New to 2023: Austrian Optics giant Zero Compromise Optic enter the hunting market

The Austrian Zero Compromise Optic GmbH, ZCO for short, has made a name for itself in the high-quality premium segment for optical systems in both Europe and the USA in just a few years of existence and is now regarded as a quality leader in precision optics.

In the course of this year's IWA Outdoor Classics ZCO presented its latest rifle scope, the ZC Hunter 1.7-12x50 to the interested public and offers this exceptional quality after sports, police and military now also to hunters.

The ZC Hunter 1.7-12x50 is designed as a robust and flexible all-round rifle scope, which is suitable for both moving, driven as well as hide hunts. Reticles in the first or second image plane with red or green illuminated dot simplify aiming or help estimate distances.

"Our high-quality optical system solutions, confirmed by numerous experts as well as thousands of customers worldwide, ensures contour-sharp images with the highest contrast right to the edge. And that both in daylight and at twilight," emphasised ZCO Managing Director Robert Artwohl at the presentation of the new rifle scope for hunting. For 1.7 to 12x magnification adjustment, the eyepiece has a wide and pleasantly grippy zoom ring. To improve the operability of the zoom, an easily palpable lever is also available as an accessory.

More flexibility for all hunting requirements

The shooter can choose between a "classic" hunting adjustment turret with a protective cap or a flexible ASV/ballistic turret. The combination of the easy-to-mount, flexible ASV/ballistic turret, the powerful 7x zoom and the two reticles 4A (2nd focal plane) and KP1 (1st focal plane) make the ZC Hunter 1.7-12x50 extremely versatile. The KP1 reticle was developed by Kurt Pritz, a master gunsmith based in Mariapfarr, Austria. With its well-thought-out ballistic lines, it allows for long precision shots on the one hand and a large and bright field of view with maximum edge sharpness due to the small beam cover dimensions on the other.

Reliable reticle for a safe performance

For an optimal brightness adjustment of the reticle to the respective lighting conditions, there is a rotary wheel on the left side of the main tube, which is optically identical to the two dust caps of the turrets. Turning it clockwise adjusts the intensity of the night illumination and turning it counterclockwise switches on the day illumination. To conserve battery power, the scope switches to stand-by mode after two minutes without movement. In addition, the rifle scope has Automatic Illumination Management (AIM). This uses angle sensors to detect the position of the rifle scope and switches off the illumination from 45 degrees left/right or at more than 70 degrees barrel inclination in the direction of the sky/ground. When the rifle scope is swivelled back to its original position, the illumination is switched back on at the last set level.

Unique quality manufacturing enables lifelong precision

All ZCO rifle scopes are developed and manufactured in Austria. The shock- and bulletproof aluminium housing as well as the add-on parts (dust caps, rotating wheel, etc.) are manufactured in our in-house CNC machining centres in a material-friendly manner. The aluminium parts are anodized black. This creates a particularly hard and scratch-resistant surface that defies strong thermal and mechanical stresses The optical concept with the broadband anti-reflective glass lenses ensures true-to-life reproduction with contour-rich images over all distances. The ZC Hunter 1.7-12x50 is filled with a noble gas to protect the built-in optical systems and mechanical parts from fogging and corrosion caused by moisture penetration. For transport and storage of the rifle scope, a neoprene protective cover or bikini caps for the objective and eyepiece or flip-up cover is recommended as an accessory.

The ZC Hunter 1.7-12x50 is scheduled to go on sale in the middle of this year.