Optics thoughts, Leica vs Leupold

[gearguywb]

Looking for glass for both a 416 and a 375.

I was just looking at the specs of the Leica Amplus 6, 1-6 x 24I. Seems like a good option. 3.5" of listed eye relief. When I checked them out at the Sheep Show this past year I remember the glass seeing to be very good.

Of course the standard, that sees a lot of use, is the Leupold VX6HD Illuminated. Eye relief listed at 3.7". I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with Leupold but I want to be very fair in the comparison.

Weight, eye relief, features (the CDS dial would never be used on these rifles), price are all within range of each other.

Anyone have solid thoughts/use behind these?

Thanks!

 

[SFRanger7GP]

I have the Leica Amplus on my 416 Rigby. Other than the issue with the mounting caused by the raised rubber brand on the end, I have had no issues with it. The illuminated red dot is crisp and clear compared the one on the VX5/VX6 Leupold's, but that could be my eyes. In limited visibility, the Leica is brighter but not by much. Overall, I prefer the Leica.

I have owned a lot of Leupold's over the years and still have a few on rifles. In my experience, no other optics manufacturer has the reputation of standing behind their products like Leupold. Many European companies seem to have a policy of "if you don't answer the customer, he will stop bothering you..."

Most optics companies have an extensive line of optics with high power, big bells and reticles that you need an engineer or fighter pilot to interpret. The classic hunter's scope is getting more and more difficult to find.

Safe shooting

 

[gearguywb]

Thank you for the insight!

 

[Troubleshooter]

I have the Leica Amplus on my 416 Rigby. Other than the issue with the mounting caused by the raised rubber brand on the end, I have had no issues with it. The illuminated red dot is crisp and clear compared the one on the VX5/VX6 Leupold's, but that could be my eyes. In limited visibility, the Leica is brighter but not by much. Overall, I prefer the Leica.

I have owned a lot of Leupold's over the years and still have a few on rifles. In my experience, no other optics manufacturer has the reputation of standing behind their products like Leupold.

Agree with everything SFRanger7GP wrote. I owned several Leupold scopes (and still do). But when I got my hands on a Leica; that was a revelation! Although subjective, the Leica's glass seems much better quality (sharper / clearer) than the Leupold (which I had previously considered excellent). I also much prefer the Leica's method of adjusting brightness of the illuminated dot (turret with positive stops) to the method used by Leupold (rubberized on/off button), but again that's subjective.

The raised branding on the straight tube of the Amplus 1-6x gets in the way for mounting on a magnum-length action, but it is stick-on and can be resolved by simply peeling it off the scope.

The Leupold shines with its warranty. Not that it will matter if either one breaks on a hunt 10,000 miles from home. Also, if you use scope caps, the spring-loaded Leupold Alumina caps are much quieter and better made than those available from Leica. Leupold's are made from aluminum; Leica's are advertised as made from aluminum but are mostly plastic and make a fairly loud "pop" when you flip them up.

Having typed all that, you really won't go far wrong with either one.

The classic hunter's scope is getting more and more difficult to find.

Ain't that the truth!

 

[lockingblock]

German glass is generally a significant step up in performance and price from Leupold.

Leupold generally has better CS, more options, more marketing, and a warranty dept that will fix anything.

Look at Schmidt and Bender, then Swarovski or Zeiss, then Leica…for riflescopes. For Binos, Swarovski or Leica.

If you want real value and performance…Steiner.

 

[JimP]

I have a couple outfitter friends who say Leopold all the way. They say that the European glass white quite nice just won't take a beating like the Leopold's will.

But recently he is also recommending Nightforce scopes. He had a horse roll down a mountain a couple falls ago and the Nightforce scope that was in the scabord came out just fine.

 

[Red Leg]

I became a real fan of Leica optics a bit over a decade ago. I have other scopes in the gunroom, but everything purchased over the last ten years has been Leica.

 

[Gemsbok45]

The resolution on European glass is unmatched.Chances are you might never need the toughness of a NightForce.Binos there is no debate. Leica,Swarovski and Zeiss are the best.

 

[DLSJR]

I have Leupold VX5’s on both my 375 (2-10) & 416 (1-5) and find them to be excellent. Whether you care about the CDS or not, whatever you do, get the Firedot reticle. It’s an absolute game changer as far as I’m concerned.
I love Leica too… for binoculars.

