Kahles 624i Review: The Best Long-Range Hunting Scope
By Ernie Bishop
First off, whenever a person uses the words, "the best," it immediately should throw up some red flags. Yes, the title is my personal opinion, so hold off on throwing the spoiled fruit or harsh words for awhile. The odd thing is I actually used a paraphrase of the title at a LR competition recently when someone was asking me about my scope. I said, "It is the best scope I have ever used. After using this Kahles 624i with their MOAK reticle I am hooked."
I own and have used a lot of great glass through the years, including some Schmidt and Bender PM-II's: 5-25 and their 4-16. Before I used the Kahles, the S&B PMII 5-25 had been my favorite. I honestly cannot say that anymore.
The Kahles 624i rifle scope is available at The Long Range Hunting Store - HERE.
I contacted Jeff Huber (HPS LLC, exclusive importer and distributor for Kahles in the United States) because I saw their MOA reticle and it was in FFP and he answered my questions and then some. His confidence in the 624i was so strong it caused me to almost be dubious of the good things I was hearing. When I got the Kahles in my hands I realized things were not being overstated over the phone.
One of the first things I noticed was the weight, or lack of weight, of this scope (33.5 ounces) since it has a 34mm tube. Then I got on the web and started digging around, from what I could tell the 624i is the lightest scope in its class. That was an unexpected, but pleasant surprise. There is no tunneling like you get with the S&B either and there is a very generous eye box and the scope's field of view is refreshing. Eye relief is just a tad over 3.5 inches which made it safe and easy for me to use with a specialty pistol running 180 grain Hybrids at 2775 feet per second.
This scope was used the majority of the time on a rear-grip specialty pistol chambered in 7mm LRM that Darrell Holland built. It was also used on a 6.5x47 Lapua rifle built by Mac's Gunworks.
The longest distance I shot while using the Kahles 624i scope was 1440 yards. On the day I shot out to 1440 yards I used a variety of ways to correct for drop and drift: reticle only, dialing only, and then a combination of using both the reticle and dialing. The MOA reticle is listed every 5 MOA beginning at 10 MOA. There is a line for every MOA, so you could call it a 1 MOA reticle.
After you dial one full revolution (35 MOA), as you start your second revolution there is a little red indicator button that will pop up to remind you where you are in your dialing. Of course this scope has a zero stop, which makes everything easier as well. You will get a total of 88 MOA for elevation and 38 MOA for windage adjustment.
Regardless of how you prefer to account for drop and drift, this scope is easy to use. One of my times at 1440 yards, I just used the reticle alone and put it on 8x just to see if I could do it…Hit! Since the reticle is in the first focal plane it is so practical for me and the types of shooting I do. Have I mentioned that the clarity of this scope and the reticle design is awesome?
On the day I was shooting at 1440 yards I also took 2 shots at 1350 yards. I was still in the process of confirming drops and both shots were high on the target. The picture of the yellow Mil-Park target with the white circle aiming point is the 1350 yard target that I shot the following week (no sighter shots) with the 2 shots being below the white aiming circle, about half way down between the center and the bottom of the target. The two shots I took on that same target the week previous to that you can still see, even though I had painted over them. They are where the head and body of the target meet just a little bit right of center. One shot is actually on the head while the other one just below it about 2 inches. It is not quite as tight as the other two-shot group, but I will take either of these any day. It is a testament to great conditions and quality shooting gear. Long range shooting and hunting is truly a systems approach. You can tell I still wasn't finished tweaking my drop chart yet.
I also used this same setup in a three day long range roving field match. The majority of targets I shot at were 5" triangles and 10" square steel targets out to 1000 yards. Bonus targets could be further. We would do two field courses on Friday and Saturday. We had two hours to finish each course. All I can say is that the scope performed flawlessly. I dialed most of the time, but used the reticle at others. Magnification would change depending on the circumstances. I am not easy on gear when hunting, and am even rougher in a course like this, as I could be found trotting from stage to stage at times with things getting banged around. The zero never moved from the time I originally set it. The other feature I thought might take some getting used to was the parallax adjustment at the base of the elevation turret. I am so used to reaching to the left side of the scope to adjust parallax, I thought it would be hard to switch. In all the times I adjusted for parallax there is only one time I could remember starting to go to the left side of the scope. This is a great improvement, as I think it is easier and faster to make adjustments.
Well, there you have it. I confess that I got attached to this scope. In fact, when it came time to send it back to Jeff, I had my card numbers ready to buy it. This scope was not leaving me. I will also confess I did some pouting afterwards when I realized he needed this scope to go into someone else's hands for testing as well. I have never felt this way about a scope. Hopefully, you can understand my title better. I will give you one word of warning. If you spend much time behind one of these Kahles 624i scopes you will want to buy one or you will buy one. They are that good.
About The Author:
Ernie Bishop resides in Gillette, Wyoming, where he serves as a preacher. He enjoys long range hunting for varmints and big game with handguns. Ernie also uses his specialty handguns in tactical style matches and in 1,000 yard competitions once or twice a year.
