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Extreme Long Range Hunting & Shooting (ELR)
Why are more expensive scopes so much brighter at high power?
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<blockquote data-quote="QuietTexan" data-source="post: 2902046" data-attributes="member: 116181"><p>I will grant you that, all else constant, a scope constructed with a larger objective and/or main tube diameter will be brighter than one with smaller dimensions. That's pretty undeniable, like you said the math on light collection is pretty straightforward.</p><p></p><p>But if you want to establish a direct causation between "expensive" and "brighter", then the answer is glass quality and coatings. The construction argument is mooted by there being an ample supply of cheaper 34mm scopes with 50+mm objectives that should be brighter according to the paper math, but in reality aren't because of low quality internals. Bad glass ruins better designs pretty easily. To the point I would say lower end companies adopt larger design dimensions to be able to continue using whatever crushed Coke bottle junk they've been using instead of laying out money for better parts and QC. Which is fine, not every rifle needs a fancy scope and there are obvious markets for multiple quality and function levels.</p><p></p><p>In my rack right now, a Leupold VX-5HD with a 30mm tube and 42mm objective is brighter than an Athlon Ares BTR with 30mm tube/50mm lenses, and on par with an Athlon Ares ETR UHD with 34mm tube/ 50mm lens and their better glass. The ETR UHD is in turn absolutely crushed by Tangent Theta, and IMO that has nothing to do with the extra 6mm of objective diameter - there's a $4k increase in price that is definitely not solely spent on the better turret design.</p><p></p><p>The best part is - all of them work exactly how I need them to, each one has a place on a rifle, and I'll buy more from each company in the future.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="QuietTexan, post: 2902046, member: 116181"] I will grant you that, all else constant, a scope constructed with a larger objective and/or main tube diameter will be brighter than one with smaller dimensions. That's pretty undeniable, like you said the math on light collection is pretty straightforward. But if you want to establish a direct causation between "expensive" and "brighter", then the answer is glass quality and coatings. The construction argument is mooted by there being an ample supply of cheaper 34mm scopes with 50+mm objectives that should be brighter according to the paper math, but in reality aren't because of low quality internals. Bad glass ruins better designs pretty easily. To the point I would say lower end companies adopt larger design dimensions to be able to continue using whatever crushed Coke bottle junk they've been using instead of laying out money for better parts and QC. Which is fine, not every rifle needs a fancy scope and there are obvious markets for multiple quality and function levels. In my rack right now, a Leupold VX-5HD with a 30mm tube and 42mm objective is brighter than an Athlon Ares BTR with 30mm tube/50mm lenses, and on par with an Athlon Ares ETR UHD with 34mm tube/ 50mm lens and their better glass. The ETR UHD is in turn absolutely crushed by Tangent Theta, and IMO that has nothing to do with the extra 6mm of objective diameter - there's a $4k increase in price that is definitely not solely spent on the better turret design. The best part is - all of them work exactly how I need them to, each one has a place on a rifle, and I'll buy more from each company in the future. [/QUOTE]
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Why are more expensive scopes so much brighter at high power?
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