Invicta39
Member
Has anyone tried the Shepherd scopes? Any info would be appreciated. Their web site is: www.shepeherdscopes.com
Shepherd Scopes
- Thread starter Invicta39
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texasdave
Well-Known Member
Invicta39:
I have one for sale. I personally do not think they are worth the money. My scope would not hold a zero. great consept but not the best made scope in my opinion. I replaced it with a leoupold for now. Save your money there are better out there. look at IOR or Nightforce. Just my two cents.
I have one for sale. I personally do not think they are worth the money. My scope would not hold a zero. great consept but not the best made scope in my opinion. I replaced it with a leoupold for now. Save your money there are better out there. look at IOR or Nightforce. Just my two cents.
sakofan
Well-Known Member
Well said Texas Dave.
Great concept, poor application, IMO.
I was very close to buying one, and never could pull the trigger on that sale...sakofan....
Great concept, poor application, IMO.
I was very close to buying one, and never could pull the trigger on that sale...sakofan....
G
Guest
Guest
Same situation here. I cam very close to buying one. I was very impressed with the concept of the scopes internal design, but could not justify the price tag. After doing some research, I found that a LOT of folks were not happy with their performance and quality. Have been a Leupold fan forever, but just for grins; ordered a Bushnell 4200 Elite 8-32x40. Haven't received it yet, but can't wait to try it out!
Folks either love them, or hate them.
They work great for me (all four of them)
They are made by Light Optical, in Japan...
Same folks who make the NIKON line... look at a pic of a Shepherd next to a Nikon, you can even see the resemblance.
But Nikons are great, and the Shepherd is a piece of ****
[sarcasm off]
If you want to go from 0 to 1000 yds, without dialing dope, it's the cat's meow.
IMHO
Texas Dave: did you notice a separation (misalignment) of the two reticles when you looked through it?
ie; after you felt it should be zeroed, did the reticles stay aligned? Or did they separate?
marc
They work great for me (all four of them)
They are made by Light Optical, in Japan...
Same folks who make the NIKON line... look at a pic of a Shepherd next to a Nikon, you can even see the resemblance.
But Nikons are great, and the Shepherd is a piece of ****
[sarcasm off]
If you want to go from 0 to 1000 yds, without dialing dope, it's the cat's meow.
IMHO
Texas Dave: did you notice a separation (misalignment) of the two reticles when you looked through it?
ie; after you felt it should be zeroed, did the reticles stay aligned? Or did they separate?
marc
7
704
Guest
I have a v1 on my 300 WM, it works perfectly out to 600 yards, that is all I shot so far. holds zero , good glass....
texasdave
Well-Known Member
Marc 357:
I did not, notice the recticle seperation you mentioned but when you attempted to move right to left the reticle would not move then jump a huge amount.. It would be zeroed then take it out again and it would be far off so something must be loose inside. Anyway it almost ruined a Elk hunt I was on but had brought a backup rifle. I just do not trust the scope. I called Shephard and nice people but just not the greatest product.
I did not, notice the recticle seperation you mentioned but when you attempted to move right to left the reticle would not move then jump a huge amount.. It would be zeroed then take it out again and it would be far off so something must be loose inside. Anyway it almost ruined a Elk hunt I was on but had brought a backup rifle. I just do not trust the scope. I called Shephard and nice people but just not the greatest product.
remingtonman_25_06
Well-Known Member
Well there is a buddy of mine that has one on his 7mm Rem Mag. All he shoots is the 140 xlc. He shot a spike bull couple years ago cross a canyon some 700-800 yards away. He hit the elk 2 of 5 shots and he did find the elk. Both bullets fully penetrated, of course there barnes. I have looked through his scope over the years and I dont think they are that clear for one. I also do not like all that junk in the reticle of the scope. In a hurried situation, It would almost seem to me that I would get confused as to what to use. $600 price tag is a bit high in my opinion. Anyways, this guy loves his and with tinkering and practicing and just shooting his over the years, he can now **** near consistently bang yotes out to 700 yards.
Texas Dave,
Sorry to hear about that. Good thing you were smart enough to bring a spare rifle. I would never go on an expensive hunt without at least a spare scope.
Did Shepherd replace the scope for you? He should have.
Your point brings up one thing I do like about the scopes. At least you could see the reticle tracking incorrectly, and knew it was not working properly. Most scopes, you cannot see the reticle move, you just have to trust that it is.
I know a guy who fell on his rifle hard enough to bend the scope tube on his Shepherd, but after re-zeroing, you can still use it!
I wouldn't take a shot at any big game at extended ranges without laser ranging it first, if I have time for that, I have time to make sure I am using the right circle.
I like holding over better than scope twiddling.
marc
Sorry to hear about that. Good thing you were smart enough to bring a spare rifle. I would never go on an expensive hunt without at least a spare scope.
Did Shepherd replace the scope for you? He should have.
