Bushnell Elite 3200 Firefly Revisited...

Streeker59 · April 15, 2008

Hi Guys. Well i took delivery of my Bushnell Firefly scope. Mounted and zeroed it using a shotsaver.

Took it out the other night to bag some bunnies... As per instructions, i charged the reticule using the LED flashlight supplied for 2 mins about an hour before leaving for the shoot.

Upon arrival at dusk i thought i'd better finish the zeroing at 30 meters so i'd be spot on for my quarry.. To say i'm disappointed with this scope is an understatement.

Firstly, the scope is faulty in that the entire reticule is supposed to be illuminated. Only the bold posts were. The crosshairs were not.

Using this scope with the red filtered lamp on low so as not to spook the bunnies, the part of the reticule that was illuminated was washed out by the lamp. Recharging the reticule made things better but the reticule only stayed bright enough to use with a lamp for about 20 - 30 mins.

All in all a disappointing purchase...

I've emailed the supplier ( optics-warehouse ) and asked for a refund or an exchange for a different model.. Watch this space for an update on thier customer service...

Streeker59 · April 16, 2008

Hi Pat... Well the supplier has been very responsive. He rang me last night to discuss the situation. He's quite happy to accept the scope back and refund me or exchange the scope for another brand.

I was tempted to spend a bit more and buy a Leupold 1.5 - 5 x 20 illum ret but as it will only be used for lamping bunnies and foxes i figured the obj will be too small to be usefull in the with a red lamp.

I've opted for an MTC Mamba 1.5 - 6 x 42, No 4 ret with illum centre dot. It has ultra low turrets which is a bonus for me as i sometimes tap fence posts with my existing scope, the turret covers are full of dents..lol.. The illum is controlled by a side turret where the para adj would be. Great, no control knob on the top of the eyebell for me to knock....

As soon as i get a chance to field test it I'll report back to the forum.

Grant...

Streeker59 · April 16, 2008

Bushnell supply an LED flashlight to charge the reticule with. I tried a powerful 9 LED flashlight but it made no difference. The thing was just pants in the end.

Well at least my experience will stop others making the same mistake. At least I'm able to exchange it for something else. I used to have a Nikko Sterling scope with about 8 different reticles to choose from. The illuminator was on top of the eyebell and the reticule change dial was on the opposite side on the windage turret. The lenses weren't up to much and something went ping one night whilst lamping and that was the end of that as they say.

Ever since I've been using a bog standard 3 - 9 x 44 Opti-mate with a 30/30 reticule. It's done it's job well but i want to get back to using an illuminated jobby again..

Do you really use your HMR out to 500 yds Pat? I've only ever used mine out to 250 and the cross wind was a challenge to say the least. A 5 - 7 mph cross wind was pushing the little 17 grainer about 9 inches off target. I figure you'd need a really calm day to push it out to 500 and only have to worry about elevation?

I use a Burris 3.5 - 10 x 50 LRS illum ret when i have the HMR barrel fitted to my Sako Quad. The ret only has 2 brightness settings but as i don't lamp with it, it's not an issue. The optics are very bright and the clarity is excellent. 10 mag is more than enough for 200 yd rabbits and foxes i find..

I should have this MTC Mamba in a couple of days. I'll write up my findings when I've field tested it... :lol:

Streeker59 · April 17, 2008

Next time i'm shooting at 600 at Bisley, i'll have to give it a go with my HMR and see what happens, should be interesting.. Thanks for the info Pat..