Tech Info for Schmidt & Bender 12.5-50×56 Scope Now Available
German optics-maker Schmidt & Bender has recently released comprehensive information on the new 12.5-60×56 PMII scope. The spec sheets are found on S&B’s German-language website. (The USA website has not been updated yet.) We’ve handled this new scope at SHOT Show and it is very impressive to say the least. While our auto-translation from the German isn’t perfect, (and some of the published info appears to be incorrect), here are key specs we’ve discerned:
Weight: 21.52 ounces (610 grams) HOWEVER 1100 grams may be more accurate*
Overall Length: 16.38″ (416.5 mm)
Main Tube: 34mm
Click Value: 1 cm per click OR 1/4 MOA (two versions)
Reticle: P3 (Others may be available later)
CLICK HERE for Schmidt & Bender 12.5-50 Scope INFO
Note: S&B also lists an exit pupil size range of 13.3 to 3.3 mm. The smaller number doesn’t seem right, unless S&B has achieved a major breakthrough in optics design. At max 50X power, with a 56mm front objective, we calculate the minimum exit pupil as 1.12 mm.
*We also question the stated weight of 610 grams. The 12.5-50X56 S&B Field Target Scope, which is similar in size and features, is listed at 1150 grams or 40.56 ounces.
The scope description states: “The sight is alternatively available with foreseeing in the 1st plane or 2nd plane.” By this we think it means BOTH first-focal-plane reticle and second-focal-plane reticle versions will be offered. On a variable power scope, a first-focal-plane reticle increases or decreases with the power setting, so the reticle always appears the same size relative to the target. When the reticle is in the second focal plane, the reticle stays a constant size as the image increases or decreases in size with the power setting.
We still have no concrete information on scope price or availability in the USA. We’ve heard the figures $2700-2900 tossed around, but S&B representatives won’t give out hard numbers. Keep in mind that the 12.5-50 is NOT illuminated so it could actually be a little cheaper than the 5-25×56 PMII with illuminated reticle.
The National Shooting Sports Federation reports that Grits Gresham, one of America’s best-known outdoorsmen and a longtime friend to NSSF, died yesterday (2/18/2008) in his hometown of Natchitoches, La., at age 85. Gresham enjoyed an extraordinary career that included serving as field host and producer for the “The American Sportsman” TV series on ABC and as a magazine writer and editor, book author, conservationist and television personality. At one time, Gresham was the outdoor industry’s most visible champion thanks to his role in a series of commercials for Miller Lite beer. Back in the early 1980s, when cable television and outdoor programming were gaining a national audience, NSSF began to explore how to best use this new outreach for its hunting and shooting sports promotional messages. “What we really needed,” said NSSF President Doug Painter, “was a great spokesman, and who better than the former co-host of ‘The American Sportsman’ series, Grits Gresham. We began in 1984 with a series of ‘Where to Hunt’ and ‘Where to Shoot’ specials on ESPN hosted by Grits. These specials were followed by broadcasts of the first ‘made-for-TV’ shooting event, the ‘Sportsman’s Team Challenge,’ and continued with our ‘Shooting Sports America’ series on prime-time ESPN through the mid-1990s. Grits was a terrific host and a wonderful ambassador for our sports.”
