Where are Hawke Scopes Made or Manufactured?

Knowing where a product is made or manufactured can play a role in the perceived value or quality of the product, so I understand entirely why customers at my day job routinely ask, “where is this scope made” or “what country is this scope from”? One scope brand that customers ask plenty of questions about is the Hawke Optics line of riflescopes. The most common question with Hawke is: where are Hawke scopes made or manufactured?

Although the Hawke line of optics has been in business for over 40 years, their optical line has only been available in the United States since 2007. As such, Hawke is still working to gain exposure and brand awareness in the American market.

Hawke Optics Background

Hawke Optics is based in the UK and has been in business since 1978. They are a division of Deben Group Industries Ltd. They offer a wide range of sporting optical devices, including:

• Riflescopes
• Spotting scopes
• Binoculars
• Red Dot sights
• Rangefinders

Being based in the UK, Hawke has a strong following in the European market, especially among the air gunning and air rifle community.

When Hawke first entered the scope business, they were one of the first optical brands to recognize that air guns required a dedicated scope specifically built to withstand the recoils associated with the different types of air rifle designs.

The success of Hawke’s Airmax (a dedicated line of air rifle scopes) and Sidewinder scope models led Hawke to expand their reach into the US scope market in 2007, when they opened a US-based facility in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Initially, the Hawke product line consisted of scopes, binoculars, spotting scopes, and scope rings.

In 2015, Hawke went through a significant rebrand campaign to expand globally and introduce new optical products to the market. As part of the rebrand, Hawke expanded their product line to include rangefinders and red dot optics

In addition, Hawke decided to assign all their products into one of two top-level categories: Sport or Nature.

The “Nature” category comprises all Hawke’s binocular models, spotting scopes, and related accessories such as tripods.

The “Sport” category comprises all Hawke’s riflescope models, rangefinders, red dots, and scope rings.

Where are Hawke Scopes Manufactured?

Let’s take a closer look at each of the primary Hawke scope models to provide a little background on each model and discuss where each scope series is manufactured.

Hawke Airmax Scopes

The Airmax line of riflescopes is one of the models that helped put Hawke on the map in the UK. As the name suggests, the Airmax is a dedicated air rifle scope built to withstand the heavy recoil associated with certain styles of air rifles.

If you were not aware, the design and operation of specific air rifle models cause a significant amount of recoil as the action operates. The recoil is not the traditional “felt” recoil absorbed by the shooter but the rifle’s recoil as it runs.

Depending on the style and operation, air gun recoil can occur in both directions, meaning that recoil occurs rearward and forward as the action operates. Most traditional riflescopes are built to withstand a certain amount of conventional rearward recoil (which is the rearward recoil that occurs when the rifle or shotgun is fired). However, scopes built for traditional rifles and shotguns are not built to withstand the forward recoil that an air rifle can generate.

I’ve seen traditional rifle scopes survive several hundred fired rounds on a 300 Win Mag, then break or malfunction in less than 20 shots fired with a spring-powered air rifle. For these reasons, a dedicated air rifle scope is your best scope option for any air rifle or pellet gun.

The Hawke Airmax series of scopes is a line of dedicated air gun scopes offered in a variety of configurations, focal planes, and reticle options. In addition, the Airmax line is available in 1-inch scopes and 30mm scopes.

The Airmax line consists of 14 scopes models broken down into the following sub-categories:

Airmax WA Scopes

The WA series is Hawke’s entry-level air gun scopes built on a 1-inch tube with an adjustable objective. This series consists of the following power magnification models:

• 2-7×32
• 3-9×40
• 4-12×40
• 4-12×50

Airmax 30 WA SF Compact

The 30 WA SF Compact scopes are the next step up over the entry-level WA series. These models are built on a 30mm tube and feature side focus with illuminated reticle options.

The 30 WA SF Compact series consists of the following scope configurations:

• 3-12×40
• 4-16×44
• 6-24×50

Airmax 30 WA Touch

The Airmax 30 Touch series only consists of one scope model in a 3-12×32 configuration. This scope is built on a 30mm tube and is only available with Hawke’s AMX IR reticle. Additionally, the Touch scope features zero eye relief, so the shooter’s eye is positioned right up against the scope ocular.

The zero-eye relief design offers the benefit of a much larger field of view (FOV) compared to scopes with eye relief. For example, this Touch scope features a FOV of 63.3 feet on 3X down to 18.2 feet on 12x at 100 yards. That’s a very impressive field of view.

Airmax 30 WA SF

The Airmax 30 WA SF scopes are built on a 30mm tube and feature a side focus parallax adjustment. In addition, the side focus parallax will focus down to a minimum of 10 yards, making it ideal for most types of air gunning.

This second focal plane scope series is only available with Hawke’s AMX IR reticle, which is illuminated and built with half mil-dot spacing for pellet drop.

