Tasco Sniper Scopes
Part II
The SS10x42, SS10x42M, SS16x42 and the SS20x42

30 May 2000
By Scott Powers

Back to Part I

The original scope I reviewed in 1998 was an SS10x42M. One of my original complaints, if I recall correctly, was that it lacked a sunshade. This was for a very good reason having to do with water borne Operations. Being of ground pounder lineage, I mentioned preferring a built in shade for obvious reasons. When SWFA took over the exclusive marketing of the SS series from Tasco, it was one of the first things they "rectified". Wondering what else may be different, I mentioned to Chris Farris, my contact at SWFA Inc., that I would like to do a rewrite on the series. He felt this was a fine idea since there were several misconceptions floating about concerning the scopes in question. Several days later all four SS scopes showed up on my doorstep! The SS10x42 & 42M, the 16x and the 20x. Externally, in function, they are identical. Only the magnification differentiates the series.

To begin, let us look at the SS10x42. This scope is priced identically with the 16x and 20x, at $299.00 and constitutes 35% of the Tasco sniper scope sales at SWFA. It is also visually identical to the 16x and 20x unit, so as I describe it, so I describe its higher power brethren. The SS10x42, like all the others, comes in a plain white box. No fanfare here - just a serious tool. Packaging is excellent with two layers of bubble wrap and a silica pad to keep moisture at bay. Also included is a set of instructions in five languages. English, German, French, Spanish and, I think, Italian. Hey, what can I say - bilingual I am not! All the scopes come with see-through scope caps, including the SS10x42M, the military version of the quadruplets. The ocular cap is yellow. My personal feeling is that you want to set these aside and get a good set of Butler Creek caps as soon as is convenient. I am very happy they are included mind you, but find the Butler Creek caps indispensable on a field rifle. But I digress. Also included in the box is an allen wrench for adjusting the turrets, a lens cloth, a limited lifetime warranty certificate and a product registration form. The scopes are all made with one-piece tubes finished in a somewhat pebbled Matt black. The turrets are very well marked and have 15 minutes per revolution, providing .25 moa per click. The turrets are marked with 1minute major increments and with minor 1/4 moa ticks in between. The turrets are large, both easy to read and to grasp. No fumbling with gloves on this scope! The area above the numbers is large enough that you can either tape a yard indicator sheet in place or stamp numbers on the turret if you are so inclined. I like to do this with quarter minute scopes as it helps me keep track of where I am at in the drum rotation as well as makes dialing up a snap. But do so only after you have confirmed your zeros! The turret markings while very visible, provided my only complaint. They are in silver paint. Call me traditional but I prefer white. A minor nit to be sure. The turrets provide a very good feel in rotation. Clicks are very audible and very well defined.

In my original 1998 review of this sight, I complained that the turrets were a bit mushy. This was caused by the O-ring seal in the turret. Upon opening the plain white box on the Y2K version, my first inclination was to twist the turrets and see how they felt. Much to my surprise, they were totally crisp and easily defined. I could close my eyes and count clicks precisely, using the audible and tactile feedback to easily track the rotation, something not possible with the original test unit in '98. Curious, I pulled the elevation turret to see if the workings underneath were the same as my original unit. Other than the fact that my older SS10x42M has blackened brass inner parts instead of un-blackened parts, they seem to be identical. A small change has been made in the cap but this has little to do with the new found precision feel. However, the O-ring on the old contract M model does appear to be slightly thicker, and there is more sealing grease, which may have contributed to the mushy feeling. The new O-ring is only two thirds as tall, which was probably thought sufficient since the scope would not typically be submerged for any great length of time. That, or it was proven to be sufficient in either case. Whatever the reason, this one change is most welcome as it makes dialing in as easy as any other scope I have tested. All four SS series scopes are still rated to 15 meters below the surface.

As before, the SS10x42 has a ring for adjusting for parallax about where you'd find a magnification ring on a variable scope. You can adjust the ring from 10 meters to infinity. The resistance to turning in the ring seems just right. Not so loose so as to turn on its own but free enough to dial in the elected range without upsetting your sight picture. Focus is at the ocular end. It is achieved by rotating the eyepiece. Once focused for your eye you typically only have to sharpen the image via the parallax ring for your range. Setting it to the predetermined range is simple. Just adjust for sharpest image.

Image quality is quite good. Again, keeping in mind that this scope is being retailed for $299.95, one can be quite happy with the optical clarity. A 10-meter test on rather bad Xerox copy of the Zeiss Test pattern showed a crisp clear image all the way down to 12.5 on the scale, right to the edge of the glass! I could make out individual lines on the 16 block, but my eyes are not what they used to be so I can not claim the scope will resolve that far. At least not with me behind it. Contrast on the pattern was excellent. The image seemed to hold up right to the edge. I could be missing something as this was a surprise, but with my eyes the image was as clear and undistorted at the edge as it was in the middle. I have certainly looked through better glass, but not at this price!

As mentioned before, all of the most recent SS series scopes now come with an integral sunshade. It measures approximately 1.2 inches beyond the objective glass. This is an excellent feature for several reasons. Tactically speaking, if you lack a sunshade and make a mistake in setting up, you will flash your target area a warning signal. Secondly, in the rain, a sunshade proves its real worth. Keeping the glass dry is problematic in these conditions and while it is easier to wipe down glass without a sunshade, it is required more often.

