Leupold Rifle Scopes - The Best on the Market?

Being the owner of a web site about rifle scopes, I get quite a bit of e-mail dealing with various rifle scopes. Throughout those e-mails, the one rifle scope maker that is constantly misspelled is Leupold. I've seen it written in a variety of variations including Leopold, Lewpold, Lupold, and Lupolt. The company was founded in 1907 by Fred Leupold so "Leupold" is the right well to spell it.

Originally known as Leupold & Voelpel, in 1942 the company changed the name to Leupold & Stevens Instruments Co. In 1947, Leupold decides to enter the sports optics markets and offers it's first scope, called the Plainsmen.

In 1947 Leupold entered into a contract with the military where Leupold was supplying with the Plainsman scope. That contract lasted from 1947 to 1948. Rifle scopes produced during this time suffered from an issue where the scope would fog up during changes in temperature, climate, or elevation. In 1949, Leupold was able to solve this problem by introducing scopes that were filled with nitrogen instead of the traditional oxygen.

This new technology was an instant success and Leupold immediately saw a major increase in sales. Based on the success of their riflescope line, Leupold decided to go further into the sports optics market. Over the next 10 years, they introduced new optical products like binoculars and spotting scopes, as well as a number of scopes designed for specialized uses.

Leupold has quickly become one of the most successful US based optical manufacturers and continues to be a force in the riflescope market.

Unlike most rifle scope makers in the USA, Leupold is one of the few that only utilizes parts and labor from the U.S. While this process drives the parts and productions costs up for Leupold, it also means that you as the buyer get a truly high quality scope that will absolutely work when you need it.

Leupold also has one of the strongest warranty's in the business. All their scopes come with a lifetime guarantee. If the scope that you have breaks and they can't fix it, you get a brand new at no charge. I had a Leupold Golden Ring spotting scope that started having problems as soon I purchased it. It went back to Leupold one time under the lifetime warranty. A Leupold rep called and said that they couldn't fix it to their satisfaction so they sent me a brand new replacement.

I personally own 3 Leupold scopes in various configurations and I would buy each of them all over again in a minute. Leupold scopes aren't inexpensive, but they are worth the money. If you are on the fence about purchasing one, give it some thought.

If you are in the market for a high performance riflescope and want the best that you can afford, then consider a Leupold. Here's a site that has a good Leupold selesction at reasonable prices: Leupold Rifle Scopes.