Rifle Scopes OPTICS NOT MADE IN CHINA.

[308pirate]

in theory, but if you go to a manufacturer of lesser quality items, the standards that you are calling for are going to be necessarily lower.

If you buy lenses from zeiss and say "give me the best you have" and then go to some chicom slave labor factory and say the same thing, expect to have a different end product.

That's not how it works. That's not how any of it works.

When an RFQ goes out, it goes out with a set of engineering drawings which contain also referenced material, process, and performance specifications.

If the lowest bidder gets the order and the incoming material fails to meet dimensional, material, process, and/or performance requirements the shipment gets rejected and the supplier either doesn't get paid or gets to do it all over again on their dime.

This is my lane......

 

[Darayavaus]

That's not how it works. That's not how any of it works.

When an RFQ goes out, it goes out with a set of engineering drawings which contain also referenced material, process, and performance specifications.

If the lowest bidder gets the order and the incoming material fails to meet dimensional, material, process, and/or performance requirements the shipment gets rejected and the supplier either doesn't get paid or gets to do it all over again on their dime.

This is my lane......

I understand what you are saying. But it's not the same as what I'm saying.

Companies that use Chinese glass do so because it's cheaper, not better (and yes, other people make cheap glass to, but that is getting off topic). To produce an "economy" product at a certain price point, you are sacrificing quality for cost. That sacrifice is understood and necessarily reflects the parameters of the design. So the "performance requirements" for a cheaper product are lower than the "performance requirements" of an instrument with better components.

I am not saying that Leupold or whoever just accepts whatever glass with no quality control. I am saying that with their economy stuff, their quality control standards are based on the performance expectations of the poorer, cheaper product that they knowingly asked for and designed around.

 

[Sniperwannabee]

Surprised how many people did not know about the Vortex AMG being made in USA

 

[bigfoot321]

China can make excellent products when properly supervised. Half of us are sitting on the can browsing this thread with an phone that is made completely in China. It does exactly what it’s supposed to do.

With that said, I have been consciously looking for 100% US products since the onset of Chinaflu. I know that not everything will be possible ... I’m not going to pay $2500 for a US-made iPhone.

I find it even more pathetic that foreign vehicle manufacturers with a large business presence in the US are producing more “American” cars than the boys in Detroit.

 

[srt-4_uk]

I suspect that if a tariff moved the price of that Chinese scope up to $1000, demand would drop.

But then companies see people buying crap for $1000 so they raise their price because they have a better product and people will pay the premium. They charge what the market will bear, not sell for minimum profits. If so, we wouldn't have things like MSRP, MAP, street prices, first responder discount, hide discount, and dealer pricing. It would all just be one low price. The inconvenient truth is that you need chinese optics to keep prices from going further through the roof.

 

[roggom]

Globalization of optics is all about the bottom line. Cheap labor, lower cost for environmental impact, as the actual production creates a lot of hazmat. In the end, buy what you feel is the best quality for the price, for the intended application.
I have scopes by S&B, Vortex, Leupy, Ziess etc, made in different countries. My latest purchases have been Burris. Lower price, great warranty, and I can literally drive a few minutes down 8th St to get service.

 

[jtv3062]

I have not talked to USO, but it sounds like they are mostly US made for the Foundation series.

Vortex AMG is US made except for the reticle. Same for the AMG UH-1 holographic side: the hologram itself is from UK, everything else US.

Leupold's higher end stuff seems to be Japanese glass and most mechanicals are made in the US, but I do not have direct confirmation of that.

With ZCO, the parts all come from Europe (mostly Austria and Germany, I think), but they are assembled in the US.

Some Steiners are assembled in the US with German glass and mostly US mechanicals. XTR3 glass comes from Asia, I think, but the mechanicals are mostly US and assembly is in the US. Steiner M scopes are German.

If you are rather looking for simply not Chinese-made, options open up considerably.

All March scopes are completely made in Japan, for example.

S&B is Germany or Hungary.

Tangent Theta is from Canada (glass comes from Germany)

Leica is Germany or Portugal for most stuff, but some products have mechanicals from Japan.

Higher end GPO products seem to be all Japan with German QC.

