noob_shooter
member
- Joined
- Feb 8, 2009
- Messages
- 348
are they God's gift or something?
why are Swarovski Riflescopes so expensive?
- Thread starter noob_shooter
- Start date
- Status
R.W.Dale
Member
Why is a Rolls Royce Flying Spur so expensive?
Because they're made from more expensive parts, materials and technology put together by more expensive labor and or machines.
Same thing with Swarovski
Because they're made from more expensive parts, materials and technology put together by more expensive labor and or machines.
Same thing with Swarovski
Uncle Mike
Member
....as a matter of fact.....
Two answers:
1. Look through one.
2. The law of diminishing marginal rate of return. The closer you get to the ideal, the more expensive each improvement costs -- because the manufacturer has already imrpoved whatever can be done for a low price, so the only things left are the expensive ones.
1. Look through one.
2. The law of diminishing marginal rate of return. The closer you get to the ideal, the more expensive each improvement costs -- because the manufacturer has already imrpoved whatever can be done for a low price, so the only things left are the expensive ones.
SpeedAKL
Member
They use very high-quality glass and as a result provide a more clear view than a lower-quality optic. In addition, the parts and workmanship are all very high quality and thus they will consistently hold their zero and last a very long time.
Austrians don't like to work. We like to talk about pseudointellectual BS, drink coffee and beer, eat pastries and chocolate, and listen to music. The coffee house as we now know it was invented in Vienna.
So, if you want some Austrians to get off their asses and build you a scope (not easy), the only way they're gonna do that is if you pay them a lot of money.
So, if you want some Austrians to get off their asses and build you a scope (not easy), the only way they're gonna do that is if you pay them a lot of money.
Uncle Mike
Member
oh yea.... sounds like my kind of country... I'm gonna move there one day!
I recently purchased a swarovski 3-18x50 with a ballistic reticle and its the best scope I have looked through. It is expensive, but less than a shmidt and bender with more magnification than any quality scope on the market, or at least that I could find.
noob_shooter
member
- Joined
- Feb 8, 2009
- Messages
- 348
is it really necessary?
Silverado6x6
Member
- Joined
- Mar 23, 2009
- Messages
- 195
I expect the scopes on my guns to at the least be equal in quality and price to the total value of my firearm.
Too many people think the scope can be bought cheap, you get what you pay for, its just the sign of the times, everyone thinks that God Gave us China for Affordable Goods.
Forget cheap Chinese crap, you want quality you pay for it.
You want a fake Rolls Royce? already being sold in China, impress your friends with the ultimate "smug smug" impress your fellow shooters at the gun range show up with a scope that costs more than the gun.
Too many people think the scope can be bought cheap, you get what you pay for, its just the sign of the times, everyone thinks that God Gave us China for Affordable Goods.
Forget cheap Chinese crap, you want quality you pay for it.
You want a fake Rolls Royce? already being sold in China, impress your friends with the ultimate "smug smug" impress your fellow shooters at the gun range show up with a scope that costs more than the gun.
SodiumBenzoate
Member
18x magnification? And I thought 10x was bordering on excessive...
maskedman504
Member
Caws dey make dem dere outta dem cristals. 
noob_shooter
member
- Joined
- Feb 8, 2009
- Messages
- 348
i'm sure they are hella good, but $2000 on a scope? damn... maybe it's just me but i can't justify spending the same amount of $$ as the cost of my rifle for a scope..
scythefwd
Member
noob_shooter
Your right, you probably can't. If your name is accurate, then you don't need that level of quality yet. Then again, most people out in the woods don't need that level of quality either. A 2-3 MOA gun, and a rugged but mid-range scope is more than sufficient. A 2k scope is for those who can shoot more accurately than a 1k scope can see. They need the extra clarity, and the magnifications.
Then again, I know people who regularly shoot at 1k Meters with nothing better than a Leopuld Mark IV. That's "only" a 1500 dollar scope.
I know a 600 dollar scope will give me the same groups that a 2k dollar scope will, but I am not exacly a .25 moa shooter either.
Your right, you probably can't. If your name is accurate, then you don't need that level of quality yet. Then again, most people out in the woods don't need that level of quality either. A 2-3 MOA gun, and a rugged but mid-range scope is more than sufficient. A 2k scope is for those who can shoot more accurately than a 1k scope can see. They need the extra clarity, and the magnifications.
Then again, I know people who regularly shoot at 1k Meters with nothing better than a Leopuld Mark IV. That's "only" a 1500 dollar scope.
I know a 600 dollar scope will give me the same groups that a 2k dollar scope will, but I am not exacly a .25 moa shooter either.
noob_shooter
member
- Joined
- Feb 8, 2009
- Messages
- 348
yeah i suppose because i'm still a noob.. one day if i ever became a 1000yd shooter, i might wanna grab one..
German glass simple. When light is limited the best scopes reveal themselves. I use Leupold and I can't complain. I've made shots early and late when light is limited and I can see objects my buddies couldn't with their Nikons. For target I wouldn't even touch a Swarovski. Nightforce is the way to go. Remember though the differences aren't all that different in the big scheme of things.
blackops hit on it... early and late.
The better the glass, the better the light transmission. The better the light transmission, the more likely you can pick up definition in the shadows.
In other words you can determine shapes in the shadows, such as that trophy buck youv'e spent countless hours over the last 3 years hunting.
You know, the one that only shows himself the last 5 seconds of legal shooting time.
That's about the best way I can describe it as far as are they worth the cost.
The better the glass, the better the light transmission. The better the light transmission, the more likely you can pick up definition in the shadows.