Your point brings up one thing I do like about the scopes. At least you could see the reticle tracking incorrectly, and knew it was not working properly. Most scopes, you cannot see the reticle move, you just have to trust that it is.
I know a guy who fell on his rifle hard enough to bend the scope tube on his Shepherd, but after re-zeroing, you can still use it!
I wouldn't take a shot at any big game at extended ranges without laser ranging it first, if I have time for that, I have time to make sure I am using the right circle.
I like holding over better than scope twiddling.
marc
SCL
Well-Known Member
Marc357,
Both Nikon and Shepherd scopes are junk IMHO. If you truly want something great, download the USO catalog and have them build you a scope customized to your specs - that is the cat's meow IMHO.
SCL
Both Nikon and Shepherd scopes are junk IMHO. If you truly want something great, download the USO catalog and have them build you a scope customized to your specs - that is the cat's meow IMHO.
SCL
SCL,
Ahhh, US Optics... I had not considered them , as I thought they were all 2nd focal plane reticles,(like Nightforce)- which is undesirable to me.
You may have just cost me quite a bit of money....
Looks like their top of the line scopes cost as much as I spent on the four Shepherds I have.
I wish I knew someone who had one I could look through.
I was pretty impressed that I could see .30 caliber bullet holes at 500 yards thru my Shepherd... but maybe I am easily impressed...
What can I expect from really good glass?
Not everyone's eyes can appreciate the difference, though. I have a friend who cannot tell the difference between 29.00 binoculars, and 600.00 binoculars, they all look fine to him. Lucky bastard.
Another guy I know, loves music, LOUD music. That's all that stimulates his ear. Me- good sound clarity and low distortion sound good to me... to him- it doesn't matter how good (or bad) the stereo is, how much it is distorting because it is turned up too loud, as long as it IS loud. I hear the distorted crap coming out of his speakers, and it makes me cringe... and he's going, "Yeah, baby! Sounds awesome, doesn't it?"
As they say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, huh?
marc
Ahhh, US Optics... I had not considered them , as I thought they were all 2nd focal plane reticles,(like Nightforce)- which is undesirable to me.
You may have just cost me quite a bit of money....
Looks like their top of the line scopes cost as much as I spent on the four Shepherds I have.
I wish I knew someone who had one I could look through.
I was pretty impressed that I could see .30 caliber bullet holes at 500 yards thru my Shepherd... but maybe I am easily impressed...
What can I expect from really good glass?
Not everyone's eyes can appreciate the difference, though. I have a friend who cannot tell the difference between 29.00 binoculars, and 600.00 binoculars, they all look fine to him. Lucky bastard.
Another guy I know, loves music, LOUD music. That's all that stimulates his ear. Me- good sound clarity and low distortion sound good to me... to him- it doesn't matter how good (or bad) the stereo is, how much it is distorting because it is turned up too loud, as long as it IS loud. I hear the distorted crap coming out of his speakers, and it makes me cringe... and he's going, "Yeah, baby! Sounds awesome, doesn't it?"
As they say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, huh?
marc
kidcoltoutlaw
Well-Known Member
i have a nightforce benchrest 8x32x56 i can see 50bmg holes in the target at 1000 yards under most conditions thanks,keith
SCL
Well-Known Member
Marc,
You are right - beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Everyone's eyes are different and some folks can't see the difference between good glass and great glass - however, if you compare them side by side in poor conditions, the quality shows through.
Everything looks good on a clear sunny day looking at a black and white target...things change when its twilight of dusk/dawn, and you are looking for a brown critter among a green and brown background.
USO builds scopes however you want them - all of mine are front focal plane and track like micrometers. I have two ST10's, two SN9's and a hubble telescope SN3 with 80mm objective. I wouldn't sell any of them unless I really, really, needed the money.
As far as your Sheperds - if they work and you are happy then keep them by all means! Use what works best for you and your needs and you will always be happy.
Regards,
SCL
You are right - beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Everyone's eyes are different and some folks can't see the difference between good glass and great glass - however, if you compare them side by side in poor conditions, the quality shows through.
Everything looks good on a clear sunny day looking at a black and white target...things change when its twilight of dusk/dawn, and you are looking for a brown critter among a green and brown background.
USO builds scopes however you want them - all of mine are front focal plane and track like micrometers. I have two ST10's, two SN9's and a hubble telescope SN3 with 80mm objective. I wouldn't sell any of them unless I really, really, needed the money.
As far as your Sheperds - if they work and you are happy then keep them by all means! Use what works best for you and your needs and you will always be happy.
Regards,
SCL
sakofan
Well-Known Member
SCL is correct. USO is the end of the line for optics. I covet my SN-3.
Concerning front focal plane reticles, you would have to special order a scope from USO that had a rear focal plane reticle...sakofan..
Concerning front focal plane reticles, you would have to special order a scope from USO that had a rear focal plane reticle...sakofan..
