Schimdt and Bender compared to Nightforce.

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Below are some quick photos comparing the S&B 5-25x56 and the Nightforce NXS 5.5-22x56 (used).

For those looking for a visual comparison on the general size etc. Hope this helps.

Top is the Nightforce - 30mm main tube.
Bottom is the S&B - 34mm main tube.


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Hi Jamie

Yes, it makes the Nightforce look small, but then the 34mm tube will do that. IOR is likely very similar to the S&B. I'll have to post the weight when I have some time. Could be wrong though. It is one level bigger.


Joe
 
As a matter of fact I did. I am hoping to spend some more time behind them and have some questions for S&B on their scope.

I am not ready to say anything conclusive in my little comparison and keep in mind this is one scope against another and I am not convinced to say one line is optically better then the other.... but I will say that I wish those who feel one is superior to the other would post the specifics and conditions of their test. Stay tuned...
 
Jamie said:
and I thought NightForce was big1!!! what does the S&B weigh??
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Jamie, here are the specs on the S&B:


Construction Aluminum tube, 34mm without rail Hard anodized black surface.

Reticle in second focal plane.

Optical data Magnification: 5 - 25x Field of view @ 100m: 5.3m - 1.5m Exit pupil: 10.95mm - 2.28mm Eye relief: min 85mm Twilight factor: 14.1 - 37.4 Light transmission: min 90% day & night Diopter setting: +2 to -3

Elevation adjustment) Elevation increments: 0.1Mrad Elevation range: 0 - 26 Mrad
Windage adjustment Windage increments: 0.1Mrad per click Windage range: ±6 Mrad General data Parallax adjustable from 50m to infinity

Reticle illumination: Settings 1-11: For use in low light conditions Battery: CR2032, 100+ hour life. Illumination is switched off automatically after six hours to conserve battery

Weight: 1080g

Waterproof to 3m, 300 mbar inner pressure

Reticles P3, P4, P4 Fine or Gen 2™

You can do the conversion to Imperial.........;)

SKBY.
 
Skullboy here is a real durabilty test Swing that S&B as a hammer and pound a nail thru a 2x4 the US optics does it and with zero impact shift when remounted
 
Savage said:
Skullboy here is a real durabilty test Swing that S&B as a hammer and pound a nail thru a 2x4 the US optics does it and with zero impact shift when remounted
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Sorry, no thx. Maybe if I had a spare S&B to sacrifice for that test.........:eek:

SKBY.
 
Skullboy said:
Sorry, no thx. Maybe if I had a spare S&B to sacrifice for that test.........:eek:

SKBY.
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LOL I cant blame you it is a rather extreme test of abuse for a rifle scope but it is good to know that you can beat your enemy to death with your scope and it will still work :D
 
Cost of the units vary of course but look at about 1.5-1.75x the cost of a Nightforce.

The P4 fine reticle developed by John Hipwell seems very nice. Despite being fist focal plane, the reticle thickness gives you the impression you are using a second focal plane reticle (Leupold).

As far as building a super tough scope, I am confident that Nightforce could easily do this if they wanted to. As you can imagine, not too many people are interested in buying scopes over $2K unless they have a specific application the scope meets.
 
Savage said:
Skullboy here is a real durabilty test Swing that S&B as a hammer and pound a nail thru a 2x4 the US optics does it and with zero impact shift when remounted
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Leave that sort of thing up to the manufacturer to prove!

Although they claim it can do it without problems, I would not hammer anything mith my USO it will be perfect right were it is supposed to be when the rifle is complete, the quality ad durability is already proven as is the case with S&B.
 
well having looked through S&B, Nightforce, Leupold, IOR, USO, etc etc etc, my opinion is that the S&B is the clearest and nicest of them all. I liked it enough to buy a 5-25x recently, and love the scope. Especially the extras that I got free with it (two ink dots on the glass, overspray I guess from marking the reticle, a new one is on the way). I got the P4 Fine, and didn't know that John had anything to do with that? I know some people on other forums are saying that the center bit of the fine reticle is the same thickness as the regular P4, well mine isn't. it's thinner. perhaps when lit up it's the same thickness, but not when it's not lit.
 
Give John a ring @ Wolverine and he can fill you in first hand.

Having the two scopes side by side under varying conditions really enables one to see which one appears brighter or resolves better or not. Still subjective but there is nothing like a side by side comparison in varying conditions.

To get a good comparision it is essential that scopes being compared or tested be done so under the same conditions, same powers and optimally tuned for the observer and in the same viewing. Ideally the testing conditions should be varied as well. Overcast, clear bright sunny day, early morning/late evening and even evening darkness. Tools like Optical charts help. Simply having used them at different times and using memory to help gauge them is by far the worst thing a person can do in evaluating them.

These kinds of tests are time consuming but can yield interesting results.

I feel it is inappropriate to broad brush a line of scopes by testing one sample, but time and resources often pressure us to do so. Hopefully when the broad brushing is done, it is done on comparable models.

With some of these high end scopes a cash difference of $1000-1500 is hard to see optically if at all. Hopefully then the features of the scope offer justifications for the extra expense. Once you are into the high scopes, I feel the features often dictate the value to the user.
 
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Slavex said:
well having looked through S&B, Nightforce, Leupold, IOR, USO, etc etc etc,
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Same here. I have shot with Leupold MK4, USO, Nightforce, IOR Valdada, and High end B&L.

As far as my eyes can tell, the S&B is brighter & clearer then the Mark 4 series and the IOR line.

I would say maybe a tad brighter/clearer the Nightforce and on par with USO & the old B&L Tactical.

What people forget when judging optics is that everyone's eyes are different ...........so results may vary.;)

In the long run you can't go wrong with any of the top line optics on the market today.People have to remember that no matter who the manufacturer is or how good they are, there can be a lemon slip through from time to time.

SKBY.
 
Skullboy said:
People have to remember that no matter who the manufacturer is or how good they are, there can be a lemon slip through from time to time.

SKBY.
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Ed very true. The problem we have is when spending large sums of money we inherently assume they should be "problem/defect" free.

I wish I had my USOPTICS here to compare but unfortunately it was short lived and wasn't compared to S&B. Its power range was also limited to a published 18x.

Although only 3x difference at the top end between the S&B 5-25x56 and Nightforce 5.5-22x56, I wish Nightforce had the extra magnification.
 
well my S&B isn't defect free, the dots don't affect the use of the scope though, and both Ed Begg (dealer I bought it from), Wolverine, and S&B have treated me excellent all the way through the discovery of the blemishes. It's my standard luck really. I have a long list of things that have gone wrong buying guns and gun related stuff. If I believed in Karma, I'd be a very worried person right now........
I have had the opportunity to test all the scopes I mentioned, and more, at the same time, under the same conditions, be it bright out, raining, snow, or whatnot. I used to have a hardon for USO, till I got to play with some, and then found I didn't like them at all. I've always liked MKIV's from Loopy, but my 16x was limiting me at competitions that required different distances and such. Through all the chances I've had, the S&B line have always impressed the hell out of me, true they are a ton more money, but in the end, I knew that I'd regret not buying one if I bought something else, so I bought one. I don't expect to ever replace it, unless it gets broken somehow (that is once the replacement gets here).
as Ed says, different eyes get different results, I know people that think their Tasco Super Snipers are clearer and brighter than my S&B.
 
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