A few months ago, I decided to add a rifle scope atop my Bulgarian AK-74. After extensive shooting and accuracy testing the rifle and it’s 5.45x39mm cartridge, have proven to be significantly more accurate and flat shooting than my other AK chambered in 7.62X39.
By adding an optical sight, I could extort all of the accuracy available from this platform. I wanted something compact and preferably with mil-dot illuminated reticle – for under $100.
After some research, I selected the Leapers 5TH GEN 4X32 Mini CQB TS Mil-Dot Scope. According to the description, it was exactly what I was looking for, and within my AK budget.
I placed my order through Amazon and after a four-day wait, the Leapers 5TH GEN 4X32 Mini CQB TS Mil-Dot Scope arrived in the mail. When I opened the package the first thing, I noticed was the weight and quality workmanship.
At only 7.7 inches in length, weight is an impressive 10.8 ounces, with the fit and finish being comparable to optics selling for considerably more. The Leapers 5TH GEN 4X32 Mini CQB TS Mil-Dot Scope comes with built-in integral sunshade, flip-open lens covers, and rings.
I was still sitting in front of the post office but couldn’t resist holding the rifle scope up to my eye while looking at distant objects. The optics were clear and crisp with no blurs around the edge of vision and the crosshairs well-defined.
I’m sure those passing by were wondering what I was doing, but I didn’t care, I was in a world of my own. I couldn’t wait to mount the scope to rifle for further testing, so I was out of the parking lot pretty quickly.
I used the UTG 978 quick detachable double rail side mount to mount the scope to the rifle. This is a great product and highly recommended from here. The Mount is solid with no movement or play whatsoever and is quick and easy to remove and mount as needed.
The downside to the UTG 978 quick detachable mount is that when mounted it sets low against the receiver cover, preventing the iron sights from being used. This isn’t a big deal because I leave the scope off most of the time and re-mounting when needed.
Getting back to the Leapers 5TH GEN 4X32 Mini CQB TS Mil-Dot Scope – after mounting, I needed to get it adjusted and on target. I started out at 25 yards to see how far-off center and amount of adjustment needed. The first shots were about 9 inches low and 6 inches right of center.
After making the necessary adjustments (1/4-inch at 100 yards) at 25 yards I moved to the 100-yard mark for more testing and adjustment if needed. At 100 yards bullet impact was centered and about 1 inch high – perfect.
The illuminated reticle has both green and red setting and is incremented for adjusting the brightness of both. Power for illumination is provided by one CR2032 3V battery (2 included). I’m still using the first battery and it’s just as bright now, as it was the first day.
The Leapers 5TH GEN 4X32 Mini CQB TS Mil-Dot Scopeoffers 4X magnification, 28-foot field-of-view at 100 yards and is parallax adjusted at 100 yards.
The riflescope is advertised as a CQB sight. In my opinion, the need to align your eye with the reticle and then focus on the target isn’t fast enough for CQB purposes (like building search and clearing) for which this scope is advertised, but it is perfectly adequate for most other needs.
Another thing I noticed was that the 3.5-inches of eye relief advertised is, in reality, is more like 2 inches. When mounting to most rifles you’ll need to push the scope as far to the rear as possible to assume a proper shooting position. However, with the shorter stock found on most AK variants, it is just about perfect.
The Leapers 5TH GEN 4X32 Mini CQB TS Mil-Dot Scope is a great product and for the price, you would be hard-pressed to do better. If you’re an AK owner and don’t want to spend a lot of money then this scope and mount would be an excellent addition.