From Leupold Product Service:
With all of the recent changes, it can be difficult to know exactly how each product will perform. Every scope Leupold produces, including the Rifleman, is fully coated (all lenses, internal and external, are coated) and utilizes glass, coatings, and optical systems of equal or better quality than the discontinued Vari-X II's of the past. Decreased cost associated with the Rifleman line is due to increased efficiency in our production process, not from reduced quality.
To make things easier, a brief summary of our current scope lines has been compiled including the most prominent features belonging to each.
It is important to note that every lens (internal and external) in every Leupold scope is coated, but the type of coatings will vary. "Fully multicoated" indicates that each lens in an optical system is coated with multiple layers of lens coating, such as Multicoat 4. "Fully coated" indicates that each lens is coated with a single lens coating; Leupold uses magnesium fluoride. "Standard Multicoated" scopes have a combination of coated lenses and multicoated lenses.
-LPS
The LPS line uses ¼ MOA, low profile, finger-adjustable adjustments, a fast-focus eyepiece and our Diamondcoat lens coatings to produce a total light transmission figure of approximately 94%. It is important to note that Leupold light transmission figures are measured as a total, throughout the entire optical system. On a per lens basis the light transmission totals are well above 99%.
-VX-III
The VX-III line was new for 2004 and uses ¼ MOA, low profile, finger-adjustable adjustments and a fast-focus eyepiece. VX-III's are fully multicoated and index-matched to ensure that each lens has the best possible coating, producing a total light transmission figure of up to 98%
-Mark IV
Beginning in 2004, all tactical scopes are included in the Mark IV category and will have the same features as past tactical models with the addition of a fast-focus eyepiece and index-matched lenses; there are 2 exceptions which include the CQ/T and 3-9x40mm PR. The CQ/T has always utilized a combination of Diamondcoat (external) and Multicoat 4 (internal) lens coatings and the 3-9x40mm PR that is fully multicoated using Multicoat 4. 2003 Tactical scopes typically had fully multicoated lenses utilizing Multicoat 4 which produced a total light transmission measurement of approximately 92% rather than the current version which allow nearly 98% on some models.
-Vari-X III
The Vari-X III line (discontinued for 2004 w/ introduction of VX-III) has seen little change and is still optically the same as those produced in the 90's. Vari-X III's utilize ¼ MOA "click" adjustments and are fully multicoated with Multicoat 4, producing a total light transmission figure of approximately 92%.
-VX-II
The VX-II line (2003 and older) uses a combination of Vari-X III and Vari-X II (discontinued) technology. VX-II's also utilize ¼ MOA "click" adjustments, but the lens coatings are different. The external lenses are coated with Multicoat 4 and the internal lenses are coated with magnesium fluoride, producing a total light transmission figure of approximately 86%.
Beginning in 2004, the VX-II line is fully multicoated and will perform comparably to the discontinued Vari-X III line, allowing approximately 92% total light transmission.
-VX-I
The VX-I also utilizes a combination of Vari-X III and Vari-X II technology, utilizing ¼ MOA friction (non-clicking) adjustments. The external lenses are multicoated and the internal lenses use magnesium fluoride, also producing a total light transmission figure of approximately 86%.
-Rifleman
Though the Rifleman line of scopes uses a different maintube (for aesthetic reasons), it is optically the same as the Vari-X II (discontinued for 2001). The adjustments are exactly the same as the Vari-X II (1/2 MOA friction) as are the lenses and coatings. All lenses, internal and external are coated with magnesium fluoride, providing a total light transmission value of approximately 82%. Basically, the Rifleman is a newer-looking matte version of the Vari-X II that helped build the Leupold reputation. It is important to note that custom shop options (reticle changes, target adjustment installation, etc.) is not available for the Rifleman line of scopes.
Beginning in 2005, there will be changes to the fixed-magnification scope lines, updating them to follow the current convention used by the VX series of scopes; all fixed-magnification scopes will have an "FX" designation followed by a number indicating the combination of technologies used in that product. For example, an FX-I will have the same lens coatings and adjustments as a VX-I, an FX-II will have the same lens coatings and adjustments as the VX-II line, etc. There will also be a shift from using the term "compact" to the term "ultralight", meaning that the FX-II 2.5x20mm Ultralight which will be introduced in 2005 will be a fixed-magnification scope with ¼ MOA click adjustments, fully multicoated lenses, and will have the compact eyepiece.
2005 scope introductions will include the following:
Riflescopes
FX-III 6x42mm adjustable objective Competition Hunter with 1/8 MOA target adjustments
FX-II 2.5x28mm Scout
FX-II 4x33mm
FX-II 6x36mm
FX-II 6x42mm
FX-II 12x40mm
Rimfire Riflescopes (Ultralight/compact eyepiece)
VX-II 3-9x33mm EFR
VX-I 2-7x28mm
FX-I 4x28mm
Ultralight Riflescopes
FX-II 2.5-20mm
VX-II 2-7x28mm
VX-II 3-9x33mm EFR
Handgun Scopes
FX-II 2x20mm
FX-II 4x28mm
VX-III 2.5-8x32mm
