DEC. 2019:
I purchased this scope based on the recommendation from a family member to sit atop my CLR .300 WM. I was doubting the ability of my Nikon Monarch to hold zero and was in the market for a replacement.
The illuminated reticle was a major selling point and the price seemed good for what I thought was step up in scope class
. The BDC 2 layout was quite acceptable so ka-ching, and it showed up at my house before I returned from a hunting trip... that took some explaining to the better half.
AUG. 2020:
After mounting the scope solidly in the rings of my .300 WM making sure everything was tight and 242 used on the screws, across the street to the "range" I went. I set the ocular focus to suit my aging eyes. Initial siting-in at 50 yrds went off without a hitch to get it on paper within reasonable distance to the bull. The glass was clean and clear in the shade of the southern oak trees at 3-5X. I played with the red dot illumination settings a bit and headed to the good bench at 190 yrds. So far so good.
Sitting under an awning looking downrange at the target I began adjusting the zoom (power if you prefer). One of the first things I noticed was the narrow eye-box range. Some scopes have a distance range where you can +/- a bit and still get good focus without much parallax. As far as I could tell, the eye relief on this one was rather picky where you put your eye. And it was CLOSE to the eyepiece! This might prove painful... (and it did).
So there I am, sitting at the shooting bench with the Meopta max'd out at 10X trying to focus on the target. Something isn't right I said as the view looked out of focus. I adjusted the ocular focus but no, it was correct. I reduced the power to 7 or 8 and it was much clearer. I threw a round down range and the scope bumped my forehead. I was afraid of that... DOH! While looking through the scope I slowly adjusted the power to max and was dismayed. The view got closer/bigger like it was supposed to but the edges of the view were skewed as if the lens wasn't fully ground and polished at the factory. The ENTIRE field of view was a bit fuzzy. I reduced the power and focus came back. What good is a 10X scope that is only useful to 8X??
I continued shooting and after wasting too much good ammo I realized the scope based were never tightened and I had to completely re-install the scope and rings. Rookie mistake - I know.
I have to say I was NOT impressed with the glass of this scope! Back when I purchased the Nikon Monarch 2.5 - 12 in 2008 I compared it side by side outdoors to Leopold VX 1, 2, 3, and more. I also put it up against a few other scopes they had. There was no comparison in glass and focus. The Nikon blew away the comparably priced Loopys in full view clarity, focus, and light gathering. It wasn't until I got to the high priced fancy Loopys that they started to match this simple Nikon. This Meopta reminded me of those low-grade Loopys.
At this point I don't think the Meopta was worth what I paid but as I said, this is an INITIAL review. It's saving grace is the illuminated reticle.
I purchased this scope based on the recommendation from a family member to sit atop my CLR .300 WM. I was doubting the ability of my Nikon Monarch to hold zero and was in the market for a replacement.
The illuminated reticle was a major selling point and the price seemed good for what I thought was step up in scope class
. The BDC 2 layout was quite acceptable so ka-ching, and it showed up at my house before I returned from a hunting trip... that took some explaining to the better half.AUG. 2020:
After mounting the scope solidly in the rings of my .300 WM making sure everything was tight and 242 used on the screws, across the street to the "range" I went. I set the ocular focus to suit my aging eyes. Initial siting-in at 50 yrds went off without a hitch to get it on paper within reasonable distance to the bull. The glass was clean and clear in the shade of the southern oak trees at 3-5X. I played with the red dot illumination settings a bit and headed to the good bench at 190 yrds. So far so good.
Sitting under an awning looking downrange at the target I began adjusting the zoom (power if you prefer). One of the first things I noticed was the narrow eye-box range. Some scopes have a distance range where you can +/- a bit and still get good focus without much parallax. As far as I could tell, the eye relief on this one was rather picky where you put your eye. And it was CLOSE to the eyepiece! This might prove painful... (and it did
).So there I am, sitting at the shooting bench with the Meopta max'd out at 10X trying to focus on the target. Something isn't right I said as the view looked out of focus. I adjusted the ocular focus but no, it was correct. I reduced the power to 7 or 8 and it was much clearer. I threw a round down range and the scope bumped my forehead. I was afraid of that... DOH! While looking through the scope I slowly adjusted the power to max and was dismayed. The view got closer/bigger like it was supposed to but the edges of the view were skewed as if the lens wasn't fully ground and polished at the factory. The ENTIRE field of view was a bit fuzzy. I reduced the power and focus came back. What good is a 10X scope that is only useful to 8X??
I continued shooting and after wasting too much good ammo I realized the scope based were never tightened and I had to completely re-install the scope and rings. Rookie mistake - I know.
I have to say I was NOT impressed with the glass of this scope! Back when I purchased the Nikon Monarch 2.5 - 12 in 2008 I compared it side by side outdoors to Leopold VX 1, 2, 3, and more. I also put it up against a few other scopes they had. There was no comparison in glass and focus. The Nikon blew away the comparably priced Loopys in full view clarity, focus, and light gathering. It wasn't until I got to the high priced fancy Loopys that they started to match this simple Nikon. This Meopta reminded me of those low-grade Loopys.
At this point I don't think the Meopta was worth what I paid but as I said, this is an INITIAL review. It's saving grace is the illuminated reticle.
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