Manufacturers Spotlight
Zeiss Rifle Scopes: An Industry Leader Since 1982
By Denny Quaiff
In a New Age of Excellence, Zeiss Sets the Highest Level of Precision
When I received a call from Kyle Brown, Director of Marketing with Zeiss Consumer Products, about the new Zeiss V3 rifle scopes, I was hoping to learn more. Kyle said he would send me one of their latest V3 scopes in the 4.5-14 x 44mm model to test. I have owned numerous rifle scopes over the past four decades, and I have a Zeiss on one of my rifles that I’ve hunted with for more than twenty years. Having the opportunity to test the latest offering from Zeiss for Whitetail Times was a commitment I took very seriously.
My first call when the scope arrived was to my old friend Thomas Burke. Thomas is one of the most knowledgeable hunters I know when it comes to rifle ballistics and bullet combinations. He is always my go-to when I have a rifle scope to set up and dial in.
30 mm Rings and a Properly Mounted Scope
The new Zeiss V3 Rifle scopes have a 30mm tube, so I stopped by Green Top Sporting Goods to purchase the rings. Many top-end scopes today have 30mm tubes in place of the more common old-school 1-inch tubes. The 30mm tube diameter provides several noted benefits that support precision and accuracy.
The good folks at Green Top mounted my scope on a Mossberg Patriot Super Bantam chambered in.308 Winchester. Mossberg had been kind enough to send me the rifle, which is one of the most popular short-action rifle cartridges among deer hunters and made for a great Zeiss scope and rifle combination.
It’s a must that your rifle scope is property mounted. Mounting a rifle scope requires precise leveling, specific torque specifications, and correct eye relief to maintain zero and accuracy. These are the step-by-step guidelines Green Top pros follow. Having your scope properly mounted is an important component of rifle accuracy and should never be taken for granted.
Top-End Features with the Zeiss V3 Rifle Scopes
With six different Zeiss V3 rifle scope models and 21 configurations being introduced this fall, it’s my pleasure to share with Whitetail Times how impressed I was with the 4.5-14 x 44mm model I evaluated.
My scope employs an external non-locking multi-turn elevation turret with a Ballistic Stop feature. We zeroed my rifle for 100 yards, and the turret’s design allows for the riflescope’s elevation to be adjusted accurately to travel beyond the 100-yard target. This adjustment supports confidence when taking longer shots under hunting conditions. The user-friendly Ballistic Stop has a definitive stop when the turret is returned to the zero position.
Technology continues to advance rifle scopes, and turrets that control elevation for longer shot placement set a high standard for success. By simply adjusting your turret for those challenging long shots, you can stop the guessing game of how high you should hold over.
Another valued optional feature with the V3 scopes is the red illuminated reticle setting. The illuminated scope uses a battery-powered Maxeli CR2032 to light up the crosshairs. This improves low-light conditions at dawn and dusk. I could not even begin to say how many whitetails I’ve shot during the first and last five minutes of legal shooting light. The reticle illumination can be turned on and off, and the intensity can be adjusted by rotating the dial to the preferred red setting. The scope continues to function with the black crosshair when the illumination reticle is turned off.
Epitome
When we got the scope dialed in, I could not get over the impressive clarity and brightness of the Zeiss glass. The shorter length and lighter weight of the scope are built stronger to handle greater recoil and more rigorous hunting conditions. It’s my evaluation that the V3 rifle scope’s optical sharpness sets a high industry standard.
My 100-yard three-shot MOA group is a credit to the sharp field of clarity that the scope delivers for exceptional performance. Zeiss utilizes premium glass to provide industry-leading color rendition and zero optical distortion. For more than 120 years, Zeiss rifle scopes have continued to be a leader with big-game hunters.
To learn more about the new line of V3 Zeiss rifle scopes and all of the company’s optics, visit their website at info.sportsoptics.us@zeiss.com.
Millennium Treestands L125 Lite Ladder Stand
By Bruce Ingram
The Millennium Treestands L125 ladder stand, quite simply, is one of the premier stands of its kind on the market. Ed Welsh, president of Millennium, offers several reasons why.
“It’s a full platform [20” x 32”] stand that is extremely comfortable,” he says. “It also provides safety, as the purchase includes a full-body harness and a Safelink lifeline that meet or exceed the TMA industry standards.”
Other qualities that I find appealing are the oval steel construction, and the spacious seat size [20” x 20” x 16.5’]. With smaller seats and long days aloft, my back often becomes tired. Not with this stand, though, as it also sports a full ComfortMax seat.
My son-in-law David Reynolds and I live in Botetourt County and often hunt the mountains there and in Craig County. David is a fan of this stand’s height of 18 feet, as we often position our stands on mountainsides where the deer sometimes seem to be up higher than we are. Not with this product, though.
Other enticing features include a seat that lifts up for standing shots, a tree brace to lock the ladder down, an adjustable shooting rail with camo pads, and an extra platform base.
For more information, visit https://millennium-outdoors.com.
HUNTSTAND: An Industry Leader
By Brad Stephenson
At this point, you are probably familiar with at least one of the hunting or property apps on the market. If you don’t have one on your smartphone already, your hunting buddies almost certainly do.
HuntStand was founded in 2012 and launched in 2013, and it quickly became one of the most popular mapping apps on the market. Since then, the app and website have both seen massive improvements, with new features added every year.
Two membership levels are offered. HuntStand Pro covers the U.S. and Canada and offers satellite imagery, monthly satellite imagery, property boundaries and ownership information, public land hunting maps, advanced 3D mapping layers to break down topography and ground cover, watercourses and water bodies, wind and weather information, scent-cone tracking while you hunt, stand reservations shared amongst others in your group if they also have the app, and a whole lot more that I haven’t even gotten around to using yet. HuntStand Pro also includes 10-20% off in the HuntStand Gear Store, all for just $34.99 a year.
HuntStand Ultimate offers all of the above, as well as game activity forecasts for whitetail, elk, mule deer, and blacktail for the next 15 days; exclusive rut maps for whitetail, elk, mule deer, and blacktail; whitetail habitat mapping; and 20-50% off in the HuntStand Gear Store, all for $99.99 a year.
The rut maps and whitetail habitat maps, combined with the 15-day activity forecast, really help you dial in on when and where to spend your valuable time in the woods. I’ve had several of the mapping apps on the market over the years, and after comparing price and features, I think you will realize that HuntStand gives you the best bang for your buck!
To learn more about HuntStand, visit www.huntstand.com.