SWFA scopes are all from Japan (they had one Phillipine-made scope that is now discontinued).

Sightron scopes are either Japan or Philliipines.

Zeiss higher end stuff seems to be German, but a bunch of their stuff is from Asia and I have no idea from where.

Athlon Cronus is from Japan, the rest is from China.

Bushnell Elite seems to be from Japan, but like with Zeiss, it is hard to keep track what comes from where.

Minox higher end stuff is German, not sure about the other product lines

Blaser is German

Swarovski/Kahles are from Austria

Trijicon is all Japanese I think.

Meprolight is mostly from Israel (not sure about their micro red dot)

Vortex Razor scopes are Japanese (spotters are Chinese).


ILya

Trijicon is made in the USA except for 1 hunting rifle scope line. It's right on their webpage.

 

[koshkin]

Trijicon is made in the USA except for 1 hunting rifle scope line. It's right on their webpage.

And Zeiss said that Conquest HD was made in Germany. I'll believe it when I see it.

ILya

 

[thehun]

Trijicon is made in the USA except for 1 hunting rifle scope line. It's right on their webpage.

Trijicon DOES NOT make their riflescopes in the US...it clearly says Made in Japan...except their ACOG/VCOG line...they are US made along with their red dots...but NONE of their what we would call traditional rifle scopes are made here...

 

[jtv3062]

The vast majority of Trijicon products, including ACOG®, VCOG®, RMR®, SRO®, Reflex, MRO®, Iron Sights, MGRS®, CCAS®, Thermal Optics, Ventus™, Mounts, and Archery Sights are designed, engineered, machined, and assembled at our facilities in Wixom, Michigan or Auburn, California, and are therefore 100% Made in the USA. Our AccuPoint® riflescopes are assembled in the USA but have significant components purchased in Japan. Our Huron™, Ascent™, Tenmile™, and Credo™ riflescopes are manufactured in Japan according to our design and testing requirements. All Trijicon products are designed in Michigan and have the same stringent quality processes applied to them, including the Science of Brilliant™ testing methodology. All Trijicon products are backed by our limited lifetime warranty. Each product is marked according to its origin.

 

[thehun]

The vast majority of Trijicon products, including ACOG®, VCOG®, RMR®, SRO®, Reflex, MRO®, Iron Sights, MGRS®, CCAS®, Thermal Optics, Ventus™, Mounts, and Archery Sights are designed, engineered, machined, and assembled at our facilities in Wixom, Michigan or Auburn, California, and are therefore 100% Made in the USA. Our AccuPoint® riflescopes are assembled in the USA but have significant components purchased in Japan. Our Huron™, Ascent™, Tenmile™, and Credo™ riflescopes are manufactured in Japan according to our design and testing requirements. All Trijicon products are designed in Michigan and have the same stringent quality processes applied to them, including the Science of Brilliant™ testing methodology. All Trijicon products are backed by our limited lifetime warranty. Each product is marked according to its origin.

Just as I said. Their riflescopes outside of ACOG and VCOG are Japanese (nothing wrong with that).

 

[jtv3062]

...........

 

[Darayavaus]

trijicon makes a great product, and they are not produced by our enemies the chinese.

 

[thehun]

trijicon makes a great product, and they are not produced by our enemies the chinese.

Agreed.

 

[s002wjh]

I suspect that if a tariff moved the price of that Chinese scope up to $1000, demand would drop.

Fewer people would buy scopes, but those who did would buy fewer Chinese scopes. My post on the previous page was all about tariffs and the way they are used by .gov to pick which industries are located here, and which are moved offshore.

well scope is such small industry compare to rest of industry such as plane, cars, farms good, oil, electronics etc.
but say we put 50% tariff on scope, i doubt china will care cause its small market. whats gonna happen is 3rd party will route it through vietnam/india, then export from there to US so it doesn't get hit with the tariff. This is what happen back in 2009 tire tariff, 3rd party basically import Chinese made tire to mexico then slap a made in mexico label on it, re-sell it at higher price. Obama drop the tariff afterward, cause there is no way to check every origin of shipment, and manufacture still buying those "made in mexico" tire because its was still cheaper.
Also only 1st tier scope $2-3k are mostly made in EU/japan and assembled in US, thats very very small market compare to what regular Joe needed. A $1000 scope is still cheaper than $2-3k scope, so instead spend $500, now they need spend $1k on the same scope or get something made in EU/Japan thats usually around $2k ish.

