Leupold VX 2 3-9x40 or Meopta Meopro 3-9x42

teekoh

teekoh

New member
Rating - 100%
4   0   0
Location
BC
I'm trying to decide between the updated Leupold VX-2 3-9 x 40 or a Meopta Meopro 3-9 x 42. Its going to go on my Model 70 .270 for deer half the time and target shooting the other half. I've heard great things about the updated VX-2s supposedly they are equal to the older VX-III. I've found a good deal for them for $320 and minus another $50 for the current rebate.

The Meopta Meopro made in the Czech Republic seem to have favourable reviews as well. Some say it's equal to the old Nikon Conquests. They retail for $449 for the Z plex & #4 reticle and $499 for the BDC. I think the BDC is pretty useful at the range especially since they also have a great Ballistics calculator on the Meopta website to fine tune the hash marks based on specific loads. Not sure if the BDC is really useful for hunting situations but for another $50 might be worthwhile.

What would you guys go with? I know Leupold has a great reputation for quick turnarounds if a warrantee issue arises, but I'm unsure of Meopta's customer service reputation in Canada.

Also another concern would be that the Meopta might need high rings due to its larger eyepiece.

When it comes down to it is the Meopta worth the $200 premium over the VX-2?
 
the meopta, the glass is incredibly clear for the price, and where it really makes a difference is when looking through the trees, or into a tree line, and at low light. on a clear day it will be hard to tell the difference. The best way to see just how good the glass is, is to find a large tree off in the distance and look at the detail in the bark on the trunk. this will really give you an idea how much better the meopta glass is than the leupold I see someone mentioned Vortex….the Vortex glass does not compare to the meopta. Everything else on the scope might, but the glass doesn't. Meopta glass really does compare favourably to swarovski, its THAT good.
 
dizzy said:
the meopta, the glass is incredibly clear for the price, and where it really makes a difference is when looking through the trees, or into a tree line, and at low light. on a clear day it will be hard to tell the difference. The best way to see just how good the glass is, is to find a large tree off in the distance and look at the detail in the bark on the trunk. this will really give you an idea how much better the meopta glass is than the leupold I see someone mentioned Vortex….the Vortex glass does not compare to the meopta. Everything else on the scope might, but the glass doesn't. Meopta glass really does compare favourably to swarovski, its THAT good.
Click to expand...

Hey Dizzy thanks for your reply. What are your thoughts on Meopta's warrantee/customer service? Is it easy to get things repaired/replaced in Canada?
 
From Meopta's web site:
All Meopta sports optics products sold within the USA and Canada are covered under the warranty provided by Meopta U.S.A., Inc. Therefore, with any and all warranty and post-warranty claims please contact directly the customer service department at:

Meopta U.S.A. Inc. - 50 Davis Drive - Hauppage, New York, 11788 - U.S.A.
Tel: 800-828-8928; email: customerservice @ meopta.com
Click to expand...

I knew this because two guys at work had their Meopta scopes break and they had to go back to the USA.

I would go for the Leupold, a very good quality scope with the best warranty in the business and a repair depot in Okotoks, Alberta. If you needed repairs their return time is very fast compared to all others, I sent a scope to them to have the reticle changed and it was less than two weeks turn around including the time from when I mailed it.
 
For warranty issues all the scopes will be sent back to Canadian Outdoor Distributing in Cobourg Ontario. More than likely the scope will be replaced fairly fast.

www.canodi.ca

Silverback, how long ago was that you had to send your scopes to the US? The previous distributor did not do to good for the brand.
 
gaetoune said:
The previous distributor did not do to good for the brand.
Click to expand...

:agree:

Look through them, nice sharp image... but a friend had one fog-up, I think it took close to a year for the issue to be resolved.

-

The only issue I've ever had with a Leupold scope was with a late-70's handgun scope. After god only knows how many full loads of 357 and 44, something rattled loose... from the time I called Leupold to inquirer about possibility to have it repaired and it being returned: 2.5 weeks.

I am sure there are better/cheaper scopes out there. But I'm happy with the Leupold price/quality ratio, so that's what I buy.
 
I think the Distributor is just that though. They distribute I don't think they would do the repair themselves? I guess the question that I'm trying to answer is it worth taking a gamble on Meopta for supposedly better glass but at a $200 premium and unknown reliability both customer service and the scope itself?

Would the Leupold VX-2 be good "enough"? Am I going to see $200 worth of improvement if I went with Meopta?
 
Hard to beat the tried and true.
Changing over my scope line wee bit at a time to Leupolds.
Can't say anything for Meeowpta with now s'periance with them.
The warranty on Leupolds is not to be rekond with and is secondary to none.
 
If you get a chance at looking through a Meopta at dawn you will be sold. As mentionned before they are comparable to swarowski at a better price. As far as reliability you can check some european forum and read on them. They have been manufacturing scopes for over 80 yrs now.
 
i started off with a leupold on my 223 BA and when a metopa came up i snacthed it.
and boy is there a difference.
the scope is still on the rifle after 10 years and i have just bought another for my other 223 SA.
i havent had any problems with either scope,so unaware of how their warranty works.

i wouldnt hesistate for one moment to buy another.

your choice mate
 
gaetoune said:
If you get a chance at looking through a Meopta at dawn you will be sold. As mentionned before they are comparable to swarowski at a better price. As far as reliability you can check some european forum and read on them. They have been manufacturing scopes for over 80 yrs now.
Click to expand...

