If there is a hunting company in which I wished
I owned stock, it is Bushnell Outdoor Products. The one-time optics-only
company has quietly acquired a dozen other companies like Stoney
Point, Bolle, Final Approach and others, and now Bushnell offers
trail cams, blinds, shooting accessories, sunglasses, GPS units,
even duck decoys. But the Kansas-based company’s bread and butter
remains optics.
In the last few years Bushnell’s Elite series riflescopes have emerged
as one of the better values on the market. Its latest Elite, the
6500, is its most expensive to date, but it, along with Swarovski’s
Z6, is one of the most versatile scopes ever reviewed in these pages.
The 2.5X-16X-42mm 6500’s versatility lies in its variable power range
of 6.5X. In simple terms this means its magnification may be adjusted
by plus or minus 6.5 times its highest or lowest setting. For example
the 6500, having a low setting of 2.5X, is capable of magnifying
an image 6.5 times that, to 16.25X. Keep in mind that in 1960, a
fixed 4X was great. Then came variable-power scopes that eventually
earned the trust of the shooting community. The 3X-9X (which has
an adjustment range of 3X) remains wildly popular; however, the 2.5X-10X
trumps it. Now 2.5X-16X is an option, and there is hardly a shooting
scenario that cannot be accomplished with such a riflescope.
The 6500 features oversized, hand-adjustable knobs that are precise. Shooters can adjust by feel, sound or sight; index marks facilitate a quick return to zero.
In order to produce a wider power range, Bushnell reps told me that
its engineers created a new ocular lens system. The resulting new
“eye-box” to which one lens was added prompted engineers to also
increase the size of the tube and objective lens to accomodate it,
hence the 30mm tube and the 42mm objective that differ from the 2.5X-10X-40mm
4200 Elite’s 1-inch tube and 40mm objective. But because telescopes
are governed by principles of physics, producing a larger power range
cannot be accomplished without tradeoffs. I was surprised, however,
to learn how little the drawbacks actually effect its use in the
field.
The first drawback is obvious: The larger components and extra lens
cause the 6500 to weigh more. It weighs 17.3 ounces, 1.3 ounces more
than the aforementioned 4200. Less obvious is the mathematical fact
that anytime an additional lens is added, it must decrease light
transmission, with everything else (lens quality, coatings, objective
size, etc.) being equal. On the other hand, the larger objective
creates a larger exit pupil, which increases brightness. In reality
all else isn’t equal, and if there is any decrease in light transmission
it is countered and rendered unnoticeable to my eye.
In optics, eye relief and field of view work against each like a
teeter totter; engineers can either create a wide field of view at
the expense of eye relief, or vise versa. Despite marketing trends,
I believe eye relief is of greater value than field of view. The
6500 has one-half foot less field of view compared to the Elite 4200
(2.5X-10X) at 2.5X. But it has 3.9 inches of eye relief at 2.5X compared
to 3.3 inches of the 4200 at 2.5X. If this is not enough, additional
relief to your brow is provided in the form of a rubber ring on the
eyepiece. With everything considered, I feel the 6500’s benefits
to the hunter outweigh its drawbacks.
The 6500 Elite is topped with Rainguard, a proprietary, hydrophobic coating that makes water bead instead of smear. Rainguard will not wear off.
Although the 6500 is housed in a 30mm tube, its
erector tube (the tube within the tube you look through that houses
the reticle system and the lens that “erects” the image so it does
not appear upside down) was taken from the company’s 1-inch models.
Other than manufacturing-cost savings, the benefit (or possible byproduct)
of this is the creation of more space between the two tubes that
allows more range of reticle adjustment. The 6500 has an adjustment
range of about 80 MOA, compared to 50 MOA of 1-inch-tube scopes.
Will you need it? Who knows, but you’ll have it anyway.
The 6500’s lenses are fully multi-coated. (You might be sick
of hearing about coatings, but if a scope is not fully multi-coated, I won’t
buy it.) Its external lenses are permanently topped with Rainguard.
When water lands on Rainguard it beads up and rolls off instead of
smearing and making the lens blurry. I wish all optics had a topical
coating of this nature.
Hunters like tactile controls, and this scope has them. Oversized
knobs turn by hand, and they are precise. You can literally close your eyes and
count clicks either by sound or by feel. The turrets feature a disengaging gear
whereby the reticle can be zeroed, then the turret popped up and out of gear
and rotated until the hash mark indexes with a number, preferably zero. This
way you can quickly return to your zero despite adjustments made for range compensation
or if using the scope on multiple rifles.
In terms of actual reticle adjustment, I shot the square and
the scope registered responsive, accurate and repeatable results.
The 6500 employs a side parallax adjustment. On hunting scopes
this would seem unnecessary, but at extreme ranges where 16X might be used, it
is necessary. Scopes can focus on one plane at a time, and most are pre-set at
100 yards. For the sharpest focus—and accuracy—at all distances, parallax adjustment
is critical. It can be accomplished by moving either the reticle or the objective
lens slightly forward or backward. The 6500’s system is of the reticle, or side-adjustment
type. It is much easier to access from shooting positions than objective-bell-located
designs. My theory with adjustable-parallax scopes is much like my
theory for long-range shooting: Keep your mind and equipment prepared for the
quick, close-range shot; if a long-range shot presents itself, it’s wise to allow
time for adjustments.
As for durability, here’s what I found: I froze the scope for
three hours. Immediately after taking it out of the freezer, I dunked it in 60-degree
water. No internal fogging developed. Next I let the scope soak for an hour 2
feet underwater. While submerged, I manipulated every dial that could be manipulated.
The scope is absolutely waterproof. Next I dropped it five times onto hard, grassy
ground from a distance of 3 feet. It showed no signs of internal damage.
At $700-$900, the 6500 is more closely related to an “elite”
class rather than its value-class family. But considering its extraordinary versatility—you
can use it for deer in the brush at 2.5x or for 600-yard targets at 16x—it may
be your best option if you are looking for one scope that can do it all.
NRA members,
if you already receive American Rifleman or America's
1st Freedom you can add American Hunter
to your reading list for just $9.95,
by calling 877-672-2000.
Bushnell Elite 6500
2.5X-16x-42mm
800-423-3537
bushnell.com
Type: variable-magnification riflescope
Magnification: 2.5X-16X (tested); 4.5X-30X
Objective Lens Diameter: 42mm (tested); 50mm
Eye Relief: 3.9" @ 2.5X
Exit Pupil: 16.8" @ 2.5X; 2.6" @ 16X
Twilight Factor:
10.25 @ 2.5X; 25.92 @ 16X
Reticle: fine Multi-X; mil-dot
Field of View @ 100 yds:
41' @ 2.5X; 6.55’ @ 16X
Coatings: fully multi-coated lenses; Rainguard external lens coating
Dimensions: length—13.5"; weight—17.3 ozs.
Construction: hammer-forged aluminum
Accessories: sunshade
MSRP: $699 (tested)-$899
