Scope brands ranking

Rifle scopes, iron sights and optics. Spotting scopes and target acquisition devices.

Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by Die Judicii » 22 Feb 2017, 11:26 pm

As Mick said,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, Zeiss,

I have two Zeiss Conquests, and two Zeiss Duralyts.

With the Duralyts I have managed to pick out rabbits and head shoot them when the dusk was deep enough that I couldn't pick em out with the naked eye.

Not knocking the other high end scopes mentioned by others, its just that I've never looked through them.
Maybe my next scope (which I need already but will have to wait) will be a S&B,,,, I'll have to look at some.

At the bottom of the barrel in my opinion are the Chinee made Tasco's.
And to help me remember,,,,,,,,, T for Tasco = T for Terrible

And, the Chinee made Bushnells are just as bad.
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by bigfellascott » 23 Feb 2017, 4:30 am

Die Judicii wrote:As Mick said,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, Zeiss,

I have two Zeiss Conquests, and two Zeiss Duralyts.

With the Duralyts I have managed to pick out rabbits and head shoot them when the dusk was deep enough that I couldn't pick em out with the naked eye.

Not knocking the other high end scopes mentioned by others, its just that I've never looked through them.
Maybe my next scope (which I need already but will have to wait) will be a S&B,,,, I'll have to look at some.

At the bottom of the barrel in my opinion are the Chinee made Tasco's.
And to help me remember,,,,,,,,, T for Tasco = T for Terrible

And, the Chinee made Bushnells are just as bad.


What size Objectives Ed?

I've done the same with my Nikon (3-9x50) (could just make out something with the naked eye but wasn't sure what it was until I had a look through the Nikon to confirm what it was, then set about removing its head (305m) sun had well and truly set over the other side of the hill and you needed a torch to get around safely type thing (was around 8.30ish pm and a few mins after we had the headlights on driving around to get to it as it was black as.

I also did a little test with a Philippines made Tasco if memory serves me correctly, it was around 8.20pm and I was reading a street sign with it at around 260m if memory serves me correctly and that was with just a bit of street light to help but not bad for a cheapy and it's certainly clear enough for shooting purposes but the only thing that lets that scope down is the mushy turrets (I suspect they have an issue so I will be sending those back under warranty to Bushnell (they own the tasco brand now) and see if they can upgrade the turrets as I like the class in it (compared it to my Zeiss Conquest and it holds up well against that) so figured it can't be too bad for a cheapy. The Tascos a world Class Plus not sure of year of manufacture as it came on the Sako I bought a while back.
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by Die Judicii » 23 Feb 2017, 11:05 am

bigfellascott wrote:
What size Objectives Ed?


50 mm Mate, with the #60 reticule and 30mm tube.

When I'm down south hitting bunnies and foxes, I have a special spot on a particular property that overlooks a creek.
I usually get there early afternoons, and set up over the bonnet of the vehicle.
Shoot rabbits mainly with just the scope till it gets that dark that I can't see em with the scope,,,, then I slip on the NiteSite, and continue.
The rabbits seem to go to bed shortly after total darkness some nights, but I've found that to be a sign that the foxes are coming.
They seem to follow the creek edge, and some nights I've shot as many as six, without even moving away from my "nest", (apart from walking out each time to drag the carcasses away)

There must be a huge den nearby, because I never fail to get foxes anytime I visit that spot.
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by bigfellascott » 23 Feb 2017, 2:33 pm

Die Judicii wrote:
bigfellascott wrote:
What size Objectives Ed?


50 mm Mate, with the #60 reticule and 30mm tube.

When I'm down south hitting bunnies and foxes, I have a special spot on a particular property that overlooks a creek.
I usually get there early afternoons, and set up over the bonnet of the vehicle.
Shoot rabbits mainly with just the scope till it gets that dark that I can't see em with the scope,,,, then I slip on the NiteSite, and continue.
The rabbits seem to go to bed shortly after total darkness some nights, but I've found that to be a sign that the foxes are coming.
They seem to follow the creek edge, and some nights I've shot as many as six, without even moving away from my "nest", (apart from walking out each time to drag the carcasses away)

There must be a huge den nearby, because I never fail to get foxes anytime I visit that spot.


Thanks for that Ed, I reckon the 50mm Objective is what makes the diff between a lot of scopes, has the ability to let more light in which makes them more usable well into the last light. I was very surprised just how well that Little Nikon performs compared to the expensive stuff I've compared it too side by side, as have the owners of the expensive stuff. We all thought the Euro and Top End Leupy would smoke the little Nikon for last light performance but it wasn't the case at all they all seemed to be much a muchness with no real obvious advantage between them.

