OverPriced, piece of crap NIGHTForcE scopeS!

C

CaliCoyoteCaller

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Thought that heading might get your attention!!!
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NO, I dont think NF is piece of crap scopes. Obviously, they are great scopes. However, I do have a question and I want to see what you guys think!

I went to do my local sporting store and did some scope shopping. At the time, I did not own 1 NF, Not 1 Swarovski, and NOT 1 Leupold, so I feel my judgement was unbiased. I held and examined them all in the store. I noticed the price difference between the NF and the Leupold, and to get the same features in the NF as in the Leupold, it was a lot more $$$$$....

So I asked the clerk if we could go outside and look through the glass. We did, and I have to tell you, through my eyes, and the eyes of the clerk, I could not see one lick of difference between the 2 I mentioned. The clarity seemed great in all them, and many different ranges and power settings......Other than maybe some cosmetic differences, do you feel like when buying say, a NF or Swarovski vs a Leupold, you are paying more for the name than you are for more quality?

The Leupold VX3i is incredibly clear and obviously has a great name on it, but its not nearly expensive as say a NF....are we just paying for a name, or is there a difference that Im not seeing??
 
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Originally Posted By: LONEHOWLTotally different league.
Mark

In which way? Im not defending any brand, Im just curious what Im missing because there are a lot of guys that feel the same way you do that they are in different leagues.
 
Originally Posted By: Tim NeitzkeIf the "clerk" can not tell you the diff in them, he/she should working the camo dept, instead.

Let me be more clear. I know what the "said" differences were, my point, however, is that I did not see any difference in glass quality in either of them.

I did not need the clerk to tell me differences. I dont claim to know everything, by A LONG SHOT!!! However, I do know a fair amount about optics. All Im trying to say is, the glass clarity did not show any different to me, and sometimes I wonder if we are just paying more for a name than we should.
 
Most times glass quality shows its self best after extended periods of use and especially in low light conditions. Also in conditions of rain, fog, etc. Comparing on a bright sunny day or in a store can be deceiving.
 
Originally Posted By: crapshootMost times glass quality shows its self best after extended periods of use and especially in low light conditions. Also in conditions of rain, fog, etc. Comparing on a bright sunny day or in a store can be deceiving.

Very true! When conditions are great, many will appear to have similar optical quality, it's when things aren't perfect, the better glass separates itself from the others.

Also, IMO, unless you are dialing for shooting at extended ranges, not just using holdovers, a scope like a NF is NOT money well spent. There are quite a few good scopes with equal optical quality that will cost you less money, weigh less and again, IMO, are better suited for holdover shooting. If you plan on dialing up for shooting at distance, NF scopes are one of the best and have some of the most accurate and consistent turrets on the market but if you don't plan on using your scope in that manner, I don't see the point in buying a NF scope because that's more there intended market.
 
One thing you have to ask will a NF actually pay for itself? A thousand plus extra dollars, would it ever put one more extra coyote on the boards, or would a less expensive scope and a $K's worth of gas for the vehicle put more coyotes on the boards.

I call coyotes, rarely do I need to take a shot over 300 yards so trick turrets and SF or AO are things that are like "[beeep] on a boar" for me. My rifles shoot flat enough that I can hold on fur or just a smidge of hold over so again trick reticles are another waste of money on a scope for me.

As for longevity, maybe I've been lucky, only one scope has failed me(a Leupold) and it was a on a heavy recoiling large magnum. I have scopes that are still in use after 50 years in the field. In fact I just put a B&L scope(i picked up) from the 1950's on a rifle, finish is worn badly, the edges are worn rounded and there are some pretty nasty scratches and scrapes on it, and even with my 70 year old eyes I can count the points on the neighbors chainlink fence over 100 yards away through the livingroom picture window.

If a $200 scope does the job for you, why spend more. I gave my dad a Model 70 Featherweight for Christmas one year because his old Rem 742 was getting too heavy for him. I put a Tasco 2-7 on it that had proved to be reliable but it would move point of impact when turned from 2-7, not much but enough that I could miss a fox at long range if I forgot to compensate. He never missed a deer with it, never got it off of 2x and never shot a deer over 100 yards, he thought it was the perfect scope. I believe the scope is still on the rifle and is used as a backup rifle or loaner to my cousins and nieces and nephews. My nephew is still using the very first scope I ever bought in 1966, it was on a rifle that I gave him. He still sits in his stand and kills his deer every year, it works for him he sees no reason to replace it just because it isn't the latest and greatest.

Little critters and targets get more scope but not NF more for me..
 
