oldelkhunter

Can't say they ever fell apart on me that would be a lie and they do hold zero and that is where it ends. Plenty of other scopes do the same and cost 1/2. Now if they want to charge a handsome price for their optics then they need to be on the same page with whom they are competing with.

JagMagMan

As far as the new Leupolds go, I cannot honestly say anything about their quality. I do have a Vari-X-II, and it is a very good scope. It appears to me that Leupold has tried to enter the lower -end scope market. If they have drastically lowered the quality to lower the prices, I think that they have made a bad move, and it will cost them their good reputation.
From what I have seen just in their pricing, there is a very large gap, between their scopes.
On the lower side, there are very good scopes, priced even cheaper than the cheap Leupolds. On the high end, if I am going to pay those prices, I would buy a Zeiss, or one of the other fine German scopes!

I have been pricing a new handgun scope, and Leupold has priced themselves clear out of my market! I am willing to bet my money, that the Leupy is NOT 3X better than the Bushnell, or the Weaver, at 3X the price!

Now, as for the Ford vs. Chevy, great scope debate that has been ongoing for years here, lots has been made of light transmission but the fact is, any half decent scope will make the shot in LEGAL, ETHICAL, shooting light! My Leupy is slightly better than my Simmons Aetec in light gathering, but not nearly enough to make a difference!
I have always contended that "quality control" is the key to a good scope, and a major factor in cost! You see people here swaring about how great their cheaper scope is, while many others are cursing the same scope! Why is that? Quality control!
You can get a good, or bad scope at ANY price! It costs more to ensure that fewer bad scopes ever leave the factory!
This, more than anything else, is where you, "get what you pay for!" Most scopes come with some type of Lifetime Waranty. Other than the time, and effort it takes to get your scope repaired, waranty is not a big thing. However, even though I like the security of a lifetime waranty, I'd much prefer to never have to use that waranty!
IF this is where Leupy is cutting their costs, shame on them!
Again, on the low end, there are better scopes for the money than Leupold, and on the high end, there are better scopes than Leupy for about the same price!
Shaving quality, to lower prices will not be in Leupold's best interest! They won't make money off of their reputation forever!

oldelkhunter

Well said JagMagMan couldn't agree more

bigcountry

Thats the hugest thing for me. Not only does it chew up shipping cost, but reloading time, range time, or I have seen it actually make people sell a gun. I get it, put a trusted scope on it, and bam, shoots great.

You are buying the scope for confidense. Other than the 3 piece design, I have no evidense of thier quality slipping. In fact I have not seen any report of problems besides one guy in firearms review that finally found out he tightned it down way to much and didn't lap the rings. Sure a one piece design should be better. But lets say they still test the scopes to the same spec. My company does it all the time. Cost reduce with spec staying the same.

I am not happy that Leupold did away with AO in the 1" scopes. Thats bad.

ssmith_1187

Solitary Man,

Other than how are their needs not the same as yours???

Regards,
Steve

ENCOREJAMES

one pcs main body, better in low light, better on price.

NIKON

bigcountry

You know I would agree with ya on that, but got burnt on that buckmaster model. Hated the eye relief. So finicky. I got rid of it pretty quick.

oldelkhunter

YOu know BC ..I really like this new FX-III Leupold in 6x42... I have always owned the var-III's a few Vari-II's a few VX-II' and the compact series 3-9x33 to be specific. Out of all them this 6x42 always intrigued me. When I last looked at them they had friction dials and now they don't and seem cheaper in price. What do you think?

ENCOREJAMES

I never could tell any difference on the ones we tested (no buckmasters or pro staff) as far as eye relief. They were all about the same "except" the 30mm tubes nikons, great eye relief. I have a local dealer that got me a 2 to 10 gold for $469 and the new tactical under $800.00. I have the 2 to 10 on a encore custom 25-06 and use the past hunting season and loved the low light ability. leupold with 30mm tube Im sure will start around $650.00. If you get a chance you realy should look thru one. for the money and good quality optics I find it hard to buy others. Nothing makes for beliving like seeing for yourself.

Solitary Man

Well, Steve, here's a couple of things that come to mind. The average hunter doesn't need the high magnification found on your typical competition scope. Most competition scopes have fixed magnifications on the order of 20 to 45 power (I understand there are 6 power competition scopes also, but that's not what I was referring to). This means a very limited field of view and poor low light performance. In addition, high magnification target scopes tend to be longer and heavier. Most hunters I know prefer smaller, lighter scopes.

Also, I would venture to say that most hunters like thicker duplex type reticles so they can be seen easier in low light conditions. The target scopes I've seen have thin wires for the pinpoint aiming a competitor needs. In low light or shadowy conditions those wires can practically disappear.

Some other things come to mind like the tall target turret adjustments found on most competition scopes. These would just get in the way of a hunter. Then there's parallax adjustment. While many hunters like this feature (I'm not one of them), it's really not necessary for big game hunting. I'd think it would be an absolute necessity, however, for the target shooter.

I understand, of course, that both hunters and competitors want durable scopes with good glass, but other than that, their needs in a scope are not the same.