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Zeiss conquest V4 4-16x44

Zeiss conquest V4 4-16x44

Airguns are too easily dismissed as only deserving modest optics, yet as a versatile hunting tool throughout all light conditions, there is no reason at all not to treat your favourite rifle to premium glassware, as long as certain criteria are fulfilled.

Regardless of magnification and objective lens size, the most critical factor to any optic is whether it will suit your required shooting and hunting ranges. A fixed parallax scope, regardless of fixed magnification or zoom, will often be set to be parallax free at 100m. Regardless of parallax shift issues, this generally means that at closer ranges you will struggle for visual focus anywhere above the lowest magnification (where parallax error exists but is not apparent), making most of the optical/mechanical capability a bit pointless. Zeiss has made sure the V4 is versatile and it has adjustable parallax from 9.1m (10 yards) to infinity.

Off the chart

Looking at the specification charts immediately illustrates that the Conquest range is marketed predominantly for the US market, as it’s only available in Minutes of Angle (MOA), rather than European MRAD/cm/m click values. This is a personal factor, and most shooters prefer one or the other, with no specific functional benefits or downsides to either one.

The 30mm body tube offers plentiful space for mounting rings and with 90mm of eye relief, it’s not difficult to mount on physically smaller rifles, where 100mm may cause spacing issues. The 44mm objective lens with 50mm overall external diameter, allows for low down mounting, offering better alignment to a shooter’s eye on more classically styled ‘linear’ rifles.

Close quarters

At 16x magnification, the parallax and focal control are crisp all the way down to 10 yards. Plus, if you ever need to go incredibly close, and are searching for focus, there is of course the ease of lowering magnification as far down as 4x, which will also broaden the field of view.

All the mod cons are in place, like the fast-focus eyepiece, plus there is textured knurling on the smoothly rotating parallax dial. The elevation and windage caps are removable and although polymeric, feature neatly applied threads that require little effort to rotate smoothly and nip into position. The underlying fingeradjustable dials feature 20 MOA per turn, segregated into 80x 1/4” clicks at 100 yards. These are all crisp and firm, with no likelihood of overrun for accurate dialling. The outer rim of the visual markers lifts to turn, so once zeroed, the scope can be reset to visually mark zero without tools.

Finishing standards

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The external anodising is perhaps a shade below black, but is smoothly applied and not the lighter grey colour of older Zeiss Conquests. At the front, metalwork overhangs the objective lens by 13mm for glass protection. All internal lenses are multi-coated for a 90% light transmission value and at the rear, you get a silently rotating zoom collar with easily grasped knurling, running from 4-16x magnification in an anticlockwise direction.

The dioptre can be adjusted at the rear from +2/-3 to bring the No.60 reticle, which is a hunter’s favourite, into focus. This second focal plane reticle adjusts into sharp detail for your eyes and is consistent in size at all magnification settings, with heavier perimeter 3, 6 and 9 o’clock arms meeting centrally with finer crosshairs.

The illuminated, fizzle-free central dot has ten intensity levels and these are controlled by the outer rim of the left-hand side parallax turret. Intermediate ‘off’ positions are featured and I found No.5 ideal for daylight use, with lower values suiting the scope as external light intensity on target/quarry and backgrounds diminished.

The purest of rifles

The optical quality is a significant step up from many airguntype optics, as this is a modest magnification scope. The fact that it concentrates on image quality, rather than additional mechanical functionality, is appreciated by those wanting maximum low light performance and greater optical resolution throughout the day. It’s also appreciated by those with weaker eyes and as an instructor, I regularly see shooters struggle with inappropriate optics that increase eye strain.

The fine reticle always offers a precise aim point and given the illumination, parallax control and parallel-bodied ocular lenses with mid-level coating complexity (specifically to I.R. intervention), use with an additional night vision add-on is a further realistic step. This is another beneficial factor for the Conquest as its modest weight, size and eye relief are well suited.

Elasticated lens caps are supplied, and the eye relief/eye box is well suited to the minimal linear recoil offered by an airgun. This is not to be confused by the fact this scope is fully centrefire capable, some airguns actually give optics a harder life than their larger cousins, because a springer transfers significant reciprocating G-forces we don’t always consider problematic.

A high-quality optic is a pleasure to pair with a pure hunting rifle and will last a lifetime, throughout which our eyesight can diminish as the years roll by. I can attest to this.

Thanks to the Sportsman Gun Centre for the kind loan of this scope.

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  • Zeiss conquest V4 4-16x44 - image {image:count}

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  • Zeiss conquest V4 4-16x44 - image {image:count}

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  • Zeiss conquest V4 4-16x44 - image {image:count}

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  • Zeiss conquest V4 4-16x44 - image {image:count}

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  • Zeiss conquest V4 4-16x44 - image {image:count}

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  • Zeiss conquest V4 4-16x44 - image {image:count}

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gun
features

  • Name: Zeiss Conquest V4 4-16x44
  • Light Transmission: 90%
  • Exit Pupil Diameter: 8.5 – 2.8 mm
  • Twilight Factor: 11.5 – 26.5
  • Field of View @100m: 9.5 – 2.4m
  • Objective Viewing Angle: 5.4° – 1.4°
  • Diopter Adjustment Range: + 2.0 | − 3.0
  • Eye Relief: 90mm (3.54")
  • Parallax Setting: 9.1 m – ∞ (10 yds – ∞)
  • Adjustment Per Click @100m: 1/4 MOA (0.7 cm /100 m)
  • Main Tube: 30 mm
  • Price: £911.99
  • Contact: Zeiss - www.zeiss.co.uk
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