What is your opinion on the best low light scope available? Obv a legal deer hunting scope... I have heard nothing is better than Swarovski. Curious what your opinions are on it.

Thanks!

Schmidt and Bender.

Zeiss Diavari Victory T* 3-12X56 is the best I’ve owned.

The three scope brands that have been mentioned are the top three. Then come Kahles, Meopta,Minox. Etc.

All of the high end euro scopes with a 30mm tube will have more light gathering capabilities that the human eye can use.

Swarovski
Zeiss
Schmidt & Bender

You better watch this crowd. We’re bad for your pocket book and good at spending other folks money. The 56mm Diavari Shaw listed and the S&B 8x56 are the 2 brightest-clearest scopes I’ve ever looked thru at last light.

If you want something that doesn’t require a second mortgage, I highly recommend the Leupold VXR line.

Now that we got the millionaire optics out of the way.
The best scope, for less than three months of mortgage payments, is the Meopta.

If you want the best, you'll pay for it. A lot of European hunting is legal at night, therefore the Europeans design scopes for that type of hunting. You will not get the low light performance of a European scope in a Leupold...period.

To get European performance in an American scope, you'll have to get in the class of Nightforce, US Optics, etc...and you'll pay Euro prices for them.

But, since you said legal, and by "legal" I assume you mean 30 minutes after sunset the hunt is over, then a Leupold will get you there.

If you're talking legal light (30 mins before and after) then any decent scope will do. If you're talking "best" low light scope, then the above Europeans have it nailed.

The Swarovski’s are good and if you are patient and shop around you can usually find them on sale or slightly used. I have one on my main hunting rifle and always been able to see way past legal light.

Best one I own or have used is a Swarovski fixed PF8x56

I'd guess an older, high end Euro , 30mm in a low power range. Brand prolly wouldn't matter that much.

I have a Burris euro diamond 3x12x56, I bought for less than 400$ that is very impressive

TickaTicka has/had a Swarovski Z5 for sale last week.

The European scopes are the ticket. Keep in mind there is a difference in low light performance in the different lines offered by each manufacturer. A Swarovski Z3 is a good scope and will get you past legal light, but it's not as good as the outstanding Z6 line, which has been surpassed by the Z8 line of scopes introduced a couple years ago.

As usual, you have to write BIG checks for a few minutes more of available light. Only you can decide how much those few minutes are worth.

I agree that Meopta and/or Minox are very good for the money as long as they have the 30mm tube. The tube size is more Important that the objective size.

As an example; a scope with a 30mm tube with a 42mm objective brings in more light than a 1" tube with a 56mm objective.

Nightforce,Zeiss,Swarovski,kahles,

Is this verified somewhere? All the info I have seen, if I’m remembering correctly, said tube size was less relevant if not irrelevant.

Tube size is NOT a factor in how much light is transmitted to the eye. It is due to the 30 mm scopes having higher quality glass and coatings than 1" tubes.