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Mention the name Lynx Optics to most sporting shooters, and while a few would have a degree of unfamiliarity, those in the know will endorse a company that has manufactured, and continues to manufacture, good-quality sporting optics.
Lynx is a South African company in a country steeped in hunting culture and tradition, and professional and keen hunters there have demanded optics and related components that will stand up to the rigours of hunting in the dark continent. Upon researching Lynx Optics, I learned that the company not only manufactures hunting scopes, but also scopes suited to target shooting, both in fixed and variable power configurations.
In Australia, Lynx scopes are represented by Lynx Optics, which is a division of Gault Pty Ltd. Principal Malcolm Gault runs a family company, established more than 40 years ago, which not only represents the Lynx name in Australia, but also imports a vast range of other shooting-related products.
One of Lynx's most popular lines of riflescopes is the Professional Series LX/X2, of which the LX 3-9x38 DW scope sent for review is one of 16 in the range. Also sent for review was a Lynx Lens Pen, which is a must for correctly cleaning the quality optic lenses found on the Lynx scopes.
Professional Series scopes are designed and engineered to meet the most demanding needs and are tough enough to withstand everyday use. They feature a one-piece maintube for added strength, recoil resistance and improved waterproofing.All Lynx scopes are manufactured in Japan to exacting standards. Japanese made riflescopes are, in my opinion, on par with their European counterparts and I regularly use riflescopes made in both Europe and Japan with complete success and reliability.
All Lynx Japanese-made lenses are fully multicoated to provide the sharpest and brightest image possible, with optimal contrast and reduced glare. Internally, an all-alloy gimbal system improves accuracy, reliability and repeatability by increasing resistance to recoil. A high-precision adjustment and tracking system ensures a higher accuracy of the windage and elevation adjustment travel and return-to-zero repeatability.
What is evident about the Professional Series LX 3-9x38 DW scope is its clean and uncomplicated design, with every feature on the scope created with the user in mind. The scope, as indicated in its designation, is of the 3-9x magnification range, with an objective diameter of 38mm. The eyepiece is fully adjustable for focus and contains a locking ring, which ensures that once the eye focus is set, it can be locked into position. Eye relief was very generous at 90 to 83mm. The power adjustment was ultra smooth in its operation with a raised projection, which makes adjustments in power very easy to carry out.
The reticle is designated as the "PLEX. version, which comprises four thicker outer posts with the finer cross-hairs in the centre. This reticle is perfect for this general hunting scope, and I prefer uncomplicated reticles in all my hunting scopes - no dots, bars or holdover lines forme.
The turret caps are fabricated from aluminium, which is a little thing but very nice, as many scopes these days have plastic turret caps. Removing the turret caps, the well-designed and innovative turrets can be accessed. Both the windage and elevation turrets employed a two position setting. To make adjustments to the point of impact, the turret is pushed down to engage the adjustment mechanism, and once the correct adjustment is made, the turret can then be pulled up to free it. The turret in this position is free to rotate without any changes to the point of impact.
The body of the turrets is an anodised gold color, which also contains a calibrated scale, allowing any changes in the point of impact to be precisely carried out by using this scale and the numerical settings on the turret dial itself. The turrets have a click value of one click for a quarter MOA. Comprehensive instructions on the turret system are found in the user's manual supplied.
The scope body is a very handsome matte black finish, with the Lynx insignia on the turret housing. The main tube diameter is the standard 1" (25.4mm) and the scope has an overall length of 315mm and weighs 370g. The scope comes with a very well designed bikini-style scope cover, which has the added feature of see-through ends. Therefore, in conditions of dust or moisture, the scope cover can be left on the scope itself and used as an additional protective feature.
However, if the lenses do get a bit grubby, the Lynx Lens Pen, also supplied in this review, will make it very easy to clean the fine optics found in all Lynx scopes and all other optics. The simple instructions on the rear of the product packaging make getting your lenses back to their best an easy task.
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I was particularly keen to test out the LX 3-9x38 DW on both a rimfire and centrefire rifle. This task was fulfilled by mounting the scope on my Marlin 925 in .22LR and my newly configured Howa/McMillan Custom Sporter in .243 Winchester. Several range sessions with both the Marlin and Howa proved trouble free, with scope set-up being easy to carry out and zeroing done at 50 and 100m for the rimfire and centrefire respectively. Adjusting the point of impact was very easy with the positive turret adjustments.
To test the tracking of the scope and the quality of the internal components, two separate tests were carried out, one at 50m with the rimfire and one at 100m with the centrefire. Starting at the top right corner of the target, adjustments to the point of impact were made, going initially left, down, right and then back up in equal increments and firing two shots after each adjustment. What was very pleasing was the start and finish two-shot groups were in exactly the same position, which indicates a very well designed scope. The quality of the glass gave super-clear, distortion-free images, even when shooting late in the day when light was fading fast.
The LX 3-9x38 DW was then putthrough its paces in the field mounted on the Marlin .22LR. Shooting early in the morning and late in the evening, the quality of the optics in the test scope were certainly appreciated. In the rapidly fading daylight, it compared very favourably to some entry level European scopes I use regularly for clarity and contrast.
Several meat hares were taken with the Marlin with Winchester Power-Points, as were a few well-fed foxes that were causing some problems for my grazier host. The LX3-9x38 DW complemented my rimfire rifle very nicely and if I didn't have a scope already for the rifle, I would have certainly sent Malcolm a cheque instead of the scope once the review was completed.
The Lynx Professional Series LX 3-9x38 DW would make a great scope for a hunting rifle, either on a rimfire or centrefire outfit. It would certainly be capable of handling the heavier recoil up to that of a .30-calibre standard or Magnum without a problem.
The LX 3-9x38 DW has a recommended retail price of $351, while the Lynx Lens Pen retails for just $15, which is great value for cleaning and maintaining your optics. All Lynx Professional Series LX/LX2 scopes come with a limited lifetime warranty to the original purchaser, but with the backing of Lynx Optics (Australia) and Malcolm Gault's mantra of providing the best in value for money and customer service, Lynx scopes certainly are here for the long haul. For more details, phone Malcolm on 02:4981 7920 or visit www.lynxooptics.com.au
