TESTED: Monstrum Tactical 6-24x50mm G3 Budget FFP Scope

With more and more people getting into long-range shooting, the industry has responded with a tidal wave of new related products. And because of this, the industry has gotten incredibly competitive! The result: more long-range shooting product offerings and products that bring long-range shooting to even modest budgets.

One such example of this kind of low-cost long-range shooting product is the new Monstrum Tactical 6-24x50mm G3 First-Focal Plane tactical riflescope. With a pricet ag of just $250. and features typical of a scope costing $1000 or more, I decided we had to take a look at this optic to see how it would compare with optics costing 2x, 3x, or 10x the cost.

What’s In the Box

The Monstrum Tactical 6-24x50mm G3 comes in a very nice box- comparable to what you’d expect from a high-end optic. When you open the box, you’ll find the following:

  1. Scope with flip up caps on objective and eyepiece
  2. Honeycomb filter sunshade
  3. 30mm rings matched with scope
  4. Scope ring tool

Features and Specs

From the Monstrum Tactical product page:

The Monstrum Tactical G3 Series G3-FFPS-6-24×50-R First Focal Plane Rifle Scope is the next evolutionary step in our best selling line of FFP scopes. It includes a FFP reticle and Adjustable objective like our previous models with the following improvements:

– MIL-STD 8625 Type III Hard-Anodized finish. Makes it nearly impervious to scratches and makes the metal harder than other scopes. Flat Dark Earth and Olive Drab Green are finished with Ceracote and not Hard Anodized.
– All Brass Mechanics. All adjustment assemblies are now entirely metal which make them function smoother than before.
– Combo AO/Illumination Control Knob. Adjusting the Objective is as simple as before but now with a mechanical illumination knob that’s easier to control.
– Custom Type-H Reticle. Designed in-house specifically for our long range First focal plane scopes. Fully functional MOA markings that won’t get in the way of your target.

The 6-24x magnification is capable of close to long range targeting at distances of up to 1500+ yards. This scope has a custom designed FFP reticle for faster range estimation and holdover correction. The etched black reticle is always visible without illumination or can be lit in red for better reticle visibility at night or low light environments. The adjustable objective (AO) lens can be moved by the side focus dial, allowing for a sharper target image, elimination of parallax, and range estimation. This scope has a 1/4 MOA/click windage & elevation adjustments with zero reset and turret locks to prevent slippage. Aircraft grade 6061 a

  • Includes: 6-24×50 FFP-G3 Scope, 30mm Medium Profile Scope Rings, CR2032A Battery, Lens Cloth, Flip-Up Lens Cover, Honeycomb Sunshade
  • Reticle: Illuminated Custom FFP Type-H
  • Lens Coating: Full Multi-Layer
  • Materials: 6061 Aircraft Grade Aluminum
  • Compatibility: Rifles with Picatinny Rails.
  • Scope Range: Long Range, 1500+ Yards.
  • FOV @100 Yards: 18.6′-4.84′
  • Adjustment Graduation: 1/4 MOA
  • Max Adjustments: 80 MOA
  • Magnification: 6-24x
  • Objective Diameter: 50 mm
  • Tube Size: 30mm
  • Eye Relief: 4-4.5 in
  • Weight: 1 lb 14 oz
  • Length: 15.75 in
  • Color: Black
  • Fog & Water Resistance? Yes (Nitrogen Sealed)
  • Warranty: 2 Year Warranty

Optical Quality, Illuminated Reticle

A high-point for this scope is the quality of the picture through the tube. This scope is very clear when you look through it, and the reticle is sharp. I saw good detail, and not much in terms of chromatic aberration (color fringing around areas of high light intensity transitions).

Above: Steel targets at 400 yards as seen through the Monstrum Tactical 6-24x50mm G3

This scope also features an illuminated reticle, which I now prefer to have on all of my scopes. Why? I actually shoot at night (there are illuminated targets on my hill). An illuminated reticle can also help when you are shooting at dawn or dusk. Worth the extra weight in my opinion! Here’s what the illuminated reticle looks like:

I did notice some “light bleed” when you view the illuminated reticle against a dark background (as you normally would when using this feature), however the reticle is definitely usable. At this price point, it’s about what I would expect. The brightness levels cover a good range of illumination for a variety of lighting and shooting scenarios.

Reticle Alignment Test

One of the first things we did after installing the scope on Eric’s rifle was do perform a “plumb bob test” – you get the scope body perfectly level, and then look at a hanging plumb bob line through the scope to see how well the reticle is aligned with the body of the scope. This is a very important aspect of an optic for long-range shooting. And here’s what we saw with the Monstrum Tactical 6-24x50mm G3.

Monstrum Reticle Alignment

The alignment error between the reticle and the scope body was 0.9 degrees which is not an acceptable error for an optic that’s to be used for long-range shooting (example: 1000 yards).

For Comparison: Athlon Midas TAC 6-24x50mm

This is more what you want to see for a precision long-range riflescope, from my story covering the Athlon Midas TAC 6-24x50mm:

The problem with a mis-aligned reticle is that you can’t really compensate for it. The best you can do is to “split the difference” between tilting the scope body off-level, and trying to level the reticle. You’ll always have to “split the difference” between incorrect reticle alignment, and incorrect windage/elevation adjustments with your turrets.

Box and Tracking Test

There are two things we decided to test related to tracking for the Monstrum Tactical 6-24x50mm G3:

  1. Box test: how accurate are the windage and elevation adjustments on the scope
  2. Tracking test: how well does the scope return to zero

These are both super-important criteria for any precision riflescope that you’ll use for long range shooting. This applies to long-range target shooting, hunting, and competition. The scope MUST track well in order to get you on target and keep you on target. Here’s a picture of the actual box test (our 2nd complete test round) for this scope: (tap/click to enlarge)

For this test, we decided to shoot 5 MOA in each direction (box is 10 MOA tall and 10 MOA wide). Eric actually drew the box to the wrong dimensions (shown at 10″ wide and 10″ high), but that doesn’t really affect the test: you always aim at the center aiming point shown in orange on this target.

