I have both the 4 - 14 and th 5 - 25 Falcons . My 4 - 14 has been a great inexpensive optic . May just be the luck of the draw but the glass on my 4 -14 is really really nice . Mushy turrets , and stiff magnification ring come stock on Falcons , but some 3500 rounds and 4 years later it still tracks well . I doesn't get used much any more , as have moved on to bigger better more expensive glass and toys , but every time it does come out of the safe I am reminded of what a great value this scope has been .
The 5-25 specimen that I own , is not even remotely as nice . Super tight , all most unusable eye box , and anything above 20 the chromatic flare is blinding . Sits on a 22 trainer till I can find something else then will probably go away . It does track , and no issues with the optic up to this point .
Comparing them to the SWFA 10 x and 16 x I have owned , I would take the 4 - 14 all day every day over the two fixies . Mil Mil FFP and variable at that price point , and way better glass . The 5 - 25's glass is maybe slightly better than the fixed 16 , but not as good as the fixed 10 was . As far as durability the SWFAs look like you could pound nails with them , and the Falcons not so much . Some of us are not ' Operator's ' , so features at a certain price point matter . YMMV