I have both Swarovski and Leupold scopes on my rifles. I also have 1 Schmidt and Bender. I believe the S&B to be the best. The S&B is also the heaviest by a wide margin.

The emotional rants about which is best is like arguing politics/religion.

The reason I don't have more Swarovski scopes is basically due to their cost. Leupold makes an absolutely great scope, and even if their scope wasn't any good, you couldn't find better customer service or warranty/repair on any product!

I am not saying that I would own only Swarovski scopes either, there are many applications that a Leupold suits better. When I take my varmint rifles out, and I have 5 of them, 3 of the 5 have Leupolds and one is Swarovski, one is Zeiss.

I believe the glass is better in the Swarovski and Zeiss. It takes quite a bit more money to accomplish a very slight improvement in optics. That is the difference I see in the 3 scopes. Seeing small things clearly, contrast, definition, etc. will all require alot from the optic ability of any scope.

When I bought my first scope for a varmint rifle, years ago, I bought a Bushnell 3-9 wide angle scope. It worked for awhile. I chose it over a Leupold 3-9 for 2 reasons...I couldn't see any difference in the optics in the store, and it was cheaper. Years later, I can see a difference in a Bushnell scope or Leupold, or Weaver...etc., I believe that is true today, and that is why I have varied scopes for economic reasons as well as function.

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