Originally Posted by alaska_lanche
Originally Posted by timbo762
Originally Posted by alaska_lanche
Except the TBR isn't waterproof but rather "weatherproof"=deal breaker for me over the vortex which is waterproof.
The Vortex website says nothing about being "submersible". It says "O-ring seals prevent moisture, dust, and debris from getting inside for withstanding harsh weather conditions". That would leave me to believe the Vortex is actually "weather proof" just like the Leupold. They are so close speck wise, I'll bet they come out of the same Chinese factory. Street price is nearly the same too. I think the only real difference would be long term service, as I doubt Leupold is going anywhere soon. However, at the rate this technology is improving, by the time you wear one of these out you'll probably want a new one anyway.


Lots of speculation there for sure. Leupold says nothing about o-ring seal, nor does it claim to be waterproof. Just going by what the companies list. One clamis waterproof with an o-ring seal the other just says weatherproof....I own a Leica 1200 but if I had to pick between a Vortex Ranger and a Leupold TBR I'd go vortex just based on the o-ring seal and waterproof, but to each their own.
I contacted Vortex, and they said their rangefinder was subjected to a five minute water spray test should be ok if dropped in shallow water and promptly retrieved, but is NOT submersible. If it's not submersible, it's not water proof. So it is in reality weather proof and not really water proof just as I suspected.

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