I went into a nearby gunshop and they had a whole pile of Nichols scopes for sale at what seemed like cheap prices (ranged from $35 to $100 -- all were adjustable with the larger ones having up to 50mm front glass). Anyway, I did some checking with a former employee of the store and he told me that the Nichols was an old-style Simmons scope that was rebranded for the owner of the store. After he mentioned that, I remembered seeing a LOT of scopes there with 44mm front glass. And, the resemblance was remarkable.
The original prices on the boxes showed that they were originally about 3 times the price of an equivalent Simmons. The were finally reduced in price (through several cuts) to just about equal to a new Simmons. In other words, not a very good deal at all.
It make me wonder about the other rebranded scopes I have seen out there. Scheel's, Cabela's, Browning, and S&W all have scopes with their name on them. I wonder who makes them? Guess I had better pay the price and stick with Leopold. They have always worked for me.