I got a chance today to look through the Meopta Meopro 3-9x42, Leupold VX-2 3-9x40, and Zeiss Terra 3x 3-9x42. Unfortunately it wasn't at down but in broad daylight. I honestly had a hard time differentiating between the three and I think I will take your advice and go to the store again when its darker out. What stood out to me however were the difference in reticles.

I found the Leupold reticle to be quite thin and was washed out when looking at a bright area.

The Meopta I looked through was the BDC reticle and also found its hash marks to be thin and difficult to see when looking at a bright area.

The Zeiss Z-Plex had the best reticle in my opinion with the thicker posts. I think the sweet spot would be finding the Meopta Meopro with the Z-plex because I've heard a lot of negative reviews on the quality of the Zeiss terra line. Reviewers mention poor edge clarity and light transmission. However the sales guy said he hasn't had any customers return theirs yet.

I'll love to hear some more thoughts from others with experience with these scopes or could even recommend others.

Cheers,
 
teekoh said:
I got a chance today to look through the Meopta Meopro 3-9x42, Leupold VX-2 3-9x40, and Zeiss Terra 3x 3-9x42. Unfortunately it wasn't at down but in broad daylight. I honestly had a hard time differentiating between the three and I think I will take your advice and go to the store again when its darker out. What stood out to me however were the difference in reticles.

I found the Leupold reticle to be quite thin and was washed out when looking at a bright area.

The Meopta I looked through was the BDC reticle and also found its hash marks to be thin and difficult to see when looking at a bright area.

The Zeiss Z-Plex had the best reticle in my opinion with the thicker posts. I think the sweet spot would be finding the Meopta Meopro with the Z-plex because I've heard a lot of negative reviews on the quality of the Zeiss terra line. Reviewers mention poor edge clarity and light transmission. However the sales guy said he hasn't had any customers return theirs yet.

I'll love to hear some more thoughts from others with experience with these scopes or could even recommend others.

Cheers,
Click to expand...
This is a review of the Zeiss Terra 3x 3-9x42 which unfortunately is not as good a scope as the Zeiss Conquest which it replaced. I think that is why the Conquests tend to sell pretty quick when they come up on CGN

http://opticsthoughts.com/?page_id=1324

This site has other good reviews of cheaper scopes, such as the Vortex Diamondback

http://http://opticsthoughts.com/?page_id=77
 
Last edited:
Thanks Rhino & gaetoune those are good reviews on the Meopta. I was checking out their North American warranty. Looks like they have a lifetime transferrable warranty just like many of the other main brands like Leupold and Vortex but it doesn't seem to be as comprehensive/no questions asked replacement ala Vortex:

"This warranty shall cover only defects arising under normal use. Meopta U.S.A., Inc. assumes no responsibility whatsoever for malfunctions, failures or defects resulting from misuse, abuse, neglect, alteration, modification, acts of God or repairs by any entity other than a Meopta Authorized Service Center."

And it seems to take longer than others to turnaround a warranty claim "Meopta shall, within 90 days of receipt and at its option, repair or replace the defective product."

Hmm...
 
You will notice all scope of high quality only offer Normal use defect replacement.

Look at it this way, if a scope company can afford to replace a scope that you deliberately rolled over with your truck to test their warranty where are they cutting? Definately not on advertising because that how they attract you to buy their scope. So they are definately cutting on quality. The way I see this if they sell you a $600 scope and they have a bullet proof warranty like that, they already forcasting 2-3 replacement. So your $600 scope should cost you $200 and you are paying $400 in Warranty replacement.

In the case of high quality optics they warranty their product should not fail under normal use. They will put high quality component in the products to ensure this. Most of the time this is what kills big name in optics, they have some of the best products but lack in Marketing.

As far as Canadian Warranty on Meopta I suggest you contact Canadian Outdoor Distributing. Since they took over the brand things have changed considerably, they do not wait 90 days for replacement I am pretty sure. www.canodi.ca
 
gaetoune said:
You will notice all scope of high quality only offer Normal use defect replacement.

Look at it this way, if a scope company can afford to replace a scope that you deliberately rolled over with your truck to test their warranty where are they cutting? Definately not on advertising because that how they attract you to buy their scope. So they are definately cutting on quality. The way I see this if they sell you a $600 scope and they have a bullet proof warranty like that, they already forcasting 2-3 replacement. So your $600 scope should cost you $200 and you are paying $400 in Warranty replacement.

In the case of high quality optics they warranty their product should not fail under normal use. They will put high quality component in the products to ensure this. Most of the time this is what kills big name in optics, they have some of the best products but lack in Marketing.

As far as Canadian Warranty on Meopta I suggest you contact Canadian Outdoor Distributing. Since they took over the brand things have changed considerably, they do not wait 90 days for replacement I am pretty sure. www.canodi.ca
Click to expand...

Thanks gaetoune! A lot of well said points. Makes you wonder what a Vortex scope is actually worth. I've contacted Canadian Outdoor Distributing and will post their response when/if I hear back from them.
 
I own a Meopta 3-9x42 and it's amazing.
It's the Cabelas Euro model and it costs the same as a Meopro 3-9x42 at the local store.
The next one will be a Meopta too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom