New Wildlife Pro ULTRA-SHARP 8x30 Binoculars from Steiner

Steiner press release:

Sharp focusing on moving targets or in low-light conditions has always been a problem for wildlife observers and even more so for law enforcement personnel. The new Wildlife Pro ULTRA-SHARP 8×30 binocular from Steiner Germany revolutionizes focusing and provides viewing with sharp images regardless of the situation.

This new focusing system consists of two parts. The first is Steiner’s Sports Autofocus System that is already a popular feature in several hunting, nature, and military binoculars made by Steiner. The Sports Autofocus System feature makes objects sharp without the need to manually refocus from 30 yards to infinity. When the object of observation can barely be seen and is difficult to focus on, this timesaving feature is critical to be able to clearly view the object.

The second feature of the new ULTRA-SHARP focus adds a fingertip adjustment. Similar to a traditional center focus, this new adjustment only requires a miniscule touch of the ribbed fingertip wheel to fine-tune sharpness or focus on nearby objects. It has a close-focus distance of six feet. The result of this new focusing system is a sharper picture faster than with any other binocular on the market.

The Sports Autofocus System also allows setting the binoculars for individual eyes, no matter what your particular eye condition may be. This is a one-time initial step. Adjustments for both the left and right eyes can be made, resulting in an exceptionally sharp image for all users.

The lightweight rubber-armored ULTRA-SHARP 8×30 binocular also features high light-transmission lenses allowing viewing in very poor light conditions. Available at sporting goods stores nationwide, this new binocular has a suggested retail price of $399.

New scope will improve SAW gunners’ range

Marine Times:

The Corps will purchase more than 10,500 SAW Day Optics, or nearly one for every SAW in the Corps’ inventory, Arthaud said. Officials signed a $33 million contract with Trijicon, of Wixom, Mich., on April 30, and plan to field the device beginning early in 2010 as quantities become available, said Karl Solomon, optics team lead for SysCom’s optics and nonlethal systems program.

This is the first time the weapon will have its own designated optic. The Corps’ Rifle Combat Optic — often known as the Advanced Combat Optic Gunsight — has been used with the SAW in some environments, but the SDO has been adapted specifically to handle the SAW’s larger recoil and will eventually reach virtually every infantry squad.

Part of Trijicon’s ACOG family, the SDO will have 3.5x magnification and slightly longer eye relief to compensate for the SAW’s recoil. The SDO is also going to work with the upcoming IAR, which the Marines will use to replace some SAWs.

The Army apparently isn’t interested in the SDO. Big Green uses the M145 machine gun optic which is also compatible with the M240B.

A couple of days ago I posted a shot of the Brownells AR-15/M16 Gas Block Flip-Up Front Sight in its packaging, but I didn’t get any of the shots of the sight itself to turn out real well. Here’s a professional shot of the sight:

Brownells AR-15/M16 Gas Block Flip-Up Front Sight
(Image courtesy of Brownells)

Murdoc likes accessories that not only are no-nonsense but look no-nonsense. This sight definitely qualifies on both counts.

Picked myself up one of these:

Brownells Gas Block Flip-Up Front Sight

It’s the sort of simple, solid, no-nonsense accessory that Murdoc appreciates. Plus the price ain’t half bad, and like a lot of AR accessories, it was in stock and shipped the next day.

Bushnell Sync Focus ImageView with Instant Replay

The Sync Focus ImageView with Instant Replay uses a parallel gear system that provides simultaneous focus for both the binocular and digital camera lens, using a single knob. Now, once the image is “dialed in” while looking through the binocular, the camera will also be sharply focused on the same subject, at the same distance.

The new Sync Focus ImageView features premium 8×30mm optics with BaK-4 roof prisms and fully multicoated lenses. With its high-quality 5 MP digital camera and 16 MB of internal memory, it’s perfect for capturing outdoor images or video clips at sporting events.

8×30 binocs, 5 MP still camera, VGA video at 30 fps. For and MSRP of $279.95. Sounds good to Murdoc.

The 6-27x72 SAM Riflescope by Carl Zeiss Optronics

The new 6-24×72 SAM riflescope from Carl Zeiss Optronics in Germany, the first of its kind with an integrated ballistic calculator, enables them to focus on the target in pressure situations.

Using the internationally proven 6-24×72 rifle-scope, Zeiss engineers in Wetzlar found a practical way to simplify the work of marksmen. They [put] an entire ballistic calculator into the compact riflescope assembly. Once the type of ammunition, range to the target, and wind speed and direction are entered, the Sniper Auxiliary Module (SAM) calculates the corresponding corrective values.

Marksmen do not need to take their eyes off the target: at the push of a button, the results of the calculation are displayed in the form of corrective clicks directly in the eyepiece. Furthermore, the current elevation, azimuth and cant settings can be read there, thus enabling marksmen to fully focus on the target.

Full data sheet HERE (.pdf)

UPDATE: What sort of rifle is that?

Sgt. David Fisher of Woodbridge, Va., qualifies with an advanced combat optical gunsight on his M4 Carbine at Fort Carson, Colorado Springs, Colo., Feb. 12. Sgt. Joshua Gillespie, a range safety, informs Fisher which direction to adjust his aim if he misses the target. Both Soldiers are assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 3rd Battalion, 157th Field Artillery, Colorado Army National Guard and are scheduled to deploy to Iraq later this year. Photo by Staff Sgt. Liesl Marelli

The advanced combat optical gunsight is a Trijicon.

Pfc. Joseph Emery, a multiple launch rocket system crewmember with Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 3rd Battalion, 157th Field Artillery, Colorado Army National Guard, fires his 9mm pistol at a Fort Carson pop-up range in Colorado Springs, Colo., Feb. 12. Soldiers are required to engage a minimum of 17 of 30 targets in order to qualify. Photo by Staff Sgt. Liesl Marelli

At one point there was speculation that the military might be shifting away from the M9 9mm, but a recent order for more, the largest pistol order since WW2, shows that the 9 is here to stay.

CSAT Combat Sight by XS Sight Systems

This replacement rear sight addresses the need to aim high for close shots on ARs zeroed for standard carbine ranges. Use the top notch for close-in shooting and the aperture for standard ranges.

I found it much easier transitioning from far to close than the opposite. Which is probably how you’d want it if you suddenly found yourself needing to switch to targets at short range.

In the Remington goodie bag:

Swarovski Optik Cleaning Set

Caleb:

Novak is now producing a sight that fits the existing dovetail on the PT-1911 and the 24/7 OSS pistols. This means that you can now replace the factory sights (which are actually excellent Heinie sights on those pistols) with a Novak fiber optic or tritium sight.