Rifle Scopes Zeiss Conquest HD5 5-25 scope

[yej0001]

This is perhaps an odd scope for people on this site, but I have been a real fan of Zeiss glass. Have anyone had first hand experience with this scope, and how it is stacked up against other scopes, such as vortex PST (gen I/II), or even vortex HD gen 1? I have heard people commenting on similar glass quality between Conquest HD5 and the older Conquest MC, but also saw some people raving the HD5 version.

My purpose if a light scope for casual shooting and hunting (papers) ...

 

[Shadow knows]

I had one. I have a razor gen 1 5-20, pst gen 1 6-24(?), razor gen 2 1-6, Cronus BTR, XTR 2 5-25, Ares 4-16 and the conquest HD5 had the brightest glass hands down, not even in the same game.
I sold it because it has a 1” tube and elevation is limited and it is only in MOA and I am a MIL guy.
I miss it so bad for deer hunting at dawn/dusk hrs because my other glass can not compare to that scope at those times, I am looking into the Zeiss V6 now. I am going to give it a shot and see if I can just push through a sfp moa scope in favore of a now 30mm tube with 20moa turret

If you hunt, I would look into it, it you target shoot think about how far you are going to shoot cause that turret is limited in elevation.

I do like the capped windage. Nice to jump out of the pickup and not hang up and roll a setting.

 

[yej0001]

Thank you for sharing your experience, especially the comparison with the other well known brands/models!

The reason I am actually considering it is the 1" tube, since the Steyr SSG 69 that I plan to use it on has 1" rings. I have several target rifles and plan to use the SSG 69 for casual shooting only. I have had probably a dozen of Zeiss scopes in the past (still have three in possession). I found that I am a little spoiled by Zeiss' glass because I got too easily dissatisfied by scopes that have much better other features but less glass quality.

I think I will jump on EuroOptics current deals on Conquest HD5 which has been discontinued. V6 has Schott glass and T* coating and should be a terrific scope.

 

[LA260]

I've had Conquest 6.5-20 with Varmint reticle for around 10 years and Conquest HD5 with Z1000 for about 6. I like Varmint reticle better since its thinner and not as busy but both work for what the scopes are intended for. It has been my experience as well that the glass on both is on a whole different level compared to PST gen1 or XTR2. The lockable turrets on the HD5 are pretty neat too and it also has zero stop although you can only adjust about 17moa up. You can take out the screw if yiu need to adjust more which was what I did.

For hunting or casual target shooting you cant go wrong. Just pay attention to your setup. I was able to zero the HD5 at 100yds with a 30moa rail on a 260rem, but the regular Conquest didnt zero at 100yds with 20moa mount on a 223.

 

[yej0001]

@LA260: Thank you. Do you think Conquest HD5 has better glass than the old Conquest MC? I have seen comments on HD5 being similar, better, or worse. I had several MC 5-20 and like the glass, but the last one I had probably was a lemon.

 

[Millron]

@LA260: Thank you. Do you think Conquest HD5 has better glass than the old Conquest MC? I have seen comments on HD5 being similar, better, or worse. I had several MC 5-20 and like the glass, but the last one I had probably was a lemon.

I've had two of the 5-25 HD5, also have experience with older conquest. To my eyes the older conquest had better glass. My first 5-25 I had to send back to Zeiss, who eventually sent it to Germany, and it was eventually was replaced. The whole process took about five months, so I wasn't all that happy about it. There was a mark inside the housing that you could see thru the ocular, almost like a bright "machined" in area. The new HD5 they sent back to me was better optically but not what I was expecting out of a Zeiss. I purchased to use as a hunting optic because I liked the relatively compact size, locking turretts, and the limited amount of internal travel were not an issue because of my intended application. I would put it optically better than the PST 1, but less than say a PST Gen 2, Leupold LRP 6.5-20, or RAZOR Gen 1 5-20. If the price was right I would buy another, but would definatley need to be priced right as there are other optics in the 1K range that I feel are superior and have much better CS to back them up.

To my eyes the Zeiss V4 line that replaced the HD5 is a big upgrade.

 

[BurnOut]

While I can't offer a comparison between the HD5 and the optics that you mentioned, I can say that to my eyes the Zeiss is optically quite a bit better than the Swaro Z5 (at least the one that I had). I have a 3-15x50 HD5, and a 5-25x50 HD5 as well, and am very pleased with the glass on both of them.

FWIW, my reference points include a first gen Athlon Cronus, various Sig Tango6 models, etc..., and while I haven't done a back-to-back between the HD5s and any of those optics (since they're two very different feature sets/use cases), I can say that I am confident that the Zeiss will hang with them just fine in terms of optical quality.

 

[LA260]

@LA260: Thank you. Do you think Conquest HD5 has better glass than the old Conquest MC? I have seen comments on HD5 being similar, better, or worse. I had several MC 5-20 and like the glass, but the last one I had probably was a lemon.

I'm hesitant to say if one is better than the other because honestly I can't tell a difference between the two. Overall the MC feels easier on the eyes in my case because the varmint z retcle is so much cleaner than the z1000. I would not get the Z1000 again if I had to do it over, however for $729 or maybe even cheaper if you call EO the HD5 with VarmintZ is a solid scope for hunting or shooting for fun. I doubt there is better glass out there for $700.

 

[yej0001]

Thank you all for the helpful comments. I may save up a few more coins and jump to the V6 line. V6 has Schott glass, FL lense, T* coating, essentially the same set up as the old Diavari Victory line that I am familiar with. Optically Diavari Victory scopes were rated along with S&B and they look similar to my eyes too.

 

[LA260]

Thank you all for the helpful comments. I may save up a few more coins and jump to the V6 line. V6 has Schott glass, FL lense, T* coating, essentially the same set up as the old Diavari Victory line that I am familiar with. Optically Diavari Victory scopes were rated along with S&B and they look similar to my eyes too.

Which reticle are you going with?

 

[yej0001]

Trying to decide between #43 mildot (Mil/MOA) and ZBR (MOA/MOA). My two Diavari's are with #43 reticle so I am familiar with it, but MOA/MOA may make more sense.

 

[Shadow knows]

Thank you all for the helpful comments. I may save up a few more coins and jump to the V6 line. V6 has Schott glass, FL lense, T* coating, essentially the same set up as the old Diavari Victory line that I am familiar with. Optically Diavari Victory scopes were rated along with S&B and they look similar to my eyes too.

There is a lot of speculation on what glass is actually in the V4 since it’s made in Japan, some still thought it was Schott also. Did you find a source that explained it? Just curious

 

[OH58DViper]

I have a 5-25HD with a plex reticle, it’s my absolute favorite for shooting groups. If a scope is in question for any possible variable, I slap the HD on it. The thin reticle and amazing glass make precision a breeze, as long as you don’t have to hold laterally for wind ha.

 

[yej0001]

There is a lot of speculation on what glass is actually in the V4 since it’s made in Japan, some still thought it was Schott also. Did you find a source that explained it? Just curious

I read a post by Doug from CameraLand on another site. He confirmed that V4's glass was made in Japan. He learnt this from talking to Zeiss people. Doug is a large Zeiss distributor in NY and also a sponsor here.

 

[Kickin45]

The HD5 is an amazing scope. Ultra sharp and bright glass. It’s one of those scopes you look through and go, “Wow, my other scopes clarity suck” lol. It’s got serious visual ‘pop’. As mentioned though, it’s a 1” tube and also in the 2nd plane. Those are the only 2 reasons I sold it.