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Pros - Illuminated reticle - Ultra-durable scope Cons - Difficult to mount unless you have a Dovetail mount - Quality control issues - Difficult to sight in

Welcome to our review of the Ultimate Arms Gear 2x42mm Tactical CQB Crossbow Scope. Ultimate Arms Gear specializes in budget-friendly optics, and sometimes their glass is pretty good. Other times, though, you get a scope that isn’t really worth the space on your rail. Let’s have a look at the Ultimate Arms Gear 2x42mm Tactical CQB Crossbow Scope and see whether it’s a hit or a flop.

What Are the Dimensions of the Ultimate Arms Gear 2x42mm Tactical CQB Crossbow Scope?

This scope is 4.25 inches long, or 6.3 inches with the 2X magnifier screwed on. The scope weighs 10.28 ounces, so it isn’t so heavy that it weighs down your crossbow too much.

How Much Magnification Do I Get From the Ultimate Arms Gear 2x42mm Tactical CQB Crossbow Scope?

The Ultimate Arms Gear 2x42mm Tactical CQB Crossbow Scope has adjustable magnification by way of a screw-on doubler/magnifier. Without this attachment, the scope is a simple 1X red/green dot sight. With the doubler attached, though, the scope has 2X magnification.

How is the Optics Quality on the Crossbow Scope?

The Ultimate Arms Gear 2x42mm Tactical CQB Crossbow Scope is manufactured with fully multi-coated optics, giving you optimal light transmission capabilitiies. The scope has half-inch click adjustments at 100 yards, which is far too long for crossbow purposes. It is clear that this scope was designed for rifles, even though it’s being marketed as a crossbow scope.

The reticle is a simple dot system, with no range compensation markers whatsoever. If you are shooting at the same range you sighted in at, this isn’t a problem. If not, you should make sure you practice quite a bit at different distances, so you can learn where the sweet spots are for different ranges. I was very surprised to learn that this scope doesn’t have any range compensation at all, and pored over the instruction manual several times, convinced I had to have missed something. Nope.

What’s the Light Gathering Capability Like on the Scope?

With its fully multi-coated optics, the Ultimate Arms Gear 2x42mm Tactical CQB Crossbow Scope has very good light transmission capabilities. It also features illuminated red/green dots with 5 intensity settings. These settings are pretty decent, and are useful in all possible lighting conditions. That’s the good.

The bad is that Ultimate Arms has some pretty poor quality assurance for its products. The first Ultimate Arms Gear 2x42mm Tactical CQB Crossbow Scope I received had a defect in the dot, so I saw a dot and a curved line instead of just a dot. The second one I got was just fine, however.

How Wide is the Field of View?

The field of view on this scope is 16.5 feet at 100 yards with the doubler installed, and the eye relief is unlimited.

How Easy is the Scope to Mount?

The Ultimate Arms Gear 2x42mm Tactical CQB Crossbow Scope has an integrated quick-detach Dovetail 3/8“ base mount. Let me repeat that: this scope has a dovetail base mount. This is important because the product name on Amazon states it has a Weaver/Picatinny 7/8” mount, so anybody trying to mount this scope on a Weaver or Picatinny rail is going to be very disappointed. If you don’t have a dovetail mount on your crossbow, make sure you get an adapter or replace the rail with a dovetail mount.

How Easy is the Ultimate Arms Gear 2x42mm Tactical CQB Crossbow Scope to Sight In?

Sighting in this scope on a rifle is easy, but sighting it in on a crossbow is not so simple. The scope is designed with half-inch adjustments per click at 100 yards, but nobody ever sights in their crossbow at that range. Be prepared to do a fair bit of math in figuring out how much adjustment you need.

Once you get it sighted in, the Ultimate Arms Gear 2x42mm Tactical CQB Crossbow Scope holds zero forever, from my experiences, or until you exchange it onto a different weapon.

How Durable is the Scope?

This is probably the only really good aspect of the scope: it’s rock-solid in durability. It’s nitrogen-purged to prevent fogging, O-ring sealed to make it waterproof, and built from aircraft grade aluminum to keep it shockproof and durable. I’ve dropped this baby a couple of times (by mistake, I swear!), and it’s never been affected.