BUYER BEWARE! & Scopes on the lower end $

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JM Browning

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Since most of the threads dealing with this seem to be old. So I am going to put in my $.02. I own nothing but Nikon scopes Monarch to .22 Prostaff. I've paid from $150-550 for them and am very satisfied. It would be nice to own a Steiner or Carl Zeiss for the glass quality, I'd rather sink my spare change into firearms. BTW do own a Steiner spotting scope c.1940s.
Purchased a Carl Gustaf Sauer on Gun Broke it included a scope, it worked, but Tasco didn't do it for me. Nikon also has a website that will help with shooting dynamics You can put in all the variables. THE BIG STORY IN REGARDS To THIS. I SHOPPED EBAY THEY WERE HIGHER THAN A LOT. I GOT INVOlVED IN AN AUCTION WHICH WOULD HAVE SAVED A LITTLE. AFTER 2 RAISES I WENT BACK TO THE WIDEST RIVER, CHEAPER BUT THEY'VE BEEN CHARGING TAX. AMAZ. DOES HAVE OPTIONS OF BUYING ELSEWHERE. I DID SAME PRICE NO TAX. 2 DAY DELIVERY, HAD THE SAME SITUATION WiTH CAMERA LENS'. I WONDER IF EBAY SELLERS RAISE THEIR OWN BID ONE WAY OR ANOTHER
 
I'm looking at getting a Nikon Prostaff 5 , was going to pick one up next trip through Billings MT at Cabela's , (no sales tax in MT) , just found one on MidwayUSA for $50 less . with free shipping ,

I own mostly Nikon's , (5 of them) but my 7mm-08 has a $50 Simmons on it that is almost as bright as my $900.Shepherd V-1 , sometimes you can get lucky with the cheep stuff


just checked E-bay , all the Nikon Prostaff 5's are higher on there than on Midway .





.
 
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As someone who frequents auctions sites, you just have to be patient to get a bargain. Obscure items often sell cheap along with items where the seller does not know what they are selling (thus inaccurate description). Sometimes, you can get a bargain on a buy it now if you catch it when it is freshly posted but you have to be quick about it.

Those who overbid are generally in a hurry, don't bother to shop for alternatives at estores or bricks and mortar retailers, or are clueless. I have seen the same behaviors at in person auctions. You can get a bargain but you may risk getting took too so I am wary about any big bucks item such as scopes via fleabay or brokegun. I set a price below what I can get via other sources and bid it. If it is a relatively scarce item, then I set a bidding budget for that item.

It is possible that in some cases you might get a shill bidding but given that those websites would get a commission for a fake sale, my guess is that it is minimal on the lower priced stuff. Another auction sight that is loosely affiliated with a certain national gun owners group has a number of such complaints online--I haven't used them since they changed their name so have no recent experience. Simply passing on what others have posted. Haven't ever bought on the guns intl website so no experience there.
 
Never forget to go to Gunbroker, type in your item description in the search engine, flip the prices to line them up and then go down the list until you find the least expensive ( price plus shipping ) and then compare that to Ebay, Midway, SWFA, etc and you'll be assured you have covered the bases of comparison shopping. I am always impressed with TheTinStarShootingRange in Weatherford, OK and their prices. Just my 0.02, TC
 
Get on the mailing lists of the big internet sellers, from time to time they have discounts on certain items and occasionally on everything on the site. Check the demos too.

I looked at a scope today at the local Gander Mountain, it was $20 cheaper than any of the internet sellers' list prices. Never know I guess.
 
rule of thumb.......stop buying cheap scopes!!!! Just save your money and wait until you have accumulated enough to buy good optics. I cheaped-out and bought crap in the past and ended up throwing said crap in the dumpster. Now I save money until I have enough to buy better equipment. Takes longer, but is worth it.
 
Hammer059 said:
A better solution to avoid all this?

Man up and stop using scopes. Learn to walk without a crutch. You'll find it's more rewarding.
Click to expand...
What utter, useless nonsense.
 
HexHead said:
It's all relative. Compared to the higher end Leupolds or Zeiss, they are.
Click to expand...
I'm no scope expert by far but could you elaborate on this? I've looked through some low price junk (mostly in the sub $100 range) and the "junk" was obvious but when looking through lower end Leupold or Nikon compared to higher end Leupold or Zeiss it doesn't look like you're getting a lot more for your money. Other than being able to say "yep, that's a $1000+ scope there", what does the extra money get you? Marketing hype?
All of the above are %95 light transmission.
 
