Horus Vision News

Eight page article from "Rifle Shooter" December 2005 issue. Extolls the merits of the Horus Vision Shooting System.

The Horus Vision Sighting System

A mathematical triumph removes a host of variables from long-range shooting.

By David M. Fortier

Designed specifically for longrange shooting, the Horus Vision reticle is just one part of a complete package developed for the serious rifleman. Intended to simplify the process of making first-round hits at long range, the system consists of a 4-16x50mm tactical scope, PC ballistic software, ballistic software for a handheld PDA computer and a Kestrel 4000 pocket weather station. All of these items are intended to work together to provide a ballistic firing solution allowing targets to be rapidly engaged at long range with both speed and precision.

The heart of the system is a rather eye-catching reticle designed by Dennis Sammut. An avid longrange shooter and hunter, Sammut came to feel that conventional scope and reticle designs offered less than optimum performance when shooting from 500 to 1,500 yards under field conditions. His field experience led him to believe that what was needed was a reticle that allowed targets of various sizes to be accurately ranged; provided elevation holdover points, regardless of what caliber or load was being used; allowed corrections for windage and/or lead; enabled the shooter to instantly correct if his first shot was off; was simple to use; and was not dependent upon the mechanical integrity of the riflescope for repeatable shot placement at long range.

Intended for long-range shooting, Horus Vision's unique reticle is housed in a 4-16x50mm Tactical scope with illuminated reticle.

Sammut slowly refined his concept over six years of extensive testing in the Australian Outback. During this time he dispatched approximately 600 feral animals, some at distances exceeding 1,350 yards, validating his theories. The result of his work is a family of reticles, all slightly different for their specific applications but all based on one simple system, a target grid. Utilizing the proven mil system (where 6,283 mils = 360 degrees, and 1 mil equals 3.6 inches at 100 yards), the reticle features a targeting grid of aiming points rather than one central aiming point. I utilized the Horus H25 reticle during testing, and this review is based upon this specific reticle design.

Horus Vision's H-25 reticle is significantly different than the common duplex. Delineated in mils, it provides the ability to range targets and holds for elevation and windage/lead corrections.

Looking at Horus' H25 reticle, you'll notice that in addition to conventional crosshairs, it incorporates a grid system in the lower half of the FOV. This numbered grid system provides 40 mils of elevation holdover. The grid tapers out to provide a total of 20 mils of windage/lead compensation (at the 10-mil mark), then tapers back in to provide 12 mils the rest of the way down. Rather than using military- type dots, the stadia are delineated with mil hash marks. Each mil is further subdivided by four finer hash marks delineating .2 mil.

By delineating the target grid in mils, Sammut incorporated a rangefinding feature into the reticle. To range a target using the mil system you must know the size (height or width) of your target and, as accurately as possible, measure how many mils the target subtends through the scope. Once you have these two numbers, the range can be determined through a mathematical calculation. The formula is as follows: Range (in yards) = height (or width) of target (in yards) multiplied by 1,000, divided by height (or width) of target in mils.

Example: You are shooting at a target 18 inches (.5 yard) wide, which measures 2.4 mils: .5 multiplied by 1,000 = 500, divided by 2.4 = 208 yards. While military and LE snipers usually carry a calculator, a quicker and easier method of performing the calculation is by simply using a mil-dot master slide rule. As many civilian shooters do not think in mils, Sammut also incorporated another rangefinding feature on the H25 reticle. To the left of the target grid are a horizontal and vertical line, which meet at a 90 degree angle. Both are delineated in inches of angle (IOA = exactly one inch at 100 yards) and subtend 20 inches. This rangefinder works similarly to the above method, where you must know the size (height or width) of your target in inches and measure, as accurately as possible, how many IOA the target subtends through the scope. The range can then be determined by the following equation: Range (in yards) = height (or width) of target in inches multiplied by 100, divided by the IOA measurement on the rangefinder.

Example: You are shooting at an 18-inch-tall target, which measures three IOA on the rangefinding grid. 18 inches multiplied by 100 = 1,800, divided by three = 600 yards. Now, knowing the distance to his target, a shooter simply plots his projectile's drop from his 100-yard zero.

To help provide important atmospheric conditions, Horus offers a Kestrel 4000 Weather meter. At right is a PDA equipped with Horus ballistic software.

To help with this task, Sammut developed a ballistic software program for desktop or laptop computer. A range card, with wind-drift data, tailored to your specific environmental conditions and rifle/load combination can be easily printed using this program. In addition, Horus Vision also offers software for compact PDAs. This allows a rifleman to store his ballistic data in a PDA. Then, in the field he inputs the target's range, wind, lead, inclination angle and current pertinent atmospheric conditions. The PDA then does all the calculations and identifies exactly where to hold on the target grid for a firstround hit. If a rifleman so desires, the program will also provide data in MOA or scope-adjustment clicks.