 

[Amanda4461]

This thread got me looking at what I own, and what I have recently purchased. My new-to-me, but very lightly used Leupold MkIV LRT with Mil-dots, has a nice logo that spells out USA Designed, Machined and Assembled. Of course, some of the parts could be from elsewhere. My old M3 Leupold was all-USA. My just-received Burris QD AR-15 P.E.P.R. mount has a nasty little Made in China sticker on the bottom. I expected USA-made until I remembered the low price. Nothing made in the USA that looks like this is that cheap. I would like to see the manufacturers have to list content origin, similar to the automakers, but much more rigorous. As in the Burris QD mount, it is difficult at best, and many times impossible to know where the stuff you are buying via the internet is manufactured, or where the parts originate. I rarely see the inside of a gun shop, as I purchase off Gunbroker and use my local guy for $30 transfers. I'll hopefully see something like a carry bag or a Magpul magazine inside his shop, and buy those from him. I would prefer to touch and feel a rifle or pistol before I pay, but most of the local dealers only carry plastic fantastics. 1911, German stainless steel Sigs, Bolt Guns or custom builds basically do not exist in their world. I depend upon pictures for my purchases, and/or a good return program.
Hopefully, our sad congresscritters can finally figure out that China is not our friend, and force some transparency. If I hold my breath, I'll just turn BLUE?

 

[Greg Langelius *]

Also late to this party, dealing with the original question; I've been acquiring Bushnell AR Drop Zone BDC XXX scopes for my AR's and my bolt rifles as well. They came in a variety of BDC reticles and labeling, mostly for 308 and 223. My most recently acquired one is intended for 6.5CM, and resides atop my 260 (close enough). Their ranging reticle's basic design has allowed me to make KD shots at 100, 200, and 300yd with 223 and 308 rifles; all three distances in less than 1 minute (sometimes less than 1/2 minute). Lost count, but my collection currently holds a half dozen of more of them.

These are all being phased out/discontinued. In their place, I just encountered this offering.

These scopes are labelled as being made in South Korea, about as diametrically opposed to communism as I've found outside our shores.

Greg

PS, among mine are an extra pair with 308 BDC reticles, mounted on my 6.5 Grendels. They track within 2-3 inches out to 5/600yd with the 123gr loads.

Over the years, I've commented about how the Chinese made optics would appear to have improved in quality; much the same as Japanese optics had prior.

There's a big difference, however. As Japanese products improved, this strengthened the optics industry of an ally. With the Chinese, the same improvement has strengthened the capability of a non-ally/potential enemy, financed by folks just like us. I will not miss buying any more Mueller scopes on the future, for instance.

 

[dcmdon]

Meh, "assembled" in Colorado with foreign parts. I was a little disappointed to not see made in USA anywhere.

The reality is that there aren't any sources for made in the USA Glass. So everyone at the very least builds scopes in the US with foreign glass. In the better scopes the glass comes from Germany or Japan. Also keep in mind that one of the differentiating factors is the glass coatings used. And these can be developed and applied to foreign glass to gain an advantage.

So these days getting "good glass" isn't that hard. And often what we perceive as "good glass" is really just an excellent coating that makes the glass perform better.

Finally, if you are buying a deer hunting scope with fixed caps, the glass is the most important thing. You zero the scope and if it holds zero you are good. In contrast all the dialing you do to shoot at varying ranges means that tracking is more important than gettting the last 2% of performance out of the glass. Another important mechanical consideration is how accurately the lenses are mounted inside the scope. But either way, the American made mechanics are really important here.

So the thing is to me. If a scope is designed and the mechanisms are built in the USA, that's what I'm looking for.

Besides, I believe that USO is the only American scope company that makes their own glass. And I had a chance to look through a fixed power USO scope and I was NOT impressed. Its supposedly ridiculously rugged. But it was no clearer than my Japanese made Nikon.