Cheers mate and get stuck into those bunnies and foxes. :drinks:
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by Die Judicii » 23 Feb 2017, 7:32 pm

bigfellascott wrote:
Thanks for that Ed, I reckon the 50mm Objective is what makes the diff between a lot of scopes, has the ability to let more light in which makes them more usable well into the last light.


That's part of the theory behind it,, but,, here is the perfect opportunity to hammer home the point that this whole thread is about.

My Duralyt has 50 mm objective lens to (as above) "let more light in".
While it is fantastic for me in low light situations with the 50 mm lens,,,,,,,

I also have one of the first released Nikko Nighteater scopes that were supposed to have been developed for low light/night over light scenarios.
And it has a 56 mm objective lens, and should theoretically let even more light in and be even better.

But the quality just isn't there compared to the Duralyt.
The Nikko never could or would keep up with the Duralyt.

So quality wins out over mediocre 99.99% of the time.
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I've come to realize that,,,,, the two most loving, loyal, and trustworthy females in my entire life were both canines.
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by bigfellascott » 23 Feb 2017, 8:12 pm

Die Judicii wrote:
bigfellascott wrote:
Thanks for that Ed, I reckon the 50mm Objective is what makes the diff between a lot of scopes, has the ability to let more light in which makes them more usable well into the last light.


That's part of the theory behind it,, but,, here is the perfect opportunity to hammer home the point that this whole thread is about.

My Duralyt has 50 mm objective lens to (as above) "let more light in".
While it is fantastic for me in low light situations with the 50 mm lens,,,,,,,

I also have one of the first released Nikko Nighteater scopes that were supposed to have been developed for low light/night over light scenarios.
And it has a 56 mm objective lens, and should theoretically let even more light in and be even better.

But the quality just isn't there compared to the Duralyt.
The Nikko never could or would keep up with the Duralyt.

So quality wins out over mediocre 99.99% of the time.


Yes cheap arse Nikko's aren't known for great quality :D It would be the last scope I'd buy and infact I'd rather go without to be honest until I could afford something better.

By the way what Mag range was the Nikko and the Duralyt?
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by Die Judicii » 23 Feb 2017, 10:15 pm

Nikko is 6 -24 mag
I still have it, but only on a 22rf,,, it is a good scope to use during daylight, and I actually love the fine milldot reticle.

The Duralyt is 3 - 12 mag, with the firedot reticle which is absolutely fantastic as you can adjust the brightness from zero right up to really bright for daylight useage.
:thumbsup:
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by bigfellascott » 24 Feb 2017, 5:04 am

Die Judicii wrote:Nikko is 6 -24 mag
I still have it, but only on a 22rf,,, it is a good scope to use during daylight, and I actually love the fine milldot reticle.

The Duralyt is 3 - 12 mag, with the firedot reticle which is absolutely fantastic as you can adjust the brightness from zero right up to really bright for daylight useage.
:thumbsup:


Thanks for that Ed. I like the Fire Dot reticles, great to use at night, makes for quick target acquisition which comes in handy on the flighty stuff.

My mate has the same Firedot set up on his VX6 which is a nice scope (it had a better FOV than the Nikon of mine but didn't do any better in the last light tests we did with them and clarity was much a muchness with nothing real obvious between them to our eyes anyway.

Cheers
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by Adlippy » 26 Feb 2017, 6:44 pm

+1 on the meopta have two of them great scopes
Sako Finn Fire II 22lr, Nikon pro staff 3x9x40
Sako Finn fire II 17HMR, Meopta Meopro 3x12x50
Tikka Hunter 22-250 Meopta Meopro 6x18x50
Stoeger condor 12g
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by Edward Cullen » 02 Nov 2017, 4:33 pm

I agree that it cannot rank by brand. Japanese, USA and Euro made scopes are generally of higher quality than Chinese, Phillipines made scopes. Therefore, Look at scope, not brands!
Last edited by Edward Cullen on 02 Jan 2018, 5:40 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by MalleeFarmer » 02 Nov 2017, 7:14 pm

I have 5 Bushnell Elites. Two 3-9x40s (awesome hunting scopes) a 5-15x40, a 6-24x50 ERS and the best of them all An LRHS 4.5-18x44. i like them a lot but no doubt the higher end scopes will be better but value for money the Bushnell Elite range is awesome probably similar to your higher end vortex scopes perhaps not quite as good as the Vortex Razor scopes.
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by bigfellascott » 02 Nov 2017, 8:29 pm

