The thick outer portion of the crosshairs provides quick target location and helps in low-light conditions.

Illuminated reticles offer a distinct advantage in low-lighting conditions with its built-in illumination feature. These scope reticles utilize internal lighting sources — like fiber optics or LED technology — to provide a glowing or illuminated aiming point.

Illuminated reticles provide hunters and shooters with the necessary visibility to excel in the dawn, dusk, or nighttime.

By comparing measurements to the target’s size or using formulas, shooters can adjust for bullet drop and windage compensation.

Manufacturing Standard and Custom fiber optics for Industrial, Medical, Commercial, Military and Machine Vision applications since 1977.

The duplex scope reticle is a widely used reticle design, particularly in hunting rifle scopes.

Before you purchase a scope, be sure to read the product description. Each reticle dot, line, or hash mark represents a specific value. Review the product manual to understand all of the features it comes with.

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Decide whether you want your scope reticle to be illuminated, non-illuminated, water-proof, fog-proof, or shockproof. Some scope reticles also feature a fast-focus eyepiece for eye relief.

Advanced reticles with additional features can be on the more expensive end. Reticles can range between $50-$700 on average. Illuminated reticles also cost more than non-illuminated reticles.

This type of reticle is commonly found with illumination options because it enhances visibility at dawn and dusk.

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Fixed Scopes: Fixed scopes feature a single magnification power with a sharp, clear image. They tend to be cheaper than variable magnification, but don’t perform well over long distances.

Scope reticles are designed for specific firearms and they mount onto each differently. For instance, choose a rifle scope if you’re using a rifle or a handgun scope if you hunt exclusively with handguns.

The original scope reticle boasts a straightforward design consisting of horizontal and vertical crosshairs, which converge to form an effective aiming marker. This classic reticle style is great for beginners — providing a clear and intuitive visual reference for aiming.

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The BDC (Bullet Drop Compensation) scope reticle offers shooters with precise aiming points to compensate for bullet drop (the distance a bullet falls in the air after being fired).

Variable Scopes: Variable scopes offer more magnification options, which is helpful when shooting from long distances. You will be able to zoom in on your target for a clearer image.

The Christmas tree scope reticle is characterized by hash marks arranged in the shape of a Christmas tree: tapering wider towards the bottom.

Today, most general vision applications prefer the less expensive, longer lasting, and effective lighting produced by LEDs. However, for several reasons listed above, fiber optic lighting is still the preferred lighting source.

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A scope reticle is simply the crosshair or markings that are integrated into a scope. They help you aim and enhance your field of vision.

This illumination enhances visibility and contrast that makes it easier to see deer and other game in the woods.

While they do not offer illumination options for low-light conditions, non-illuminated reticles are known for their simplicity.

If you’ll be hunting after dusk or before dawn, opt for an illuminated reticle to make it easier to see.

Thin Crosshairs: Thin crosshairs can give you a higher level of accuracy and are typically illuminated.

You have a lot of reticle types and feature varieties to choose from: ones with a single dot for an unobstructed view and those with hash marks that account for wind drift.

Just like fiber, LEDs have their weak points. As you will probably notice, the weak points of each technology can be offset by one another.

This reticle serves as a ballistics reticle. This allows shooters to account for the trajectory of their ammunition at various distances.

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From rabbits to squirrels and whitetails, a scope with the correct reticle helps you bag any game. Scope reticles magnify your field of vision so you can aim with precision and take home dinner in a bag.

Non-illuminated reticles are less expensive than illuminated options and don’t require batteries.

Thick Crosshairs: Thick crosshairs can be easier to see against a woodsy background. They also draw your eye to the center to help you find your target.

To implement this new strategy, engineers realized that shaped lighting, specifically, fiber optics, optimized contrast, producing optimized resolution accuracy and overall performance, while avoiding illumination where it was not needed.

From simple reticles with a dot and crosshair to ones with markings that can account for low lighting and windage corrections — we’ve got you covered! Buy a scope reticle today so you’re equipped with the hunting tools you need.

