Keeping with my new policy of gathering Rifle scopes mostly now from the ranks of used scopes, I recently purchased a Zeiss 3x9 Diavari-C Model made in West Germany, scope.
I bought the Zeiss AND a Redlfield Widefield scope from a pawn shop/sport shop here in SW Montana.
I paid $220.00 for BOTH scopes!
I sold the Redfield Widefield for $75.00 at a recent Gunshow near Seattle.
I mounted the Zeiss on a new to me, Remington 700 BDL in caliber 17 Remington.
My first range session REALLY got my attention and impressed me (with the scope AND the Rifle!).
I was able to shoot rather small groups at 100 yards with the Zeiss even though I am used to and normally "demand" more scope power than the Zeiss has.
This model has the "American" style fine duplex reticle with the small thin portion opening. I am going to test in the near future using the "point" of the thick portion of the lower vertical crosshair for use as an aim point. I am interested to see at what range this "aim point" will be sighted in at. Again the small section of the duplex reticle is such a narrow (and preferrable to me) opening that I am sure I can make use of this feature in my ranging estimations and compensations somehow!
The adjustments were fluid and on time and corresponded to the listed movement claims correctly.
I have had the Zeiss to the range once more and it has gone on 2 Varmint Hunts since then as well and is already packed for another upcoming combination Varmint Hunting/Moose scouting trip starting a few hours from now.
I made a point of bringing the Zeiss out on my last two Varminting ventures at dawn and dusk each time! It brought in lots of light and definition during the dim light tests was impressive.
If I am not mistaken the front objective lense is 33mm.
I was a bit worried that at diminshed light "times" it might prove problematic for this scope - not so far anyway.
I am a tried and true (and tatooed!) Leupold kind of guy and have only "dabbled" a few times in Zeiss optics in the past. I have owned their binoculars, monoculars and scopes in the past and have had mixed results with them. Lend it enough being said that I have not gone out of my way to buy a new Zeiss product in a long time.
Its my understanding that this scope originally retailed in America for near $600.00! As fine an optic as it has been for me so far I would not pay that much for one today - under any circumstance.
I have had only passing experience with the new model Zeiss 3x9's and again I have not gone out of my way to buy one of these either.
The true test will come this winter when my Zeiss 3x9 gets the inclement weather, snow and sub-zero tests here in SW Montana. After I take it out of an 80 degree heated truck cab and into the below zero outside temps several dozen times I will get back to you all and let you know how it holds up.
I am presently on the lookout for scope covers for this model and any information on true mm sizes of the lenses for this model would be appreciated by me (I hate to drag a Rifle in and out of stores trying to find lense caps that fit!).
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

VG, I have used one of these scopes as my main "travel abroad" hunting scopes for years. They may not have coatings as good as what you get in contemporary optics, but they are as rugged as anything. From the searing heat and dust of Africa to the sub-zero temperatures of Greenland in March, that scope has never let me down, and I have shot it on rifles ranging from a .257 Wby to a .375 H&H. Right now, it is the main scope for my .300 Win Mag.

In particular I like the quality of the adjustments. I have quite a few Leupold scopes, and I have used them all over the place with little reason to complain. But my Leupolds have never held a candle to the predictability and precision of the adjustments of these Zeiss scopes. It sure takes the guesswork out of sighting in.

Another thing I like about the scope, is the reticle. Although the fine crosshairs are thin enough to allow precision shooting even at long range, the thicker part is just that tad heavier than comparable Leupold Duplex reticles. Should you ever need low light shooting, that might just save the day. Zeiss, in my experience, is the one of the few (if not the only?) scope manufacturers, who have caught onto what shooters need: thin inner reticle for precision work, and heavy outers for low light use. This is even more pronounced in Zeiss' European scopes. A lot of other European scope makers make the heavy outers, but few (if any?) combine them with the thin inner crosshairs that Zeiss uses.

Since I like my scope covers to stay on the scope, I have found myself using a simple Bikini rubber cover, attached to the scope tube with a pair of cable ties. That has worked for me for quite a few years now. I guess you could use the orginal (hard) Zeiss covers this way as well. They would certainly be a bit quicker to remove and replace. Only drawback I see, is that the semi-hard cups of the Zeiss cover would be a tad more noisy than the rubber cups of the Bikini. Besides, the Bikinis are as cheap as anything, so loosing one is not a a big deal.

For really dusty and sandy conditions, a full neoprene scope cover (also attached with cable ties) has proven practical - less sand to remove from the scope at the end of a long day in the field, and thus less damage to the coatings.

Btw, I believe the objective lens is 36mm.

- mike

you have my favorite scope, they are on my 3 best rifles..You can order factory covers for $30.00 but I just use scopecoats when the factory covers break.