 

[mark-hunter]

I think that good source to understand topic of glass, quality and price range is below.
Basically European glass is considered the best.
In the last level, highest price, is Leica (As per below source, I have Leica glass in binocular, and cannot challenge this claim).
The explanation and testing ways have been explained in the article below.

One point to consider is national rules and ethics of hunting.
I understand that in America, hunting is done in daylight hours (from sunrise till sunset), while in Europe, hunting is done 2 hours before sunrise, thill 2 hours after sunset.

This means, in general, for European hunts, a hunter will need a light gathering scope as best as possible. This means also, as expensive as possible, In America this level of light gathering qualities is not essential, although always welcome.

Personally, I Use:

For hunting:
Leica, geovid binocular
Zeiss, 3-12x56 mm, for all round rifle, and blind stand
Swarowski Z6, 1.7-10x42 mm, for safari
Meopta R2, 1-6x20, wide angle scope, for daylight driven hunts
All with illuminated reticles

For target shooting where Light gathering and highest end glass is not necessary, because target shooting is done in working hours of local ranges, in perfect daylight condition, personally I use:
Vortex viper 4-16x44
Sightron S III 10-50x60
Spotting scope, yukon 100 mm, 100x power. (can spot bullet hole on paper at 600 meters, in good daylight conditions, but not always)
Rifles scopes for targets are all with parallax adjustment and without illuminated reticles.

here is very detailed article where glass quality is well explained.

The ULTIMATE Low Light Riflescope Buying Guide in 2024 - Optics Trade Blog

Hunting does not always happen in perfect lighting conditions, that is why we created this ULTIMATE Low-Light Riflescope Buying Guide

www.optics-trade.eu

 

[mark-hunter]

I became a real fan of Leica optics a bit over a decade ago. I have other scopes in the gunroom, but everything purchased over the last ten years has been Leica.

With reference to mine above, excellent choice, sir!

 

[Nhoro]

Leica has better glass but the difference is not night and day. Many people on the internet wil tell you they can 'see' the difference. I have been involved in video and photgraphy for years and have a fair understanding. You dont just ' see' the differences, they are minscule at 1 or 2 %. Some guys manage to do reading tests at dusk of optical sheets that look a bit like barcodes. But the the difference between them is much less than 20 or 30 years ago. Also, i think eye relief is more important on big rifles, scope eye has a negative effect on your accuracy for quite some time. So Leica has a measurable better glass but practically you will not see the difference. You will see a colour cast to the image and you may prefer the image of one over the other. So go to your local store and try them. Warranty is a big plus. I vote Leupold

 

[E Butler]

You have to remember Leopold is glass and Leica is crystal for their optics. I guess the crystal doesn’t stand up to the military toughness test which are pretty tough on scopes. You would probably never need to worry about that.

 

[homeless]

Missing from this image is my latest acquisition Leica er 3.5-14x42 with ballistic turret without illuminated reticle

 

[KJE81]

I have grown with Leupold scopes but nowdays I use Swarovski, Schmidt & Bender and Zeiss, my favorite brand beeing Swarovski both for their optical quality and their customer service/guarantee handling.

 

[wesheltonj]

I might suggest that you try to find a used Leica ER Scope. That will give you 4" of eye relief.

 

[Bert the Turtle]

You’ll hear plenty of people say their Leupold is just as good as a Leica (Swarovski, S+B, Zeiss). You’ll never hear anyone say their Leica is just as good as a Leupold

 

[JimP]

You’ll hear plenty of people say their Leupold is just as good as a Leica (Swarovski, S+B, Zeiss). You’ll never hear anyone say their Leica is just as good as a Leupold

That's because they don't want to admit it.

 

[Tally-Ho HUNTING SAFARIS]

Leupold toughness is way better
Also there guarentee cannot be faulted
I use leupold, swaro, zeiss, leica and some other rubbish in scopes and binos. I say leupold all the way for scopes!!!

 

[gearguywb]

Thank you for all of the replies!

I picked up a VX6HD 1-6 to give it a try.

I am a huge fan of NF scopes when it comes to long range stuff, including on my hunting rifles for elk, etc. There does not seem to be much love for their low power offerings.