By Ernie Bishop
First off, whenever a person uses the words, "the best," it immediately should throw up some red flags. Yes, the title is my personal opinion, so hold off on throwing the spoiled fruit or harsh words for awhile. The odd thing is I actually used a paraphrase of the title at a LR competition recently when someone was asking me about my scope. I said, "It is the best scope I have ever used. After using this Kahles 624i with their MOAK reticle I am hooked."
I own and have used a lot of great glass through the years, including some Schmidt and Bender PM-II's: 5-25 and their 4-16. Before I used the Kahles, the S&B PMII 5-25 had been my favorite. I honestly cannot say that anymore.
The Kahles 624i rifle scope is available at The Long Range Hunting Store - HERE.
I contacted Jeff Huber (HPS LLC, exclusive importer and distributor for Kahles in the United States) because I saw their MOA reticle and it was in FFP and he answered my questions and then some. His confidence in the 624i was so strong it caused me to almost be dubious of the good things I was hearing. When I got the Kahles in my hands I realized things were not being overstated over the phone.
One of the first things I noticed was the weight, or lack of weight, of this scope (33.5 ounces) since it has a 34mm tube. Then I got on the web and started digging around, from what I could tell the 624i is the lightest scope in its class. That was an unexpected, but pleasant surprise. There is no tunneling like you get with the S&B either and there is a very generous eye box and the scope's field of view is refreshing. Eye relief is just a tad over 3.5 inches which made it safe and easy for me to use with a specialty pistol running 180 grain Hybrids at 2775 feet per second.
This scope was used the majority of the time on a rear-grip specialty pistol chambered in 7mm LRM that Darrell Holland built. It was also used on a 6.5x47 Lapua rifle built by Mac's Gunworks.
The longest distance I shot while using the Kahles 624i scope was 1440 yards. On the day I shot out to 1440 yards I used a variety of ways to correct for drop and drift: reticle only, dialing only, and then a combination of using both the reticle and dialing. The MOA reticle is listed every 5 MOA beginning at 10 MOA. There is a line for every MOA, so you could call it a 1 MOA reticle.
After you dial one full revolution (35 MOA), as you start your second revolution there is a little red indicator button that will pop up to remind you where you are in your dialing. Of course this scope has a zero stop, which makes everything easier as well. You will get a total of 88 MOA for elevation and 38 MOA for windage adjustment.
Regardless of how you prefer to account for drop and drift, this scope is easy to use. One of my times at 1440 yards, I just used the reticle alone and put it on 8x just to see if I could do it…Hit! Since the reticle is in the first focal plane it is so practical for me and the types of shooting I do. Have I mentioned that the clarity of this scope and the reticle design is awesome?
On the day I was shooting at 1440 yards I also took 2 shots at 1350 yards. I was still in the process of confirming drops and both shots were high on the target. The picture of the yellow Mil-Park target with the white circle aiming point is the 1350 yard target that I shot the following week (no sighter shots) with the 2 shots being below the white aiming circle, about half way down between the center and the bottom of the target. The two shots I took on that same target the week previous to that you can still see, even though I had painted over them. They are where the head and body of the target meet just a little bit right of center. One shot is actually on the head while the other one just below it about 2 inches. It is not quite as tight as the other two-shot group, but I will take either of these any day. It is a testament to great conditions and quality shooting gear. Long range shooting and hunting is truly a systems approach. You can tell I still wasn't finished tweaking my drop chart yet.
I also used this same setup in a three day long range roving field match. The majority of targets I shot at were 5" triangles and 10" square steel targets out to 1000 yards. Bonus targets could be further. We would do two field courses on Friday and Saturday. We had two hours to finish each course. All I can say is that the scope performed flawlessly. I dialed most of the time, but used the reticle at others. Magnification would change depending on the circumstances. I am not easy on gear when hunting, and am even rougher in a course like this, as I could be found trotting from stage to stage at times with things getting banged around. The zero never moved from the time I originally set it. The other feature I thought might take some getting used to was the parallax adjustment at the base of the elevation turret. I am so used to reaching to the left side of the scope to adjust parallax, I thought it would be hard to switch. In all the times I adjusted for parallax there is only one time I could remember starting to go to the left side of the scope. This is a great improvement, as I think it is easier and faster to make adjustments.
Well, there you have it. I confess that I got attached to this scope. In fact, when it came time to send it back to Jeff, I had my card numbers ready to buy it. This scope was not leaving me. I will also confess I did some pouting afterwards when I realized he needed this scope to go into someone else's hands for testing as well. I have never felt this way about a scope. Hopefully, you can understand my title better. I will give you one word of warning. If you spend much time behind one of these Kahles 624i scopes you will want to buy one or you will buy one. They are that good.
About The Author:
Ernie Bishop resides in Gillette, Wyoming, where he serves as a preacher. He enjoys long range hunting for varmints and big game with handguns. Ernie also uses his specialty handguns in tactical style matches and in 1,000 yard competitions once or twice a year.