In other words you can determine shapes in the shadows, such as that trophy buck youv'e spent countless hours over the last 3 years hunting.
You know, the one that only shows himself the last 5 seconds of legal shooting time.
That's about the best way I can describe it as far as are they worth the cost.
Swarovski Optik is Austrian not German. Zeiss & Schmidt und Bender are German.
quality comes at a price with everything in life, the glass used, the cutting, the coatings on the glass etc.
is it worth it to you ? Perhaps not but it is worth it to many others who want the best
you can hunt at night in Germany but can't use NV, hence the need for scopes that maximise light transmission with the light available from the moon.
if you get the opportunity take a swaro/zeiss/S&b out against bushnell/leupold/nightforce after sunset - you'll see the difference immediately.
quality comes at a price with everything in life, the glass used, the cutting, the coatings on the glass etc.
is it worth it to you ? Perhaps not but it is worth it to many others who want the best
you can hunt at night in Germany but can't use NV, hence the need for scopes that maximise light transmission with the light available from the moon.
if you get the opportunity take a swaro/zeiss/S&b out against bushnell/leupold/nightforce after sunset - you'll see the difference immediately.
Todd1700
Member
Well first let me say this to keep the Swarovski guys from chasing me around in here with pitch forks and torches. Are they good scopes? Yes, no doubt about it. Never hear me say different. But to answer your question are they necessary, the answer is a resounding "NO". The guys who own these scopes often unfairly seem to frame the choices we have in scopes as either a 2000 dollar Swarovski or a 60 dollar chinese made POS. Making it seem that if you aren't willing to shell out 1500 to 2000 dollars for a scope you are a hapless dumb@$$ that thinks a Tasco is good enough. But in reality there is a huge middle ground out there between those two extremes.
I am a firm believer in putting a good scope on your rifle. I wholehearted subscribe to the old saying that I'd rather have a 200 dollar rifle with a 500 dollar scope than a 500 dollar rifle with a 200 dollar scope. That said however it has just been my experience that out around the 500 dollar mark you hit a point of seriously diminishing return for the money you are investing in scopes. I have Leupolds, Zeiss, and Nikons on my 7 hunting rifles that are crystal clear, have accurate click adjustments, hold zero, have never failed in any way, do not fog up, and transmit light well enough for me to shoot during any legal light hours in my state. Besides a name status symbol what exactly am I going to get for the addition 1000 to 1500 bucks I lay out for a Swarovski? I can't think of anything that justified that jump in price. If you have money to burn then heck why not get one I guess. But for a working man like myself I just don't see it.
Another reason all the european scopes are so high is the dollar to Euro exhange rate. Back when I was stationed in Germany (1984) a dollar bought 4 marks. Now a dollar gets you .75 Euro. It has practically drops 75 percent of its value in 20+ years. This is the same reason BMV, mercedes and others cost so much here.
I agree with Todd 100 percent. Put the best scope on your rifle you can afford. If you spend 1000 dollars to go on a hunt and miss because your 50 dollar scope would not hold zereo, what did that scope cost you?? The better the scope the better chances of it surviving hunting bumps and thumps. I was hunting from a boat in Alaska, we hit a submerged tree and I went bang right into the side rail of the boat. The scope is the first thing that impacted the side rail. We got tied up to shore later, set out a coke can at 100 yards give or take and hit it with my first shot.
I agree with Todd 100 percent. Put the best scope on your rifle you can afford. If you spend 1000 dollars to go on a hunt and miss because your 50 dollar scope would not hold zereo, what did that scope cost you?? The better the scope the better chances of it surviving hunting bumps and thumps. I was hunting from a boat in Alaska, we hit a submerged tree and I went bang right into the side rail of the boat. The scope is the first thing that impacted the side rail. We got tied up to shore later, set out a coke can at 100 yards give or take and hit it with my first shot.
Last edited:
scythefwd
Member
payton,
I am pretty sure there is more than just the shifting value of the dollar to it than that. BMW's had an import tax on them for a while. This priced them up higher than US made entry level cars. Since BMW saw that they could still sell the cars at that level, if and when the taxes were removed, the price didn't drop. Fair market had already decided the selling point. I believe that there is still some import tarrif on goods. That is one of the reasons honda and mitsubishi have plants on US soil. They don't have to pay the import duties, just the local taxes.
I am pretty sure there is more than just the shifting value of the dollar to it than that. BMW's had an import tax on them for a while. This priced them up higher than US made entry level cars. Since BMW saw that they could still sell the cars at that level, if and when the taxes were removed, the price didn't drop. Fair market had already decided the selling point. I believe that there is still some import tarrif on goods. That is one of the reasons honda and mitsubishi have plants on US soil. They don't have to pay the import duties, just the local taxes.
DeepSouth
Random Guy
What he said.....
And I got mine from a friend for $450, I'll gladly pay full price for my next one. Cuz it is just that good.
Why are Swarovski so expensive? Because they are the best. I have Schmidt & bender, Khales, and Zeiss on my rifles. All the others are second rate.
I work in a factory casting concrete so that makes me a working man.
Its so hard working in a socialist country like Sweden.
Perhaps if i live in the land of the free i could buy a nice leupold scope
I work in a factory casting concrete so that makes me a working man.
Its so hard working in a socialist country like Sweden
.Perhaps if i live in the land of the free i could buy a nice leupold scope
German?
Even our great President recognizes the difference between Austria and Germany, and he's not the brightest bulb...
Of course, he apparently thinks Austrian is a language, but what the hell.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tr7zhnctF4c
- Status
