Does anyone know why the AV has almost 1/2 more eye relief than the PH?

The more eye relief you have the narrower the field of view and vice versa. Europeans as a rule are more interested in field of view and tend not to shoot such big guns so the PHs are set up for field of view - they also have the sprung eyecup which minimises any hurt.

I have yet to have my PH 1.5-6x42 hit me even on my 9.3x62.

quote:

Originally posted by 1894mk2:
The more eye relief you have the narrower the field of view and vice versa. Europeans as a rule are more interested in field of view and tend not to shoot such big guns so the PHs are set up for field of view - they also have the sprung eyecup which minimises any hurt.

Well said.

Theres always a trade off in the world of optics.

Eye relief from the lens is the same. The difference in the published eye relief between the AV and PH series is the spring loaded eye piece, which takes up 0.4 inches. Push the eye piece in, and the eye relief is the same.