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JM Browning said:
Since most of the threads dealing with this seem to be old. So I am going to put in my $.02. I own nothing but Nikon scopes Monarch to .22 Prostaff. I've paid from $150-550 for them and am very satisfied. It would be nice to own a Steiner or Carl Zeiss for the glass quality, I'd rather sink my spare change into firearms. BTW do own a Steiner spotting scope c.1940s.
Purchased a Carl Gustaf Sauer on Gun Broke it included a scope, it worked, but Tasco didn't do it for me. Nikon also has a website that will help with shooting dynamics You can put in all the variables. THE BIG STORY IN REGARDS To THIS. I SHOPPED EBAY THEY WERE HIGHER THAN A LOT. I GOT INVOlVED IN AN AUCTION WHICH WOULD HAVE SAVED A LITTLE. AFTER 2 RAISES I WENT BACK TO THE WIDEST RIVER, CHEAPER BUT THEY'VE BEEN CHARGING TAX. AMAZ. DOES HAVE OPTIONS OF BUYING ELSEWHERE. I DID SAME PRICE NO TAX. 2 DAY DELIVERY, HAD THE SAME SITUATION WiTH CAMERA LENS'. I WONDER IF EBAY SELLERS RAISE THEIR OWN BID ONE WAY OR ANOTHER
Click to expand...

So the moral of this story appears to be Buyer Beware?

A better solution to avoid all this?

Man up and stop using scopes. Learn to walk without a crutch. You'll find it's more rewarding.
Click to expand...

Hard to find advise worse than this.
 
Hammer059 said:
A better solution to avoid all this?

Man up and stop using scopes. Learn to walk without a crutch. You'll find it's more rewarding.
Click to expand...
Man up? Really?

Everyone on THR is now dumber for having read this.

Calling Nikon cheap is also nonsense.
Click to expand...

IMO the bottom end ones made in the Phillipines aren't very good. Optically they look fine but mechanically I haven't had good luck with them.
 
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There's a fair bit of shill bidding in online auctions, but if you know what to look for you can usually detect it. Normally it's 1 or 2 accounts bidding repeatedly in a short and obviously-planned spree to drive up the price. I've reported it when I've caught it. Not sure if any have been banned, but it's best to do your part.
 
Fatdaddy said:
I'm no scope expert by far but could you elaborate on this? I've looked through some low price junk (mostly in the sub $100 range) and the "junk" was obvious but when looking through lower end Leupold or Nikon compared to higher end Leupold or Zeiss it doesn't look like you're getting a lot more for your money. Other than being able to say "yep, that's a $1000+ scope there", what does the extra money get you? Marketing hype?
All of the above are %95 light transmission.
Click to expand...

At one time I had pretty much the same opinion just looking at various scopes at stores. All the mid priced stuff looks decent until you compare them side by side with high end glass. My cheapest scope is a Bushnell Elite Tactical and it looks very clear, that is until I use my Steiner. Once I go back to the Bushnell from the Steiner I can see a difference. The Steiner definitely is better in low light and resolves better at distance. I can see details at 1000 yards with a S&B or Steiner that I definitely can't pick up with a cheaper scope. They also tend to track much better than the cheaper stuff as well. When I dial 10.6 mils for my hold I trust it to be right on and go right back to zero when i dial down. The reticle options are also better with high end stuff. Most of us don't dial wind as it changes too much and is just added seconds on the clock so my .2 mil hashes on my reticle allow me to break down wind holds for ultra precise shots.

Does everyone need a high end scope? No. But those of us who shoot long range practical/tactical competition and spend time shooting past 1k on a regular basis the high end glass is worth it.
 
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Just my 2 cents but, if you can deal with fixed magnification you can generally get a lot of glass for your money.

Brand-wise, I've had excellent results with Nikon, SWFA and Vortex. I have yet to feel the need to spend over $1k on a scope, mostly because I have no way to reach out past 2-300 yards.
 
Nikon's are pretty cheap optics when you look at the big picture of rifle optics. They are an OK hunting scope,but there are many other brands that will leave them in the dust for not too much more coin.
In my opinion,if a scope is under $500,it's a low end optic,and usually performs as one. I'm not rich by any means,but I use my optics a lot,and expect them to work without issues. I've rarely ever found that in an under $500 scope.
 
I think going over the $4-500 range for a hunting scope is a case of rapidly diminishing returns, unless you're hunting very long range, in very low light conditions, or doing a lot of turret-twisting. I cannot tolerate a scope that feels like it is sucking my eyeball out though, there is a certain level of optic quality that must be there for it to be usable.
 
Again, I have Swarovski and Nikon Monarch. The Monarch isn't a low-quality scope. I know by personal, first-hand experience as an owner. I also have two Burris FFII's and those aren't bad, either.

In Binoculars, Monarch 7's rank as well as some of the very best. Nikon knows how to make good glass.
 
For my use which is mostly hunting and some fairly regular shooting session at ranges less than 300 yards it's hard for me to justify a $500+ scope. The most expensive scope I have is a Burris MTAC 4.5x14x42. It does everything and more than I'll ever need from a scope. When a scope starts getting upwards of $500 I start thinking new gun instead of new scope.

What was this thread about? Oh yeah, don't get caught up in a bidding war on ebay or gunbroker.....(I think) :)
 
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I'm right along with you Fatdaddy, If I start thinking $500 scopes when I'm seldom shooting over 300 yards I too think new gun instead. For someone to say that scopes under $500 are "low end" optics definitely hasn't used a Vortex scopes.
 
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