Let’s Find Out More About Sightron
Sightron – more accurately Sightron USA – was originally founded in late 1993 in Youngsville, North Carolina. The company was a joint venture between industry managers and Kenko, a Japanese optical manufacturing company with roots going waaay back to 1957.
We’ve all heard the name and know Sightron’s reputation for outstanding riflescopes. But there’s 30 years of history and development that plays in to the products we see today…
Background
Photography enthusiasts will recognize the name Kenko, as well as other brands like SLIK, Cokin and Tokina from the same company.
Today, Kenko Tokina is a comprehensive optical manufacturer producing everything from binoculars to microscopes. It also makes photographic filters and a full range of photographic and optical accessories.
It’s also one of the largest OEM specialty binocular manufacturers, suppling one of the world’s leading brands. Kenko is also a parent company of several other camera accessory companies. And – Sightron USA!
So, Sightron USA is a strongly-backed company with considerable optics and mechanical expertise in both R&D and its own manufacturing facilities in both Japan and Philippines. That’s important to understand: Sightron is not like many other optics companies which simply brand riflescopes manufactured by another company in China.
Below. STAC series riflescopes are manufactured in Philippines, SIII scopes in Japan.
Scopes that the company considers most suitable for use on PCP air rifles are included in its “Field Target” ranges.
https://sightronusa.com/sihfieldtargetseries
https://sightronusa.com/riflescopes/siii-field-target-series
But don’t be deceived, these scopes are equally useful for hunting, plinking and general airgun use as they are for Field Target competition. And there’s many other Sightron models that have close-focusing capabilities, too!
Business Focus
Sightron’s business focus is unchanged from Day One. It’s to provide premium quality products in all lines of optical goods for the outdoor sportsman.
The company provides the optics market in various sport categories from hunting, target shooting, nature viewing, exploration, spectator sports and – of course – airguns! This means a large range of riflescopes, in particular…
Most Sightron USA customers value specialized, high-quality scopes. They try one and then come back for more!
Part of Sightron’s quality lies in the fact that they make their own products. The company does not outsource the manufacturing process as many other scope makers do.
They also offer a limited lifetime warranty on all of their products. Although it says “limited” in the name, this warranty covers all the standard damages you would expect, such as manufacturer defects or problems arising from regular use.
As you may know, Sightron has a strong focus on reticle development. The company offers scopes with a wide variety of reticle types. Just take a look at the company’s reticle web page!
Below. Sightron scopes come with detailed instructions for understanding and using their reticles.
Many of these reticles are combined in scopes with close-focusing capabilities down to 10 Yards or less, making them ideal for airgun use.
The company also offers scopes across a huge range of magnification levels, such as the Japanese-manufactured S-III Series10-50 x 60 model that’s a favorite with knowledgeable airgunners for Field Target and long range benchrest competition.
History
Sightron USA began by shipping multiple red dot sights for hunting and competitive shooting back in 1995. Later the same year, all company distribution and operations departments were moved to North Carolina.
In 1996 there was a complete new line of high quality riflescopes under the SII Series product family. This new series featured one-Inch diameter tubes and a new Exactrack windage and elevation system. The scopes also had fully multi-coated optics with prices well below comparable competitors in the marketplace.
In 1997, following the successful launch of SII Series riflescopes, Sightron introduced SII binoculars to compliment the SII riflescope line.
Later in 1998 the SII Series of spotting scopes followed to complete the line of quality optical products.
The first 30MM Sightron riflescopes were introduced in 2000 and have been enhanced through five generations. These improvements have resulted in what the company says is the best-performing scopes in the market today for long range hunting, target and tactical use.
2002 saw the introduction of the popular-priced SI series of riflescopes and saw Sightron moving to a new larger facility due to the growth in sales.
Below. Sightron always has a big presence at the SHOT and IWA industry trade shows.
The SII Big Sky series of riflescopes and binoculars were introduced in 2007 as an ultra premium one-inch scope line and premium performance binocular line to compete with premium market competitors from Europe and the U.S.A.
The S-TAC Series of 30MM riflescopes were introduced in 2014 and in 2016 saw several new models introduced for hunting and target shooting. Yip, there’s close-focusing “PCP airgun suitable” models there, too.
In 2015 Sightron introduced the new SV Series and the first 34 mm riflescopes in company history. A newly patented focus system feature designated as the F.A.S.T. (Fine Adjustment Sight Tuner) was another industry first. Several of these focus down to 10 Yards, making them suitable for airgun use.
We’ll find out more about Sightron scopes in future HAM posts…
