nikon monarch, zeiss Conquest, or Sightron SIII

bearhntr

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Which one is the best for out to 1000?

Which one tracks the best?

Clearest optics?

And best reticle options?

Planning on getting the Zeiss Conquest 6.5-20 X50 based solely on the fact that it's a German Scope. I also like the Z-800 reticle cause I'll be putting it on a 300 RUM. Anyone have any experience with that scope? Anyone have experience with all Three.

The other models I was considering were the Nikon Monarch 6-24X50 and the Sightron SIII 6-24X50.
 
Based on my experience with the Monarch, it's a crap shoot. I've had 3. One was pretty **** good, one was ok and one flat out sucked. I have no experience with the Zeiss but I think the Sightron SIII is the best bang for the buck.
 
I have a Zeiss 6.5-20x50 on my 338 edge,it is a excellent scope.Super clear optics,tracks very well. It would be my pick for sure .
 
I have a Zeiss Conquest 6.5-20 X 50 on a 270 Allen Mag and am well pleased. The reticle is the Z-Plex and I click. Clicks are spot on and repeatable.
 
ZEISS.
I have had the Monarch, and sent it back for store credit to get the Zeiss.
Cameralandny.com had floor models(I got one) and it has been THE best scope experience i ever had.
1 click and it moves 1/4" at 100 and noting more.
At 200, 1/2 and nothing more.

Best scope I ever had, I'm old....
 
I own Sightron SIII 6-24x50mm and Zeiss Conquest 4.5-14x44mm.

Zeiss is good. SIII is great.
 
I have never owned a Sightron.
I HAVE owned a Monarch and it was tough to "get behind". I had to be perfectly aligned to see anything at all.

I recently put 5 shots through the same hole at 200 yards with my Zeiss and a well develpoed handload.
I have never done that before with any scope/rifle I have owned.

Maybe that is weighing my opinion, but when I click my Zeiss for 1" of movement, I get ONE INCH, first shot.
The range finder hash marks have perfectly ranged at 100,200, and 300 yards.
The yardage hash marks are accurate as well.
THats what I know about the Zeiss product.
 
I provided this head to head comparison of my Zeiss Conquest and Sightron SIII in a Post within another Thread more than 1 year ago. So prices may not reflect current prices.

Here's an evaluation I recently conducted and reported for a LRH Forum member.
___________________________
"Today I compared the SIII 6-24x50mm to a new IOR 3-18x42mm MP-8 and my Zeiss Conquest 4.5-14x44mm Mil-Dot scopes. I conducted an elevation turret test on all three scopes at 100 yds. Then I compared all three scopes for resolution and light transmission at 300 yds in the evening (fading) light. The SIII is hitting on all cylinders and I would rate it the best scope of the three - without regard to cost - provided you're content with that 6-24 power range. Based on cost it's obviously the best buy. Here's how I rated these three scopes. I own all three so there's no pride-of-ownership compromises involved in my evaluation.
Resolution.
1) IOR and SIII equally good at 18X. Then I turned the SIII up to 24X and it maintained excellent resolution and improved my ability to resolve details at 300 yds that I was unable to see at 18X through either the IOR or the SIII. In other words, I felt like I obtained the full benefit of the higher powers available in the SIII. Razor sharp.
2) Zeiss provided less resolution with all three scopes tuned to 14X at 300 yds. Still good, but not as sharp as the IOR and SIII.
Light transmission.
1) SIII - best
2) Zeiss - about midway between the SIII and the IOR.
3) IOR – I believe the IOR has some extra lenses in it to provide the 6X power range magnification, and every additional lens will reduce light transmission.
Weight.
1) Zeiss - 17.5 oz - 1" tube
2) SIII - 21.9 oz - 30mm tube
3) IOR - 28 oz - 35mm tube
Parallax Adjustment.
1) SIII - easiest to adjust, however the adjustment operates at a pretty fast rate.
2) IOR - just about as good as the SIII - operates at a slower rate than the SIII.
3) Zeiss - I've never really cared for the parallax adjustment on my Zeiss. It's OK but sometimes a struggle to know if it's set properly.
Crosshair/Reticle.
1) IOR - Best, I really like the IOR MP-8 reticle.
2) SIII and Zeiss - both standard military Mil-Dot.
Cost.
1) SIII ~$800
2) Zeiss~$850 w/o or $950 with target turrets
3) IOR ~$1565 w/illuminated reticle
Elevation Turret Test Results.
SIII: 0.273"/click/100yds in both the UP direction & DOWN direction over a distance of 26" at 100 yards. Same value/click/100yds in both the UP and DOWN directions, however different than the advertised 0.25"/click/100yds. This is why an elevation turret test is mandatory prior to putting any scope into action. Now that I know the IPHY click value, I'll be all set.
Zeiss: 0.243"/click/100yds in the UP direction over a distance of 26" and 36" at 100 yards. No DOWN test completed with Zeiss.
IOR: 0.260"/click/100yds in the DOWN direction over a distance of 26" at 100 yards.
0.250"/click/100yds in the UP direction over a distance of 26" at 100 yards.
The IOR yielded a different value per click per 100 yards in the UP direction versus the DOWN direction. My other IOR is dead nuts on - yielding 0.249"/click/100yds in both directions. This was a brand new IOR scope so I will have to conduct the elevation turret test again and make sure I didn't make a mistake with my calculations and determination.

