When it comes to scopes, competitive rifle shooters have never had it so good – 20 years ago, I seem to remember only Nightforce were offering quality, high-mag. zooms but now, most of the major manufacturers have finally acknowledged that there is a civilian market for a specialist high-mag. scope. However, this has come at a cost!

When I got into F Class a couple of decades ago, circa £1000 was the norm for  decent quality optics but then along came March and shook up the optics game with their uber-powerful zooms and convinced us that we needed to pay over 2k – if we really wanted to have top quality glass on our rifles. Not only that – March were aware of the weight limit – something seemingly un-important to Nightforce, Schmidt & Bender etc. – until relatively recently at least and now they too offer weight-conscious high-mag. zooms.

OK, so let’s get to the subject of this review – the name at the top of the page – Zero Compromise Optics. I like to think I keep abreast of new stuff but I’d never heard of ZCO and, when I saw my first ZCO in the flesh, I thought it must be another Chinese scope – until I saw the price! Four grand plus – now I’m interested – very interested! Can a relatively unknown manufacturer really convince a shooter to ignore the established opposition and part with 4 or 5k?

This is what the ZCO website says about themselves:

“Zero Compromise Optic (ZCO) is a true riflescope specialist – the company was founded and managed in 2018 by leaders in the optics and mechanics industry.

Our small, dynamic team based in Austria and the United States has one goal, ‘to build the best riflescope in the world’. We achieve this only with outstanding quality, maximum performance and the highest reliability.

Every single product is extensively tested under extreme practical conditions before it leaves our production facility.

We know that convinced customers who remain loyal to us for a lifetime are the basis and motivation for our future product development as well as further innovations.

We believe that our lifelong customers are our driving asset for future product development and innovations. Neither the ultimate quality nor the precision of ZCO products is ever compromised or sacrificed in favour of higher production volume”.

Let’s see what we get for our money. I have the range of Zero Compromise scopes to choose from – thanks to Fox Firearms at Diggle Ranges.  Edgar Bros are the UK distributor of ZCO’s comprehensive range:  1.7 – 12x, 2 – 10x, 5 – 27x and the 8 – 40x. Prices start at £3385 rising to £4650 – plus there is a fashionable flat dark earth option (to standard matt black finish) for an extra couple of hundred quid or so. My choice – because I love F Class and 600/1000 yard Benchrest – has to be the 8 – 40x 56mm.

Normally, I would choose an SFP (second focal plane) scope – because I always know the distance I’m shooting at and, most of my long-range optics tend to be used permanently at around 35 to 40x. Also, I have seen FFP scopes where the reticle is acceptable at lower magnifications but becomes the proverbial ‘telegraph pole’ at max magnification!  I’m please to say that the ZCO reticle is fine enough – even at max magnification to allow accurate ‘aim-off’ at extreme ranges – thanks to a very, very tiny central dot – though I do still find the heavy horizontal stadia lines a little distracting. There is no SFP option that I can see from the website. There is of course a choice of reticles – most are quite ‘busy’ – I’m usually happy with a simple fine crosshair with a centre dot – fortunately, the ret. on my test scope is the one I would choose from the range of five offered.

There is a choice of Mils or MOA and I’m relieved to have the MOA version. I was weaned on feet and inches and our F Class targets are half MOA rings as are our American 600/1000 yard benchrest targets – so perfect. If you were brought up with the metric system, then you’ll be happy with the milradian option.

Adjustment is in 1/8 MOA clicks – which is OK but personally, I’m more than happy with ¼ MOA. The turrets are massive, deeply machined to offer plenty of grip – so easy to operate in gloves – with very positive clicks. Pull up on the turret to enable adjustment. There is also a small ‘rising pin’ indicator which helps you recognise which of the three turns of the turret you are using, plus a zero-stop facility (comprehensive setting instructions in the on-line manual) and illumination but honestly, although I’ve had it on Nightforce scopes, I can’t think of a time when I’ve used an illuminated ret. for target shooting. Reticle focus is via a neat little ring on the ocular which moves very easily. The zoom-ring displays a stiffer but smooth operation.