This is a timely discussion. Just yesterday I purchased a used Kimber in 300WSM that had a Zeiss Diavari C 3-9x36 scope mounted. I paid a premium for the gun because of the glass, and have spent the day researching this particular scope to find out what I bought.

Based on the comments above, I am happy with my deal!

That type is a classic for mountain hunting and or lightweight rifles or as allround rifle. Zeiss has very good lensen and that proves the fact that you dont need a large objective scope to a brillaint light gathering in the objective.

And then its the other saying about Zeiss, "Why are they so expensive?" "You will see the reason why they are that in 20 years"

A great scope at a good price.

Varmint Guy,

Since you managed such a great deal on the scopes and quickly disposing of the Redfield - I'll give you $150.00 for the Zeiss and then you'll have a coupla bucks profit on that deal too!

Mho, Wooly ESS, Mr Rigby, Gerry: Thanks all for your input. I just got back late last night from a Moose scouting/Varmint Hunting/Fishing trip here in SW Montana.
Due to rampant forest and wildfires (rangefires) here in the west I had occassion to try the Zeiss out in the thick blue haze. This haze at times limited visibility to 1/3 mile! Great clarity here as well.
Once we got into the "high country" above 8,000' the smoke lay mostly below us! The Zeiss (and the Remington) are holding P.O.I. perfectly so far. We travelled both by 4x4 truck and then by 4x4 ATV into alpine country. At one point we were near 9,000' elevation and the wind had the air just about crystal clear up there. The Zeiss REALLY impressed me as I scoped virtually everything, like Grouse, pinecones, pine needles, Elk, and waterfowl on alpine lakes.
Couldn't be happier with it.
Also, in response publicly to an offline inquiry about my Zeiss purchase - I feel I would gladly pay close to or right at $300.00 for another scope like this one.
I appreciate the comments on the usage and reliability of the Zeiss Diavari.
One Jack Rabbit (Snowshoe Hare?) fell to my shot at an estimated 180 yards. Even at that range the thin section of the Duplex reticle did not cover much of that Varmint!
My one big "hesitancy" with originally buying this scope was repair service or warranty service and obviously my not being the original purchaser I assumed there would be no warranty! I can live with that but the availability of service for this older model Zeiss still had me a tad "hesitant"!
The scope obviously is in perfect working order and hopefully like one of the previous posters has experience with my Zeiss will pass the winter Hunting test A-Okay.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

quote:

Originally posted by VarmintGuy:
My first range session REALLY got my attention and impressed me (with the scope AND the Rifle!).
VarmintGuy

And the devil asked "Did I feel a draft?!"

quote:

I am a tried and true (and tatooed!) Leupold kind of guy and have only "dabbled" a few times in Zeiss optics in the past. I have owned their binoculars, monoculars and scopes in the past and have had mixed results with them. Lend it enough being said that I have not gone out of my way to buy a new Zeiss product in a long time.

And then he said "Who threw that snowball?!!"

how does it compare to current leupolds optically??

Cummins cowboy: All my Leupold 3x9's are many years old. I have lots of newer Leupolds but they are higher powered - of course.
I have a friend here abouts that has bought four new Sako Rifles (including one Deluxe Model in 300 WSM!) in the past couple months! And he scoped them all with new Leupold 4x12 variables. We had his 270 Sako (with Leupold 4x12 on it) and my Remington 700 with the Zeiss 3x9 on it at the range together a few weeks ago.
The Zeiss was crystal clear that warmish morning and my friends Leupold 4x12 was - how can I say this - about 96% as clear as my Zeiss! His Leupold was the non-A.O. model - I don't even try to keep the Leupold model designations straight anymore.
I shot my friends Sako 270 by the way and with Federal factroy ammo we both were able to make groups under 1 M.O.A. at 100 yards!
Yeah, I would clearly give the slight edge clarity wise to the Zeiss but the Leupold suffered not from its slightly less clarity there at that range session (comparison).
The true (important) comparisons will come this winter in the inclement weather and with more hard Montana usages.
I will keep you posted.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

how old do you think this zeiss is??

They were made from the early 80's until the late 90's. The earlier 1's had a shorter tube.. if you will measure the lenght from end to end, i'll measure mine & let you know.. The market for these scopes around here is in the $400 range for a long tube with excellent optics but a scratched tube.

Tom ga hunter: The overall length of my Zeiss is 11.63" - with the focal eyepiece adjustment set exactly at the "O".
Let me know what your scope measures and your estimate as to the age of my rig.
Thanks in advance.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

It's a late production scope.. Email Zeiss tge serial # & they will give you the production date. You will now be officially spoiled for all other scopes.