parallax question

[coldmaker]

i was wondering if parallax is dependant to scope quality on a certain mesure.
cause i have a burris fullfield 3-9x40, and at 500 yard there is about 10'' of parallax error. i mean that if i put the rifle on a solid rest and put the crosshair on the center of the target, by moving my head to the left and right
the croos hair will go from 5'' to the left to 5'' to the right of center of the target. same thing up and down.
so i bought a nikon 4-16 with side focus to solve that. but more often than not i forget to adjust it

now i'm about to buy a swarovski. i hesitate between the 4-12x50 z3 and the 3.5-18x44 z5.
i don't plan on shooting farther than 500 yard while hunting. but have fun trying milk jugs at 600 from time to time.
so 4-12 would be enough magnification for me, but will it have the same amount of parallax as the burris, or even worse since it's a 12x instead of 9x?
if so maybe i should go with the z5 to have the side parallax adjustment?

thanks

 

[TDC]

To the best of my knowledge the make/quality of the optic plays a significant role in just how much visible parallax is present. The number of elements/lenses also plays a part from what I'm told. In all honesty, my experience has been that better brands(usually more expensive) tend to have less noticeable parallax than cheaper brands. Side focus aids in reducing it even further which is vastly more important at longer ranges.

TDC

 

[caustic]

the more magnification the more parallax is induced

 

[BlazinDayz]

Isn't parallax set for 200 yards on most hunting rifles? If your spending that much $, I'd go for the side adjust.

 

[plainSight Solutions]

Swarovski scopes, like most, are parallax corrected at 100 meters / 109 yards.

Quality of manufacture has a direct impact on the degree and nature of parallax that a given scope will have.

If a reticle is not precisely placed the correct distance from the objective and/or if there is ANY play in the reticle, the amount of parallax encountered will be exaggerated and/or variable. Likewise, the quality of the objective optical system (or lack thereof) is a critical factor in the extent and nature of the parallax.

In a scope with an inferior objective system, where optical abberrations have not been eliminated, you will encounter vertical parallax as well as horizontal (i.e try moving your head up and down as well as side to side). In a quality scope, you should not encounter vertical parallax. In conjunction, in a quality scope, the degrees of parallax encountered at various magnification ranges is a known variable and can therefore be addressed.

If you plan on shooting at further distances, the Z5 3.5-18 is the best choice. In fact, that scope is the most popular and top performing scope in the Swarovski line-up, or any manufacturers' line-up (in my opinion).

I have the best prices in Canada on Swarovski products and would be happy to give you a quote on both if you are interested.