Leupold vx3 or Zeiss conquest?

waldow777 · Mar 7, 2012

Im looking at scopes for my lr308 and cant decide what to buy. I plan on hunting and target shooting with this in the 0 to 800 yd range. more like 0 to 500yds for hunting. Im really not trying to exceed $850 so no night force or swarwhaterverskie.

Otter · Mar 7, 2012

Easy choice. Leupold. Glass equal to the European brand. Better turrents. Made/assembled in Oregon - keep more money in our economy. That gold ring is a classy statement. Brand rep is based on quality, warranty, ruggedness, and customer service.

The high end Zeiss stuff is the best. The Conquest line is not of the same quality and I consider it a notch below the Leupold VX3 line.

TonsOfOregonBrass · Mar 8, 2012

Vortex Viper PST........ Incredible looking glass, great warranty, great company, and more features for the money.

Gunner3456 · Mar 8, 2012

My Vortex Viper PST is stamped Philippines. Agree it's a fine scope, but if I had known that when I ordered it I would have given more consideration to a Leupold made in Beaverton. I know Leupold has some lower end scopes made in the Philippines, but not the VX3 AFAIK.

I believe that Leupold has always bought its best glass from Japan, but then Japan can make really good glass for a variety of purposes. It's also possible ?? that Vortex doesn't make its own glass. ??

Velzey · Mar 8, 2012

Leupold! Best customer service ever and they are right here in Oregon.

sheepdip · Mar 8, 2012

LEUPOLD, i have a 3x leupold that is nearly fifty years old. was having some trouble with it, called them up. they said bring it in, i did, they fixed it no questions asked. now that is customer service :s0155:

dmancornell · Mar 8, 2012

I have both (Leupold VX3 6.5-20x, Zeiss Conquest 4.5-14x), I can't really tell the difference on the glass. The Zeiss was a little bit cheaper.

I do like the Zeiss a lot because the knobs don't have caps (don't need them, they're tough), the numbers are clearly marked. AFAIK you'd have to go with a Leoupld Mark 4 for the same, and those cost a lot more.

SigPacker · Mar 8, 2012

I'll second the Vortex PST... I returned my Leupold for a 4-16x50 from rainier arms.. couldn't be happier!

Gunner3456 · Mar 8, 2012

sheepdip said:
LEUPOLD, i have a 3x leupold that is nearly fifty years old. was having some trouble with it, called them up. they said bring it in, i did, they fixed it no questions asked. now that is customer service

I've already told the story here about when I was much younger (in the mid 70's) I fell and smashed my Leupold Gold Ring on some hard ice. I smashed the glass on both ends, bent the housings, and bent the main tube. Like a young idiot I stopped by Leupold on my way home to see if they could fix it, LOL. A really nice man took it, filled out a work order and about a week later it arrived in the mail. To this day I believe it was actually a brand new scope. He charged me a little something for their minimum charge and shipping, but it was nowhere near the cost of a new scope. Maybe 1/6 the cost of a new one.

PS To this day I still have and love that scope. It's on my Ruger M77 tang safety .270 from the same era.