Frankly
There IS a brand that fills in the gap in between the cheaply produced over priced Chinese made scopes and the high end expensive Japanese and European scopes.
Meopta.
They are on sale 16% off usually have free shipping.
Regular $459 and $386 with discount.
It is atleast comparable if not better than the Leupold VX3 for only a fraction of the cost.
It also has a 10 yard focus with useable hold over reticles or with the regular cross hair among other reticle options.
It is so popular this specific model is just about all that's left in stock right now.
https://www.sportoptics.com/meopta-optika-5-4-20-50-1032581.html A friend compared it to his $1500 Japan made Element Nexus he bought on sale for $1100 and $850 Chinese made Athlon Ares BTR Gen 2 bought on sale for $450 and preferred the Meopta's image quality over the others. The Ares had a 25 yard minimum focus.
I think he paid around $300 for his Meopta from another dealer when it was on sale at a cheaper price.
I want to buy the Athlon Ares ETR if I can find one below $800. He advised me to buy the Meopta Optika 6 version for less than $800 and believes the Ares ETR is way overpriced for a scope made in China.
They are made in the same Chinese scope factory as the Bushnell Forge that they sold for half off retail price.
Looks like there's a 50% price wiggle room.
Still waiting for both of my back ordered Chinese Vector Continental 30 mm and 34 mm I bought for around half price.
They are supposed to have German glass.