The test was conducted as follows: (100 yards)

  1. Shoot 5 shots in the center to confirm zero
  2. Shoot 5 shots with scope set to 5 MOA UP, 5 MOA Left
  3. Shoot 5 shots with scope set to 5 MOA Down, 5 MOA Left
  4. Shoot 5 shots with scope set to 5 MOA Down, 5 MOA Right
  5. Shoot 5 shots with scope set to 5 MOA UP, 5 MOA Right
  6. Shoot 5 shows with scope set to zero to confirm return to zero (Eric only shot one!)

The results were not really very good. The measure of the accuracy of the elevation and windage adjustments is determined by measuring the width and height of the actual “box” measuring the center to center distance between the groups. Each distance should be 10.47″ (10 MOA at 100 yards). The actual “box” measured 12″ wide center to center and 11.5″ tall center to center. This translates to about 15% total error for windage, and about 10% error for elevation. This is not acceptable for any serious long-range shooting. You can however correct for it in your dope calculations since it is a 100% repeatable phenomenon in our testing (same results for both box tests).

In contrast, going back to the Athlon Midas TAC tests, the box test was very accurate: (note that this scope costs less than 1/2 what the Midas TAC costs)

This is much closer to what you are looking for in terms of a precision long-range optic.

Pros and Cons

The Monstrum Tactical 6-24x50mm G3 has some impressive qualities for a First-Focal Plane scope in the sub-$300. price range:

  • Great pricepoint ($250 on Amazon as of writing of this article)
  • Great optical clarity
  • Good fit/finish, general appearance
  • Features (FFP, illuminated reticle, locking turret caps, flip-up lens covers)
  • Rings are included
  • The scope held zero well, tracked back to zero well

And there are some downsides as well:

  • The reticle alignment was very poor (0.9 degrees off)
  • The scope did not track accurately
  • Included rings are very tall for a bolt-action rifle
  • The flip up caps did not hold up well

Conclusion

The Monstrum Tactical 6-24x50mm G3 is an impressive value for the price point it is offered at, but is falls short on a couple important criteria for serious long-range work. If Monstrum is able to fix the issues with reticle alignment and tracking accuracy they could really have something compelling with this scope, especially at this price point.

If you are interested in this scope, you can check it out on Amazon HERE:

Monstrum Tactical 6-24x50mm G3 First-Focal Plane tactical riflescope

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Thanks,
Gavin

10 thoughts on “TESTED: Monstrum Tactical 6-24x50mm G3 Budget FFP Scope”

  1. I guess for a low budget it will do. But for long range using a FFP you probably should go for $1500-$2000 minimum and that’s without an illumination feature. That way you are spending on good glass quality and good tracking capability with a parallax turret. Once you are getting out to a thousand yards it helps to get into better quality scopes or you are wasting your money. And believe me I am the last guy to spend as much on a scope as my rifle. I own mostly Deluxe factory rifles. I only spend up to $600 for Leupold or Zeiss scopes for them. The rifles are $1200 to $1800. The concept is the same though. I want my money going into quality of lens and construction for the expenditure. When I get my custom long range rifle I will most certainly get a FFP scope in the $2k or more range though. I might even go all out for a Schmidt and Bender. Higher priced, better quality scopes becomes more relevant at very long distances. Providing you and the rifle can shoot sub MOA-lol.

    1. I bought the 1×6 tactical G3 and I love it! The glass is super clear, and I love the retical. The only thing lacking for it is the retical when illuminated is super dim, but day shooting is awesome, Day shooting is the best, dusk is so-so.

  2. I’m new to evaluating optics.

    Please help me understand something. If the reticle is not plumb, why not rotate the scope in the rings? If the reticle is leveled and the rifle is leveled won’t I then get normal results?

    Thanks

    1. It would be fine as long as you don’t use the elevation and windage adjustments after zeroing. The turret adjustments still occur in line with the scope body and knobs. If you do use the turrets on a misaligned scope, with the reticle plumb, the adjustments will be in the direction of the knobs. Actual elevation adjustments relative to the reticle would be a little less than what you dialed, and there would be a little windage adjustment as well. Windage adjustments would have the same problem, but reversed.

    2. Yep, exactly, it matters not one IOTA how vertical it is because you can simply rotate the scope to plumb bob.

      It’s not necessary to level the optic with the rifle, simply that the optic is level with the world. Align reticle with bob, and then aligh your anti cant bubble level to read level.

      Done.

      Doesn’t matter AT ALL what the hell the rifle is doing at this point.

  3. I THINK IT’S A GOOD SCOPE FOR THE MONEY, $250.00??!! HOLY COW!! It will do for under a 500 yards coyotes and hunting I guess. Beggars can’t be choosers concept APPLIES here.😉👉

  4. i’ve owned 2 the x24 and x16 the only issue i have had is the illumination switch
    started acting up but they replaced them , their cs is very good
    other than that for the price they have no competition the tracking issue is easily avoided by using holdovers and the reticle is excellent

  5. Gavin , You are correct ,of coarese it matters because once you rotate the scope “Up” is actually 1 o’clock instead of noon ! Of coarse rob c’s way they’ll be more deer for the rest of us. 🙂

  6. Did the manufacturer reach out to provide a 2nd scope for evaluation or otherwise address this significant quality control failure?

    Did you by chance order or have access to another identical scope to see if the problem re plumb was present in that one too?

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