The PDA also provides a range card for your rifle/ammunition combination, mil-dot calculator and a variety of other features. With the range to his target known and the bullet drop calculated, a rifleman simply plots his bullet drop on the target grid. Then he utilizes the proper mil mark for his holdover. If there is no wind or lead, he simply holds on this point and fires. If wind is a factor, he moves the required distance to the left or right on the horizontal stadia to compensate for it. These are delineated in .2 mil (.72 MOA) increments. To help determine wind velocity, Horus offers three models of Kestrel wind meters. I use the 4000 series, which determines not only wind speed but also temperature, barometric pressure, relative humidity, elevation above sea level and many other wonderful things. After compensating for wind, a shooter just holds on the correct target-grid mark and fires. Once the scope is zeroed, you do not need to spin the knobs or count clicks or full turret revolutions-everything is done using the reticle.

Horus Vision offers its reticles on a few different makes of riflescope. The baseline model is a Japanese 4- 16x50mm with illuminated reticle. Also offered are models from U.S. Optics, Leupold, Schmidt & Bender and, in the near future, Hensoldt/Zeiss. For this article I chose Horus Vision's baseline 4- 16x50mm tactical scope. This variable- power scope features fully multicoated lenses, weighs 25.2 ounces and is 15.75 inches long. Field of view runs from 8.3 meters to 2.5 meters at 100 meters. A European-style diopter eyepiece is fitted, and eye relief runs from 4.5 to 3.5 inches. The mechanism block sports capped target turrets, as well as a side-parallax adjustment knob. As the reticle is delineated in mils, the turret adjustments are set up in .1-mil clicks. Total adjustment range is 15 mils, with six mils per full turret revolution. As to be expected, the reticle is in the first focal plane, allowing it to be used at any magnification setting. A capped rheostat is located on the top of the eyepiece. This provides 11 powered settings, the first four of which are intended for use with night-vision devices. I checked the optical performance of the Horus scope using a Zeiss test pattern set at 45 feet. With the magnification set at 16X, I could resolve cleanly down to 10 on the chart, and powering down to 10X, it resolved cleanly down to six, while eight was so-so. Therefore, resolution was good, as was contrast, with no noticeable graying.

A look at Horus' H48 reticle on 4X. For close-range use on 1X, simply use it as a ghost ring, and center your target in it. For extended shots, use the target grid.

Color rendition was very good, being neutral and accurate. I did not find astigmatism or any spherical aberration present. However, I did note some curvature of field (the image becomes blurred in the outer one-third edge of the FOV and cannot be refocused). No rolling distortion or barrel distortion were present, although I did detect some pincushion distortion. I found the FOV to be large and the image bright. All in all, it's a nicely made scope. The Horus Vision system is not new to me. I've owned one for a couple of years now. Plus, one of my shooting partners became quite taken with the concept and has used one extensively. The premise behind the reticle is basic. Figure out where the bullet is going to hit on the target grid, and hold there. This simple idea is nothing new. Imperial Japan fielded a 4x7-degree sniper scope during World War II that used a conceptually similar, but less complex, reticle. The scope's reticle was fixed, and zeroing was done during the manufacturing process when the optic was mated to the rifle. In the field the sniper used the reticle for both elevation and windage/lead corrections.

The design was intended to be both simpler to use and more robust than traditional riflescopes. With the defeat of Japan, this scope became a little-known curiosity among collectors. Now, after looking at the reticle, I know many of you are thinking, Boy, that looks complicated and difficult to use. In actuality, the Horus Vision system is fairly simple. I've taken a few shooters who were totally unfamiliar with how it worked and spent a couple of minutes explaining it to them. I then handed them a range card, and they were able to make first-round hits on steel silhouette targets at 400, 550 and 700 yards.

Horus Vision's compact 1-4x24mm Talon is a perfect match for an AR-type rifle like this PRI 6.8x43mm SPC. Due to the long eye relief, a cantilever mount like this LaRue is required.

The turrets on the Horus Talon are compact and feature 1/10- mil adjustments. Once it is zeroed, all ballistic corrections are made using the reticle.

With a little practice it is surprisingly fast on multiple targets set at various distances. You simply hold on the correct mil line for the range you are shooting at, then scoot to the left or right to compensate for windage or lead. The only hard part is correctly ranging a target, and this is identical to using any other mil-based system. Use a laser rangefinder to skip having to do the math. As I see it, the positive features of the Horus Vision system are that it's simple to learn and easy to use; requires no more "knob spinning," counting clicks or being "one full rotation off"; and is not caliber specific, working equally well with any caliber or load. Further, since all of its ballistic adjustments are made using the reticle, repeatability is not based on the mechanical integrity of the scope. No knob spinning is required, so the shooter can instantly go from 100 to 1,000 yards and back. Its first-focal-plane reticle allows use at any magnification setting, the reticle is designed to be part of a complete system, and, finally, a PDA with the ballistic program can be a handy aid in the field.

