Description
Rifle Scope Product Details
Schmidt Bender Zenith 3-12×50 A7 LMC Rail Mount Rifle Scope
Schmidt Bender Zenith 3-12×50 A7 LMC Rail Mount Rifle Scope
Rifle Scope Product Features
About the Schmidt & Bender Brand
Schmidt & Bender is a premium maker for rifle scopes, optics, mounting solutions, and other add-ons used for guns like rifles and long guns. They innovate and supply their scopes and related products choosing elements which are durable and long lasting. This includes the Schmidt Bender Zenith 3-12×50 A7 LMC Rail Mount Rifle Scope by Schmidt & Bender. For more shooting products, visit their site.
What You Need to Know About Scopes
Rifle scopes allow you to precisely aim a rifle at different targets by aligning your eye with the target at range. They do this through magnification by making use of a set of lenses within the scope. The scope’s positioning can be adjusted to take into account many natural considerations like wind and elevation to make up for bullet drop.
The scope’s purpose is to help shooters understand precisely where the bullet will hit based on the sight picture you are viewing using the scope as you align the scope’s crosshair or reticle with the target. Many modern rifle optics have around 11 parts which are located within and outside of the scope body. These scope parts include the rifle scope’s body, lenses, windage and elevation turrets, objective focus rings, and other components. Learn about the eleven parts of glass.
Rifle Glass Styles
Rifle scopes can be either “first focal plane” or “second focal plane” type of optics. Picking the finest type of rifle optic is based around what type of shooting you plan on doing.
About First Focal Plane Scopes
First focal plane optics (FFP) come with the reticle ahead of the magnification lens. This causes the reticle to increase in size based on the level of magnification being used. The benefit is that the reticle measurements are the same at the enhanced distance as they are at the non magnified range. One tick on a mil-dot reticle at 100 yards with no “zoom” is still the very same tick at 100 yards with 5x “zoom”. These types of scopes are valuable for:
- Quick acquisition, far away kinds of shooting
- Shooting scenarios where estimations are marginal
- Experienced shooters who have an idea for their aim point “hold over” as well as “lead” ratios for their firearms
- Shooters who don’t mind the reticle is enlarged and uses up more visual sight room than a SFP reticle
Second Focal Plane Scopes
Second focal plane optics (SFP) come with the reticle to the rear of the magnification lens. In the FFP example with the SFP scope, the 5x “zoom” 100 yard tick measurement would be 1/5th of the non “zoom” tick reticle measurement.
- Far away styles of shooting where shooters have more time to make ballistic estimations
- Shooting where most of the shots take place within much shorter proximities and ranges
- Shooters who desire a clearer optic picture with less space taken up by the larger sized FFP reticle
Ins and Outs of Rifle Optic Zoom
The level of scope magnification you need on your optic is based on the style of shooting you wish to do. Nearly every style of rifle glass delivers some level of magnification. The level of magnification a scope gives is determined by the dimension, thickness, and curves of the lenses within the rifle scope. The magnification of the scope is the “power” of the glass. This indicates what the shooter is looking at through the scope is amplified times the power aspect of what can normally be seen by human eyes.
Fixed Single Power Lens Rifle Scopes
A single power rifle optic will have a zoom number designator like 4×32. This implies the magnification power of the scope is 4x power and the objective lens is 32mm. The magnification of this type of scope can not change given that it is set from the factory.
Variable Power Lens Rifle Glass
Variable power rifle scopes use variable power levels. The power adjustment is accomplished by using the power ring part of the scope near the rear of the scope by the eye bell.
Power and Range
Here are some advised scope power settings and the ranges where they can be effectively used. Always remember that high power scopes and optics will not be as efficient as lower powered optics due to the fact that excessive magnification can be a negative thing in certain situations. The same concept goes for extended ranges where the shooter needs to have enough power to see exactly where to properly aim the rifle at the target.
Info on Glass Lens Covering
All state-of-the-art rifle scope lenses are covered. Lens coating can be a crucial aspect of a rifle system when purchasing high end rifle optics and scope setups.
