24 mm objective for leopard

[jcnelsn1]

Many of you have already answered a number of questions I have had. Thanks. Hunt will be mix of buffalo, leopard and plains game. Rifle will be Blaser R8 in .375 H&H. I am looking for the right all around scope.

I am looking hard at the Swaro Z8(i) 1-8x24. The 8x is plenty on the upper end for the ranges I am comfortable shooting and it sounds like 1x is preferred on buffalo. My question is do you all feel the 24mm objective scope is sufficiently bright for leopard? Night hunting is not allowed.

Unfortunately I don’t live in an area where I can readily get my hands on high end optics to look through them myself.

 

[thriller]

Well that cat will probably come in at last light( can happen at anytime) more light is better though. I used a z6i 2-12 and it is great in low light.

 

[Aaron N]

If you kept the scope to the lower powers, 4x or lower, you will be letting in all the light your eye can use. I don’t think you would need any more magnification than that.

 

[R.M.C.]

All scopes these days suck in a lot of light, often more than we can take in. Should be plenty of light. Good luck and make sure you post pics!!!

 

[ZG47]

All scopes these days suck in a lot of light, often more than we can take in. Should be plenty of light. Good luck and make sure you post pics!!!

The greater exit pupil diameter is used because it increases the latitude of eye relief which is also known as the eye box.

 

[Nhoro]

Scope front lens diameters are picked by the manufacturer to allow as much light as a normal human eye can receive through the scope. The more magnification, the bigger the front lens has to be. So a bigger front lens on an 8x scope will not let in more light or make a brighter image- only glass quality can improve that and I doubt you will do better than Swarovski. If you get a scope with higher magnification and a bigger front lens, it will probably still let in less light- in my experience, low magnification scopes are always brighter than high magnification if you compare like to like. I think you choice is excellent- as you say, 8x is more than enough for any hunting shot that I can pull off.

 

[ActionBob]

Well that cat will probably come in at last light( can happen at anytime) more light is better though. I used a z6i 2-12 and it is great in low light.

I second this. Or even a Z6i 2.5-15 x42. There is also a 1.7-10.

If you can get down to 3x or less on the low end for buffalo you should be ok. But the odds are very high that you will be shooting that leopard at very first or last light. I think more likely last light. In the buffalo/leopard compromise on scopes, it may be very tough to beat a 2-12x42ish high quality illuminated scope. For both leopard and Buffalo, you for sure want the illuminated reticle.

Good luck on your hunt!

 

[Red Leg]

Agree with @ActionBob A Swaro, Zeiss, or Leica class scope with a low end of 1.5 or 2.5 and 42 mm objective would be ideal for the hunt you describe. It Is exactly how I equip my R8.

 

[AZDAVE]

The human eye can take and use in 7mm worth of pupil dilation. So take the scope you are using and divide the objective size by 7. So you would need to keep the scope at about 3.5 X or lower to get the most light it can gather and your eye use effectively. This is assuming you have quality glass.