The PDA ballistic program proved itself to me during a hunting trip with Winchester in Arkansas. We were hunting with the then-new .25 WSSM and had one day to test the new cartridge at a very nice 500-yard rifle range. Unfortunately, the wind was howling, with gusts up to 30 mph. It was a miserable day for shooting, but it was the only chance I had. I zeroed at 100 yards and chronographed two loads before the Oehler was swept away to Oz. I fired two groups at 300 yards, and then Kevin Howard and I wrestled with the wind as we set a target frame onto the 500-yard line. I punched the numbers into the Horus Vision ballistics program on my PDA, and it calculated drop and wind drift with the push of the stylus. It even converted the data from inch to metric so I could dial it into the Kahles scope sitting atop the Winchester rifle.

After cranking 29 cm of wind deflection (that's some 57 inches at the target) into the scope, I fired at a very brisk pace. The result was a wellcentered 7.12-inch (1.4 MOA) horizontal group approximately three inches above the center of the bull. Considering the crosswind, I felt this to be fine 500-yard accuracy from a light-barrel hunting rifle stoked with factory hunting ammunition. The Horus Vision program in my PDA certainly impressed me that day. While the Horus Vision reticle does work as advertised, it most certainly is not for everyone. People seem to either love or hate it. Many people who take a look through it are immediately put off by the "cluttered" look. The design is certainly not perfect. In the first place, as it's intended for very long-range use, it's simply impractical for the vast majority of hunters and shooters who will never fire one round past 200 or 300 yards.

Then, having used the system, I've noted certain weaknesses. The first is that the field of view is indeed cluttered, with lines and hash marks covering much of it. In my opinion, this makes observing through the optic rather difficult. This is especially true when one considers that the center of any optic's image offers the best resolution. With the Horus Vision reticle, as the range increases, so does the distance from the center of the image the shooter uses to aim with.

While the system is easy to use, it is also easy to make a mistake under pressure. I witnessed this when my friend Matthew Keene held on the wrong mil mark while trying to make a 600-yard shot in a match. Rather than the X he was expecting, his round went very high. Perplexed, he fired again and blew the spotting disc off the target. It was only then he realized he was holding on the wrong mil mark. As the reticle must be located in the first focal plane in order to allow it to mil at any magnification, it appears to shrink in size as the magnification is lowered.

On the lower magnification settings the mil marks become very difficult, then impossible to see. In low light, or when looking into shadows, the rather fine mil marks can disappear. I will say, though, that the H-25 reticle used for this article was an improvement over previous models I have tested. Horus Vision scopes have done well in a number of sniper competitions here in the United States and in Europe. Some have seen combat in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Horus Vision scopes have seen some use with our military forces operating in Iraq and Afghanistan. Here, one is mounted on a Barrett .50 BMG.

If you enjoy long-range shooting, you may want to consider this system. Price for a standard 4-16x50mm scope with illuminated H-25 reticle and PC software is $1,299. While Horus Vision is best known for its long-range reticles, it recently developed an interesting compact variable-power scope.

Called the Talon, it's a good-looking 1-4x24mm tactical scope. Its purpose is to provide an optic with not only close-in speed, like a red dot, but also the ability to identify and engage targets at medium range. The optic itself is 9.75 inches long and weighs 15.9 ounces. It features a 30mm tube and a 24mm objective. Magnification runs from a straight 1X up to 4X. This generates an exit pupil running from 24mm (at 1X) to 6mm (at 4X). Field of view runs from 26.3 meters at 1X to 7.5 meters at 4X at 100 meters. Eye relief runs from 4.3 to 3.5 inches, and the Talon sports an adjustable diopter.

The mechanism block has three short turrets. The elevation and windage turrets are low profile and feature protective thread on the covers. Adjustments are in .1-mil (.36 inch) clicks, with 15 mils (54 inches) of total adjustment at 100 yards. On the left side of the mechanism block is a rheostat that controls illumination to the reticle. This has 11 powered positions with intensity settings for use with nightvision devices and use in low-light and bright-light conditions.

What sets apart Horus Vision's Talon is the design of its first-focalplane H48 reticle. This is designed to allow a shooter to rapidly engage targets from close range to 600+ meters. The reticle consists of a bold circle with a dot in the center. Beneath the dot is Horus Vision's patented target-grid reticle. To engage targets at close range, the scope is set on 1X, and the large ghost ring is used as the aiming point. Simply place the ghost ring on your target, and fire.

For distances out to 200 meters, simply increase magnification to 2- 4X, and center the target in the ghost ring. If time allows and more precision is desired, use the center dot as an aiming point. For distances past 200 yards, set the magnification at 4X, and use the target grid to compensate for drop, wind and lead.

Mounted onto an AR carbine, the compact 1-4x24mm Talon worked extremely well. It's very quick on target, the reticle is not caliber/load-specific, and optical performance was good. What didn't I like? As stated previously, the target grid is very fine and can be difficult to use under stress. Plus, the long eye relief dictates the use of a cantilever mount on an AR. An interesting design, it retails for $989 with PC software.