You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
Who makes the best scopes?
- Thread starter Boneyard
- Start date
slickpuppy
New member
U.S. Optics would be considered by many to be the best.
Leupold is an excellent middle of the road. Same with a German made Zeiss.
Third would be any of the japanese made scopes.
Leupold is an excellent middle of the road. Same with a German made Zeiss.
Third would be any of the japanese made scopes.
sinjinsdad
New member
A friend of mine has a shepard,I thought it was prety trick.
The Plainsman
New member
At the "lower" end of the price spectrum, consider Bushnell and Simmons. They have some cheapo's, but they also have some fairly respectable scopes in the $120-$175 range.
I've not used a Shepherd scope, but from what I've seen and heard, they are pretty slick. Full retail in the $550 range, but they appear to be worth every dime of it.
I've been disappointed in what I've seen of BSA - cheap with a capital CHEAP.
I've not used a Shepherd scope, but from what I've seen and heard, they are pretty slick. Full retail in the $550 range, but they appear to be worth every dime of it.
I've been disappointed in what I've seen of BSA - cheap with a capital CHEAP.
I have a Tasco World Class mounted on my Savage 10FP, and I shoot 1/2" groups with it at 100 yards. Haven't had the opportunity to go beyond that yet, unfortunately, but the time is coming soon.
Zeiss makes OUTSTANDING scopes. I would put them among the best. Swarovski is also tops, and they recently bought Kahles, which is priced about the same as Leupold but delivers better quality, in my opinion.
So....
Lower end: Burris, Simmons, Tasco
Mid-range: Leupold, Kahles, Springfield Armory (if you're going to shoot military ammo in that .308 and want to use the bullet drop compensator they offer)
Top shelf: Swarovski, Zeiss
Nikon and Bushnell fall somewhere between the low to mid, but you'll pay as much for them as you do for the Leupold so I wouldn't do it.
Zeiss makes OUTSTANDING scopes. I would put them among the best. Swarovski is also tops, and they recently bought Kahles, which is priced about the same as Leupold but delivers better quality, in my opinion.
So....
Lower end: Burris, Simmons, Tasco
Mid-range: Leupold, Kahles, Springfield Armory (if you're going to shoot military ammo in that .308 and want to use the bullet drop compensator they offer)
Top shelf: Swarovski, Zeiss
Nikon and Bushnell fall somewhere between the low to mid, but you'll pay as much for them as you do for the Leupold so I wouldn't do it.
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Bob Locke:
I have a Tasco World Class mounted on my Savage 10FP, and I shoot 1/2" groups with it at 100 yards. Haven't had the opportunity to go beyond that yet, unfortunately, but the time is coming soon.
Zeiss makes OUTSTANDING scopes. I would put them among the best. Swarovski is also tops, and they recently bought Kahles, which is priced about the same as Leupold but delivers better quality, in my opinion.
So....
Lower end: Burris, Simmons, Tasco
Mid-range: Leupold, Kahles, Springfield Armory (if you're going to shoot military ammo in that .308 and want to use the bullet drop compensator they offer)
Top shelf: Swarovski, Zeiss
Nikon and Bushnell fall somewhere between the low to mid, but you'll pay as much for them as you do for the Leupold so I wouldn't do it.[/quote]
I 've used Swarvoski's and Leupolds and to tell you the truth, I can'nt see enough difference in the Swarvoski to justify the extra expense. Unless you have to scopes side by side to look thru at the same time, you would never be able to tell the difference otherwise.
Also, I am impressed by the Tasco Super Sniper which several of my friends use on their .50's. It's lot of scope for the money.
I have a Tasco World Class mounted on my Savage 10FP, and I shoot 1/2" groups with it at 100 yards. Haven't had the opportunity to go beyond that yet, unfortunately, but the time is coming soon.
Zeiss makes OUTSTANDING scopes. I would put them among the best. Swarovski is also tops, and they recently bought Kahles, which is priced about the same as Leupold but delivers better quality, in my opinion.
So....
Lower end: Burris, Simmons, Tasco
Mid-range: Leupold, Kahles, Springfield Armory (if you're going to shoot military ammo in that .308 and want to use the bullet drop compensator they offer)
Top shelf: Swarovski, Zeiss
Nikon and Bushnell fall somewhere between the low to mid, but you'll pay as much for them as you do for the Leupold so I wouldn't do it.[/quote]
I 've used Swarvoski's and Leupolds and to tell you the truth, I can'nt see enough difference in the Swarvoski to justify the extra expense. Unless you have to scopes side by side to look thru at the same time, you would never be able to tell the difference otherwise.
Also, I am impressed by the Tasco Super Sniper which several of my friends use on their .50's. It's lot of scope for the money.
Dave Finfrock
New member
For the money, Leupold is hard to beat. Reasonable cost and very good optics. Burris' new scopes are looking much much better lately as well.
On the high end, Swarovski is hard to beat. Their coatings are state of the art and the scoped simply outstanding.
If money is no object, then the made-to-order US Optics scopes are where it starts and ends. If you have the means...
