Welcome to the world of Simmons optics. I have come across several .... scopes and binos. Bought one $150 Simmons scope decades ago. Terrible at low light but has held up OK. Witnessed first hand an Aetec's guts come apart at the range ... first time , out of the box sight-in effort on an 8 mm Rem. Mag. Fifth shot ... toast. Could hear parts rattling inside the scope. The guy sent it back, received another in relative short order ... and same thing. A hand full of shots and the scope failed again. Could not withstand the recoil I guess.
I realize many folks swear by Simmons as a good, economical choice ... and I do not mean to offend Simmons owners ... but I have not been satisfied with any optics branded "Simmons". And I do not recommend anything that thay make.
If you are on a tight budget like most of us are, you can find a good value out there in the $300-$400 range. Leupold, Vortex, Burris, Bushnell, Nikon to mention a few.
Last edited by Mojotex; 09-02-2013 at 11:47 AM.