[IN ORDER TO CLARIFY MY ELEVATION TURRET TESTS: All three scope's elevation turrets returned to zero properly. From a set Zero, I turned the turret in the UP direction and then returned back to zero. Then I turned the elevation turret in the DOWN direction followed by a return to zero. The IOR yielded a slightly different click value when turned in the DOWN direction than in the UP direction, however it and both of the other two scopes returned back to their zero setting correctly.]

I haven't shot the SIII yet but others have already confirmed the turrets are repeatable and that the scope is durable. The SIII has as good, or better, of a replacement warranty as the Zeiss or the IOR. If I were to buy another scope today, it would be another SIII 6-24x50mm Mil-Dot. Sightron is supposed to be adding some additional offerings to their SIII line. Whether there will be additional reticle options or power options, we'll have to wait and see.

Hope this helps you spend your money wisely. For the money, the SIII is a best buy in my book
." lightbulb

One year earlier I compared my Zeiss Conquest to my Leupold VX-3. The Zeiss Conquest smoked the Leupy in resolution and light transmission. It wasn't really even close. And I'm now telling you that the Sightron SIII bested the Zeiss Conquest in both categories in my recent side-by-side field comparison. The Sightron SIII is Sightron's top of the line scope. Comparing it to the SIs or SIIs is like comparing a Leupold Mark 4 to a Leupold VXII. The current limitations in the SIII series (my opinion) are the power range and the reticle options currently available. I'm led to believe some additional SIII options may become available later this year.

I have since purchased another Sightron SIII. I have not conducted another head to head test with my 2nd SIII against the Zeiss Conquest. To be honest, I will say that my 2nd SIII is not quite as good optically as my original SIII. Still good but not quite as good. So I don't know if my 1st SIII was the creme of the crop, or if the 2nd SIII was sub-par. My 2nd one still performs very well in all respects, but the resolution and clarity of the glass is somewhat less than my original SIII.

Sorry. I know this throws the whole idea of SIII quality up in the air with question marks??? But I believe this is somewhat true of many makes and models of scopes. I've read this quite often with the Nightforce scopes over the past three years. Subtle differences in sight pictures between different scopes of the same model. Some have great glass. Some have good glass. I'll probably buy a 3rd SIII unless the feedback on the about-to-be-released Vortex Viper PST line of scopes is overwhelmingly outstanding and too hard to resist.
 
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I know this wasn't on your short list and I have no personal experience with them, yet :), but based on what I have read I would also consider the Vortex line of scopes as well. I believe the new PST is in your price range and have heard nothing but good things. Something you may want to consider.
 
I know this wasn't on your short list and I have no personal experience with them, yet :), but based on what I have read I would also consider the Vortex line of scopes as well. I believe the new PST is in your price range and have heard nothing but good things. Something you may want to consider.

The Vortex PSTs aren't yet being delivered to retail purchasers, are they???
 
What is the best group you have ever shot with the SIII? I didnt see that "test" result anywhere.

My best so far is a 1 hole group with 5 shots at 200 yards.
4 for 4 on a life sized wood chuck target, 2 in the face/2 in the chest, at 300 yards.

Have you compared groups with both scopes?
 
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