Let's just say that I've had far mixed results from Leupold's over the past decade, more than before. Still have a number of M8's that retain zero extremely well, and a 9-year-old 10x40 Mark 4 that's always tracked and helzero perfectly, even after being used as a test scope on quite a few hard-kicking rifles.
But have run into tracking and zero-retention troubles with several newer Leupold's, both fixed and variables, and also the same sort of repair difficulties others have reported on this thread. Other scopes have worked well, including the 3x20 Big Bore that's been on both my .375 H&H and .416 Rigby, and a 3.5-10x40 VX-III that's been dead-nuts for over a decade on several different rifles, including a 6.5-300 Weatherby Ultra Lightweight that I just shot extensively for some handloading tests.
Gotta ask,
Have you discussed the problems people (including you, of course) are having with anyone that matters at Leupold, and do they give a rat's ass, or are they sticking to their story about how great they are and how few returned scopes actually have problems? I would think that negative feedback from a reliable source such as yourself would carry some weight.
I've bought a couple new ones this year for new rifles and am kinda holding my breath over all this. I'm not poor, but a scope is a significant investment of my fun money, and missed opportunities caused by crap equipment are minor tragedies for an old fart with limited years afield left to him (violin music here, please).
