Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics My Leupold vs Swaro test results

The only scope I've had fail on me 3 times, twice to hold zero and once to fog internally was a Swarovski Z3 3-9x.

I got one of those but with my long action it didnt fit well. Wx was bad so I couldnt really check it well. Huge ocular. They have a great return policy so try one!

The first two can mostly be checked early on. Pretty simple to note the sight setting, move it in both axis a given amount, note the new impact. Then return to the original zero setting. Worth doing a couple times. As to reliability, hard fair use will be the judge of that. As Tesoro noted above in the story about his dad’s rifle and Leupold 3-9, that was a pretty good test for reliability. It failed.

Hey, that old Leupold lived a million miles jarring around on a rear window gun rack, or in a horse scabbard or trail bike scabbard. That is testimony enough! I dont think anything but a 3lb nighforce scope could have taken his abuse without the occasional hiccup. But it never 'failed' and it always re-zeroed. Maybe thats why I have the habit of shooting alot of 'check shots' as my rifle lives in my truck during hunting seasons.

When I read posts about someone bitching that his top tier scope failed multiple times it makes me wonder more about mounting errors or operator errors than quality control. And especially nowadays where many have this long range bug and adjust the vertical reticle adjustment too high on 1in tubes.

Sounds like it lost zero (or the bedding or mounting system did) multiple times, which would be a failure, in my book.

Then I assume that you must hunt with irons or a mil-spec scope if reliability is your top criteria! There is no lightweight sport hunting scope made that is 100% reliable. Everything is a trade off.

Agreed. I'm willing to carry an extra few ounces to get reliability. It helps me sleep at night.

Thousands of pages in the optics forum will attest to this.

The holy grail of light and 100% reliable

Guy that I don't know at my gun club was telling me yesterday that he has had two scopes go bad.....he was shooting an AR Style.22 rifle at 50 yards with a Bushnell scope.

I asked how did they go bad ?

He said his rifle would shoot a nice group then just throw one....1" to 1.5" out.

I replied that could be a lot of things besides the scope doesn't sound like your scope was bad to me.

...his reply was Bushnell said it was defective and sent him a $400 voucher.

My reply was....I doubt that Bushnell can even repair a scope or possibly even diagnose a problem with a scope being they're imported from Asia.

I still think he was convinced that if his gun consistantly threw a shot out of the group he had scope issues.

I'll go out in a limb and predict there are other people that think that too.

Maybe I'm wrong.

That’s no Joke. The NF 2.5x10 or SS 3x9 is about where they start in my book.

Hah! I would bet that the odds of failure on a hunt are exponentially higher due to adrenaline, flinch, wind ,mis-judging range or just plain bad shooting form. Thats why its nice to hunt with a scope so you have something to blame.

Fair enough! Haha. It’s nice to have enough confidence in your scope that you don’t have to constantly be taking “check shots” to make sure the rifle is still zeroed. It removes one thing from the list of possible/probable reasons for hunt failure.

Yes indeed, the confidence to know it holds zero is worth a bunch to me, better than a truck load of sighters.

Agree with beretzs, my two most important rifles wear NF 2.5-10x32s. Next on the reliability scale for me are M8 Leupold 4x28s. I’ve had lots of them since my first one in 1974, have yet to see a zero creep with one.

I do like those M8 4x’s. For some reason I can’t bust them. And they just stay put where I’ve left them.

Yep, I’ve tried too!

of course there is the part of if you can't see it you can't shoot it... both apply

Thats every last illuminated scope in the books for me. When your eye has to gather and then you turn on a light, you loose your low light vision. Pupils constrict etc....

Lighted ones are ok during the day. Dont' really see the need mostly, but at night or low light I've had guys reach for my gun with Zeiss and no light, well it has a light but I've never put a new battery in that one

I’m also a low light Blacktail hunter... What you describe dovetails neatly with what I saw comparing older-gen Leup and Swaro scopes about a decade ago. I have a 3-10x42 Swaro A3.

Just a couple thoughts...

Ten years ago, a 3-9x40 Conquest was better than either of them in a few ways. Optically, the Swaro and Conquest were about equally capable in low light, but the Conquest’s reticle was much better against a dark or messy background than the Swaro’s. Both have duplexes. Mechanically, both track reasonably well, for what they are. I tested that pretty thoroughly. Even killed a buck on Steens at 520 yards dialing that Swaro. BUT, I did discover that the reticle‘s vertical stadia doesn’t track with the adjustments... meaning, if you set everything up very carefully with levels and plumb lines and so on, and shoot a ladder test, the POI drifts off to the left of the centerline of the target as you dial it upwards. Subtle but real, and once seen, cannot be unseen, if you know what I mean. So that was a bummer. So, I put that scope somewhere where it’s low light performance and light weight are very appreciated but where it won’t be dialed: my .358 Model 7, which is my main blacktail rifle. Works great on there.

My other comment is, if you can stomach the weight, try a Zeiss V4 4-16x50 illuminated sometime. $799 from RHR with the #93 illuminated reticle. Contrary to the above, on the lowest setting the lit reticle does NOT cause eye problems. In fact I mostly used it on the second-lowest setting at dusk, much less the lowest. I used it on a stand this year where I watched until past legal light every time and was able to test that on various backgrounds, including some does. Works fantastic. That scope is a significant step up from the above older Conquest- which is really good- or the Swaro. But yeah, it’s big.

They all smoke any Leupold I’ve ever used but I gave up on them a dozen years ago and have not looked back so I can’t speak to that.

Yes I know what you mean about the older Conquests as I had one in 2005 or so. I believe it had German glass and parts but was assembled in US, like the newer Z3. I think they both did this to save on import tariffs.The Conquest had a very nice duplex reticle. The new Z4's are made somewhere in Asia and I havent run one through a field test, and wont, but initial impressions looked good.

That larger big conquest is too bulky/heavy for my liking and I cant get a good cheek weld with the added height on my rifle. I had lighted center x hairs on a swaro x5i 3-18. Fantastic scope in every way and not sure why they are not more popular. My prob with lighted x-hairs is it makes me focus on them but when I shoot I focus on the target. Maybe I didnt practice enough to get used to them.

From what I understand, Swaro changed some internals over the years from the A's to Z3 models. I have not tried to dial my two 3-10's which are both late model versions but have read of guys doing so with issues. I dont dial for my deer rifle but I'm putting the other one on a sweet little Sako Vixen 223 and vertical dialing could come in handy for rock chucks etc but probably wont work well.


I have no issues with the modern Leupolds other than the more common than not stiff mag ring adjustment. I ordered a vx5hd 2-10 from them before xmas and the ring was so hard to turn that I sent it right back for a refund. Then I ordered another from OP for testing and the ring was passable but not great. I also got a vx5hd 2.5-8 Leup to check out and it came with a large screw in pin for the mag ring. Like wtf does this dainty little scope need to have a crank handle on it ! Every German scope I have owned had ultra smooth mag adjustments right out of the box and stayed that way. The bonus with the Germans is eye relief has always been constant for all mags so you dont have to change your form on higher power. I would guess that by now some 'Asian' manufacturers have 'duplicated' their engineering!

Swaro should stick to binos and spotters...

Leupold should stick to hats and overpriced sunglasses.