Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 Review | Best in Class Scope

In this Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 review, we are going to dive into the details of this Zeiss rifle scope that is pretty tough to beat. Featuring the legendary Zeiss glass, the Conquest V4 rifle scope gives you the magnification you need to make those extremely long shots, but also allows you to dial it down to a 6x magnification for your closer up shots.

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Now before we get into the details, I just want to say that I am by no means an expert long-range or competition shooter. The basis for this review is purely coming from a hunter’s perspective and from someone who enjoys shooting longer ranges. Bottom line, we tested this scope on one of my hunting rifles to see how it performed.

The Testing: Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 Review

In preparation for the hunting season, many trips to the range were made to get this scope dialed in with plenty of time practicing to make sure both it and I were ready when the time came to make the shot. I was able to carry this rifle on a number of hunting trips throughout October and November, as well as my wife and son, on some elk and deer hunts here in Idaho.

This Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 mm rifle scope was put through some tough conditions during my months of elk and mule deer hunting, which was the perfect testing ground for this scope. I was able to take my Idaho mule deer at 554 yards with the above setup, and the Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 scope made a WORLD of difference in making that shot. Of course, there is a LOT that goes in to preparing for, and getting your gun set up to shoot that distance effectively, but a quality scope is key. Of course, during my time at the range I did some tracking testing on the scope, but more on that below.

What’s In the Box: Zeiss Conquest V4 Review

The Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 mm rifle scope comes with nice rubber lens covers and the tools needed to set your zero stop. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with a Zeiss Conquest Sun Shade, the Zeiss Flip Up Objective Cover, the handy Zeiss Neoprene Scope Cover, or the Zeiss Conquest V4 Throw Lever. Finding the Zeiss Neoprene Scope Cover can be a little tough, but it is much nicer and a thicker neoprene than something like the PhoneSkope Neoprene Rifle Scope covers, which I’ve found not to be quite as durable.

All of the Zeiss accessories are top notch and extremely well-built. They are, however, all very expensive, and if you pick them all up, the cost adds up quick. This is a bit of a disappintment as the only accessory that comes with the scope is the rubber lens cover, but if you like having a throw lever, sun shade, flip up caps, or neoprene cover, you’ll have to drop a few hundred bucks more to add those.

Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 Specs

The Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 rifle scope is packed full of amazing features that are super impressive and include some pretty impressive specs:

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Eye Relief: Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 Review

The Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 gives you a nice 3.54 inches of eye relief, keeping your face plenty far away from the scope to avoid getting a nice half moon decoration on the top of your nose/eye. While that’s not the most eye relief you can get, compared to a couple of others I’ve tested, it is more than enough and more importantly, I found that you do not lose eye relief throughout the zoom range. Others I’ve tested that may feature more eye relief lose a bit of eye relief at the top end of the magnification requiring you to “suck in” to the scope a bit. This is not so with the Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50.

I tested it side by side with others like the Bushnell Forge 4.5-27×50 mm, the Athlon Cronus 4.5-29×55 mm, and the Tract Toric UHD 4-20×50 rifle scopes, and the Zeiss Conquest V4 not only excelled, but it kept up optically with the more expensive Bushnell and Athlon Cronus scopes. In my opinion, it out-performed the Bushnell Elite Tactical optically. Pretty impressive!

Turrets & Parallax: Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 Review

Between field testing and range time testing for this Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 review, I found the turrets to be some of my favorites. The elevation turret does not lock, but does have a nice defined movement with a bit of a soft, but precise feel and an audible click, but not as audible as others I’ve tested.

They are quite different than the Athlon Cronus BTR, which gives you a tactical feel and is extremely crisp with a loud, audible click. I love both styles, but they couldn’t be more different. I do wish there was a bit more of an audible click on the Conquest V4, though, as it would make it a little easier to count clicks when dialing in for the yardage.

The windage turret on the Conquest V4 is locking, which is really nice for hunting. This keeps it in place and virtually eliminates the concern for it getting bumped from zero unintentionally. On the other side of the main tube, you have the side parallax adjustment and the illumination control. Both operate extremely well, and the illumination knob operates in an on/off/on function as you move from one illumination setting to another.

On the side parallax, I do wish it had numbers for a quick reference point to know where you are within the side parallax adjustment range. You just have a 10 yard measurement at the bottom end and then an infinity marking at the top end. Even one or two number markings, say 300 and 500 yard reference points, would be helpful. As we know, side parallax is not something you just set to the marked yardage, and go, but rather get you close and then needs fine tuning.

The Zeiss Conquest V4 gives you an impressive 80 minutes of elevation adjustment which is plenty for those longer shots if you are into that. While I found that the Zeiss Conquest V4 turrets could be a little more audible, you can certainly still hear them and it is very easy to land where you intend and not go past where you are dialing to.