The 30 WA SF scopes are available in the following configurations:

• 10×44 (fixed power)
• 4-16×50
• 6-24×50
• 8-32×50

Airmax 30 WA FFP

The Airmax 30 WA FFP series of riflescopes feature a 30mm tube, side focus adjustment, and a first focal plane design. These models are the only FFP models in the Airmax scope line.

The 30 WA FFP scopes are only available with Hawke’s FFP AMX IR reticle option.

The scope series consists of the following models:

•  4-16×50
• 6-24×50

Where are the Hawke Airmax scopes made or manufactured?

When the Airmax line was first introduced, these scopes were made in Japan. However, now all the Airmax rifle scope models are built at an optical manufacturing facility in China.

Hawke Vantage Scopes

The Hawke Vantage line of scopes is an extensive line consisting of 52 scope models in a wide range of power magnifications, tube sizes, focal planes, and reticle options.

The Vantage scope line is designed for rimfire, and centerfire use and features some reticle options that are caliber specific. This line is popular with hunters interested in good-quality optics at a reasonable price.

There are 39 models built on a 1-inch tube within this scope series and 13 models built on a 30mm tube. With the specific caliber-based reticle options, the Vantage scope models are available with 17 different reticle options. Those reticle optics include reticles built for the following calibers:

• 22 LR (Subsonic)
• 22 LR (High Velocity)
• 17 HMR
• 17 Mach 2
• 22 WMR
• 223/308

As far as scope plane options, the Vantage series features two models in a first focal plane (FFP) and 49 models in a second focal plane configuration. In addition, the FFP scopes feature a dedicated first focal plane reticle as well.

The Vantage scopes are broken down into the following subcategories:

Basic Vantage Scopes

The basic Vantage series of scopes features 16 models with a power range from 4×32 up to 4-12×50. These Vantage scopes are 1-inch models, with some coming equipped with an adjustable objective (marked as AO) and others having a fixed parallax setting.

From a reticle standpoint, the entry-level Vantage scopes are only available with two potential reticle options:

• 30/30 Duplex
• Mil-Dot

Vantage SF Scopes

The Vantage SF scopes are all manufactured with a 1-inch tube, and all feature a side focus parallax adjustment (which correlates to the “SF” designation in the scope name.

The Vantage SF series features three scope models with power magnification options starting at 3-12×40 and topping out at 6-24×44.

The Vantage SF scopes are only available in one reticle option: a Hawke Half Mil-Dot reticle.

Vantage IR Scopes

The Vantage IR line of scopes comprises 20 scope models with a power magnification range starting at 2-7×32 and maxing out with a magnification of 6-24×50.

The IR models feature scopes with and without an adjustable objective parallax option like the entry-level Vantage scopes. The models without the adjustable objective come with a fixed parallax setting of 100 yards.

The Vantage IR series of riflescopes differs from the basic Vantage scope models in the reticle options. All the Vantage IR scopes are available with an illuminated reticle (hence the IR designation in the scope series name).

The IR Vantage scopes models are available with the following illuminated reticle options:

• Illuminated Mil-Dot
• Illuminated L4A Dot
• Illuminated Slug Gun SR
• Illuminated 30/30 Center Cross
• Illuminated High Velocity 22
• Illuminated Subsonic 22
• Illuminated 17 HMR
• Illuminated 22 WMR

Vantage 30 WA IR Scopes

The Vantage 30 WA IR family of riflescopes comprises six scope models in power magnification ranges of 1-4×24 to 4-12×40.

The 30 WA IR scope models are second focal plane scopes built on a 30mm tube that feature a fixed parallax configuration set for 100 yards.

Like most of the other Vantage families of scopes, the IR designation means that these scopes are only equipped with illuminated reticle options, including:

• Illuminated L4A Dot
• Illuminated 223/308

Vantage 30 WA SF IR Scopes

The Vantage 30 WA SF IR scope series features five scope models ranging from a 4-16×50 magnification power up to a 6-24×50 power. Like any other Vantage 30 scope models, the WA SF IR series is built on a 30mm tube.

This Vantage sub-group of scopes also includes a side focus parallax adjustment feature that focuses down to 10 yards. In addition to the side focus option, these Vantage variants are only available with illuminated reticle options.

The following illuminated reticle options are available on the 30 WA SF IR rifle scopes:

• Illuminated Subsonic 22LR
• Illuminated High Velocity 22LR
• Illuminated 17 HMR
• Illuminated Half Mil-Dot

Where are the Hawke Vantage scopes made or manufactured?

All the Hawke Vantage riflescope models are manufactured at an optical facility in China.

Hawke Endurance Scopes

The Hawke Endurance line of scopes was originally available in a 1-inch tube. Around 2014, Hawke phased out the 1-inch options and migrated the entire Endurance scope line over a 30mm tube design.