Speaking of glass, the reticle is of the ETCHED GLASS variety. This means that the cross wire you see is actually not a wire at all, but etched into a glass plate. This is a very strong method of reticle design and it stands up to the most persistent recoil. In fact, of all the SS20x42 scopes that have been mounted on .50 caliber rifles, not one has been returned to SWFA for repair! No small feat considering the abuse some of these rigs can bring down on their optics.

The reticle itself is of the standard mil-dot variety. A special note is required here because in the past there has been some confusion over the distance between the dots in this brand of scope. In all case, the SS series I have tested have had the standard mil-dot as designed and used by the United States armed forces. That is to say that the distance between the heavy posts is 10 mils and the distance between the individual dots equals 1 mil. The dots are of the round variety as used by the Army, which pleases me no end as I am way better at breaking mils down into 10ths than I am into 8ths as required by the football shaped dots. It is a brain dysfunction... at least that is what any Marine will merrily tell me! I believe the confusion over the spacing of the dots has been caused by two sources. The first was a contract run of this scope sold in Europe that had two mils between the dots. This allowed ranging of very large objects but made for some consternation with any shooter unfamiliar with this spacing. The second source was an add placed in Shotgun news and other magazines giving the stats for the SS series. The data was misprinted and actually represented a different Tasco scope line. In short, if you buy an SS10x42, SS10x42M, SS16x42 or SS20x42, the distance between the dots is 1 mil. Period. If you "see" something else, you do not have an SS scope as released in the US or you are looking at an SS20x42 and assuming that those wide and large dots are spaced wider than they actually are. At 100 yards they subtend exactly what they are supposed to. Tested against a ruler, the 10x, 16x and 20x all meet the standard for a mil-dot scope as used in the US military. 'Nuff said.

One issue that you may or may not like about the series is the width of the cross hairs. I like 'em thin. I do not like the thinner center wire to obscure my target, nor do I want them so thin that they get lost in the field of view like those on some varmint scopes. To my eye, the center cross hairs on this mil-dot reticle are prefect. Thin but highly visible, even in the early twilight. The outer posts are where people will differ in opinion. The outer posts on the SS series are easily visible, but thin enough that they will get lost in very low light. If you've ever had the opportunity to look into a scope with a mil-dot reticle installed by Premier Reticles of Winchester, Virginia, you will note that their outer posts are very heavy. This makes them highly visible in low light, to a point anyway. They can be seen well past the time when the inner cross hairs have disappeared. I would guess you'd get an extra half-hour out of them when compared to the thinner style outer posts. With targets at moderate ranges, one can still shoot by centering the target between very heavy posts. Not so with the SS series. Will this matter to you? It is a personal thing based on your intended use. Given external illumination, you can use most any reticle and the SS reticle is no exception. It stands out sufficiently with street lighting or illumination from the moon. Same deal if you have a light amplifier on the scope. If you are a civilian this point is moot as most competitions end before twilight and legal hunting ends at dusk. For LE use I doubt this is much an issue either since if you can not see that well, there is no way you are going to be allowed to shoot. For military use in really low light with little external light, you can still use the time proven method of just centering the target in the field of view. It is amazing how well you can hit even with so low tech a method... at least if perfect precision is not an issue. So this may be a non-issue for most users. But you should be aware of it if you are one of those guys who want the outer posts to look like the arms on Arnold Swartzenegger.

Running the turrets up, over, down and back 10 clicks proved that they were perfectly repeatable within the ability of my skill to hold on target. This is in tune with my prior experience with the SS10x42M. I never had any issues with repeatability in the two years I have used this scope. I was always able to return the zero to the center of my rifles, and my ability.

The M version of 10x scope is almost identical to the others with the addition of a third turret for parallax. It is reminiscent of the Mk4 series by Leupold. The parallax adjusts from 10 meters to infinity. Unlike my old model, the newer M model's third turret was much easier to turn, taking less than half the effort. Also, unlike the original contract model, the elevation and windage turrets rotate with an assertive, precise, and "loud" clicking sound. The O-rings look the same but may be slightly smaller and there is definitely less goo in the turrets. My impression is that even were I to wipe all the waterproofing grease away and remove the O-ring from my old unit it would still be mushier than the new.

My final thoughts on this line of telescopic sights is that if you are looking for a rock solid scope for your tactical rig and do not mind a fixed magnification or don't trust a variable, you can not go wrong purchasing one of these units. If you own a big .50 cal, I would not hesitate to mount the 20x scope. It is strong, sturdy and built to take the abuse. Fit the magnification to your intended use and these telescopic sights should serve you well for years.

Each scope has over 120 minutes of internal adjustment -- you will never have to use a sloped scope mount under normal ranges. The scopes are military tough and ideal for the shooter who wants the best he can buy on limited funds or on a departmental budget. Compared to similar glass at twice the price, these scopes perform.

Specifications for all SS scopes:
Individual Stats:
SS10x42 & SS10x42M
Objective: 
42mm
Field of View @ 100 Yards: 
13 feet
Eye Relief: 
4"
Tube diameter: 
30mm
Length: 
14.25"
Weight: 
26 ozs.
SS16x42
Objective: 
42mm
Field of View @ 100 Yards: 
6.98 feet
Eye Relief: 
3.75"
Tube diameter: 
30mm
Length: 
14.25"
Weight: 
26 ozs.
SS20x42
Objective: 
42mm
Field of View @ 100 Yards: 
6.2 feet
Eye Relief: 
3.50"
Tube diameter: 
30mm
Length: 
14.25"
Weight: 
26 ozs.
Contact information:

S.W.F.A., Inc (Or visit their rifle scopes page directly)
P.O. Box 69
DeSoto, Texas  75123
972-223-0500
Or email them

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