Schmidt & Bender or USO?

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bullzeye

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I am almost finished getting a McMillan .50 BMG assembled. It will be used in FCSA competition. I have not decided on a scope yet, but I have narrowed it down to either a S&B 5-25 PMII or one of US Optics SN series. SN-3 or SN-9.
I have used many scopes, including Leupold, Nightforce, and Zeiss, but the USO and S&B scopes seem to be the absolute top of the line.
Can anyone offer pros and or cons for either scope? At this price range I expect nothing but the best...:confused:

Thanks in advance!
 
You are right, they are both top of the line. If you were unhappy with either, I would suspect that you were suffering from a psychological condition. That being said, I try to support American companies whenever possible and would opt for a USO SN3 3.8-22. Also by all reports, USO's customer service is second to none.

Good luck,
Erud
 
Between the two it's a matter of personal preference. I went with USO for my rifle for the following reasons:

-unbeatable customer service
-more customization available
-elevation turrets turn counter-clockwise to dial up (that's what I'm used to)

You have to get behind each one and determine which one suits you best.
 
After reading this I got a little interested in looking at USO scopes. The web site doesn't say anything about coatings, light transmission etc, does anyone have a link to some optical tests on them?
 
Did you click on the scope?

Here's the data sheet for the SN-3,

MAGNIFICATION: 3.2-17x
OBJECTIVE APERTURE: 44mm
MAIN TUBE:
DIAMETER: 30mm, 35mm
MATERIAL: 6061-T6, 7075-T6
FINISH:
TYPE: Hard Anodized
COLOR: Black, OD Green, Gray, Silver
SURFACE: Matte/Non-Reflective,Brushed or Polished
TURRET TYPE Double
LENSES:
MATERIAL: Glass/High Density Recompressed
QUALITY: Grade A, Fine Anneal
COATING: FSSBBC, Multi/All Surfaces
CENTRATION: 20 millionths
SCRATCH AND DIG: 10/5

NUMBER OF LENSES: 10+
LIGHT TRANSFERENCE: 99.4% per lens
OCULAR LENS DIAMETER: 35mm
RETICLE:Standard:Any popular style
FIELD OF VIEW: 7ft @ 100yards
EYE RELIEF: 3.0in @ 17x
EXIT PUPIL SIZE:
FOCUS SYSTEM: Diopters -3to+3Adjustment ENVIRONMENTAL:
TEMPERATURE: -20 to 140°F
PARALLAX SETTING: 100m fixed, others on demand
KNOBS: US#1 Standard MAX MOA ADJUSTMENT: Up to 180 MOA MOA PER CLICK: US#1 1/4MOA std, EREK 1/2MOA
FOCUS SYSTEM: Diopters -3to+3Adjustment
 
I have owned two USO's, a 3.2-17x44 and a 3.8-22x44mm, and four S&B's (3-12, 4-16, 5-25).

For what it's worth, I sold off the USO's and now shoot only S&B's on my precision rifles.

In the big calibers, the larger exit pupil of the S&B's means you can retain the sight picture through recoil more easily.

While I could not tell a difference in clarity, the S&B's were brighter (presumably because, in part, they had larger objective lenses at the same magnification).

The S&B's are more compact and lighter for the same rough magnification and featutre-set.

The S&B reticles have finer lines.

Of the scopes I have been personally involved with, more of the USO's had to go back for service.

S&B has better clicks, IMO.

Some info here
http://demigod.org/~zak/DigiCam/USOSB/
http://www.snipershide.com/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=19&t=003807

Since you are in CO, I recommend meeting up with RayDog and I. Between the two of us we have several examples of SB PMII's and USO SN3's, and you can get behind them and figure out what you want.
 
One other note..

If you are shooting primarily 1000-yard benchrest, you don't need a first-focal-plane reticle and zero-stop 1/2-revolution knobs. A Nightforce will be about half the price of a USO or SB, and since its reticle is second focal plane, it will appear thinner on the target than any of the FFP reticles from USO or SB.

The 5.5-22x50 or 56mm is a good choice in the NF. For smaller rifles, the 3.5-15x50mm is the sweet spot for the NF line.

-z
 
I just bought a Rem700 w/ 5-R barrel in 308, and was thinking of putting a NF scope on it. Im mostly going to be shooting at 100-300 yds, but want to occationally shoot at 600-1000 yds. What model/mounting system would you guys recommend? Thanks-
 
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