I started out many years ago with a bushnell banner then moved up to leupold .I used them for several years and then moved up to the ziess 3x9x36.Last fall I had the opportunity to compare the leupold 3.5x10x50 the 3x9x36 ziess I was using and the new swarovski 3x10x42.I found that the swarovski impressed me much more than the other two especially in brightness at dusk(even though the leupold had a larger 50mm lens).I now have replaced all my hunting scopes with the swarovski.In canada the ziess 3x9x36 costs $800 the leupold 3.5x10x50 $879 and the swarovski 3x10x42 $1159 so the price spread is not that large.I have never had a failure with any scope in the field and do find all three good quality scopes but for the extra money the swarovski offers a smaller lighter scope(than the leupold) that is brighter and clearer than the others for not a whole lot more money.I could get by with much cheaper scopes but choose not to as I really value the extra light the quality scopes give me at first and last light.