 

[koshkin]

The reality is that there aren't any sources for made in the USA Glass. So everyone at the very least builds scopes in the US with foreign glass. In the better scopes the glass comes from Germany or Japan. Also keep in mind that one of the differentiating factors is the glass coatings used. And these can be developed and applied to foreign glass to gain an advantage.

So these days getting "good glass" isn't that hard. And often what we perceive as "good glass" is really just an excellent coating that makes the glass perform better.

Finally, if you are buying a deer hunting scope with fixed caps, the glass is the most important thing. You zero the scope and if it holds zero you are good. In contrast all the dialing you do to shoot at varying ranges means that tracking is more important than gettting the last 2% of performance out of the glass. Another important mechanical consideration is how accurately the lenses are mounted inside the scope. But either way, the American made mechanics are really important here.

So the thing is to me. If a scope is designed and the mechanisms are built in the USA, that's what I'm looking for.

Besides, I believe that USO is the only American scope company that makes their own glass. And I had a chance to look through a fixed power USO scope and I was NOT impressed. Its supposedly ridiculously rugged. But it was no clearer than my Japanese made Nikon.

There most certainly are glass sources in the US. I do not have any insight into where US Optics gets their glass, but Vortex AMG definitely has US sourced lenses. Generally, it is not an issue of availability, but rather cost. US-made glass mostly goes into higher margin products.

ILya

 

[scharfschutze762]

The reality is that there aren't any sources for made in the USA Glass. So everyone at the very least builds scopes in the US with foreign glass. In the better scopes the glass comes from Germany or Japan. Also keep in mind that one of the differentiating factors is the glass coatings used. And these can be developed and applied to foreign glass to gain an advantage.

So these days getting "good glass" isn't that hard. And often what we perceive as "good glass" is really just an excellent coating that makes the glass perform better.

Finally, if you are buying a deer hunting scope with fixed caps, the glass is the most important thing. You zero the scope and if it holds zero you are good. In contrast all the dialing you do to shoot at varying ranges means that tracking is more important than gettting the last 2% of performance out of the glass. Another important mechanical consideration is how accurately the lenses are mounted inside the scope. But either way, the American made mechanics are really important here.

So the thing is to me. If a scope is designed and the mechanisms are built in the USA, that's what I'm looking for.

Besides, I believe that USO is the only American scope company that makes their own glass. And I had a chance to look through a fixed power USO scope and I was NOT impressed. Its supposedly ridiculously rugged. But it was no clearer than my Japanese made Nikon.

USO does not make glass..
There are US sources for scope lenses..very good quality

 

[dcmdon]

I am not challenging you but do you know the names of any of these US sources. I'm curious.

I figured that SOMEBODY makes lenses in the US. It was just my understanding that the market is in either scientific or medical imaging.

 

[koshkin]

There are quite a few. Corning, for example. And there is ton of different companies making high end lens assemblies. I have worked with quite a few of them on both vis and IR projects.

ILya

 

[kwelhand]

NO China crap needed

Agreed.

 

[Rob01]

The reality is that there aren't any sources for made in the USA Glass. So everyone at the very least builds scopes in the US with foreign glass. In the better scopes the glass comes from Germany or Japan. Also keep in mind that one of the differentiating factors is the glass coatings used. And these can be developed and applied to foreign glass to gain an advantage.

So these days getting "good glass" isn't that hard. And often what we perceive as "good glass" is really just an excellent coating that makes the glass perform better.

Finally, if you are buying a deer hunting scope with fixed caps, the glass is the most important thing. You zero the scope and if it holds zero you are good. In contrast all the dialing you do to shoot at varying ranges means that tracking is more important than gettting the last 2% of performance out of the glass. Another important mechanical consideration is how accurately the lenses are mounted inside the scope. But either way, the American made mechanics are really important here.

So the thing is to me. If a scope is designed and the mechanisms are built in the USA, that's what I'm looking for.

Besides, I believe that USO is the only American scope company that makes their own glass. And I had a chance to look through a fixed power USO scope and I was NOT impressed. Its supposedly ridiculously rugged. But it was no clearer than my Japanese made Nikon.

Sorry but as mentioned you are wrong on a few counts in that post. The AMG uses US sourced glass. From where? I don't know. Maybe you could call Vortex and see if they will let you know. And USO doesn't make glass.