As for whose scopes are better than whoevers, well, there's points of diminishing returns. Is a Swarovski really better than a Leupold Vari-X III? Yes, BUT, only slightly better. The Vari-X III is really pretty damned good. The Swarovski is better, but only just. Is it worth another $400 for the Swarovski? Well, maybe. Depends on what you want. I can tell the difference between the two. You'll see it a half hour before dusk, or under any severe lighting conditions. It's apparent, but not a huge difference.
On the high end, Swarovski is hard to beat. Their coatings are state of the art and the scoped simply outstanding.
If money is no object, then the made-to-order US Optics scopes are where it starts and ends. If you have the means...
As for whose scopes are better than whoevers, well, there's points of diminishing returns. Is a Swarovski really better than a Leupold Vari-X III? Yes, BUT, only slightly better. The Vari-X III is really pretty damned good. The Swarovski is better, but only just. Is it worth another $400 for the Swarovski? Well, maybe. Depends on what you want. I can tell the difference between the two. You'll see it a half hour before dusk, or under any severe lighting conditions. It's apparent, but not a huge difference.
I have Leupold, Weaver, and Baush and Laumb [and a few junk scopes].
I think the best is http://www.nightforcescopes.com/
I think the best is http://www.nightforcescopes.com/
When it comes to optics, it's very true that "you get what you pay for." Quality optics of ANY kind (scopes, binocs, telescopes, camera lenses) are not cheap.
Schmit & Bender, Zeiss, Swarovski, Nikon, Kahles and Leupold are the names I trust.
------------------
Shoot straight & make big holes, regards, Richard at The Shottist's Center
[This message has been edited by 45King (edited August 20, 2000).]
Schmit & Bender, Zeiss, Swarovski, Nikon, Kahles and Leupold are the names I trust.
------------------
Shoot straight & make big holes, regards, Richard at The Shottist's Center
[This message has been edited by 45King (edited August 20, 2000).]
El Chimango Pete
New member
Swarowzki vs Leupold? It would take a 'side by side' comparison but I'm a Swarovski fan m'self. Kahles is close too. Zeiss outstanding for sure but hereabout one pays a lot of $$$ extra for the name. Lower/middle? Nikon would do. I go for fixed scopes, not the variables (so can't really vouch for the whole range in each). A low end Tasco would do until you drop it or get it wet. Whatever, good optics can cost as much as a good rifle. Often enough, the 'scope stays even when the rifles change (my Swarovski 6x42 has drifted from a custom Mauser to a Winchester 70 and may be going back to another home built custom mauser with a Shilen Barrel - you get the drift
Hasta pronto - Peter Knight in Cordoba - Argentina
Hasta pronto - Peter Knight in Cordoba - Argentina
Picking a scope can be tricky. While it is true that you get what you pay for, the challenge is to get what you need and not pay through the nose for features you won't use.
The clearest and the brightest scopes are Zeiss and Swarowski in my experience. But in Europe, they hunt at night and the larger tube and objectives are needed. In most places I know in North America legal hunting hours are half hour before sunrise to half hour after sunsent. Do you actually need the light gathering qualities of a top end European scope that is usually heavier than it's American counterpart? Secondly, European scopes have reticles that get bigger when you are at higher powers to aid in night time shooting. That's not something North American's need.
The best scope for general North American hunting is IMNSHO is the Leupold Vari-X III 2.5-8x. Second place is the Bushnell Elite 4200 2.5-10x. Tied for third would be the Leupold Vari-XII and Bushnell Elite 3200 series. The later two scopes are not that much more expensive than the cheaper products and are good value for the money.
Into the lower price ranges, it becomes a crap shoot. I started out using cheap optics and had a hunt ruined when my Tasco scope bit the dust. If I had to pick one company, I would probably go with Weaver. The only Simmons worth buying is the AETEC and I don't know if they would stand up under heavy use.
Don't waste your money buying more scope than you need. The Leupold or Bushnell will do the job. Instead take that extra money and put it towards an expensive set of binoculars. You will look through them a lot more than your scope and the improved light gathering and clarity of a pair of Swarowksi or Zeiss are worth the extra money.
The clearest and the brightest scopes are Zeiss and Swarowski in my experience. But in Europe, they hunt at night and the larger tube and objectives are needed. In most places I know in North America legal hunting hours are half hour before sunrise to half hour after sunsent. Do you actually need the light gathering qualities of a top end European scope that is usually heavier than it's American counterpart? Secondly, European scopes have reticles that get bigger when you are at higher powers to aid in night time shooting. That's not something North American's need.
The best scope for general North American hunting is IMNSHO is the Leupold Vari-X III 2.5-8x. Second place is the Bushnell Elite 4200 2.5-10x. Tied for third would be the Leupold Vari-XII and Bushnell Elite 3200 series. The later two scopes are not that much more expensive than the cheaper products and are good value for the money.
Into the lower price ranges, it becomes a crap shoot. I started out using cheap optics and had a hunt ruined when my Tasco scope bit the dust. If I had to pick one company, I would probably go with Weaver. The only Simmons worth buying is the AETEC and I don't know if they would stand up under heavy use.
Don't waste your money buying more scope than you need. The Leupold or Bushnell will do the job. Instead take that extra money and put it towards an expensive set of binoculars. You will look through them a lot more than your scope and the improved light gathering and clarity of a pair of Swarowksi or Zeiss are worth the extra money.