I agree with what Buster said. When buying a Cabelas or Bass Pro product, you really don't know what you're buying. Even if they give you a 50% discount, you still may be buying it for way more than it's worth.
With a name brand scope, however, like Leupold, Bushnell, Nikon, Zeiss, etc., you can compare the prices from all of the websites and see who is cheapest.
Personally, I have purchase my last 3 or so scopes from Jon at the opticzone. His prices are the lowest I have seen anywhere. Keep in mind, however, that since you are a member of this site, Jon will really take care of you.
Also, I openly admit that I buy all of my optics from our sponsors, mostly the optic zone and SWFA. I do this for 2 reasons. First, their prices are among the lowest on the net, and service is second to none.
Second, these folks help pay to keep this site going. Members don't pay anything. Heck, we moderators don't pay anything. It's the sponsors that help pay for this site, and I am very grateful to them because this is like a hobby for me and I love to help people with advice. Even if you find a sponsor's prices to be a few dollars more expensive (which is hard to do because usally they are the lowest priced), then we should still buy from them so that they can continue to support this site.
Take it from me, a moderator of this forum, I would NEVER buy a Cabela's scope...I just don't know what I'm getting into. Plus, like I said, I love this forum because I and share my knowledge with everyone. Think of it this way - if this site wasn't up, you wouldn't be able to get the responses you just did. Isn't that worth something? :grin:
Give Jon a call at the optic zone and ask him his thoughts on your topic - I'm sure he would be a valuable asset! :grin:
Zachary