Is there a difference in a Nightforce and a Schmidt & Bender???

[jl3216]

I have several NF scopes on some of my long range rifles, used to think they were the best. Now I'm wondering if I'm missing something by not have a US Optics, Schmidt & Bender, Premier, etc.

Is there really a difference?? Are you paying for the name??

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated!!!

Jesse

 

[MudRunner2005]

I always heard of Schmidt as top of the line. But the last couple times I've looked through one, you couldn't give it to me.... They were cloudy, and nasty looking. Almost like looking through liquid.

NF is my next goal, is to save up for one of those. I don't own one yet, but have shot several, and you really can't ever recover from shooting one, except to maybe own one. LOL The crispness, clarity, and precision is the best I've found, IMO.

But, this is simply my opinion. I am definitely not a glass expert.

 

[Outlaw6.0]

I own both NF & USO, no Schmidts or Premiers as of yet As far as rugged reliability, they are the peers of the industry, Very,Very solid.

Where those peers starts to separate is in the glass quality IMHO. The Schmidts & Premiers should show a higher clarity & more reslolution than the Nightforce (this may have changed with the introduction of the ATACR & BEAST).

My USO is fairly new to me & I'm still comparing it to my NXS so i'm hesitant to pass judgement before I have the time to spend with them both.


t

 

[HARPERC]

My USO is fairly new to me & I'm still comparing it to my NXS so i'm hesitant to pass judgement before I have the time to spend with them both.
t

I'd like to hear that when judgement when you figure it out.

 

[Outlaw6.0]

I'd like to hear that when judgement when you figure it out.

Not a problem. I can say my initial impression favored the clarity of the USO but I need to get them out together.


t

 

[extreme]

i always heard of schmidt as top of the line. But the last couple times i've looked through one, you couldn't give it to me.... They were cloudy, and nasty looking. Almost like looking through liquid.

Nf is my next goal, is to save up for one of those. I don't own one yet, but have shot several, and you really can't ever recover from shooting one, except to maybe own one. Lol the crispness, clarity, and precision is the best i've found, imo.

But, this is simply my opinion. I am definitely not a glass expert.

you must have looked threw a bad one because there is no better glass in any scope than s&b. I have all but the premier, and many
gies i know will tell you the same thing.

 

[MudRunner2005]

you must have looked threw a bad one because there is no better glass in any scope than s&b. I have all but the premier, and many
gies i know will tell you the same thing.

I looked through about 5 of them all sitting at my local store, they were all on closeout special....They were all horrible.

Granted, that was the first time I'd ever looked through a bad one, but they were all horrible. I used to work for an outdoors store, and have looked through and sold more pieces of glass than most folks have ever seen....But that threw me for a loop when I looked through those Schmidt's....Could have been a bad batch, but every one of them were that way. They were all marked down to like $2,800 or something. I was just laughing my *** off, b/c I knew only some yuppie would buy them after looking through them. There was no way anyone who knew what to look for would buy one of them... Swear to God, they were so bad, I've looked through $100 Tasco World Class scopes that were clearer. I've never seen anything like it.

 

[extreme]

I guess anything is possible ...i own several and mine are crystal clear..i have many scopes and my s & b are the clearest.i put my newest 5-22x56 g7 nightforce along side one of my 5-25x56 pmii
scopes and it,s a no contest for me... I believe what you are saying and i,am glad mine are perfect.

 

[MudRunner2005]

One of my shooting buddies (who occasionally frequents this site) was with me, and as I was picking one up to look throug it, he said, "Ooooh! Schmidt & Bender....." in a surprised voice. Then I made a face looking through it, and he asked what was up. I told him to look through it, as I was picking up another one to check it out to see if that one was just a bad one....The next one looked horrible, too. And so-on, and so-on.... I have never seen ONE bad Schmidt. Especially not 5 in a row. They were all the same model and reticle. I guess these were either some Monday or Friday scopes.

Either way, I haven't given up on Schmidt, it could have just very well been a bad batch of them, but I wouldn't have given them $500 for one of those...

Like I said, I'll never badmouth or write-off any company over something like that, b/c everything man-made will have a few lemons. About the only time I ever write-off a company completely is if their product is 100% junk, and their CS sucks and won't back up their products. Which I know for a fact, that Schmidt has one of the best CS departments I've ever encountered. Zeiss and Leupold have great CS, too.

 

[COBrad]

I have both a S&B and NF. While both are excellent scopes, the Schmidt is in a different class. It has the best clarity and resolution of any scope I have ever used.

 

[jeff 300]

I'll just stay with NF for the money I don't see the need for a SB for the price dif NF is a hell of a scope

 

[sp6x6]

I have a friend, thats on this site .He has shot a handfull of world records at 1000 bench,Penn.rules with NF.He had a S&B and said it wasnt as clear to his eyes and pulled it.This was 3-4 years ago.He shoots bench model 12-42 type

 

[Senderofan]

I have a friend, thats on this site .He has shot a handfull of world records at 1000 bench,Penn.rules with NF.He had a S&B and said it wasnt as clear to his eyes and pulled it.This was 3-4 years ago.He shoots bench model 12-42 type

I think you touched on a critical point when selecting a scope......what is most pleasing to ones' eye. The unfortunate thing is....most of the time...if you find a shop with these high end scopes in stock....you can't take them to the range or out in the field to compare them side by side. For me, I used to own a couple of NF scopes...one BR and one NXS. They both functioned flawlessly and had very decent glass. Once exposed to Schott glass...I was converted. I have a couple of Premiere and IOR scopes. For my eyes....the Schott glass provides a crisper image and I find the colors to be more true. The NF wasn't as clear, esp. on the top end of the magnification range. I also found the NF glass to give the image a more yellow hue.

All in all....I think NF is an excellent scope. For the money.....it would serve many lifetimes of flawless service. One really needs to experience the different scopes in the premium class....out in the field. It truly becomes a personal decision based on ones eyes. Some will find NF glass most pleasing....others...Schott glass.

Wayne

 

[X-man]

The noting that S&B is anything but tack sharp optical perfection is utter nonsense!
S&B doesn't have "bad days". They execute staff members for impure thoughts never mind less that prefect optics. I have shot S&B for 30 years and I can assure you optical perfection every single time.
Zero exceptions.
Schmidt grinds among the finest glass on the planet. Have zero doubt.

Color phase is up for debate and personal taste...sure.
The incredible resolution and optical clarity of Schmidt and Bender is unquestionable.
Nightforce is not even optically close to Schmidt. Only March can match and perhaps better S&B optically.

So why do I have so many Nightforce scopes?
A scope is a sighting device and reliability is all important. While S&B is hardly unreliable Nightforce has a unmatched track record. Though S&B is better Nightforce optics are more than good enough to place the bullet exactly where I want.