Zero Stop: Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 Review

The Zeiss Conquest V4 rifle scope offers a fantastic Zero Stop feature like a lot of scopes out there these days, but it is a little different that most out there. It is rock solid as you’d expect, but adjusting it is super easy and makes setting your zero a breeze.

Simply loosen the two Torx screws and remove the elevation turret cap, loosen the two Torx screws on the ballistic stop bucket, and then use a coin or large screwdriver to adjust the elevation. Once the scope is dialed in to the zero range of your choice, re-install the ballistic stop barrel and turn it until you hit the ballistic stop, and lightly tighten the two Torx screws. Reinstall the turret cap, and you are set.

Image quality: Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 Review

A good Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 review wouldn’t be complete without testing the optical performance throughout the zoom range of the scope. While testing this both in the field and at the range, I found that the Zeiss Conquest V4 is absolutely stunning in its optical performance. The images are quite simply one of the finest you can get in a rifle scope for this price range, not to mention even compared to much more expensive rifle scopes.

As with all optics, you do lose a little bit of image quality at the upper end of the magnification range, but I can absolutely say the Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 is exceptional in maintaining superb image quality throughout the magnification range. The image remains crisp and clear whether you are at 6x or need to utilize the monster 24x zoom for those long distance shots. Edge-to-edge clarity is fantastic, color contrast is phenomenal, and there is almost zero of that “dreaded doughnut” or black outline around the image. This is certainly one of the most impressive rifle scopes on the market in its respective class!

Tracking Test: Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 Review

Another part of this Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 review was to hit the range and see how the scope tracked. To test this I used a dead sled, zeroed my rifle at 100 yards, and put a bullet in the bullseye. Then I moved the turrets three MOAs up and three MOAs to the right and took a shot, set the scope back to zero, then moved the three MOAs down and three MOAs to the right and took another shot.

I did this around the four corners of the target to see if there was any variance in the ACTUAL reticle travel vs. what the turrets indicated. I found the Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 to be dead on in this test as I couldn’t find any variance in actual travel.

6-24x50mm Magnification & Functionality

With the Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 rifle scope you get a monster zoom range of 6x up to an impressive 24x for those long-range shooting sessions. The zoom mechanism is super smooth but unfortunately a throw lever is not included with the Conquest V4 Rifle Scope. The amount of resistance on the zoom mechanism is just about perfect, but I did find that I preferred using the throw lever, so I went ahead and picked one up.

For some folks, the minimum magnification of 6x is a bit on the high side, but this will depend on the type of hunting and terrain you are in. If you are wanting a scope for shorter shots in tight cover, this 6-24×50 is not the best choice as the 6x is just a bit too much magnification for that application and you may want to select the Zeiss Conquest V4 3-12×44 or Zeiss Conquest V4 4-16×44 model. However, if you find yourself taking longer shots or the terrain is very open with most shots being 150-200 yards or more, this is a fantastic option!

2nd Focal Plane & Subtensions

The Zeiss Conqeust V4 6-24×50 rifle scope is a second focal plane scope, so Zeiss has conveniently put reference marks on the zoom ring to give you a quick reference so you know how to utilize the sub tensions within the reticle.

Now, backing up a bit, a second focal plane scope is one where the reticle size remains the same throughout the zoom range (unlike a first focal plane scope which gets larger as you zoom the scope in). The challenge with a second focal plane scope like the Conquest V4 can be that your subtensions change depending on the magnification you are using.

To help with figuring your subtensions in the field, Zeiss put a small “S” by the “24” mark on the zoom ring, and a “Sx2” by the “12” on the magnification ring, to let you know that your subtensions within the reticle are set for when you are at the full 24x, and are 2X their value at 12 power. This really helps with making sure your hold is correct and takes the guess work out.

How The Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 Ranked

Zeiss Conquest v4 6-24×50 Review: Conclusion

After taking the Zeiss Conquest V4 rifle scope through the paces, I came away absolutely LOVING the Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50 rifle scope. You get a TON of bang for your buck with this scope in image quality, build quality, fantastic zero stop, and great eye relief.

One downside, as mentioned above, is how expensive the accessories are for this scope, and that none of them are included. If you are someone who likes to have a throw lever, sun shade, caps and/or a neoprene cover, you’ll have to drop several hundred more dollars to add those pieces to your scope.

At the end of the day though, you’d be hard pressed to find a better rifle scope around the $1200 price point than the Zeiss Conquest V4 6-24×50. It gives you an incredible optical performance with everything you need as a hunter as well as a super solid zero stop design, lightweight design, non-bulky turrets and some awesome reticle selections. I do wish the elevation turret locked like the windage turret, but that’s something I’ll happily deal with to get everything else that this incredible scope gives you.

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