Several years ago I began searching for a low cost full featured scope option for rimfire rifles. Unsurprisingly, there are not many options for scopes with adjustable parallax and external turrets from reputable manufacturers. This caused me to look at a class of optics that has mostly been left in yesteryear: Fixed power scopes. I settled on the Athlon Talos 10×42. I mounted the scope and began testing to see how Athlon delivered at the modest price point of $337 USD.
Feature Set
First, let’s take a look at the feature set that attracted me to the Athlon Talos 10×42. The riflescope comes with side adjustable parallax down to 15 yards, external elevation and windage turrets, and a zero stop. The turrets are 6 MILS per rotation and the optic weights 24.6oz. Additionally, while not a Christmas tree reticle, the Athlon Talos comes with a technical crosshairs. These scopes are only produced in MILS and the reticle is a crosshair with 0.2 mil increments marked for holding windage and holdovers. Interestingly, the reticle is similar but not identical to the reticle shown on Athlon’s website.
Positives
During testing I ran this scope in three rimfire PRS competitions as well as many practice sessions. The turrets tracked well, and the turret feel was excellent. Athlon does a fantastic job of having positive, tactile turrets even in their value priced optics. The Athlon Talos 10×42 is no exception and the turrets feel better than on many more expensive optics, such as the Nightforce NX8 or the Vortex LHT lines. There were no issues with zero retention observed during testing.
The parallax adjustment is on the left side of the scope. This is in contrast to most scopes in this price range that have adjustable parallax. Many budget adjustable parallax scopes have the parallax adjustment on the side of the ocular housing, which is less desirable. The reticle is useful but not cluttered and the floating central aiming dot is a welcome touch for precision use. Finally, I lost a set screw for the zero stop and customer service was excellent and sent me a new set screw free of charge.
Weaknesses
On the other hand, the Athlon Talos 10×42 is an inexpensive scope and one area where this was apparent was the glass. The image showed some clear chromatic aberration, particularly in hot weather. The image also becomes dark, if not unusable during lower light and adverse weather conditions. Fine tuning the parallax helped with this, but as the numbers on the parallax knob did not correspond to the correct distances I did not have time to do this using the scope on the clock.
Also, the 6 MIL per rotation turrets are inconvenient for longer range shooting. This is less of an issue with centerfire cartridges. However, for longer range shots with a rimfire I often found myself in the 3rd rotation and would occasionally run out of adjustment for the really long stages.
The final drawback to this optic is the eye-box, which is tight. Honestly, I am surprised with the tightness of the eye-box given that this is a fixed power optic. Most scopes only exhibit this at max magnification. That said, I only noticed the eye-box shooting in improvised positions off barricades and it wasn’t an issue for standard prone, standing, and seated shots.
Competitive Options
There are not many competitive options in the same price range as the Athlon Talos. SWFA makes a fixed 10 power scope with similar features but MSRP is $100 more. Likewise, the Vortex Diamondback Tactical fills a similar use case but MSRP is around $250 more expensive. There are a myriad of no name scopes on Amazon with similar features but they do not have the warranty nor the quality that an established brand like Athlon provides.
Closing Thoughts
In closing, the Athlon Talos 10×42 is a high value optic that does a lot of things well. The lower quality glass and tighter eye-box reduce the user experience, but not the capability. Tracking and zero retention were solid, which are the bones of a solid riflescope.
It outperforms optics marketed at much higher prices. For example, the improved turret feel and presence of a zero stop would lead me to choose the Athlon Talos over a Vortex Diamondback Tactical. Both these optics target the same market niche. The Athlon Talos 10×42 is a perfect optic to dip your feet in long range shooting or put on a hunting rifle to shoot out to 550-600 yards. While unlikely to be the optic on a $5000 custom rifle, the Athlon Talos 10×42 is a serviceable optic for mid to long range shooting.