The scope itself is on the smaller side for this magnification range. Unboxing the Athlon Midas TAC 6-24x50mm reveals the exact same sparse accessories found with the big brother Ares scope: no caps or covers, just a lens cloth, battery, manual, and invitation for the customer to review the product online. Athlon scopes are generally less costly than other brands coming from the same OEM, they seem to be building a solid reputation for customer service, and their features are up to date with market trends. So far they appear to be mostly delivering on these points. My take is that the plan is basically to win on three things: cost, service, and up-to-date feature sets. This shows in the timeliness of the features Athlon puts in scopes: they have their ear to the ground. Much smaller and more bureaucratic companies often do not. Huge companies, like Kahr or Benchmade for instance, can, and do, have founders on the floor. This is not really a large or small company thing so much as a philosophic thing. The principal players of Athlon are on the floor at tradeshows talking to customers, industry players, and grumpy writers. Where Athlon departs from many of the importers, or at least from its parent, is that it is smaller, more nimble, and flatter in terms of corporate organization. As with most importers, they offer a broad selection of product lines and price points sourced from a variety of OEMs. They are both importers and brands - not manufacturers. Its business model also essentially differs little from that of its parent. As such, Athlon had the experience and contacts of a major market player at its start. Athlon was founded by (and is still run by) some Bushnell alums. This is because, in some respects, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, or runner, depending on your metaphor (I know, stretching it).

My apologies for the overlap, such as the rest of this background section.Īthlon is one of the newest players in the sport optics industry and it turned some heads a few years ago as it seemed to be born, fully formed, with a complete line of scopes at a wide variety of price points. This suggests that there will be a lot of overlap in the potential buyers of each scope and begs a great deal of direct comparison as well as an unavoidable degree of re-use of text when discussing things in common such as the background of the company, the near identical manuals, or the very similar adjustment design. Both scopes are from the same brand and, at $849 and $629 street, respectively, I would consider them to be in the same price bracket.

In reviewing both the Athlon Ares BTR 4.5-27x50mm and this Athlon Midas TAC 6-24x50mm this year, I have an unusual situation. Testing Methodology: Comparative Optical Evaluation

Testing Methodology: Adjustments, Reticle Size, Reticle Cant Mechanical Testing and Turret Discussion: Athlon Midas TAC 6-24x50mm on Kelbly Atlas Tactical

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