Sightron makes excellent scopes. Even their lesser lines are fantastic imo....miles above the competition's lower line scopes. Great glass, great warranty and a very solid reputation. I'm getting ready to buy another one as we speak. For the money, I feel they are hard to beat.

I have never used any illuminated reticle scope of any brand, so I can't comment on them.

I've never had an issue like this on my guns with Sightrons. The 3-9x40's I have mounted right up no issues...and aren't really any different in length than any of the other scopes I have.

I bought an old stock Sightron SII 3-9X42 and the glass is about the clearest that I've ever seen on any scope.
What's nice about the German heavy post reticle is that you won't lose track of it as easily when the background is dark like in the thick woods.
No matter how good a scope is, if the crosshairs & plex are both too thin to remain visible in the dark woods then the scope creates a handicap that can hinder rapid target acquisition.
I don't care much at all for the electronic reticles that I've seen on the Center Point scopes even though some folks probably love them.

thanks for the reply on the german crosshairs arcticap. am really thinking about getting for another rifle.