This scope could however have one drawback for some competition shooters – it’s a whopper!  Tipping the scales at 41 ounces or 1175grams with its 36mm diameter body tube. That’s 12 ounces heavier than the equivalent March and surely the reason we don’t see more Schmidt & Benders on the firing-line (though they have now finally brought out a lighter, long-range ‘competition’ scope). A lot of competition rifles are built to a strict weight limit and most shooters will surely choose to put extra weight into the barrel rather than the scope. This ZCO might find a home on an F Class Open gun with its 10 kg limit or a Benchrest Heavy Gun (no weight limit) or indeed any Tactical or PRS rig.

OK, so I have actually got the ZCO mounted on my Benchrest Heavy Gun with the  supplied 36mm one-piece mount – which comes complete with neat folding built-in level (below). All scopes deserve a good solid mount and this is no place to compromise with a scope of this quality. Let’s put it through its paces and then actually shoot a 600 yard UKBRA Benchrest competition with it, which is coming up in a couple of weeks time.

First, we’ll try a ‘round the angles’ test – designed to check the accuracy of adjustment. I’m set up benchrest-style and zeroed at 100 yards in the centre of a large four-foot square blank target. The idea is to stay on the same centre aim-point but adjusting the windage and elevation turrets to land a shot in each corner of the target to form a ‘square’.

I was hoping the sides of the square would be about 30 MOA so we can measure the accuracy of adjustment and any ‘closing error’ – i.e. the first and fifth shot should go through the same hole – allowing of course for ammo/rifle/wind and ‘nut behind the butt’ error!  However, I can tell you that my best 5-shot group at the last 600 yard BR comp with this rifle was just 1.8 inches – so I’d like to think we can rule out some of those variables and fortunately, it’s a calm day.

Now I hit the first problem – after zeroing, I attempt to wind on 15 MOA of left windage – but run out of adjustment at 5 MOA!  Can something be out of alignment?  My pic rail is machined into the body of my CNC’d custom action so I can’t see that’s the issue and the supplied one-piece mount is correctly fixed.  Turning the windage knob the other way gives me 13 MOA – i.e. a max total windage of about 18 MOA…… When I check the ZCO data sheet for the 8-40 it seems that’s all we get – a scant 18 MOA. Even with the scope in perfect alignment, that’s only 9 MOA left and right – believe me, I’ve shot F Class in more than a 9 MOA wind!

As a check, I later mounted the ZCO on a new Accuracy International rifle – again with built-in Pic rail.  It did a little better with its 18 MOA windage – at 7 MOA and 11 MOA.

I was a little puzzled by the minimal windage with a large 36mm body tube so I emailed ZCO for clarification and got the following reply:

“Yes, we have a 36mm main tube but a scope with a higher magnification needs a larger focal length and a long focal length needs more space when adjusting for the same travel as a 5-27 scope for example.

This is the reason why the 8-40 has less travel in elevation and windage than a 5-27 for example or 4-20”.

So there you have it. Elevation is listed on the data sheet at 57 MOA – which again seems a bit low for a long-range scope – remember, mounting the scope could halve that figure – a 20 MOA rail will solve the problem of course but I hopefully I should still have plenty for my 600 yard competition.

Here’s our square:

It’s a very good result – all four sides measure between 18.125  and 18.25 inches – well within the limits of the rifle/ammo and the closing shots (1 and 5) are within ¼ inch of each other. Ideally the sides should be 18.8 inches (18 x 1.047 inches) but nonetheless, that’s a good result. By measuring the diagonals we can confirm that the square is indeed a square.

I suspect that the ZCO isn’t wholly aimed at me – the long-range competition shooter who is happy in his ‘enclosed range’ world.  However, even I occasionally step out into the big wide world and this is when you certainly need to take a second look at your equipment.

When flying to overseas competitions, our fragile, cosseted rifles and scopes are taken out of our hands and often subjected to unseen brutal treatment by airlines and airport baggage handlers. I’ve seen my gun-case drop three feet from a conveyor belt onto the baggage pick-up carousel! No point flying halfway round the globe only to find that the reticle has dropped out of your scope – or what have you.  This is where we start to think about how robust our gear needs to be and I well remember the US Optics guy, whose party trick at the 1999 US Shot Show, was to hurl his scope down one of the aisles to demonstrate its toughness! 

I have a similar feeling about the ZCO scope – you could probably drive tent pegs in with it! It certainly looks to be in the Schmidt & Bender class when it comes to ruggedness and indeed ZCO are clearly aware of such treatment and claim that impact testing is a significant part of their development programme.

