Well both of these scopes are on sale. 500 bucks for the conquest 2-10x42, and 350 bucks for the meopro 3-9x40.
Which scope is better? Thats as a hunting scope, on a typical bolt action rifle. Shots from 50 to 250 yards.
I do happen to see a lot of deer right as legal shooting light starts and ends. As well as when its almost too dark
For me to see.

I had and regret selling a meopta meopro 3.5-10x44. It was a crystal clear scope, easy to get behind.
I know that the conquest hd5 is made in Germany, and not by meopta anymore.
Any first hand experience is highly appreciated!

Meopta is a better glass/value IMO. That being said, look for some deals on Meopta Meostar 3-10x50. It will provide more light and I believe Doug has some good deals on those right now.

Always our pleasure to work with the members here

Conquest HD glass is better IMHO then Meopro glass. The Conquest HD is assembled not made in Germany.

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The Conquest HD5 was neither made nor assembled by Meopta at any point.

Like Oldelkhunter noted, the optical properties of the HD5 are better than that of the Meopro. The Meopro line more closely compares to the original Conquest series.

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Thank you guys, and doug I'll have to make a call to cameraland. I was meaning the older conquests were made by meopta.
I think I'm biting on the zeiss, always wanted to try them out.

They are a bright very nice scope and very underrated and 500 is a nice price.

The only problem I have had with the Conquest HD is in cold weather (below about 15 degrees) the power ring will get very stiff, when the temps get below o degrees you can not moved the power ring. My Conquest is currently at Zeiss getting some work done on it and I sent a note with it to have them check the power ring. Will see if it gets any help when I get it back.

Can the Conquest HD5 2-10 be retrofit with target turrets by either Zeiss or Kenton?

i have many zeiss conquests with kenton and zeiss target turrets , i would bet money either would put a turret on, but call them before you buy.

I hate to throw a wrench in your decision making but if i'm not mistaken the Leica ER-5 2-10X50 is on sale for $499 right now as well. I would definitely throw that scope into this conversation.

Randall

Yea...the ER5 2-10x50 is better than either of those two. Both the HD5 and MeoPro are very nice, but the Leica is a distinct step up. They were a good deal at full price of 999-1099, but at the current sale prices, they are a STEAL. Also, the #4-a reticle was redesigned for this series and is very bold, with the center wires measuring 0.5" at 10x/100 yards.

This is a low resolution and poor phone photo showing the Leica 4-a reticle. The view through the scope is MUCH better than this.

That picture highlights what I don't like about a lot of #4 style reticles or many Euro reticles in general: the opening between the thick parts is too wide.

That is a no brainer for sure.

Bobby, what's the latest on Leica warranty.

I've read some less than generous comments about that here on the Fire.

DF

An aquaintance bought an ER which had a fleck floating around, sent to Leica who had it for 6 months and were basically incommunicado during that period, had it not been for Neal and Doug at CL it might still be unresolved. He ended up getting a ER 5 replacement, he was offered an ERI but did not want the lit reticle. Shrugs Shoulders

In the past 18 months, Leica has worked hard to rectify any warranty woes -- and they admit they've had some situations in the past that never should have happened.

I personally know of two individuals who recently sent in older binoculars and were completely happy with the turnaround and outcome. I know that one is an infrequent poster here, but I'll see if he can chime in with particulars. The other is not a 24HR member.

That is not a #4 reticle. It is a 4-a, which -- as a rule -- has wider spacing between the heavier portions of the posts than a true #4. Some 4-a reticles at 10x are even wider than the Leica version. This one is only 36". I find anything wider than that counterproductive.

I'd have preferred a #4, but it is not offered. Nonetheless, this one works -- and works well.

Bobby,

The experience I spoke of above happened in the last 1 1/2 years. He was assured that Leica was going to improve their process. I would not have an issue buying one of their products.

Me, either. I find their glass exceptional, particularly in the ERi series.

Bobby,what height rings are you using with that setup?Thanks,Huntz

Bobby, how does the ER5 glass compare to a Zeiss Victory. I have a couple of them.

DF

Huntz-
Those are mediums. I use medium Warne rings with 50, 54 and 56mm on my Contenders.

DF-
I haven't spent enough time with the ER5 just yet to make a concrete statement, but I will say that the ERi 3-12x50 gives the Victory HT 3-12x56 a serious run for its money, and -- without spending time charting them under various atmospheric conditions -- most folks would not be able to tell a difference either way. The ERi is that good. In decent lighting conditions, the Leica produces a more vivid and contrasty image than the Zeiss. It's simply beautiful to look through -- and the same holds true for the ER5, even though its color rendition and contrast levels do vary somewhat from the ERi.

But I'll reserve further judgment on the ER5 till I've spent quite a few more hours with it. It's amazing how differently optics perform under varied conditions, and I won't venture a guess.

EDITED to add: A friend from Michigan (and forum member here) compared his ERi 3-12x50 side by side with a Victory HT 2.5-10x50 and noted that -- under the worst of lighting -- the Leica produced a slightly brighter and more appealing image, which is exactly what I'd expect considering how that same model did against the 3-12x56 HT.

Bobby, with the latest reports on Leica CS and the quality you describe and for the price Doug and the gang are posting, it would be hard not to go there for a premier glass. I enjoy your hog hunting posts. Your glass costs more than your guns, but why not. You can't hit what you can't see.

DF

Sorry guys, I really don't like 50mm scopes, prefer to stay under 40, and the zeiss was as big as I would ever go, no twisting turrets either.
I went with the Meopta, and also picked up two leupold
Vx2's for 190 bucks each. Got myself the 2-7x33 and 1-4x20.
If the Leica was a 40mm scope I would be all over it.

I checked out more info. The ER5 weighs over 20 oz if I was reading the metric to English conversion correctly.

That's getting a bit heavy for general use.

Bobby with his low light hog hunting, I can see how he needs all the light gathering he can get. And those T/C rifles he uses aren't that heavy.

DF

Weight is of no consequence to me since I can't get much farther than the yard anyway. I can't hunt per se and certainly can't get out there and stalk like I'd prefer. I just get to do a bit of sniping from near the house, but I've learned to enjoy that as well.