Zeiss conquest vs leupold vx3

Originally Posted By: meat hunterOriginally Posted By: nightcallerOriginally Posted By: meat hunterOriginally Posted By: nightcaller
meat hunter said:
...My all time favorite hunting rifle/scope combination is the TC Venture .308 with a Leupold Vari X III 2.5-8x36. This scope is over 20 years old and I think it is as good if not better than the Zeiss. The Zeiss glass is great for sure. It is clear and bright but in my opinion Zeiss has one major drawback. The Conquest has a much smaller eyebox and shorter eye relief than the Leupold. To me and again this is just my opinion from experience. If you have to move your head around and hold it just perfect it does not matter how good the glass is.

Really? your 20yr old leupy is "as good or better" than a zeiss. you either haven't compared the two side by side or your eyes need to be checked. and as far as the "drawbacks" you mentioned: mount the scope correctly and that "drawback" goes away.

the zeiss is better in every way. UNLESS you have a preference in what you want the scope to do in which case the Leup may offer something that you would prefer.

I have been mounting and sighting in scopes of all kinds for people for more than 30 years. I average 40 to 60 every year. I know very well how to mount a scope to a rifle. I have mounted and sighted in several 3-9x40 Conquests just in the last 5 months on guns ranging from the .17 HMR to the 300 Win Mag and I stick by my statement. Sitting behind a Conquest on 9 power mounted to a 300 Win Mag is not fun. If you think the Zeiss is all that then by all means go for it. I on the other hand do not agree that they are better than a Leupold Vari X III, VXIII or VX3 in every way for the reasons I stated in my previous post. Eyebox and eye relief goes to the Leupold. Brightness goes to Zeiss but not by a big margin. At least not enough of a margin to give up the ease of finding the sweet spot behind a scope that the better Leupolds offer.

all i can say is that you optometrist should be making more money than he is.



Ok I understand now. If someone does not agree with your OPINION you resort to insults. Shows me a lot about you sir.
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Meat hunter is right about eye relief fellas, hate to bust your bubble. I own a Conquest 3-9-50 on a Savage weather warrior .300 mag. I would not trade it for a Leupold but the eye relief on my Conquest is nothing compared to a Leupold.
 



no bubbles burst here(not sure why you'd use that phrase, doesn't really make sense). eye relief can definately be an advantage on those large caliber rifles. for some reason i thought we were posting on a predator hunting site and talking about "predator" type calibers. my bad.
 
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Keep this going like it is between you two and I will lock this post. Take it to PM's. Nobody wants to read your arguing.
 
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Originally Posted By: MelonheadI just got a tc venture and Im wondering weather to get zeiss conquest in 3 to 9or a leupold vx 3 in 2.5 to 8. Can you guys give me some pros and cons for each and witch one would you get.
Out of the two, Zeiss. I would also look into Minox ZA5. You can get a 2-10x40 or 3-15x42 for about the same amount as a 3-9x40 Conquest. The glass is made by Schott, and Zeiss owns Schott.

IMO the best bang for the buck in the current scope market.
 
This Warranty excludes claims for any special, punitive, incidental or consequential damages and does not cover damages due to the misuse, neglect, accidental damage, mishandling or alteration of the Product. Some states do not allow the exclusion or limitation of incidental or consequential damages. From Carl Zeiss warranty info. My hard earned money will always go to Leupold no matter what. I dropped my gun and bent the tube on my scope before. I sent it in and it was 100% my fault. They sent me a new scope no questions asked. They made me a lifetime customer with that one single claim. The zeiss scope im sure is a great piece of glass but what if you have a accident? Drop it and chances are your out your money.
 
Originally Posted By: RustydustI have one Conquest scope (that's it in my avatar) but would have more if I were buying scopes today. I have lots of Leupolds and love them dearly, but make no mistake about it, if I were buying new glass today I would look no further than a Zeiss Conquest.

Little irks me more than to see someone with a $1000 rifle with an $79 scope on it but hey- it's their gun not mine. But if I had Zeiss scopes and only Zeiss scopes on all of my guns I would have no complaints.

Rustydust you speak the truth. I wish more people were like you.
 
Let it be known on eye relief that a 3x9x40 Conquest is about 4". But, more importantly it is 4" at 3x, 4x, 5x, 6x, 7x, 8x, and 9x.

The Leupolds have diminishing eye relief as the power is increased. Their comparable 3.5x10x40 VX3 I believe varies from about 3.5"-4.5", ever decreasing as power is increased. I don't know what you guys think but to me, in the land of rifle shooting, two main ingredients in accuracy are consistency and repeatability. A scope with changing eye relief contradicts both. For every magnification change, one is required to slightly change rifle hold/cheek weld. Its a PITA! I own both, a 3x9x40 conquest, and a 6.5x20x50 MK4. While the MK4 cost about 3x the Conquest did, I am almost inclined to say I like my Conquest better for the reasons stated above.

With all that said, back to your question for 3x9x40 Conquest vs. comparable mag. VX3.
Too me its a no brainer, Conquest in my opinion. Superior glass (dont get me wrong the Leupolds is very very good, but the Ziess just seems brighter), CONSISTENT eye relief, larger field of view, larger ocular lens, and about 6MOA more adjustment in both windage and elevation. One downside are the plastic turret caps on the conquest.
 
Thanks for all the info guys. This has really helped me compare them and pick witch one to get. But I have one last question. Has any one worked with ziess's customer service and how well do they stand behind their warranty if some thing happens even if it's you. Leupold is very good with their warranty and there is some thing to be said for that. Thanks for your input.
 
Their service is good, especially on the Conquest line since it is made in US. On their higher end models the wait time might be longer as they are made in Germany and they might have to wait for parts (but if you ask, they are most likely to give you a loaner while you wait). Not that you are likely to use their warranty unless you drop the scope or drive over it.
 
In the customer service department both are outstanding. Unless, as Sami said your dealing with the higher end Zeiss's as they are made in Germany
 
I prefer the Leupold VX3 2.5X8X36 because of the length and weight. Some rifles the big clunky size of the Zeiss does not look right on. The Zeiss may be clearer, may be brighter (both up for debate) but the Leupold is bright and sharp enough that there is nothing the Zeiss can do that cant be done with the Leupolds. Sometimes I don't get all the heated discussions on which is better especially for something you are going to look through for only a few seconds at a time.. I like Zeiss, Swarovski, and Leupold. Zeiss does not make any suitable compact scopes (11.5") in a $400-$500 range. Some of my rifles with the 24"-26" barrels my Zeiss 3.5X10X50/4.5X14X50 look right even though they are in the 13"-14"+ range. I have a Leupy VX-6 2X12X42 that probably is brighter/sharper than the two Zeiss scopes I mentioned (12.5") but it is a 30mm scope and cost a few hundred more. Always trade offs. My favorite scope out the many different brands/price ranges/magnification ranges that I own or have owned is the Leupold VX3 2.5X8X36. It is compact, bright/clear easy to mount, looks good.
 
Both great glass. I've always been a Leupold fan, but that's because I grew up using them. Got my first one in 1970. It's on a 10/22 now, but I know when I grab it, it will be dead on. I've had one Zeiss and I really liked it. Fantastic edge to edge clarity for the price.

Bottom line, buy what YOU like!
 
One very important factor many are overlooking is the customer service between Zeiss and Leupold. Leupold has excellent customer service should you ever need a warranty repair. I have never owned a Zeiss product so I have no first hand experience but from reading comments from Zeiss owners, that company is less than helpful at times when honoring a warranty.
 
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