But what about the optics? Mmm, always a difficult question to answer. Even some cheapo Chinese scopes have acceptable glass these days. How good do our optics need to be?  Well, on a good clear day, they must ideally offer a crystal-clear target picture at the scope’s maximum magnification – at extreme ranges in my case.

Although that might seem obvious, a lot of scopes can lose clarity at maximum power. This can be simply due to atmospherics – we rarely get crystal-clear days – and light transmission. I remember at the US Vegas Shot Show a few years ago – the media were shipped out a 1000 yard range in the Nevada desert and it was so so clear – a 1000 yards looked more like 600 yards and you could easily see bullet impacts on the 1000 yard steel plates. I’ve never seen that clarity in the UK and I can see why a lot of American long-range shooters are happy with 25x at 1000 yards.

My own current F Class scope (a Vortex Golden Eagle) is rarely used on maximum 60x magnification at extreme ranges. The F Class V Bull is only five inches across at 1000 yards and I would love to shoot on max 60 power – to concentrate my aim and aim-off. I play with the zoom to get the image I’m most comfortable with and usually end up around 35-40x. Let’s take the ZCO back to 1000 yards and see how it compares to the Vortex and my March Benchrest scope – both set on 40x.

I’ve pinned-up a large selection of targets on a six-foot square backer. Here’s a pic of what we are looking at.

To attempt to evaluate lens performance, it is essential that the scopes are absolutely solidly supported front and rear – so all three are rifle-mounted and supported on front and rear rests on Diggle’s 1000 yard concrete benches. We have a decent clear autumn day with a watery sun. I’ve recruited another pair of eyes (also a 1000 yard shooter) to supplement my aging pair! Neither of us are wearing spectacles.

The three scopes are set up on the test target 1000 yards away. All are set at 40x.

We each tease the focus knobs to get the very best image and honestly, all three scopes give a superb, clear, sharp, contrasty image – more than adequate for long-range competition. Eye-relief on the ZCO is typical – around 3.5 to 4 inches.

Amazingly, the small red 300 yard benchrest target on the right of the board proves to be the real tester for our optics – the small red square is clear and sharp but the rings are at best hazy – on all three scopes. Whilst we both agree there is little to choose between the three, I ask my helper – under pressure – to pick a winner. After some consideration, she chooses the ZCO but also mentions that she finds the heavy reticle a distraction. I can’t disagree.

So, a couple of weeks later, I’m set up on a concrete bench for the next round of the UKBRA’s 600 yard Benchrest series. I’ve had the scope off to check the mounts – as I could easily need 5 MOA windage – but no – they were OK.  However we are in the middle of Storm Bert – there were discussions re cancelling the shoot but we decided to go ahead. It was blowing a hooey and I wasn’t shooting until afternoon – would it go worse?  I decided not to take the risk – I’d brought my Golden Eagle as a back up and I decided to play safe and swap out the ZCO. But, when I get the opportunity, I will shoot the ZCO in a benchrest competition. (Unfortunately the next one was cancelled due to mist!).

If you want to know more, there is a series of three You Tube videos focussing on the  5-27x version of the ZCO scope which you might want to view before you lash out the cash! And of course, check out the website www.zcompoptic.com

Finally, if you’ve ever had to claim on a warranty – or even simply tried to get a scope repair carried out, you’ll know how important after-sales customer service can be. For me Leupold currently offer a genuine lifetime warranty – which will pass onto the next owner – I’ve used the Leupold warranty and they are really good in this aspect. Vortex also offer a no-quibble warranty – but I’ve not tested it as yet. I know the UK March importer is also very helpful with his customers.

Here’s ZCO’s warranty:

“In the highly unlikely event that a problem occurs with your ZCO riflescope, we offer a transferable lifetime warranty that covers mechanical and optical defects due to materials or workmanship under normal use for the life of the riflescope.

At our discretion, we will either repair or replace (with a product of the same or similar model) a defective product after prior thorough inspection”.

Conclusion

The ZCO is undoubtedly a high quality scope – both optically and mechanically. It’s expensive and it’s heavy and comes in FFP. If this is not an issue, then you will be more than happy with your purchase. For me – I prefer SFP and I would really like a little more windage adjustment.

Edgar Bros are the UK ZCO importer and Fox Firearms at Diggle Ranges have the full range in stock.

Suggested prices are:

1.7-12x 50       £3385

2-10x 30          £3928

5-27x 56          £4300

8-40x 56          £4650

The optional flat dark earth finish adds another £2-300