Thread: Weaver Grand Slam 4-16x44 opinions

Just a counter-comment @dannyb, I certainly don’t have anything against Leupold, but it is worth reminding ourselves that brands are one thing, cost, “made in” and the actual origin of components is another. Weaver Grand Slams and Super Slams are made by Light Optical Works in Japan. Now the list of brands made in that factory changes depending on who you talk to, and when I say “made” I specifically mean glass manufacture. Some or all of the Nightforce glass is LOW for example. Other brands are manufactured 100% there, e.g. Bushnell Elite.

Leupold glass is sourced from Asia and a fair proportion of it comes from LOW, so I am told by my cuz who should know these things as he and his wife own an agency that imports a range of specialist optical equipment for all manner of industries. His decision to go with Weavers was simply because the part he wanted to ensure was good quality was the same quality as many of the higher priced scopes. So its worth bearing in mind I think that sometimes, the price one is asked to pay for a specific brand might be double or triple, but the important part of the item (in this case the glass) might very well come from the same factory. I think this logic applies best to non-ballistic turret type scopes; when you get into reticle mechanics you need to trust that its robust and accurate and certainly some brands are better in this department than others.