LEUPOLD

One interesting new item from Leupold is the compact 1X 14mm prismatic sight. Small, simple, and tough, it will mount on a variety of firearms.

Leupold had a number of important introductions at SHOT, including the new flagship VX-7 riflescope line and RX-IV Boone and Crockett laser rangefinder. However, what caught my eye was Leupold's new compact 1X 14mm prismatic sight.

At only 4.5 inches long and weighing just 12 ounces, this is a very small optic indeed. Field of view is a wide 83 feet at 100 yards, and the sight boasts a 14mm exit pupil. Simple and extremely robust, it features a glass-etched reticle and comes with an illumination module. The reticle is a quick-to-deploy circle with a dot. I'm sure this prismatic design will find itself onto a wide variety of firearms.

NIGHTFORCE
Although not strictly new for 2007--it was introduced at the end of 2006, but I won't hold that against it--NightForce Optics's NXS 1-4X 24mm scope is tough and compact. Made in the good old U.S. of A., this dual-purpose optic serves equally well on either a hunting rifle or a tactical rifle. Very compact at only 8.8 inches long, it boasts 100 MOA of adjustment in 1/4 MOA clicks. Three reticles are offered, and illumination is standard. Weight is a light 17 ounces. It's a good-looking scope with excellent optics, and I'm sure it will be popular with both big-game hunters and 3-gun competitors.

NIKON

Nikon's BDC reticle provides circular aiming points out to 500 yards for standard centerfire cartridges and out to 600 yards for magnum cartridges.

Nikon has a lot of new items for 2007, including the 4-12X 42mm Laser IRT (Immediate Ranging Technology) laser-rangefinding riflescope, the Trailblazer ATB binoculars, and the 1X 30mm Monarch Variable Size Dot Sight (VSD). But what caught my eye was the new BDC Riflescope Reticle.

The BDC reticle incorporates small aiming circles that provide precise but unobtrusive aiming points. Each circle offers three distinct aiming points so that shooters can match a load to each aiming point.

The standard Nikon BDC is designed to be used with most standard centerfire cartridges with typical bullet weights, and it provides aiming points out to 500 yards with a 100-yard sight-in. With magnum cartridges and typical bullet weights, the BDC reticle offers aiming points out to 600 yards with a 200-yard sight-in. The new BDC 250, which is designed for .50-caliber muzzleloaders using 150-grain powder charges and 250-grain bullets, provides aiming points at 150, 200, 225, and 250 yards. The BDC 200, designed for slug gun loads, has two ballistic circles that represent 100- and 150-yard aiming points and a lower reticle post that represents a 200-yard aiming point.

SHEPHERD

Shepherd Scopes was building an innovative simple-to-use bullet drop compensating reticle long before these items were cool. Shepherd is still at it today, and for 2007 the company has introduced a new model called the 6-18X 40mm M.556 Varminter. Based on a 6-18X 40mm scope built on a one-inch tube and fitted with an adjustable objective, the M.556 features a reticle calibrated for 5.56mm. Like all Shepherd reticles, this model features a series of circles; in this case the circles subtend nine inches at the various ranges for which they are calibrated. Because the reticle is located in the front focal plane, the reticle can be used at any magnification setting. Quick to learn and simple to use, the Shepherd system works surprisingly well.

SIMMONS

Simmons has introduced an upgraded riflescope line called the AETEC Master series. Features include a fully multicoated aspherical lens system and a side parallax adjustment knob.

Simmons has introduced an upgraded line based upon the Master Series. Called the AETEC Master series, these scopes incorporate some sweet features. Some of them are a fully multicoated aspherical lens system and a side parallax adjustment knob. Simmons's unique patented TrueZero adjustment system is retained, but the ocular system has been redesigned to provide a larger eye box and a constant eye relief of 3.75 to 4 inches depending upon the model. To disperse water, a special hydrophobic coating is applied to all external lens surfaces.