 

[lead ƒarmer]

The reality is that there aren't any sources for made in the USA Glass. So everyone at the very least builds scopes in the US with foreign glass.

The AMG uses US glass. Not sure how many more times it needs to be repeated in the same thread. LOL

A least one more time apparently! ?

 

[army_eod]

I have not talked to USO, but it sounds like they are mostly US made for the Foundation series.

Vortex AMG is US made except for the reticle. Same for the AMG UH-1 holographic side: the hologram itself is from UK, everything else US.

Leupold's higher end stuff seems to be Japanese glass and most mechanicals are made in the US, but I do not have direct confirmation of that.

With ZCO, the parts all come from Europe (mostly Austria and Germany, I think), but they are assembled in the US.

Some Steiners are assembled in the US with German glass and mostly US mechanicals. XTR3 glass comes from Asia, I think, but the mechanicals are mostly US and assembly is in the US. Steiner M scopes are German.

If you are rather looking for simply not Chinese-made, options open up considerably.

All March scopes are completely made in Japan, for example.

S&B is Germany or Hungary.

Tangent Theta is from Canada (glass comes from Germany)

Leica is Germany or Portugal for most stuff, but some products have mechanicals from Japan.

Higher end GPO products seem to be all Japan with German QC.

SWFA scopes are all from Japan (they had one Phillipine-made scope that is now discontinued).

Sightron scopes are either Japan or Philliipines.

Zeiss higher end stuff seems to be German, but a bunch of their stuff is from Asia and I have no idea from where.

Athlon Cronus is from Japan, the rest is from China.

Bushnell Elite seems to be from Japan, but like with Zeiss, it is hard to keep track what comes from where.

Minox higher end stuff is German, not sure about the other product lines

Blaser is German

Swarovski/Kahles are from Austria

Trijicon is all Japanese I think.

Meprolight is mostly from Israel (not sure about their micro red dot)

Vortex Razor scopes are Japanese (spotters are Chinese).


ILya

Hey Koshkin. Long time no see. I have been MIA

 

[koshkin]

Hey Koshkin. Long time no see. I have been MIA

Good to see you back

 

[army_eod]

Great thread as I am also researching.
Sad to know some of this.
Also want to know what is Chinese in Leupys.
Evidently, some Chinese stuff is getting better; like the Japanese stuff did in the 60s.
But I do not want to patronize Chinese either. It is almost impossible now.

 

[thehun]

Great thread as I am also researching.
Sad to know some of this.
Also want to know what is Chinese in Leupys.
Evidently, some Chinese stuff is getting better; like the Japanese stuff did in the 60s.
But I do not want to patronize Chinese either. It is almost impossible now.

I don't think you'll know all the fine components that would be Chinese...I believe that anything VX3 and below are Chinese glass on Leupys...

From what I gather...Leupy machines the scobe tubes and such in the US...I

I can tell you Meopta Optika6 uses Chinese illumination...same design as I saw on Primary Arms offerings...

Here is what I've learned with the Chinese...they can turn out some realllly quality products...if you pay the price to do so...if not...you get junk...the Chinese people in power are actually quite capitalistic but they give the iron fist to their people...got to love Communist (sarcasm).

 

[army_eod]

Here is a crazy thought.

Maybe the US is not the best at any of this anymore.

Sad.

 

[thehun]

I don't think that is the case per say...it is us, the consumer...we demand lower price, which forces companies to cater to that demand...which means looking elsewhere for lower costs in raw materials, labor and assembly...the US manufacturers, for one, are playing catch up to Industry 4.0...we are a good 5-10 years behind Asia/Europe.

Majority of Americans, including shooters...will rather pay for Chinese/Asian optics (take a look at the success of Vortex and Primary Arms)...at the beginning they really offered subpar optics but people bought them like candy because they were cheaper and performed great on range tacticool ninja's rifles...and for many...shooting static is all that matters...thus they really rarely see the benefits of a Kahles, Schmidt Bender , Vortex AMG etc...

People want $500 optics on their $2000+ rifle builds...you can't make that with American wage requirements, quality raw materials and skilled craftmanship...

