Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics How do the leupold lps scopes stack up vs others

How do the leupold lps scopes compare to the high-end swarovski ph, zeiss or schmidt & bender scopes. for the purposes of this discussion, let's assume the prices are the same and weight is not an issue.

Well 257Bob I have both the LPS 2.5x10 and 6x42 PH swarovski, zeiss3x9 and i realy like the LPS but it is on the gun i use the most 300RUM and the zeiss is on my 264 win and the 6x42 PH is on my 300win they are close in compared. the LPS has a 30mm and the rest has 1" tube i think the zeissis the best buy at mid $400 and the LPS is next at $800 to $1000 and the swarovski $1200 to$1500 so i take the LPS is my pick for the best buy for the $ and i like it the best . they are all good MTHunter

I have two LPS, a discontinued 1.5-6 that's on my .375 H&H, and a 3.5-14 that's on my .257 Weatherby. I like them both. The big glass is the only one I own with a 50mm bell. For that Roy, it's perfect.

Fine scopes if you ask me, though the 1.5 I heard had some issues that caused them to be discontinued. One of my inside connections at Leupold swears that the 2.5-10 LPS is the best scope Leupie makes, bar none, all things considered. He's in a very good postion to know. Let's just say he's not in marketing.

Rick

Thanks guys, I have owned a good number of leupold scopes and have never had one let me down. I am looking at the 2.5x10x45 lps compared to the swarovski 3x12x50 ph. I am trying to figure out if the swarovski is worth the extra money or if the lps is simply that good. I personally have no real way to scientifically compare the two. I am sure they are both durable and bright but beyond that, I can not say.

Bob... I just got an LPS 2.5-10x45mm from RickBin, and it truly seems to be everything and more that you could reasonably want in a hunting scope... the 30mm tube, the superbly coated glass, the finish, the overall weight and size, the constant 4" eye relief and huge eyebox, and it's a Leupold! It's not an inexpensive optic at about $900.00 , but it's less cost than the "equivolent" euro scopes.

I have not had the chance to directly compare it side by side to some of the euro scopes you mention, but I believe you'd have to have a way above average set of eyes to tell a difference in the clarity/brighness between them.

I have never owned or looked thru a leupold LPS.
I do have a schmidt and bender 1.5-6x42 that is awesome.

The leupold has the fixed 4" eye relief which is nice, the S&B's have the lonegest eye relief of the big 3 euro's @ 3.7"
Although I am not sure it is that good.
the S&B's and zeiss use etched reticles, whereas the swar only uses etched on the TDS and 1 other reticle. The leupold uses wire. I am not here to debate which is better, just pointing out the differences.

The euro's has first focal plane reticle placement so POI change with power change is 100% a non-issue. The leupold has rear focal plane placement and you probably wont have a problem with that either but it could happen.

personally, if i am spending that much, i would buy a S&B, but i bet that leupold is a great scope

The big point for the Leupold LPS is their super hard coatings. Took them a while to get them right but they do work.
What this means to the hunter is the optical quality of the scope won't degrade with ordinary care as you use the scope. In otherwords, when you clean a scope's lenses, you degrade, or wear away the coatings. Over a period of time, this subtracts from the scope's performance. With super hard coatings, this problem is greatly reduced. E.

I had a 1.5x6 LPS that didn't last 20 shots before you could hear parts rattling inside. Apparently they had to redesign the erector mechanism or at least that's what Leupy service said when they sent me a new scope. The later 1.5x6's might be perfectly good scopes but I don't think I could ever trust them. I think some of the reliability problems are why they discontinued the 1.5's. The other scopes in the line probably are much better in this regard.
I'm not saying that I wouldn't use an LPS, but they aren't equal to the best of the S&B/Swaro/Zeiss. I sold the new LPS Leupold sent me with a Swaro 1.5x6 which was a good bit better optically and hasn't broken yet.
The LPS's may be a better deal with the Euro being so high, but if you can afford them the Euro's are still the best scopes.................DJ

Correct statement, and a wise though "expensive" decision from Leupold.
Euro scope manufacturers since a long time apply enforced coatings.
Regards
RD

dj--

If you had problems with the 1.5-6x LPS, then you owned an LPS a long time before the new generation of LPS's, which are quite a jump upward.

The original LPS's were rushed to the market long before they were ready, per the instructions of a Leupold official who is no longer with the company, I gather because of his insistence to put the LPS on the market long before it was ready. The 1.5-6x was the worst of that original bunch. I know. I had one for a while myself.

The new LPS's are very fine scopes.

MD

Mule Deer,

Have one of the LPS 1.5 - 6 X scopes. Haven't used it much.

Should it be sent back to Leupold for examination and upgrading ?

Hammer

Thanks to all, nothing beats first hand experience.