Guns Illustrated 2011. Dan Shideler
War II brought big changes in the staid and respected German optics industry. Long after the ripples of that conflict subsided, new names attached themselves to old companies. In 1991 the Carl Zeiss Jena factory in Thuringia, Germany, began producing Docter optics. In 2006 Merkel USA became the U.S. importer. Docter Optic has since wooed hunters Stateside with rifle-scopes featuring 1-inch tubes and rear-plane reticles. The 3-9x40, 3-10x40, 4.5-14x40 AO and 8-25x50 AO Docter Sport scopes boast features of more expensive sights. Docter’s line also includes 1-inch 6x42 and 8x56 fixed-power Classic models, plus 30mm Classic variables: 1-4x24, 1.5- 6x42, 2.5-8x48 and 3-12x5 with fast-focus eyepieces, resettable windage/elevation dials and lighted reticles. In the Unipoint series, the electronically controlled rear-plane dot stays a constant size, while the first-plane main reticle varies with magnification (and stays in constant relationship with the target). Doctor catalogs three magnesium/alloy-frame binoculars: 8x42, 10x42 and a bright 8x58. They’re of roof-prism design with center focus and four-layer achromatic front lenses. A central diopter dial with vernier scale ensures precise focus to just 3 feet! (Merkel-usa.com and docter-germany.com.)
This Leupold 4.5-14x50 VX-3 has been modified for long shooting by GreyBull Precision.
GREYBULL PRECISION
Ballistic performance has many measures. Most venerated among hunters is reach – long-range accuracy and payload. Extending reach is, after all, a fundamental purpose for firearms. One shooter who has made long reach a mission is John Burns, a Wyoming gun-builder who, with Coloradans Scott Downs and Don Ward, runs GreyBull Precision. They fashion mid-weight hunting rifles for hunters who expect to shoot far.
Nikon’s ProStaff scope and T/C’s new Venture rifle are bargain-priced but perform at higher levels.
Optics are a key component of GreyBull rifles. The firm contracts with Leupold to install Greybull’s own reticle in Leupold’s 4.5-14x VX III sight. It’s essentially a Duplex with a few fi ne horizontal lines for range estimation, and one-minute tics to help you shade for wind. The elevation dial is meant to move; each is cut for a specifi c load and marked so you can quickly dial the distance and hold center. Adjusting windage dials, most hunters agree, is unwise. Wind changes speed and direction, and you can get lost correcting yourself off zero. So GreyBull scope dials have numbers scribed above distance marks. They show minutes of adjustment needed in a 10-mph crosswind. Testing these scopes, I’ve found yardage and windage marks spot on. Of course, a laser range-finder is all but necessary to get accurate distance reads. I enjoyed the opportunity to test the Greybull scope on a Greybull rifle, and both performed magnifi cently. (Greybullpreci-sion.com.)
LEICA
Best known for its superlative Ultravid binoculars and Geovid range-finding binoculars, Leica now offers 8+12x42 and 10+15x50 Duovid glasses. These aren’t “zoom” or variable binoculars. Such mechanisms are too heavy and bulky for binoculars, and those that have appeared from less prestigious firms show substandard images. The Duovid is an “either-or” instrument. Switch from 8x to 12x (or 10x to 15x) for a close-up view. At 37 and 44 ounces, Duovids aren’t light. But they’re relatively compact and certainly more portable than spotting scopes. Optical quality is excellent – so too that of the Geovid, now with 42mm objectives as well as light-gobbling 56s. Geovids have been up-graded with the HD fluorite glass of Leica’s Ultravid HD binoculars. These fluorite lenses enhance brightness and resolution and can reduce overall weight. All four Geovids (8x42, 10x42, 8x56 and 12x56) have alloy frames and deliver accurate range reads to 1,200 yards. The Ultravid has replaced the time-honored Trinovid binocular. The line includes 8x20 and 10x25 compact models, and full-size roof-prism glasses from 8x32 to 12x50. HD versions feature fluorite in every lens, proprietary AquaDura coating on exposed glass. The big news at Leica this year is two new riflescopes, the company’s first under its own label. The 2.5-10x42 and 3.5-14x42 feature 30mm tubes, rear-plane reticles and AquaDura lens coating to shed water. This hydrophobic compound (also featured on Leica binoculars) beads water and makes lens cleaning easy. At 15 and 17 ounces, these rifle-scopes are lightweight. They’re also good-looking and have plenty of free tube for mounting. Four inches of eye relief make the new scopes a logical choice for hard-kicking rifles. (Leica-sportoptics.com.)
