Preface
Gideon Optics draws its name from the the historical character in the bible. Leading the charge with affordable sighting options seems to be the mission for them, and today we are looking at another product from the manufacturer; the Gideon Optics Guardian 1-6X24 rifle scope. The Guardian is a low power variable optic (LPVO) which has become a very popular choice for carbine and short-range rifles. I’ve been a bit of a fan since I got my first LPVO, so as my collection grows with the Guardian 1-6 it already had a variety of competitors for comparison. In today’s review we are going to evaluate the Guardian 1-6 as it compares to other similar LPVO’s, and see if Gideons value makes it worth your consideration.
Gideon Optics Guardian 1-6
Gideon’s 1-6 LPVO joins a family of scopes including their 1-10 Guardian that uses a 34mm tube and exposed turrets. There are both FFP and SFP options in the 1-8 sized Guardian, so the 1-6 is in good company for sure.
Built on a 30mm tube, the Guardian 1-6 has a 24mm objective. The reticle is placed in the second focal plane, and has a very sharp red or green illuminated dot at the center of its reticle. Its controlled by a variable rheostat on the left-side of the turret housing. Additionally the reticle features a couple different hold points for either measuring or corrections. The low-profile capped turrets are .25 MOA per click, and reticle subtensions are in MOA as well.
The Guardian comes with a removable throw-lever installed to make quick changes in magnification. It can be purchased together with a Gideon scope mount for a discounted price as you’ll see here. As is typical in the optics market, the Guardian comes with a set of flip-caps, battery, and tools for zeroing.
Specifications
- Magnification: 1-6x
- Objective Lens Diameter: 24 mm
- Main Tube Size: 30 mm
- Turrets: Capped
- Click Value: 0.25 MOA per click
- Parallax Free: At 100 yards
- Illumination Brightness Setting: 12 levels
- Illuminated Dot Size: 0.6 MOA
- Power Supply: 1x CR2032 3V Lithium battery
- Shockproof: 1000G
- Waterproof: IPX7
- Elevation/Windage adjustment range: +/- 70 MOA (Total 140 MOA)
- Field of View: 125.0 ft – 20.0 ft
- Eye Relief: 3.9 in
- Exit Pupil: 9.1- 3.5 mm
- Weight: 19.4 oz (approx.)
Mounting and Zero
I mounted the Guardian using the Gideon 30mm cantilever mount, which of course was a perfect fit for my AR15 rifle. ThenI leveled the scope and torqued everything down before I boresighted it. I did this using my traditional method, looking down the bore of the secured rifle, and adjusting the reticle to coincide with the boreline. After adding a suppressor to the rifle, I was ready to head to the range.
Shooting with the Guardian
My first trip was to a public range, where I typically don’t go. But this was an opportunity to do some good testing of the scope on paper. But before I even fired a shot, I spent a good deal of time simply looking through the scope, and getting a feel for it. I was quite happy with the optical presentation of the Guardian 1-6, at all magnifications it looked very bright and clean. I didn’t notice any significant blurring around the edges or other aberrations. And the bright illumination of the dot stood out with great contrast against the downrange view.
I removed the caps of the turrets in preparation for some adjustments, and fired a few shots. It took very little adjustment to get on target, this rifle typically shoots around 1 MOA patterns. And with a zero confirmed at one-hundred yards, we went to shooting. With distances as far as two-hundred yards on the range, it was simple and fun to engage small targets holding over with the Guardian reticle.
Later the rifle would come along with us on various trips into the open country of the wintery Rocky Mountains. For fun we typically set up a variety of shooting drills and transitions, this allows plenty of opportunity to shoulder the rifle and adjust the scope. We did shoot as far as four-hundred yards using the Guardian 1-6, holding over the targets using the reticle. Most of it was done using 55-grain ball ammo.
Optical Quality
The Guardian 1-6 had great transmission of the target image, with sharp detail. I am a big fan of adjustable parallax scopes, but I understand that it doesn’t always make sense for scopes in this power and price range. And that said, I found the fixed parallax of the Guardian to be perfectly serviceable. Picking out things as small as tiny birds on the hillside 200 yards away was easily done, even allowing identification of them. Using this scope for sport shooting inside the effective range of a 5.56 carbine would make target acquiring and engaging very doable.
Controls
The controls of the 1-6 Guardian are simple and effective. The resistance on the magnification ring is just right. I don’t like it when they are too easy or hard to turn. And only the ring turns, not the whole eyepiece.
Illuminating the center dot is done by turning the left-side turret. There is an “off” setting between each of the 12 brightness settings allowing you to keep it close to ready but not powered up.
Value
Optical quality is very subjective, as my eyes age I seem to notice a little more between glass qualities. I have several other 1-6 LPVO’s that I have used quite a bit over the years, and so far I feel like the Guardian 1-6 stands up to the same useability as my others. Sure there might be some in my collection with an optical quality higher than the Guardian. But it usually comes down to the users choice.
For the price of $299 I think the Guardian is an easy choice for those looking for a good LPVO for their carbine. Any of the big names in optics are going to cost you more for a comparable scope, and lower cost will only come from other bargain brands. Gideon’s warranty mirrors what has become the standard in the optics industry, with a lifetime warranty against defects. So you can count on their products being there when you need them.
Pros and Cons
I really like the optical quality of this scope, it has a forgiving eye-box, and I found it easy to focus for clear reticle definition and target clarity. The textures of the controls surfaces are not too flashy and they work perfectly. Capping the turrets was a good choice for a scope like this, as I don’t anticipate doing much dialing. I’ll throw in an honorable mention for Gideon’s cantilever scope mount, the four bolt caps are just right for properly clamping down your scope, and the foot makes excellent contact with your picatinny rail. I especially grateful they didn’t put the cheap protruding nut fasteners on the foot, which alway get hung-up in things.
The only things I would like to add to this scope would also drive it’s cost way up. And that would kind of defeat the purpose of an affordable 1-6. But I’d love to see an option with MRAD exposed turrets, and adjustable parallax. But those are features probably better suited for the 1-8 or 1-10.
Last Thoughts
Having used various Gideon Optics products over the last few years, I feel pretty confident that they will be around for a while. And providing additional options for those looking for quality sighting products. The Gideon Guardian 1-6 is a great choice for a short to medium range rifle like the one I used here. The variable power gives the shooter dexterity in aiming options. Whether you are after a fast shooting sport rifle optic, or something for defensive situations, the Gideon Guardian 1-6 gives a great value and performance.
-CBM
