Growing up, math was never my friend, neither were the teachers who tried their best to help me learn it. While things might be slightly better today, there are times when tasks such a balancing my checkbook still is daunting—even with a calculator. Fortunately, some optics take the calculus-like sting out of ballistic calculation and range estimation, leaving you to focus on all-important marksmanship fundamentals before sending a round downrange.
However, you don’t need to have a less-than-stellar grasp of math to appreciate the Burris Eliminator III Laserscope, It’s a laser rangefinder, a ballistic calculator, wind meter and a scope, all rolled into one. All the shooter has to do is program the Eliminator III by entering the ballistic coefficient of your bullet and its drop, both of which are available through Burris, any number of online ballistic calculators or your preferred ammunition manufacturer’s website.
Though the concept of a Laser range-finding scope is far from new, the Eliminator III is available in a 3-12x44mm or a 4-16x50mm. I selected the latter for my Grendel build. It is preprogrammed with ballistic arcs for more than 1,500 factory-ammunition loads. In addition, its built-in rangefinder is accurate to 1,200 yards, provides near-instant readings and, best of all it’s easy to use. Simply hold the center cross-hair of its X96 reticle on your desired target, press a button on the side of the scope and the proper aiming point for your selected load will appear as an illuminated dot as the distance to the target simultaneously appears in the upper portion of the display. As a matter of preference, the rangefinder can be configured to display distance in yards or meters.
But that’s not all the Eliminator III is capable of. It can also correct for wind. Once the wind data is entered, the scope calculates the precise windage combined with the elevation before projecting an illuminated dot, showing you exactly where to hold to hit your target. If you wish to compensate for wind, simply use the correct number of mil-dots according to the readout seen in the display.
The electronics runs on a CR-2 battery, which lasts up to 5,000 readings and the scope is adjustable up to 40 MOA and has a click value of 1/8 MOA at 100 yards.
Thanks largely to the electronics it boasts, the Eliminator III is far from svelte. The model I selected tips the scales at more than 40 ounces, but since I hunt from a static location and utilize a benchrest, it is hardly a deal-breaker.
That’s not to say the Eliminator III is for everyone. Such technology comes at a cost. With an MSRP of nearly $2,000, most shooter may want to go back to "doping out" their ballistic calculations by more-traditional means with mil-dots, and I can’t blame you.
Whether I'm hunting whitetail at a static distance on my cousin's farm or elk wide, open country of the Western U.S. the Burris Eliminator III help foster the precision accuracy from shooter and rifle with minimal math involved.
With this scope mounted on my newly built 6.5 Grendel, any subsequent misses I encounter on game this deer season can’t be due to poor range estimation or excessive holdover—It’s shooter error—and thanks to the Burris Eliminator III, now I’m out of excuses.
