We first got wind of the Leupold M-TMR reticle last fall. We were talking with Leupold about the development of the 1.1-8 Mk 8 CQBSS optic when they they told us they'd made a brand new reticle, just for this optic. They called it the M-TMR. We'd heard of the TMR (Tactical Milling Reticle), but not an M-TMR. The Leupold reps were very, very guarded about the origin of the M-TMR and would only tell us that the "M" stood for Marine.
When we finally got our hands on it, we had more questions. We had our friends in the scout/sniper community look at it- they could only guess what it was for. The optic itself? Yes, they loved it. In fact, they helped us review the scope (it's coming). But they just couldn't figure out what all the little ranging features were for and they told us the reticle was just too cluttered for a sniper's taste.
Well, a contract dropped last week for $2.43m to buy 728 Leupold, MK8, Heavy Day Optics. Okay, put them on the USMC's Mk 12s, or even use them on the M110 SAAS. Get the snipers an optic that works on a variety of missions. If things get close and personal on a medium distance stalk, the CQBSS has them covered with their primary weapon. Case closed, right? Well, we couldn't get around the fact that the snipers didn't like the reticle. They told us they had called back to the schoolhouse, and to their friends at precision weapons, and nobody knew anything about the M-TMR. Something wasn't right. There was no way that SYSCOM was going to just shove this reticle into the sniper's optics without some serious consultation with the USMC sniper school house team.
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Then one word in the contract award just popped off the page -- "Heavy." The award was for 728 Leupold, MK8, Heavy Day Optics. Taking a few things into account; the word "Heavy", that the snipers weren't fans and that 728 optics are barely enough to spread around the infantry platoons, I kept thinking. I remembered talking to someone about the ranging features at a SHOT show when they suggested that the height and widths may correspond to vehicle dimensions. It wasn't for small arms. It's for heavy weapons. Everyone knows that the .50 cal is "only supposed" to be used on hard targets... The Marines have bought the optics with these reticles to mount on their vehicle mounted M2 Machine guns and Mk19 grenade launchers.
It took a few phone calls and some carefully worded questions but we ended up finding multiple sources close to the program to confirm this is exactly what the Marines are doing.
It makes sense. With more Marines sitting alone, or nearly alone, on overwatch while the sections dismount to do their jobs, there's nobody to spot for the gunners when they engage an enemy. With a magnified optic, especially one with ranging features, they can locate, observe, range and fire on an enemy without a spotter. This another feature of the Mark 8.
The bullet drop compensator dial on the scope has two rows of numbers, one for distance, the other for mils. Leupold just has to match the BDC dial scale to the ballistic properties of a round and there's no math to perform to get the range. Just estimate the range using the range marks and turn the dial to the corresponding distance and you're in the ballpark without wasting a bunch of rounds.
This also makes sense when I add that Leupold told me they had gone to extremes to vet the Mark 8's ability to withstand shock and vibration. They only thing left to sleuth is how the Marines are going to mount it. It's going to have to be a novel mounting system that allows the gunner to stand up and sight in. It sounds like it could be awkward, but this whole thing is a bit outside the box. I wouldn't be surprised if there's some outside-the-box mounting solution in the works. I'm interested to see where this goes. The Marines let us know that they are going to use the Ballistic Extended Rail Mount (BERM) that provides MIL-STD 1913 rail space to attach the Heavy Day Optic (HDO) and other rail mounted equipment to the weapons.
Look for our review of the Mark 8 CQBSS soon. We've just gotten it back from the field and Stickman is compiling his report as I post this.
Notes on the M-TMR's use from Leupold's product literature:
"Much like the standard Tactical Milling Reticle, the M-TMR was designed to allow users to successfully estimate range and engage targets with greater flexibility than generally possible with other reticle styles. The staircased nature of this reticle preserves the instinctive fire capabilities on low magnification while allowing precise range estimation at any power setting. This unique blend of capabilities allows this reticle to perform equally well in open desert, heavy cover, or the urban environment."
"The M-TMR reticle is comprised of 0.5 mil graduations with a 0.1 mil line thickness in the center for absolute precision on higher magnification settings, but increases to 0.5 mil line thickness and 2.0 mil line thickness to ensure fast reticle acquisition on low magnification. The lower portion of the field contains rapid acquisition ranging brackets allowing the user to quickly estimate the distance to objects of known size. When the target fits, the corresponding bracket number immediately relays the distance in hundreds of meters."
"Two ranging marks, each 1 mil high and 1 mil wide are located 5 mils below center and 5 mils to the left or right provide rapid correlation to 1 mil reference points."
Here's MARCORSYSCOM's response to our query confirming the Mark 8 will be used on the M2 and the Mark. It's from 1st Lt. Jamie Larson, USMC Public Affairs:
"The Heavy Day Optic (HDO) will be used with M2 Heavy Machine Guns and MK19 Grenade Machine Guns."
"A Ballistic Extended Rail Mount (BERM) that provides MIL-STD 1913 rail space will be used to attach the Heavy Day Optic (HDO) to the weapons. The BERM will also have MIL-STD 1913 rail space for the use of other sights, lasers and other equipment."
"The HDO is being fielded in response to an urgent requirement from Marine units in Afghanistan and, as such, the quantities procured and to be fielded will support combat operations. There are magnified day optics already associated with the M16A4/M4, the M249 and the M240B; the Rifle Combat Optic (RCO), the Squad Day Optic (SDO) and the Machinegun Day Optic (MDO), respectively. "
And, here's the award notice from the Department of the Navy:
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