Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Swarovski Z6 vs Zeiss V6

Anyone got experience with both? The lines seem to mirror each other pretty well, wondering which one would be optically better? As an example, the 5-30x50 Swaro claims 90% light transmission but the Zeiss claims 92%. Think there is really that much difference? The Zeiss is cheaper, but also heavier.

I usually look for different features when choosing a scope rather than glass quality. I've not seen any name brand scope over $300 with glass bad enough that the quality of glass detracted from a hunt.

I think light transmission numbers are pretty useless because there isn't any standard of measurement. I bet you could take 10 scopes of similar make and price,and you would need lab equipment to be able to determine any actual difference. I think some scopes look so different to different people based more on that person's eyes and viewing taste. I think it would take lab equipment to actually register any difference.

I did take the following smattering of scopes out a couples week ago and sat on my back porch and looked at a bundle of sticks 50 yards away tucked in some underbrush as legal light faded away:

Swarovski Z5 5-25x52
Leica ER 5 2-10x50
Leupold Mark AR MOD-1 3-9x40
Bushnell Trophy Xtreme 2.5-10x44

Didn't see much difference until the last 3-4 minutes of legal light. The Leupold went first, but surprisingly the sub $100 Bushy kept up to the end of legal light. 6-7 minutes after legal light ended the Bushnell was out. Then about 15 minutes later I gave up because the Leica and Swaro were not losing much of anything. There was some moonlight. Anyway, ordered the Bushnell in a 4-16x44 to put on another rifle after seeing that.

I did however just stumble upon the crazy deals Red Hawk has on demo Zeiss V6's....5-30x50 ZBR is on the way.

Good luck on the V6.

Since Alabama set a specific time for dark,I am a lot less concerned about last light. Just about any of them will do fine the way I hunt. Now,if I was covering a 400 yard green field until last light, I would be much more concerned about larger objectives and max light transmission at higher power.

I do a fair amount of long powerline or huge field hunting in the evenings. I had never really thought much about low light capabilities from scope to scope until this past year, when my hunting changed (added properties with those long sight lines), and consequently missed out on 3 potential bucks in legal light because of poor low light performance. I seriously wondered if my 3-18x44 VX-6HD was a dud in that regard.

Likely just too dark and far. A longe range shot at dark would be my least desirable shot.

Let me know how that V6 works out for you, I wish there was some place where I could look thru a V4 3-12x50 #60 and a comparable V6 but alas there is none.

I am all for the fixed sunset and sunrise laws in Alabama.

I killed a beautiful 8 point this year with 10 minutes left and had a pretty nice buck with very thick bases that showed the next night at 200 yards on the edge of a greenfield , unfortunately he was a Six , he will be something this coming year provided the rains keep up and no one else nails him. I am using Zeiss Conquest DL and Victory HT scopes. I will probably buy another schmidt and bender in the next few months primarily because they have such a nice dot.

One was close, like 75 yards. One thing that the fixed time law does is allow hunting in a near about solid darkness when its reallllyyy overcast and rainy, but a few minutes until 30 past sunset. I had a good 5-6 minutes left and could barely see the deer at like 5 or 6x. He trotted across a 50 yard wide field and I did not have the ability to determine if he was a shooter.

And then another time in medium fog with 10-15 minutes of light I could see deer running around me in an open field with my bare eyes but absolutely couldn't see anything but some color change when scanning with the scope at 3x. Was very disappointing. I knew there were multiple bucks running does within a 100 yards of me in a big field but couldn't see crap.

3rd time was great conditions, last 2 minutes of light a buck enters the field about 300 yards away. It was light enough for my Leica rangefinder to range him but I could not determine if he was a shooter using the scope.

Which reminds me, I put my 7x Leica rangefinder up against that VX-6HD at 7x and the Leica beat the crap out of it in low light. 22mm vs 44mm. Crazy.

I purchased four Swarovski z5 5-25X52. Two were as good as my Leupold VX-6 4-24X52 and Bushnell 6500 4 1/2-30X50 in a low light test on 13" wide deer antlers. The other two were like low cost scopes. Disgusting.




You discovered what I did. Considering exit pupil in optics is a waist of time.

I wish they had left the law as it was. I don't really care if the guy in a field can actually see to shoot for 25 minuets longer than the guy down on the creek. The only reason they changed it was because of idiots hunting when any reasonable person could tell it was actually dark by any reasonable standard.

I considered a Conquest DL 2-8X32 illuminated for my woods gun. I've been wondering if an illuminated dot will help any. I can see with a #4 though all the way to legal light.

I have said this before but previously I hunted way past current times. Driving back to camp and sitting on the deck I could hear shots in the distance. I have lost reticles in one particular stand and on top of it there is a river mist almost fog , They come out way way past legal times. I did not hunt this stand now for 2 years, if I get to go there again(wind direction) I will be hunting an illuminated reticle.



This years buck shot at 5:20PM 2nd earliest time a buck has appeared at one of the stands. Tikka T3x 30-06 range 50 yards

Did you get the V6? What reticle? Ballistic turret?

Just came in yesterday, only played with it for a minute. Got the ZBR reticle, similar to the BRH reticle but with MOA marks. Took a deer last year at 400 using the BRH and now I'm a fan of those type reticles. The biggest thing that surprised me about it was the forgiving eyebox. I had a Swaro Z8i 2.3-18x56 that I struggled to get behind at 18x. I ran the Z6 all the way up to 30x expecting it to be very hard to see through just holding the scope up but it was very easy to find the eyebox and hold it.

It does have the ballistic turret, and they have very firm clicks. I could dial without looking at it they are so positive. It will be going on a Cooper 92 in 280 AI that should be in my hands in the next 1-3 weeks, ordered it in January. Once I get it mounted on that rifle and chronograph my chosen load I will order a Kenton turret.

Got out the new V6 last night to install the Zeiss objective flip cover and throw lever. It was a demo from Red Hawk Rifles if I didn't mention, so I also wanted to center the turrets. By the way, the prices have fallen even further, they have the mil dot version for $1099 and the ZBR like I got for $1329, and the 3-18x50 ZBR for $1199, this is a crazy good scope at that price. Anywho, the turrets have better response than any scope I've ever had, and I've had a bunch, including higher end. Was also impressed again with the generous eye box.

My only negative at the moment is that the parralax adjustment only has a 50 meters and infinity on the dial. Would have liked more numbers to help me get in the ballpark. I'll probably do it somehow ahead of time at the range, just a drop of white paint at 100, 200, 300, 400, and 500.

Also very worried about the throw lever being in the way of the rifle bolt. Another sign I should be a lefty...

Chris you can look at and compare the scopes you mentioned at Walter Craig in Montgomery. I’m from Alabama also do the same type hunting I’m also looking at the v6 zeiss and nightforce I’ve had good luck with meopta but don’t have the magnication I want powerlInes clearcuts and peanut fields looking for 20 -25 on top end

For my eyes, the Z6 has better glass than the V6.

I had tracking issues with my Z6, a first generation 3-18x50, which I sent back to Swarovski to be serviced and trade it away thereafter.

My experience with V6 is limited to a 2-12x50 and a 2,5-15x56 and so far they are 100 percent. Very good optics but like I say, Z6 were even better, at least for my eyes.