Let me just say that I am not made of money but I do believe in you get what you pay for. I have various scopes on my firearms.... Zeiss, Redfield, Swarovski, Weaver, Nikon, Burris, Leupold, Lyman to name a few. Alot of times I do hunt with 2-4 rifles at a time.
With that, I am able to compare the different makes side by side in "real" hunting situations. Believe me, yes there is a big difference between the high end european made scopes and our , lupie's and nikons and such. Some of this is pure quality in the glass and their coatings and the other is percieved by the use of the better "low" light reticles used by Swarovski and Zeiss. I have a couple of Leupolds with their supposedly heavy reticle..... ha, they dont compare to a euro 4A or 7A for shooting in low light. And with using the reticles in the 1st and 2nd focal plane makes a difference too.
Just my opinion.........I think most of the folks that say, there isnt much of a difference or is it justified have never even compared the various makes side by side in hunting conditions.....

Mr joe hunter goes to his local sporting goods store and looks through ....say a $220 Bushnell, a $600 Leupold and a $1400 Swarovski Professional Hunter and says.....look through these things Bubba, I cant tell any differences in them at all..( of course they are either looking at the wall across the store in fluoresent lights or looking at the Denny's sign across the street in broad daylight. Mr. joe hunter then turns to the sales clerk and says.....jest give ma that Simmons pro hunter for $79, it's as good as any of these for a ho lot less money. And the stories go on an on..

Been there and done that, when I can afford them I will opt for a euro over anything else. My wife did get me a cheaper Zeiss though for a Christmas gift, it's a 6.5x20 x50 Conquest, I havent as yet mounted it yet so the jury is still out on that one.


only my ramblings..your mileage may vary....doubleA