a Kestrel. The profile is then sent to the scope which is equipped with a range finding laser good to a minimum of 1500 yards. When you laser a target, the scope instantly computes windage and elevation and presents an illuminated electronic reticle at the precise hold to hit the point where the reticle is aimed. One button push and good to go instantly.
As for the mounting system, there is a rail built into the scope and that rail is constructed with very small serrated "teeth" to which two (front and rear) mounting device attach such that the scope cannot possibly move, even under the heaviest recoil. These then in turn attach to a picatinny rail atop to MDT 26 chassis. Perfect mounting height, impossible to move under recoil and, automatically ensures the scope is mounted absolutely square to the rifle so there can be no accidental reticle cant due to improper mounting. What a great system!
I had been working on my own DOPE development and had worked out to 1000 yards, discovering along the way that I had zero need for truing before 1000 yards, in itself a fascinating result with the 195 Bergers. At this point I took a break and talked with Lloyd a bit about what he was going to do. He had all the data set up in the DS scope and said, 300, 500, 800, 900, and 1000 were his order of fire. I said I'd spot for him. Here is exactly what happened:
Push the ranging button for 300, aim, fire, CLANG!
Push the ranging button for 500, aim, fire, CLANG!
Push the ranging button for 800, aim, fire, CLANG!
Push the ranging button for 900, aim, fire, CLANG!
Push the ranging button for 1000, aim, fire, CLANG!
Five shots, five targets center punched. All shots fired in less than two minutes. Unbelievable!
Average muzzle velocity, by the way, was 2740 feet per second. That's a 195-grain bullet from a 16.5" barrel. The 7 mm Backcountry is nothing short of amazing. The Swarovski DS shows you the velocity at the target, the kinetic energy at the target, and time of flight to the target. This is incredible stuff. And, of course, you don't have to take your eye away from the scope for shooting and seeing all this information.
It got very hot and humid at the range and I needed to get back to Dallas for another commitment later in the day so, having seen, several new shooting technologies blend together perfectly, I told Lloyd I'd catch with him soon. We have a couple of projects pending that you'll learn about soon.
I got a text from him the following morning. It said he'd stayed at the range until dark which technically began at 8:21 p.m., the sun having set 30 minutes earlier. At 8:12 p.m. there was little available light but Lloyd had a clear view of the target and ranged it with the DS scope laser at 321 yards and took the shot. The big 195 Berger center punched the target. The result is shown below.
I texted Lloyd that I thought the Swaro DS was great but I thought he had told me that it only ranged to 1500 yards so that wouldn't be useful for shooting our mile targets. He texted me back that he had ranged to 1830 yards and the scope presented the firing solution reticle so we could in fact find it useful to a mile. He then told me about the mapping function which will be discussed in a more comprehensive review of the DS when I can put one through the testing process. I'm apparently a little late to this game but not for long! There are videos on YouTube about this scope as well as via Swarovski's website. Interestingly, in the 48 hours since first encountering this scope, I've learned that there are many imitators but NOT ONE competitor that can do what the Swarovski Gen III 4 x 24 rifle scope can do. Added together with the app and it's incredible capabilities, I'm going to get my hands on one ASAP.
I admit, we at Lonestar Hunting and Shooting Partners get to use, test, prove, keep, discard, rethink, criticize, love, hate, talk about, and share findings about all kinds of shooting technologies, some of which are reported on in this brief article. It is a privilege to be able to do that, and to be able to do it with some of the most experienced and best shooters in the world. Stay tuned to learn about what's next!