Guess I'll just on and get flamed again but thats OK, I have opinions too. I had a NF and I won't say it isn't a good scope. But.....I'm not a knob twister and don't do any running and gunning nor jump from airplanes into hostile territory, so, the NF is not for me. I had one for a while and after a week or so decided it was not for me and sold it. They are bullet proof, they adjust excellent and you could probably drive nails with them, but for the type of shooting I do and with my eyes, an upper end Nikon or Sightron seem to work very well for me. I also have a Meopta on my Tikka CTR and its a very nice scope for the money. JMO!
 
I just sent a VX-3i back last Friday, 8 shots through it and poi started shifting 4"right to 4" left also up and down with no changes made to the scope. It looked like I was shooting a box test but I wasn't. I know they will fix or replace it but you shouldn't have to use CS that on a new scope. I'm not saying NF or Swarovski don't have a bad one come out too but Leupold seems to be having many more issues lately.
 
I am a knob twister and I will take a NF over any of the other 3 any day. My equipment has to work for all the types of shooting I do and last reliably.
Bottom line is it has to last forever so the cost of it over a lifetime is not much.
Buy once cry once.
 
I hate over paying for anything. Had to pay $1.99/gal for gas the other day, still to much.

As it was said, in good daylight conditions, plenty of glass will look the same. The better stuff, shines in low light or extended time peering though the scope.
 
i'll preface this by saying that the nicest scope i own is a 4.5-14x40 VXIII & several of my guns wear vortex diamondbacks. for what i'm doing, scopes that fall somewhere in that quality range are just fine and dandy.

that said i've always looked at high end optics this way..... the day my skills surpass the point that requires me to spend that much $$ I'm sure i'll happily go plunk it down.

at this point in my life i have neither the skills or the other required equipment to make something like a NF necessary or likely even practical.

maybe some day
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You are comparing different scopes IMO. All are fine scopes, 1 serves different purpose than others.

Where NF shines over other 2 is reticle choices, bullet proof, and great turrets. If none of those things matter to you, go with one of the other scopes. You will be please. With LR scopes, Like NF, you aren't always paying floor glass quality. You are paying for a good reticle, and a scope that will dial the exact same every time you dial. NF go from 1100-1800 for the NXS line if you are looking at used, and up from there for high end. Swaro and Leupold can get wayyy up there too. But there is a reason you do not see either of those 2 brands of scopes and LR matches very often. They don't offer what the other brands do. Mainly recticle choices. Unless you have $4k+ for a VX8.

You want your cake and to eat it to, get you a Schmidt and Bender, VX8, Premeir, TT, or razor Gen II and you can have all the high end glass quality you could ever imagine with turrets too boot.
 
Most of what has been said makes a lot of sense. I can def see why someone would pay for the NF in certain applications. I guess, what I should say is for me, it makes no sense to buy a NF, nor would I utilize it to the degree that some other shooters would, with different applications than myself. If I was a knob twister, long range comp shooter etc, I can see why it would make sense.
 
I have never been impressed by the NXS line's optics. There are cheaper scopes with a whole lot better glass out there, plain and simple.

HOWEVER, if you look at ruggedness and function, they are fierce competitors in the market.

I have some high end leupolds and a Swarovski. The best image quality, for me, goes Swaro, Leupold, Nightforce.
Flip that list for almost anything else. That being said, I'm putting an NXS on my current build, which is easily going to get over $4000 all said and done. What's that tell you?

On a side note, I'm not positive that the new Vortex Razor LH isn't the sharpest hunting optic I've ever looked through. As soon as my 6.5 build is done, I'm going to put an LH on my Montana.
 
Ever wonder why Germany and Japan dominate the optics industry???? Ever notice that German/Austrian scopes always have better glass and cost more???? German optics are the undisputed king of glass, period, end of story. You and/or others may not like that but it is true. The Germans developed methods to refine optical glass {make it as clear as possible}, correct lenses {grind them so they are the highest possible resolution} and perfected coatings {to allow the most possible light transmission}.....During WWII they were allies, but the Nazis didn't quite share all the technology they had. So, while this has put Japan way ahead of the rest of the world in optics, they have not quite caught the Germans to this day.
What all this means is that basically the reason the two scopes you looked thru appeared no different is because they probably are not. It is very likely that both scopes have lenses made, ground and coated by the same manufacturer in Japan. The Leupold is assembled here and the Night Force says made in Japan but many I believe are assembled here. They are both made with Japanese glass.
I have no problems with any of them and own scopes currently of every brand mentioned on this thread. When I need a scope that has to gather the most light and show me game way after the sun goes down and other {Japanese, etc.} scopes have quit.....I use German optics.
 
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