8x56 scope performance

palo

Well-Known Member
Which 8x56 scope would perform the best at dawn and dusk.
Has anyone compared the likes of zeiss, swarovski, S&B, doctor or kahles and found one to be better ?
Is there any difference in performance between the german and hungarian S&B ?
 
the German and Hungarian build scopes use the same parts and glass etc. they are cheaper to buy because the cost to build them are cheaper in Hungary that's all.
so they offer the scopes for sale cheaper to the buyer. build quality is still the same as far as i can tell.


 
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I have had both S&B and Swaro and think that the Swaro has the edge optically, but not as well built as a S&B. There is very little in it to be frank.
 
Hi
i have a Docter 8x56 ir and in swapping rifles with a pro guide in the New Forest at dusk he commented that if any diference between them it was negligable

Recon theyre great value
 
I have the S&B and did an A-B comparison with the Swaro one evening as it was getting dark. There were a number of people involved and we were in agreement that there was nothing to chose between the two of them in terms of what you could actually see as the light went but the Swaro seemed to have a wider field of view and so the image "felt" a little nicer.

The Swaro is a lot lighter which has advantages but also leaves it feeling less solid and well built than the S&B but in truth if you were to drop it there probably isn't going to be much between them and you are depending more on the luck of the fall rather than construction.

It might be worth considering buying 2nd hand from a reliable source as that would save you a few quid but you'd still know you were running the best glass possible. I got my S&B 2nd hand some years back for about £250 and it is probably worth more than that now if I went to sell it so total cost of ownership has been low. That said if you want the confidence of a new purchase and maybe want to look at some of the "2nd tier" glass such as Doctor or similar then my experience has been they are very good glass indeed and there is often a sweet spot on the price/performance graph where spending a lot more money for the really big names gives you very little in return.

If you are going to spend big money on a new scope then take a look at the Nickel range. Tests I've seen indicate that they have the top light transmission of any scope and they do an 8X56. I've had a play with their 3-12X56 at last light and it is an amazing scope. They don't play the marketing game of the other big names but I would rate them on top when it comes to glass:

http://www.nickel-ag.com/


The German and Hungarian S&B scopes use exactly the same components and will have exactly the same performance. In fact there are some who say that the Hungarians should be better as it seems they undergo quality control on leaving Hungary and then go through it again in Germany before being sold so the chances of getting one with a fault are even lower than when buying a German model. No idea if that is true.
 
I have compared Swaro, Kahles, Zeiss, Docter, Nickel and S&B, in terms of gaining a few extra minutes at dusk there is nowt in it. Choice of reticle is probably going to influence how far into the darkness a scope is still usable. As the Hungarian assembled Schmidts and the Docter scopes are priced more competitively I reckon they win on points.
 
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Hungarian S&B 8x56

I have this scope and find it excellent. I bought it secondhand from york guns, apart from not having a box or instructions it was like new.
Mick
 
Hi Palo,

I've recently been umming and ahhing about scope choice and from reading a lot (and I mean A LOT) of reviews and gather technical data, I came to this conclusion:

Variable scope: Probably worth going with a big name (I'd say that would be: Swaro, S&B, Zeiss and Kahles. Didn't look at Nickel in my comparison) though I by no means write off Docter, Kaps and Meopta as bad scopes by any means.

Fixed: Probably not worth the money in going for a big name and you could probably get just as gooder performance out of a Docter/Kaps/Meopta and get some more stalking out of it.

If the night time boar bug seriously bites me, it might be a case of a 7x50 or a 8x56 Docter/Kaps with an IR second hand if I can (have a look at www.egun.de)

I've had a look through Pheasant Sniper's 8x56 Docter and it is very nice indeed.

Just my 2p.

ATB,

Scrummy
PS If you happen to be a client of a "Zeiss Pro Stalker" see what sort of deal they can cut you. Only way I could justify my Zeiss variable I can tell ya!
 
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