Yukon Photon 6.5×50

This Yukon Photon XT 6.5×50 Night/Day rifle scope

is the second product now of my reviews in partnership with Yukon and Pulsar,

I have been lucky enough to get on loan the eager awaited Yukon Photon 6.5×50 S Night/Day rifle scope,

Retail Price : £420

Scope :

Magnification Specs : 6.5 x 50

Tube size : 30mm

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I have been looking forward to the release of this as I have been using the original 5×42 version with great success for over a year now bringing me great pleasure and making foxing and rabbiting a far easier task specifically for those lamp shy varmints.

One of the great things about this Yukon Photon range is that it brings professional night vision equipment down to the normal price so that eager pest controllers do not need to break the bank to get their hands on it.

With the older one I had done a review of it as one of my very first reviews and although I have been and have always been very impressed by the equipment but I still found a few annoying faults that I was hoping this new one has fixed and it seems to have.

Like the older Photon I put this new on one my .22lr CZ455 as this is my main pest control rifle, although I have put this on a smaller calibre the scope (as I know from experience) is more than capable of going on larger calibres such as the .243 (in which I did do on the range with great effect).

Firstly, the differences from the old one to this new one!

On the older 5×42 there was a number of faults that still niggle me, First of the cap that has built in IR filter on the original one that needed to be used for daytime use, the biggest thing of all with this is that it easily fell off  and lost. Countless times I have found myself searching through the gunslip for it. Thankfully Yukon has fixed this with an attached spring loaded good quality objective lens cap providing better security when being put in and out of its case or changing from night and day use. +1 for Yukon with this one.

Number 2 problem with the old one was poor daytime quality specifically on brighter days. Zeroing the rifle at the range during the day with the older one was very hard making your target in many cases illegible but it was something you got used to. Again another Yukon FIX, the daytime quality of this new 6.5 scope is amazing with very clear vision towards any daytime target confidently.  Yet Another +1 on this new scope.

Zeroing:

There is clear differences in regards to zeroing, specifically because the original one was traditional turret zeroing with traditional windage and elevation with your optional centre illuminated reticle, with the new one it is fully digital in fact you can zero with only two shots, you also have a choice of reticle such as mil=dot, standard and various other ones (maybe too many to choose). To zero on the new one it is easy – you take your shot then using the menu you move using  “X and Y” to move your crosshair centre to your first shot the take your second shot to see if your now hitting the centre of your target, easier to use than to explain I guess, but it is very simple. So again another + for Yukon , however, I do still like the old style zeroing as I know what to expect and in fact I have never really had much bother zeroing the original one.

Eye relief on the original one was sometimes a challenge due to light being between your eye and  the scope, it really does take a bit of getting used to. Yukon has resolved this by adding an extended rubber eye relief giving every user perfect eye relief.

And finally the worst fault with the older one that annoyed me most of all is the power switch to turn it on, on the original one the power switch is a light turning wheel at the side of the scope. This wheel almost always gets turned on mistakenly thus using all the battery power on the Unit. Yukon has fixed this by the power switch coinciding with the laser IR switch which means it is not so easily turned on.

Both Scopes come with attached Laser IR built into the scope and with both scopes they are completely usable, however, on the new scope the 780nm laser gives you a lot more illumination and further distance giving you 200 yards of visibility without additional IR unlike the original one which only gave you around 50yrds.

One thing that the original scope has over the new one is that you can attach a external battery supply for longer usage to the older scope. Yukon has taken away this function however as with the original it works on 2x AA batteries and these last a really good length of time giving you a lot of shooting time in fact over 12 hours if your not using the IR but only around 3-4 (depending on batteries used) hours if using the built in IR Laser.

Conclusion.

I know this review is more of a comparison between the new one and the original one but that is probably the most important way of doing this type of review. The original Yukon, no matter the problems with it, was revolutionary at the time and for the money was miles ahead of the game hence why it was very popular and as with the original one the new 6.5 Yukon is keeping up this reputation and the sales are through the roof and rightly so.

It is unfair slightly to compare these two scopes but I feel to highlight how good the new one is you have to look at the progress Yukon have made from the original one and they have listened and they have improved. This new scope is far superior to the original one and at £420 it is pretty much the same price as the original one was when it first came on the market. Yukon’s development of this new one ticks all the boxes for the average pest controller on a budget, and as most pest controllers DO NOT get paid for what they do this is an ideal piece of equipment to have.

I am totally amazed at the difference between the two scopes but still think there is a place for the original one on one of my rifles. The confidence the new one gives you though is brilliant and for anyone that uses night vision confidence in the equipment we use is key to doing a good job.

For the price of a mid ranged rifle scope the Yukon Photon 6.5x gives you immense quality for money  and I suggest if you are deciding to get NV for your rifles this is ideal instead of paying an absolute fortune for more expensive dedicated ones.