ED Versus HD Rifle Optics
Some glass companies will also use “HD” or high-definition glass coatings which apply various processes, rare earth compounds, polarizations, and components to enhance different color ranges and viewable definition through the lens. This HD finish is typically used with more costly high density lens glass which drops light’s chance to refract by means of the lens glass. Some scope suppliers use “HD” to describe “ED” suggesting extra-low dispersion glass. ED handles how certain colors are presented on the chroma spectrum and the chromatic aberration or difference which is also called color distortion or fringing. Chromatic aberration may be noticeable around things with hard edges and shapes as light hits the item from certain angles.
Info on Single Covering Versus Multi-Coating
Various optic lenses can likewise have different coverings applied to them. All lenses normally have at least some type of treatment or finish used to them prior to being used in a rifle scope or optic.
Single coated lenses have a treatment applied to them which is generally a protective and improving multi-purpose treatment. This lens treatment can protect the lens from scratches while lowering glare and other less beneficial things experienced in the shooting environment while sighting in with the scope. The quality of a single coated lens depends on the scope manufacturer and how much you spent on it. Both the make and cost are indicators of the lens quality.
Some scope manufacturers also make it a point to specify if their optic lenses are coated or “multi” coated. Being “much better” depends on the producer’s lens treatment technology and the quality of materials used in building the rifle scope.
Hydrophobic Glass Lens Finish
Water on a lens doesn’t help with keeping a clear sight picture through a scope at all. Numerous top of the line and military grade optic makers will coat their lenses with a hydrophobic or hydrophilic finish.
Rifle Scope Installation Choices
Mounting options for scopes come in a few choices. There are the standard scope rings which are separately installed to the scope and one-piece mounts which cradle the scope. These various types of mounts also generally come in quick release variations which use manual levers which enable rifle operators to quickly install and dismount the scope.
Hex Key Rifle Optic Rings
Basic, clamp-on style mounting scope rings use hex head screws to mount to the flattop design Picatinny scope mounting rails on rifles. These types of scope mounts use double independent rings to support the scope, and are made from 7075 T6 billet aluminum or similar materials which are designed for far away precision shooting. This type of scope mount is very good for rifle systems which are in need of a durable, hard use mount which will not shift no matter how much the scope is moved about or jarring the rifle takes. These are the type of mounts you want for a specialized scope system on a far away hunting or sniper competition long gun which will hardly ever need to be changed or recalibrated. Blue 242 Loctite threadlocker can additionally be used on the screws to stop the hex screws from wiggling out after they are mounted securely in position. An example of these rings are the 30mm style made by Vortex Optics. The set usually costs around $200 USD
Glass Mounts with Quick-Release Cantilever Rings
These types of quick-release rifle scope mounts can be used to quickly detach a scope from a rifle and reattach it to a different rifle. A wide range of scopes can also be swapped out if they all use a complementary style mount. The quick detach design is CNC machined from anodized 6061 T6 aluminum and the mounting levers connect securely to a flat top type Picatinny rail. This lets the scope to be sighted in while on the rifle, taken off of the rifle, and remounted back on the rifle while maintaining precision. These kinds of mounts are useful and convenient for shooting platforms which are shipped a lot, to take off the scope glass from the rifle for protection, or for sight systems which are chosen for use in between several rifles. An example of this mount type is the 30mm mount from Vortex Optics. It typically costs around $250 USD
Info on Rifle Glass Tube Sealing and Gas Purging
Wetness inside your rifle scope can ruin a day of shooting and your pricey optic by bringing about fogging and producing residue inside of the scope tube. Most scopes avoid moisture from going into the scope tube with a system of sealing O-rings which are water resistant.
Rifle Scope Gas Purging
Another part of preventing the buildup of moisture within the rifle optic’s tube is filling the tube with a gas like nitrogen. Given that this area is currently occupied by the gas, the glass is less altered by condition shifts and pressure distinctions from the external environment which might possibly permit water vapor to seep in around the seals to fill the vacuum which would otherwise exist. These are good qualities of a good rifle scope to look for.