Look at the hype on the Strike Eagle 5-25x56 FFP...you literally have people on the net praising its near equal to a high end optics....yes...the gap in $500-1000 optics are closing fast...and they appear high quality through high contrast coatings...but there is a reason its $600 and not $2500 like their Vortex AMG...but 90% of firearm owners are, unfortunately, clueless to know any better...

 

[Rob01]

Look at the hype on the Strike Eagle 5-25x56 FFP...you literally have people on the net praising its near equal to a high end optics....yes...the gap in $500-1000 optics are closing fast...and they appear high quality through high contrast coatings...but there is a reason its $600 and not $2500 like their Vortex AMG...but 90% of firearm owners are, unfortunately, clueless to know any better...

Maybe because they have never used anything higher end before?

 

[thehun]

Maybe because they have never used anything higher end before?

Possible or ignorance. How could one downplay high end optics if they never tried one...yet you see people doing that very thing all the time on the internet, gun shops and ranges. Heck. I had one gunshop tell me the M-spec Sightmark red dot was better than an Aimpoint.

You see this all over though...take a look at cars as well. People put crap things on $50k cars...wheels and tires are the dead giveaway.

 

[Rob01]

Possible or ignorance. How could one downplay high end optics if they never tried one...yet you see people doing that very thing all the time on the internet, gun shops and ranges. Heck. I had one gunshop tell me the M-spec Sightmark red dot was better than an Aimpoint.

Ignorance is bliss. The internet and gun shops are full of that stuff. What you have to figure out is if it's ignorance from lack of knowledge, which can be helped with explaination or ignorance from a more devious means in them wanting to sell a Sightmark to someone not knowing any better. The old saying "you don't know what you don't know" is the trademark of the internet.

 

[thehun]

Agreed. I just can't stand it when people like that are so bent out of shape to prove that their Strike Eagle is as good as my Schmidt Bender...

 

[army_eod]

What about Sony?

How about USO?

 

[CrabsandFootball]

Who in the US can produce optic lenses? I haven't heard of a company that can or has...can someone elaborate...if there is...why don't NF and other US-based companies use them?

The most advanced optics companies in the world are in the US. You just can't afford them because they are A. allot of their work is classified and B. usually on NRO Birds s or US DOD/CIA/NSA sensors.

Kodiak used to have the most advanced lense honing operation in New York. Its where a lot of the parts for the Keystone series birds were made.

The reality is its just not economically viable at this point. This may change in the future. Its not a matter of capability, we can make anything, and do it better than anyone.

 

[thehun]

What about Sony?

How about USO?

USO doesn’t produce lenses.

 

[JS8588]

Here is a crazy thought.

Maybe the US is not the best at any of this anymore.

Sad.

That's the truth. We don't make anything because our work force has no work ethic, interest or pride in craftsmanship. My generation (Millennials) is responsible for this.

 

[CrabsandFootball]

That's the truth. We don't make anything because our work force has no work ethic, interest or pride in craftsmanship. My generation (Millennials) is responsible for this.

Wrong. For the same reason we pay brain dead migrants to dig ditches and slave over a stove for 14 hours a day, is the same reason we don't make certain things here.

Its not a capability issue. Its economic issues that is incredibly complicated in itself.

The short answer is we can and do it better than anyone. If the market forces decided today the US will be the leader in worldwide sport optics manufacturing and sourcing, within 18 months we would be just that.

You could start by boycotting Chinese trash and putting a 1000% tarrif on all of their products, refusing to sell them any agriculture goods and watching them starve and eat each other alive within a few months. Buying China is like buying german or japan in 1938.

 

[army_eod]

I pretty much suck it up and just depend on the fact that a good manufacturer takes care of the customer. If some stuff is Chinese, well, OK.

We screwed the pooch a long time ago when we went global and let China become a powerhouse. Our own fault.

 

[superribbit]

i know that it's next to impossible to get something that has absolutely no part from china.
but i also think there's nothing wrong with LEANING towards something NOT made in china ... because i want to and because f_k china.
i did some research on some scopes, if the performance/quality is the same and the price of the NON-china made scope was close enough, then i chose the non-china scope.

ive ordered 5 scopes since march this year. 2 from SoKor, 1 from Czech Republic and 2 from Japan.