Can't fault the Nikon Prostaff in 3-9x50 great scope for the $$$ and made in the Philappines (looked thorough plenty of the euro stuff and couldn't really sees SFA difference between them all and I'm not the only one to come to the same conclusion those who owned them also wondered what the cost difference was after looking through bother side by side was.
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by Member-Deleted » 02 Nov 2017, 10:02 pm

I have mostly had leupold but when I bought a new 22-250 it come with a zeiss Duralyte 3-12x50 I found it perfect for me very clear glass
Then I bought a 25-06 last year it came with a vortex viper 6-24x50 made in the phillipines could not get a grouping found that the guts of the scope
was RS they said they would fix it but time dragged on and on so I sent more money to the dealer and swapped it for a Swarovski z3 4-12x50 perfect
match for that rifle
Now if I was to buy another scope it would be a Swarovski for the finer cross hairs then the duralyte as far as clear glass goes I can't see a difference between
the two but I do prefer the finer cross hairs
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by nightforcenxs » 03 Nov 2017, 1:35 pm

ive got a vortex viper HS-T thats $950 its a nice scope for the 223 but then i look through my nightforce 8-32x56 NXS and you can see a massive difference in clarity and can see 223 holes at 300m aslong as theres no haze but thats what you get for $2500
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by marksman » 08 Nov 2017, 8:50 am

whatever is the best you can afford
I like leupold and nightforce
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by TBJ » 08 Nov 2017, 7:38 pm

I've always been a Leupold guy myself, however I'm a fan of Swarovski as well and most recently Nightforce and Kahles, however most of my rifles still wear a Leupold on them and the new VX-5HD and VX-6HD are really excellent scopes and very comparable to European brand like Swaro and Zeiss
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by Stix » 08 Nov 2017, 8:58 pm

MalleeFarmer wrote:I have 5 Bushnell Elites. Two 3-9x40s (awesome hunting scopes) a 5-15x40, a 6-24x50 ERS and the best of them all An LRHS 4.5-18x44. i like them a lot but no doubt the higher end scopes will be better but value for money the Bushnell Elite range is awesome probably similar to your higher end vortex scopes perhaps not quite as good as the Vortex Razor scopes.


Hey Mallee farmer, I bought a Bushnell Elite 4500 4-16x40 a while back as an impulse buy & put it on my 222 & hated it....ive since sat it on top of a tikka lite hunting o/fit & love it--its amazing--im so happy with its clarity...i was going to get another one for a .243 i need (want), but was wondering how the LRHS goes as a carry around...

What do you hunt with the LRHS...?
I can get away with 4x on close stuff on goats, but its pushing it, so was wondering how the 4.5x goes close up...?
How is it weight wise...?
I can carry my Tikka Lite with bushnell 4-16x40 all day long--its so dam light its fantastic...so what do you have the scope on--a walk about rifle or a heavier outfit...?
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by MalleeFarmer » 24 Jan 2018, 9:03 pm

stix my 4.5-18x44 LRHS is on a varmint rifle so not much carrying. they do a 3-12x44 LRHS as well if my 4.5-18 is any indication it would be a great scope.
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by Oldbloke » 25 Jan 2018, 5:38 am

Sightron seem good value. I have a couple of 3-9*40s . About the same quality as Bushnell elite but about $100 cheaper.
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by JimTom » 25 Jan 2018, 6:22 am

I am running a couple of Bushnell Elite 3500 and they seem to be ok for hunting so far. Nothing special but do the trick.
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by rustypic » 10 Feb 2018, 7:11 pm

Hi bluerob/brett1868,
Regarding Voldemort could this be the dealer you could also call 'the butcher' because of one of the butchers tools. I am interested in some of his scope bargains (not)

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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by Bushie » 10 Feb 2018, 10:39 pm

Leopuld seems to be great midrange glass
12G > Anything else
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by SCJ429 » 19 May 2018, 4:12 pm

I used a 24x Leupold and a 36x Weaver for rimfire bench rest. The extra magnification always comes in handy, my preference was 36x. Sightron also make a very good fixed 36x if you can find one.
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by RoginaJack » 19 May 2018, 4:43 pm

The number 1 scope on my centrefire rifle is a Vortex and on the 22 is a Nikko Stirling....
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Re: Scope brands ranking

Post by SCJ429 » 20 May 2018, 9:51 am

You are a brave man going into bat for Nikko Sterling, not got the best reputation around the traps. Since you have a Tikka I bet you hit what you aim at. I have not seen a Nikko for many years so I am not qualified to judge them.
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