Here is another question I received a little while back:
I’ve been a reader of some of the forums where you post and would like your opinion on these scopes if you can spare some time. First, what is your opinion on the Duralyt and how does it compare with Zeiss’s higher end optics? I’m aware that it does not have the lotutec coatings and does not have a 3rd objective element as does the Victory. Aside for that how does it fare optic wise against the Victory and the VX6? My 2nd area of questioning is the new VX-6. Looking at possibly buying the 3-18×50 and am wondering if Leupold has a real 30mm erector assembly or one that is like what they use in the VX3 line up? I’ve always been able to see better through a larger lens assembly and the Duralyt does have that. Just not sure if the Leupold does. Anyway, any thoughts that you can share on each of them would be appreciated. Thanks… C
This not that straightforward to answer. First of all, there is not rule that makes something a “real 30mm erector assembly”. Some scopes use larger internal components and some use smaller ones. Image quality of the scope is not necessarily correlated with that and there is plenty of evidence for that. 1″ tube scopes can have absolutely exceptional image quality if they are designed for it (take a look at Kahles KXi 3.5-10×50 some time if you do not believe me). I like some of the Duralyt configurations, but overall I am a little baffled by this scope. For this money, I have to think that Zeiss can do better and I suspect that the new HD5 Conquest will supercede Duralyt soon enough, at least in the US. Zeiss Victory is indeed a lot better and, if push comes to shove, overall I prefer the Leupold VX-6 to Zeiss Duralyt. I think the illumination controls on the Duralyt leave a bit to be desired and image quality, while very respectable, is not all that outstanding. It is not bad, but not enough to set it apart.
The one Duralyt I like quite a bit is the 1.2-5×36 model. However, that is mostly because I like the configuration and few other companies make anything similar.
I have not tested the 3-18×50 version of the VX-6, but I have looked at the 2-12×42 and 1-6×24 some and liked them a lot.
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