I recently purchased a Classic Extreme 2.5-10X50 with the illuminated German reticle from Natchezss. Read several favorable reviews even about the Phillipine made version that they sell now. Well, the quality is disappointing considering the hyped reviews. These reviews must be either planted or made by people who do not recognize a quality scope.
We compared the Classic Extreme to a Leupold VX-R 3-9x50 with illuminated dot. The Leupold is miles ahead in all aspects. It is lighter, transmits more light and displays way more details than the Weaver. Also, the illuminated dot is actually dim enough to be used for dusk hunting. The Weaver illuminated dot is useless. It is way to bright even on the lowest setting, and on my scope the dot brightness does not change until level 6 (out of 10) is reached. Quality is not the first word that comes to mind. I might agree that the scope is a decent deal at 290 USD. Build quality seem to be good and it also track well so far.
However, the most provoking fact is that Natchezss say these scopes retail at 880 USD. What a big fat lie! It is clear that they try to trick the consumers into buying this low quality optics, backed by the great reputation of the previous Japanese made Weaver Classic Extreme. There is no way this scope is worth anywhere near 900. I suspect that lots of people have bought this scope believing they got a bargain, when they in reality got a cheaply made scope that at best fit the bill. To compare, the Leupold VX-R 3-9x50 now retails at 600 USD at Cabelas. Plenty of other high quality scopes are available in this price range, so this is some sneaky marketing by Natchezss. Also, their customer service seem to be non existing. I have contacted them through their website twice and did not hear back from them on either occasion. They probably have high volume on these Weaver “deals” now, hence being to busy to reply to annoying customers like me. Hopefully people will think twice when considering the Classic Extreme line that Natchezss have such an exclusive deal on. Just my 2 cents.