AR-style Rifles have become the rage. AR-specifi c scopes like this Bushnell have followed.
LEUPOLD
Last year Leupold quietly bought the Redfi eld name. It is now producing a new line of Redfield riflescopes and binoculars. Hard to believe! During my youth, the two firms were fi erce competitors. They represented, with Bausch & Lomb, the best of American-made hunting optics. The new Redfields are made at Leupold’s Beaverton, Oregon, facility. Starting at $160, they’re priced to sell! Choose from 2-7x33, 3-9x40, 3-9x50 and 4-12x40 “Revolution” scopes, all with fully multi-coated optics and fi nger-adjustable dials. Leupold VP Andy York joined me on an elk hunt last fall, to initiate the Redfield line. Alas, neither of us killed an elk; but Andy assures me the Redfi eld name had nothing to do with our luck! I like the 3-9x40’s classic profile, sharp images, generous eye relief. The satin finish complements any rifle. Three knurled rings on the eyepiece are signature Redfi eld – as distinctive as Leupold’s gold ring. Subdued red logos grace the turret and objective bell. A 4-Plex reticle (remember, it’s not a Duplex unless it’s a Leupold!) and a range-finding “Accu-Range” reticle are both standard. The latter is a plex with a circle at the fi eld’s center. At 4x, I found the circle subtends one foot at 100 yards. There’s a dot on the bottom wire for precise aim to around 400 yards with most cartridges. These affordable 1-inch scopes should appeal to any hunter. Mount them in low rings, like the one-piece, lightweight Talleys I prefer.
Though it’s hard to trump the new Redfi eld series for value, shooters who insist on the best optics still have many choices at Leupold. Two years ago, Leupold introduced its top-end VX-7 scopes. The low-profile VX-7L, with a concave belly up front, followed (3.5-14x56 and 4.5-18x56, complementing the VX-7 in 1.5-6x24, 2.5-10x45 and 3.5-14x50). These sights have European-style eyepieces and “lift and lock” SpeedDial turret knobs. Xtended Twilight glass features scratch-resistant DiamondCoat 2 lens coating. The power ring is matched to a “Ballistic Aiming System” so you can tailor magnifi cation and reticle to the target and distance. Nitrogen was replaced by argon/krypton gas to better prevent fogging.
Author fitted this Clearidge 6-20x40 AO to a Savage M10 Rifle in .308. Low cost. Good optics.
The VX-7 is still top-of-the-line. But it’s being crowded by the VX-3 series introduced last year to replace the Vari-X III. Nearly 40 models are listed. Cryogenically treated stainless adjustments move 1/4, 1/8 and 1/10 m.o.a. 1.5-4x20, 3-9x40, 4-12x40, 6-18x40. The Mark 4 tactical line includes an ER/T M1 per click in standard, competition and target/varmint versions. An improved spring system ensures precise erector movement. The fast-focus eyepiece has a rubber ring. These features also appear on the new FX-3 6x42, 6x42 AO, 12x40 AO and two scopes designed for metallic silhouette shooting: a 25x40 AO and 30x40 AO. Choose from 18 reticle options for the VX-3 and FX-3 series, and five finishes for the 1-inch and 30mm 6061-T6 aircraft alloy tubes.
To accommodate the AR-10 and AR-15 platforms, there’s a new Mark AR series: 4.5-14x50 sight with front-plane reticle. As in European scopes, this reticle stays in constant relationship to the target throughout the magnifi cation span, so you can range a target at any power. The smallest of Leupold’s scopes – FX II 2.5x20 Ultralight – remains one of my favorites. It sits tight to the receiver in extra-low rings, slides easily into scabbards, weighs just 7-1/2 ounces and has all the power you need for big game to 200 yards. For bolt Rifles with longer reach, I prefer the 4x33 and 6x36 FX IIs.