Has anyone compared the Weaver Tactical 3-15x50 to Sightron SIII 3.5-10x44?

[acridsaint]

I am torn on these two scopes at the moment. They both offer reticles that work for me. I'm hoping some people here have used both and can comment on some aspects:

Tracking repeatability. Any issues with either of these scopes when you get to cranking dials?

Resolution. Plainly, which one looks better under clear conditions (in your opinion)

Low light performance. Which one delivers more light and a clearer picture at dusk and dawn?

What annoyances do you find about either scope.

What accessories did they come with that pleasantly surprised you?

Any help that you've got on the subject would be appreciated.

[Robinhood]

That is not a comparison of apples to apples. The SIII's are a quality scope and the weaver has gotten some good reviews. The SIIB 4-16x42 might be a better comparison.

The weaver has 50 percent more power and slightly larger objective obviously. If your intended use is small holes at long or medium range you need a higher power. Hitting steel or flesh not so much.

[keeki]

Had several siii's and they are very good scopes with maybe the best tracking in the business. I have looked through the weaver tactical but never used one. I can say they have good glass but not as good as the siii and it would be hard pressed for the weaver to track better

[acridsaint]

Other than the extra power of the Weaver, what is not apples to apples? The only comparison that I've seen was one guy saying that he thought the Weaver was better optically than his SIIIs. The scope will see dual use as a longer range paper and steel gun as well as the occasional big game hunt, so I have ruled out all of the 4-16 scopes that I've looked at. Even the 3.5x of the SIII is a little longer than I'd prefer. Most of the SIIB series scopes come with fixed parallax, which is also a concern for me.


That is not a comparison of apples to apples. The SIII's are a quality scope and the weaver has gotten some good reviews. The SIIB 4-16x42 might be a better comparison.

The weaver has 50 percent more power and slightly larger objective obviously. If your intended use is small holes at long or medium range you need a higher power. Hitting steel or flesh not so much.

[acridsaint]

Thanks, that's the kind of info I was looking for. I have bought glass in the past that won Internet popularity contests and was not too happy with it. I don't see a lot of negative reviews about the Weaver and see comparisons that it's got better glass than X or Y and just want to be sure I'm making the right choice on another Sightron before spending my hard earned cash.


Had several siii's and they are very good scopes with maybe the best tracking in the business. I have looked through the weaver tactical but never used one. I can say they have good glass but not as good as the siii and it would be hard pressed for the weaver to track better

[keeki]

Don't get me wrong, the weaver tactical is a fine scope and to some eyes it may have better glass than the siii, just not to me. And maybe the one I looked through wasnt as clear as most, idk. But I know it's tough to go wrong with an siii

[acridsaint]

Understood, and, thanks. The Weaver's FFP and good reviews have been pushing me away from the SIII. The slightly more useful zoom range doesn't hurt either. But, tracking and optical quality are both more important to me than the other features.

[gotcha]

Just a heads up on the S-III models. BTW I have a 10X60. These models, to my surprise, don't have a lock ring for the ocular lens. Mine had a problem with a shifting POI because of looseness in the lens threads. There are others who have experienced this problem and solved by mounting a O-ring ahead of the lens mount that acts as a shock absorber and maintains POI. I sent mine back to Sightron and they performed some kind of "magic" on it. I have 6 Leupolds in various magnifications. The Sightron has superior brightness & resolution across the board and tracks dead-on. Using the fine crosshair I actually shrunk long range groups. Hope this helps with your decision :)

[acridsaint]

Hey Gotcha,

Did they give you any explanation of the magic performed? They are just down the road from me, so at least service will be easy if I need it.

[Robinhood]

Most of the SIIB series scopes come with fixed parallax, which is also a concern for me.

All but one Sightron SIIB's have parallax adjustment. It is on the objective lense.

I own a SII BS and a Sightron SIII Long range.

The weaver gets good reports on Optics talk.

[acridsaint]

Hey Robinhood, sorry, you've probably got a better idea than I have. I haven't looked at the longer SIIB scopes, but the 3-9 and 3-12 scopes are all fixed parallax except for the 3-12AO which only comes in a duplex reticle, according to my research.

[gotcha]

Hi Acrid! Nope, no explanation. I assume they switched out the ocular so threads had a better fit to scope body threads. Key word: assume :) ................. No further problems with POI shift. If Sightron was just down the road from me I'd sell ALL my Leupolds! ............ I should also add that I bought my SIII used.

[Robinhood]

In my opinion the 3-9 power scopes don't need parallax adjustment. How many scopes in that power range have a parallax adjustment weather AO or on the side? The 12 power is the turning point and that is not a crowded field. when you get to 14 power all of them have it.

[Robinhood]

Also if you are looking for a scope with tactical turrets why do you need anything other than a duplex. Do you plan on ranging?

[acridsaint]

Yes, I do.

[darkker]

Seems I'm a bit late to this party...
FWIW
That Weaver sits on Painless, my long range 308 as my benchmark for other scopes & rifles. To be fair, I didn't get to do an honest side X side; this was just my thoughts of shooting both at the same distance.
The Sightron SIII was good glass. Without having them together, I would maybe call it a push. What I didn't like about the SIII, it seemed to be particular about relative eye position. Nothing disgusting, but worse than the Weaver; more line the SWFA 3-15.

[Robinhood]

What I didn't like about the SIII, it seemed to be particular about relative eye position.

I find that true on higher power scopes(over 20X) when the magnification is cranked up. Seems like the exit pupil gets smaller. the 1500 plus scopes seem to do a better job of mittigating that issue. Never had a problem on scopes that maxed out in the mid teens.

[acridsaint]

Hey Darkker, no one is too late. Even if I made a decision, someone else can read it ;) Thanks for the input.

[Marine24]

I have no experience with the Sightron other than by reputation, but have a couple models of the Weaver Tactical 3-15 and 4-20X. The Weaver tactical is a good scope in that price point. Adjustments are consistent and optical quality is excellent for the price point. The optics are comparable to SWFA's 3-15x with the edge going to SWFA on optical clarity.

At high magnification the edge to edge clarity suffers slightly, but it was not significant. Crispness of the target or color correctness was also slightly off, but that could be more about my eyes than the scope. I had this on a long range AR and Rem 700 in 308 and had no issues ringing steel consistently at 6-800 yards.

Weaver tactical is a good value for the quality that you receive.

[FEENIX]

I have no experience with the Sightron other than by reputation, but have a couple models of the Weaver Tactical 3-15 and 4-20X. The Weaver tactical is a good scope in that price point. Adjustments are consistent and optical quality is excellent for the price point. The optics are comparable to SWFA's 3-15x with the edge going to SWFA on optical clarity.

At high magnification the edge to edge clarity suffers slightly, but it was not significant. Crispness of the target or color correctness was also slightly off, but that could be more about my eyes than the scope. I had this on a long range AR and Rem 700 in 308 and had no issues ringing steel consistently at 6-800 yards.

Weaver tactical is a good value for the quality that you receive.

You might consider the Burris Veracity line too - I have the 4-20x50 FFP (http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f18/burris-veracity-4-20x50mm-riflescope-w-ballistic-e1-ffp-reticle-130833/) on my .270 AI and I am very please with it. I've considered the Weaver and SWFA and went with the Veracity.