First conceived in 1962 by Nick Holonyak Jr., continuous improvement of the light emitting diode (LED) made this electronic device a more relevant, less expensive alternative to fiber optic and other types of lighting technology.  The LED was first widely available in its red incarnation, which suited some vision applications; those working with monochromatic (B&W) cameras.

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Knowing which reticle you prefer can influence which scope you purchase. To simplify your decision-making process, we narrowed down the most common scope reticle types so you can pinpoint the reticle that aligns with your hunting needs.

Scope reticles perform differently depending on how you’re hunting, when you’re hunting, and your expertise level.

Dot reticles are incredibly basic in design that offer a minimalistic approach to aiming. They feature a single dot positioned in the center of the reticle. Dot reticles can also be found without crosshairs.

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Deciding between thin vs thick crosshairs comes down to personal preference. You can also choose a reticle with a combination of the two.

Snipers benefit from the Christmas tree reticle since they provide these shooters with the necessary tools to account for windage and achieve remarkable accuracy.

Once you know which type of reticle you’d like to stick with, you’ll need to account for other factors (like the firearm you use, your scope budget, and more). Reticles are not interchangeable so you’ll need to consider the scope as a whole before you make your purchase.

Each manufacturer will assign their unique name to a particular style of reticle, resulting in multiple names for essentially the same design.

As vision technology evolved in the late 1990s, lighting became recognized as a key to solving marginal or unworkable vision applications by selectively controlling contrast in the field of view (FOV). Hard to see features were more readily resolved, which improved processing speed and accuracy.

These markings come in various designs and configurations, tailored to meet specific shooting requirements.

The wider hash marks at the bottom of the reticle allow for precise windage adjustments: aiding in accurate long-range shooting.

Distance markers in the BDC reticle can take the form of hash marks, circles, or dots, providing clear reference points for aiming at specific distances.

The BDC reticle is highly versatile and finds applications in hunting, competition shooting, and target shooting.

Some dot scope reticles may include additional crosshairs that intersect with the central dot.

Non-illuminated scope reticles rely on contrasting colors or black outlines against the background to provide a clear aiming point.

This unique design enables shooters to compensate for wind drift when engaging targets at extended distances.

Reticles are the crosshair used to aim in your rifle scope. You can think of a reticle like the lens in your glasses. They are typically sold only as part of a scope and not separately.

However, the device was largely unsuited for any color evaluation and so had limited use. In 1996, the first “white” LED was offered for sale. The chip emitted what appeared to be white, bright light, but in essence, was a blue LED doped with phosphorus appearing to emit white light. Regardless of the technical trickery, in 1996, LED technology forever seated itself as a viable replacement technology for fiber optic lighting in vision applications for the following reasons:

Scope reticles are available in two different types of magnification: fixed or variable. There are pros and cons to each:

Ready to bag a whitetail deer? You could aim your shotgun and hope for the best, but the right type of scope reticle will help you zero in on your game. In this guide, you’ll learn all about the different scope reticle types so you can find the optimal one to use on your hunting trips.

Reticles can be crafted from materials such as wire or etched glass — offering durability and precision.

With countless brands on the market (like the renowned Burris) — each offering a myriad of reticle options, narrowing down your selection can be a challenging task.

Rifle scope reticles explained

The center marker is used to indicate where to aim and shoot so it should be easy to see. The size of the center marker can vary as you change the magnification. Explore whether you’d prefer a cross, dot, or no center marker at all!

This type of reticle is highly effective for precision shooting and excels in big game hunting scenarios where hitting vital areas is crucial.

When the vision industry was just a fledgling niche technology, everyone invested all their time in software and video technology. Nobody ever considered the role lighting plays in application effectiveness. Any type or method of lighting would do; the camera coupled with the software would distinguish important features and the computer would perform the proper function.

It features small dots or points along the horizontal and vertical crosshairs evenly spaced at specific mil intervals.

It employs thick, bold crosshairs that gradually taper towards the center, drawing the shooter's eye to the focal point.

The standard mil-dot reticle (also known as the milliradian reticle) is measured in milliradians, which are commonly referred to as mils.

Christmas tree reticles are commonly found in hunting/tactical hybrid scopes, mil-dot scopes, and military rifle scopes.