Opinions on Spotting Scopes

[Hanson]

LAST EDITED ON Apr-27-08 AT 07:59AM (MST)[p]I am looking to get a new spotting scope for scouting this summer and the upcoming hunting season. Just looking for your thoughts and experiences on what to get. I am open for anything. Thanks Fellas.

 

[browtine]

In my oppinion, a spotting scope is one of the "must have's" to make any hunt more successful. I could NOT imagine hunting without mine. I spent alot of time looking through dfferent glass before I decided on the zeiss 20x60x85. I liked it more then the swarovski. I did like the leica's as well, but in the end, the ziess won in my oppinion. I use the thing year round. The customer care is second to none. You WON'T go wrong with Zeiss!

Later, Brandon

 

[gotthefever]

LAST EDITED ON Apr-27-08 AT 12:35PM (MST)[p]Brandon,

A few quick questions for you about the Zeiss....

First: I noticed you went with the 85mm vr the 65mm. I had the 85 swaro and traded it in for the 65. The 85 was to bulky and heavy for me. most of my hunts are back pack style and wanted to avoid the bulk and the weight. Any thoughts you have for me on this issue?
Second: Looks like you have the angle eye? Would you recommend that over the straight and if so why?
Third: Where would you recommend buying it?

I currently own the Swaro 65mm straight lens and have hunted with it for several years. I agree, i could not imagine hunting without a spotter, a definite must have! I have not been to impressed, if i am being completely honest, with what i spent and what i was expecting. it is a bit hazy even in high light conditions at 45 to 60 power levels. I looked through the Zeiss as well when I was considering buying mine and ultimately bought the Swaro, even though the Zeiss was more clear and had better color, simply because of the name and i liked the rubber armor coating for added protection. Swaro's are pushed pretty hard in the hunting world and while they are a awesome glass i think there may be better ought there. Thanks for your help!

Jake

 

[Zeek]

Look through alot of different models.Pick the one your eyes likes best.
I went with a Swarovski 80mm HD.

 

[browtine]

Jake,

I went with the 85 because I wanted the larger objective, field of view, and brighter in darker conditions. That being said, a 65 would be much easier to pack. I use mine year round and I don't pack in nearly enough to buy a 65. I would buy a smaller Nikon or something different if I packed in for days on end. There is no easy way to pack a 20x60x85 scope

Angled,

No doubt that was the best option for me. I prefer not to kink my neck when looking through the scope. Long periods of glassing and the straight scope made it awkward for sure. Plus, with the angled, you don't have to move as much to see places. The angled scoped twist left and right and give you a much more comfortable session of glassing.

I got mine on Ebay. With the price of optics going up, I would certainly recommend buying something online. But if you not sure about the seller, go to a local store (cabelas, sportsmans). It may be worth the extra 100 bucks for piece of mind. The KSL.com classifieds are another good place to find otics. As well as this site when they are listed. (Again, make sure you trust the seller)

As far as what I saw in the zeiss versus swarovski, I noticed that in low light, elk looked grey through the swaro. I looked through a friends new HD while a zeiss was only 2 feet away. I then looked through the zeiss and could see a yellow tint to the bulls. That was enough for me to go with zeiss. Since that time, it was evident for me that I made the better choice. Your perseption on colors is spot on in my oppinion.

 

[gotthefever]

Brandon,

Thanks for the advice. I have been considering listing my swarovskis on line and re-investing in a different spotter. Thanks for the heads up on the angled vs the straight. I think its going to be angled on the next one for me. I am wanting to wait for the new leica to come out in August and compare to the Zeiss. It will be one of those two for sure. Also, i appreciated your endorsement on Paul Penny. He had a CO buck of mine and I was wanting to get it back first to see his work before i dropped my moose off. Based on the fan mail he got i dropped my moose off a few weeks ago for him to mount. I stopped by last week and he looks awesome. He definitely knows his stuff! Plus he is a great guy to boot. Very professional!

 

[BPKHunter]

Last season I did a lot of scouting for deer and elk from June to the end of Nov. I started out with the Zeiss 85mm, but ended up returning it and getting the 65mm Swaro HD. I think the optical quality is much better as the blurred edges, which are a given, is very distracting. I did not see enough optical difference with the larger objective lens to offset the weight.

This is my opinion.

 

[elkwon]

Jake,

The angled also keep the wind, and sun from hitting you directly in the face. You can also glass from behind an object with out being as exposed. I love the focus knob for fine adjustments. I have the same scope as browtine. Pack it all the time.

 

[50cal]

First of all, I think any of the big 3 will be a excellent choice. That being said, personal preference is what you need to base your decision on. I have the Swarovski 80mm HD and I absolutely love it. Part of that decision was based on digiscoping. They have sweet adapters available for lots of camaras. As far as packing it, I don't feel that it is that big of a difference than a 65mm. Angled vs. Straight, there is no question at all on this issue. Angled, angled, angled..... No neck fatigue, shorter tripod, many reasons to go angled and not straight. JMO

 

[khensley]

Doug at Cameraland set me up with a Zeiss 65, love it so far!!! He talked me out of the 85, and I'm pleased he did. 65 is still manageable (started with a 25x 50mm Leupy)I can make it work with my daypack....85 was certainly bigger.

 

[Flagstaff]

I compared between the Swarovski 65MM HD, Swarovski 80MM HD, Zeiss 65MM and the Zeiss 85MM. I wanted to go to 60 power, and the Zeiss 65MM would only go to 45 power, so it wasn't a contender for what I wanted.

I went with the Zeiss 85MM. The Zeiss 85MM was brighter than the Swaro 80MM (because the bigger objective lense), shorter (therefore easier to pack) than the Swaro 80MM, lighter than the Swaro 80MM, weighed only about 3 ounces more than the Swaro 65MM, and was a whole lot brighter than the Swaro 65MM. Got to remember that at 60 power with the Swaro 65MM, your exit pupil is only about 1MM. So unless you are using it at anything less than noon on a sunny day, it won't be very bright and no amount of quality optical coatings is going to overcome that optical physics limitation. The Zeiss does seem to have more distortion around the fringes than the Swaros, but it wasn't very much and wasn't that big of deal to me as I tend to use the center of the field of view anyway. Colors with with Zeiss also seemed somewhat better. The Zeiss also was easier to use digiscoping with their camera holding device (but the Zeiss camera device might work on the Swaro - I didn't try). Lastly, the Zeiss was cheaper and seemed to be a better value when I compared what I spent for what I got. I am not trying to bad mouth Swaros - I own quite a few of their binoculars and their rangefinder. I am actually a big fan of Swarovski optics. I just thought the Zeiss spotting scope was overall better all things (size, brightness, cost, weight, digiscoping) considered IMO. But it boils down to personal preference (kind of like the Ford Chevy Dodge truck arguement).

The angled is the best way to go IMO. In addition to the other positive comments about angled already mentioned, they are much easier when you want to show your partner something. You don't have to get out from behind your tripod - just rotate the scope so he can see through it. Angled is also better (don't crane your neck as much) if what you are looking at (say up on a mountain) is much higher (or lower for that matter) than your elevation.

 

[TRDHUNTER]

Does anyone have any experience with Kowa scopes. I have been researching them and have heard great things about them. Mostly looking at the TSN 77 both regular and Prominar glass.

 

[HardcoreOutdoor]

I don't have enough experience with their scopes to give an opinion but I just posted an article on the Kowa High Lander Prominar (Fluorite) 32x82 binoculars. I was very impressed with them especially when compared to the big Docters.

Wade
www.HardcoreOutdoor.com