 

[chevy_man]

Agreed. I just can't stand it when people like that are so bent out of shape to prove that their Strike Eagle is as good as my Schmidt Bender...

That is funny. Strike eagles aren't great by any means.

I can see the argument for comparing a $2500 scope to a $3500 scope to see how much or little you're paying for with the extra $1k.

$700 to $3500? No way they're comparable in glass quality.



I personally only have 1 Chinese red dot. Every other scope is Japan, Philippines, or US. It's not hard to do, just so happens I usually spend as much or more than the rifle cost to equip it with a scope.

 

[thehun]

That is funny. Strike eagles aren't great by any means.

I can see the argument for comparing a $2500 scope to a $3500 scope to see how much or little you're paying for with the extra $1k.

$700 to $3500? No way they're comparable in glass quality.



I personally only have 1 Chinese red dot. Every other scope is Japan, Philippines, or US. It's not hard to do, just so happens I usually spend as much or more than the rifle cost to equip it with a scope.

Just go to a range and someone will make that statement...or similar to it...

 

[gdonley308]

LOW makes so many scopes now that I’ve lost count! Most of what LOW makes is pretty good. I’m a big fan of the LOW made Brownell’s MPO scopes. Yeah to the OP, no rifle scopes are 100% American just like no vehicles are 100% Am.

 

[EJ1001]

We screwed the pooch a long time ago when we went global and let China become a powerhouse. Our own fault.

+100 to this. Forward thinking for corporate profits, short sighted in respect to long term strategic advantage for the US. Say what you want about the 'service economy', the real value/power is in the ability to make stuff. We survived the 40's on our ability to make more stuff quicker than our enemies. Memories are short and I guess we collectively forgot that lesson.

@army-eod, you're right.. It is our fault, or was our fault from behaviors a while back. We have an appetite for the lowest possible price - we are addicted to it.

What if we never let the majority of our manufacturing go over seas? What if we continued to invest in manufacturing here and focus on efficiencies and automation (all the rage now anyway) and built up that infrastructure and capacity? I bet we would benefit now from the economies of scale in the form of reasonable prices for things made in America. At least we would have more opportunities to buy American than today.

I won't even start on "globalization" as I'll just get more pissed than I already am...

Sorry for the rant - this whole thing just really angers me as 30 yrs ago anyone could have seen the rise of China coming if they put some thought into it.

Back to topic - I'll try my best to avoid buying a Chinese scope, but like most Americans I don't have a money tree or trust fund, so I have to balance my wants and desires against what is fits my family budget. For now a max of $1K for a scope will have to do for me.

 

[seanh]

If the goal is to find 100% us made you're going to have an extremely difficult time doing so. It's been awhile since I've done this but what I found, when pressed, was that even us manufacturers of Optics here in the Statesgot their blanks from Japan or Germany. Hell, even Zeiss was getting their glass from Japan for a while.

 

[rainshot]

A lot of things go together to make China products sell. Labor here is high and China's labor costs are miniscule. We've allowed them shipping enhancements. The EPA, OSHA and other agencies have hamstrung our manufacturing. They manipulate their money.
The government sued Redfield for dumping "toxic waste" into a river. (creek?) Never said what it was. It could have been anything from a dirty diaper to sodium cyanide. Nobody makes glass here. As far as i know there's only Schott and Light Optic.

It's what we've made it over the years. Leupold puts together stuff with parts made elsewhere I think. They have a hard time competing with the Asian imports. Their warrantee has been good but is changing. You can send your scope in and they'll fix it or check it but won't upgrade it.

It's what it is and that's what we've got to work with. It could get better if we'd quit electing democrats but that won't happen.

 

[koshkin]

LOW makes so many scopes now that I’ve lost count! Most of what LOW makes is pretty good. I’m a big fan of the LOW made Brownell’s MPO scopes. Yeah to the OP, no rifle scopes are 100% American just like no vehicles are 100% Am.

MPO is not made by LOW.

There are four OEMs in Japan, including LOW.

ILya

 

[hunter8793]

MPO is not made by LOW.

There are four OEMs in Japan, including LOW.

ILya

Which one is the best? Or is it all just made to spec?