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Valdada’s IOR M-2 4×24 scope – A Tactical Scope for the AR-15 and other short stocked rifles
Posted by Junior Shooters
By: Terry Bowers
Editor’s note: Some of the shooting sports that Junior Shooters covers in which juniors participate in include: high-power, modern 3-gun, varmint hunting, and tactical rifle. All of these sports require good scopes and an excellent tactical scope fits right in.
The IOR M-2 scope has its roots in the 4×6 M military scope first introduce into military service in 1979.
The civilian version of this scope is improved and available in a variety of reticules from Valdada USA in Colorado. Our scope came from Brownells, a major supporter of Junior Shooters. The scope I tested had a tactical M-series CQB 4×24 red illuminated reticule with range estimating and hold over horizontal lines etched into its photo engraved glass reticule.
One of the questions that came up in my research for this article was what makes this a tactical scope. Webster’s 1828 dictionary defines Tactical as: the art of military and naval evolutions, and Tactics as: the art of making machines for throwing dart, arrows, stones and other missile weapons. Another online dictionary definition explains, Tactical is: Involving or pertaining to actions, ends, or means that are immediate or short-term in duration, and/or lesser in importance or magnitude, than those of a strategy or a larger purpose. So what makes a scope a tactical scope? Is it the design of the adjustments? The type of reticule? Or maybe the application in which it is used? Well needless to say, for us, the definition lies some where between what it’s used for and the over all design.
Our first use would be MGM 3 gun Iron Man match in Parma Idaho. Now that is a tactical match – testing man and machine to the limits. I was aware that we needed a high quality scope that could be easily mastered. Also, one that could be effective at very short, medium and long ranges. As it turned out, the M-2 worked great.
We had the scope mounted on a Bushmaster XM15 A-3 flattop rifle by our good friends at RK gunsmithing. 
Since the M-2 is designed for a short stocked rifle like the AR or AK variety we were in business. Next my daughter Sarah and I went to the range to sight in and learn the new reticule. This reticule gives the shooter enough information to be very useful without sacrificing a clear field of view. It features 15 mils of ranging or holdover and has a center dot of 1 Minute Of Angle (MOA 1-inch at 100 meters). The inside horseshoe is 10 MOA and the outside is 18 MOA. A 10″ target ranges as follows: 100 m inside horseshoe, 200 m dot to inside edge, 300 is first circle marked “3”, 4, 5, and 6 are the smaller circles as you move to the right. Our scope was ordered as a .223 cal. scope to be used with the 62-grain bullet. 
This allows the true Bullet Drop Compensator cam adjustment (BDC cam) to put you on target by simply turning the elevation adjustment knob to the distance too the target. We found that from 100 to 800 meters we could consistently hit our target simply by ranging or knowing the range to target. This will work for either .223 or .308 depending on which model you have.
With the three gun match in mind, we practiced close shots, medium range and long range. At least once when we were at the range, and darkness started to fall, I found myself having difficulty finding the target. Here is where the red illuminated reticule really showed its worth. One note on sighting in this scope, follow the directions. They are short and concise but if you don’t understand them you won’t be able to use the scope to its full potential.
What I found at the MGM 3 gun Iron Match was this scope preformed great. In static prone situations, and run-in gunning, if I missed it was my fault. With that experience in mind I have used the scope and rifle combination for many a day in the field since. From varmint hunting to sporting rifle matches
In conclusion I would say that if you are in the market for a good tactical or sporting scope with BDC and range finding capabilities the IOR M-2 from Valdada is a great value at its price of $655.00.
Here is a list of the features you will find on the fine IOR M-2 scope.
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Operational in any weather condition from -40 to +140 F
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Waterproof
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Recoil proof
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Glass photo engraved reticule
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Illuminated reticule – 2032 Battery
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Range finding reticule
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IOR MC-7 wide band lens coating system consisting of fully multi coating and anti reflex layers on all lenses, eliminating glare and maximizing light transmission
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30mm dual alloy housing, “O” ring seals, dry nitrogen filled
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Fog proof
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Bullet drop compensating cam for .223 cal. 62 gr. from 100 to 800m
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Glass made by Schott Glasswerk, Germany
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Finger-adjustable knobs
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Diopter adjustment -4 to +4 DPT
Contact Information:
- Brownells: www.brownells.com
- Bushmaster: www.bushmaster.com
- MGM Ironman: www.mgmtargets.com/ironman
- MGM Targets: www.mgmtargets.com
- RK Gunsmithing: www.rkgunsmithing.com
- Valdada ? IOR: www.valdada.com
Copyright and Published by: Junior Shooters and Junior Sports Magazines Inc. April 2008
I really enjoyed this post, especially the “examples in this post” portion which made it really easy for me to SEE what you were talking about without even having to leave the article. Thanks
Glad you liked the article. Terry Bowers, the author, did a great job on it.