The Hawke Endurance 30 line of scopes consists of 15 scope models grouped into three subcategories. The power magnification ranges go from 1-4×24 up to 6-24×50. All the Endurance scopes are built on a 30mm tube, and all are equipped with one of ten possible illuminated reticle options.

Hawke Endurance 30 WA

The Endurance 30 WA series comprises eight scope options that start at a 1-4×24 model and top out with a 4-16×50 model. Additionally, this scope series is available with five different illuminated reticle options.

Some of the Endurance 30 WA scopes feature a fixed parallax that is factory set at 100 yards.

Hawke Endurance 30 WA SF

The Endurance 30 WA SF family of riflescopes consists of five scope models ranging from a 4-16×50 magnification range up to a 6-24×50 magnification range.

This scope series is equipped with a side focus parallax feature that adjusts down to 15 yards. In addition, the 30 WA SF series is available with three different illuminated reticle options.

Hawke Endurance 350 Legend

The 350 Legend series of scopes feature two scopes that are built specifically for use with the 350 Legend straight wall caliber. Those scope models include a 3-12×56 and 2.5-10×50 configuration.

Both scopes are built on a 30mm tube and are equipped with Hawke’s illuminated 350 Legend BDC reticle that offers bullet drop points out to 350 yards.

Where are the Hawke Endurance scopes made or manufactured?

Introduced in early 2002, the Hawke Endurance line of scopes is manufactured to Hawke specifications at an optical facility in China.

Hawke Sidewinder 30 Scopes

The Sidewinder series is one of Hawke’s oldest and best-selling lines of scopes and has been around since 2004.

The first generation of the Sidewinder scopes was built on a 1-inch tube, and, in 2018, Hawke introduced a 30mm version of the Sidewinder.

The Sidewinder series features 12 scope models in both second focal plane and first focal plane options. These second focal plane models are available magnifications that range from 4.5-14×44 up to 8-32×56. In addition, the second focal plane models are available with three different reticle options.

The Sidewinder 30 FFP scopes are offered in four different scope models with a magnification range of 4-16×50 up to 6-24×56. These five scopes are available with two different FFP based, illuminated reticle choices.

Where are the Hawke Sidewinder 30 scopes made?

The 1-inch version of the Hawke Sidewinder scopes was manufactured in Japan. The Sidewinder 30 scope models are manufactured in China.

Hawke Frontier Scopes

Hawke introduced the Frontier line of scopes in 2008. Initially, the Frontier scopes were offered in a 1-inch configuration and consisted of two versions:

• Frontier Series
• Frontier Side Focus Series

Hawke phased the Frontier line out in 2011 and then re-introduced the line in 2015. Currently, the Frontier series is Hawke’s top-tier line of scopes with 1 inch, 30mm, and 34mm models.

The Frontier family of scopes consists of 19 scope models in total. Of the 19 scope models in the line:

• Three models built on a 1-inch tube
• 12 models built on a 30mm tube
• Four models built on a 34mm tube

This scope series features 12 SFP models and 7 FFP models. The second focal plane models offer a power magnification that starts with 1-6×24 and maxes out at 5-30×56. The FFP versions of the Frontier series begin with a magnification range of 3-15×50 and top out with a 5-30×56 model.

The second focal plane versions of the Frontier scopes are available with seven reticle options, while the first focal plane models feature 7 FFP specific reticle choices.

Where are the Hawke Frontier scopes made or manufactured?

The first generation of the Hawke Frontier scopes were manufactured in Japan. Currently, all Frontier scope models are manufactured at an optical facility in China.

FAQS

What is the Hawke Optics warranty? Is it any good?

Hawke Optics has two different warranty programs that are tied to when the scope was purchased:

Hawke Original Lifetime Warranty

This warranty applies to any Hawke scope purchased before January 1st, 2018. The original lifetime warranty covered the riflescope for life but only applied to the original purchaser. This warranty was non-transferable and required proof of purchase.

Hawke No Fault Lifetime Warranty

This warranty applies to any Hawke scope purchased after 1st 2018 and covers any riflescope model.

The No Fault lifetime warranty applies to any Hawke scope, and it transfers from owner to owner. However, this warranty does not cover situations like loss, theft, or cosmetic damage. The cosmetic damage clause means that painting or coating a scope (like Cerakote) voids the warranty.

As optical warranties go, the Hawke warranty program is a solid warranty program that offers broad coverage. It’s not the absolute best cope warranty in the industry, but it’s not the worst either.

Who makes Hawke scopes?

Like most sporting optics brands, Hawke does not produce its optical products in-house. Instead, all Hawke riflescopes are manufactured by 3rd party optical production facilities located in China. While some of the early Hawke scopes were produced in Japan, the current line of Hawke scopes is manufactured in China.