by Wapiti » 01 Sep 2026, 7:50 am
Yes appreciate the comment, we all have opinions.
After our Meopta incidents on the same damn day, the Cleavers shop came to our aid because the importer, Winchester I remember it was, were blatantly denying our claims that it wasn't our fault. How could we make some scopes melt their internal lubricant and recoil splatter it up onto the internal lenses so much we couldn't see through them? On the same 42'C day when walking around with the guns on our backs?
6 months in, Jade Cleaver said he'd spoken to Nioa and they would replace the Meoptas with Leupold VX3's (this was prior to the VX3i and HD), and we got at cost price a 3-5-10x50 and a 4.5-14x50, both illuminated glass-etched reticles, and Jade said he'd take the fight to the importer and make them pay in his own time.
All we had to do was turn in our Meoptas, and no money changed hands.
So began our 'love-affair" with Leupolds. How could we not?
The only other scopes we have now is two Swaros, both Z8i models, and they are absolutely the best glass we've ever looked through. and the 1-8x on the SR25 gun just makes it a machine.
From looking through other German premium scopes on mates precious rifles, the Swaros are truly noticeably better on dull, cold days. Our NZ deer breeder mates are rabid crappy weather hunters and tough as nails, real stalkers, and they will not buy another brand.
I have five Mk4's, a Mk5, VX5HD's, Vx1's, 2's, 3's VX3i's and the HD models.
I just asked because the VX3's have just got better, brighter, scratch resistant and more robust since the first Vari-X models.
This is because they do cop a hiding here.
The Meopta Optika5 a mate gave me as a joke to try and melt on my 243 clip-on thermal dog gun is an incredibly bright, quality scope. I truly believe Meopta have changed their scope design/lubricants in the last 30 years.
For the price The Barn has the last Czech-made ones selling for now (they bought all the distributors stock as the importer wanted to import the Chink-made ones) are incredible value. they have Optika5 and 6 still, I believe.
AND my only Zerotech scope is an absolute POS. If we weren't so fortunate in the Leupolds we own now, showing us how great a simple scope can be, light, slim and strong, I just wouldn't know how much these things are crap. Most novice or occasional shooters would not ever know how marginal these things are, well what you don't know...
And it's just really reinforced to me how money thrown around at the buyers expense, makes cheap slave-labour-made stuff desirable.
For Zerotech money, I would NEVER buy these Chink things. I would suggest buying one less carton of XXXX and get a VX Freedom.
I only make such rabid strong points because I hate to see people who are struggling to pay for their hobby, let alone today's deliberate cost of living BS, and buy what I have found to be fake news. Taken for a ride at vulture's profits.
"The only way to avoid criticism is to do nothing, say nothing, and be nothing."
Aristotle.
Regards G,
AKA Dr. Doolittle