don’t want to hijack the thread but one thing has been bothering me, and i would like an opinion; having the chippo ct spotting scope, with angled ocular lense, i find it handy on a range when shootimg from fixed position, but every time i’ve taken it for hunt using the angled lense makes spotting a challenge, i think in line ocular lense is better when it comes to hunting
Spotting scope for hunting
- Thread starter Suther
- Start date
- Location
- Saskatoon Saskatchewan
I have the same one. I really love it. It's so compact that I barely notice it in my pack so it never gets left behind.
This. Had a hard time aging sheep even with my fairly expensive Leupold gold ring. Got all Swarovski optics now and problems solved. Of course I’m carrying gear worth the cost of a decent used car in the mountains now but a guy has to have priorities right?
Ardent
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Yea if you’re happy with a $1000 spotter never, ever look through a good one like a Swaro. You’ll be ruined and see what you’re missing out on when glassing an area. The difference in clarity and resolution, and how much more you notice, is positively startling.
... clarity, contrast, resolution, micro-contrast, lack of chromatic aberration, lack of coma, lack of ghosting and flare, etc. etc.
All of these are reasons why I can see more at 1km away with my 8x ED binos than I can with the POS CT spotting scope at 20x-60x power.
Magnification means nothing without the optics to match it.
Most people have no idea what great optics are until they see it with their own eyes.
Recently,(spring 2018) I purchased the Vortex Viper HD (straight eyepiece)15x45x65. I'm very please with it, especially in low-light. Sure, it's not a Swarovski, but the Vortex is 1/3 the price. For decades I hunted with a Bushnell Stalker 10x30x50, and this Vortex is a huge step-up for me in the spotting scope department. Vortex has really been fair to consumers with their great optics, without the big price tag.
I might get laughed off the page here ..... but I've been using this for the past 20 years
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/89884-USA/Nikon_6890_Spotter_XL_II_2_4_60mm.html
I bought mine used for 180$, at the time they were 7-800 new. You can still pick them up for less than 300$ used. It's useful magnification usually ends at about 35x, depending on the weather/atmosphere. I've used it primarily for sheep hunting and at the range. It is tough as nails, easy to pack and still waterproof. If you're like me and 1000$ + scope is not an option I can recommend this one
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/89884-USA/Nikon_6890_Spotter_XL_II_2_4_60mm.html
I bought mine used for 180$, at the time they were 7-800 new. You can still pick them up for less than 300$ used. It's useful magnification usually ends at about 35x, depending on the weather/atmosphere. I've used it primarily for sheep hunting and at the range. It is tough as nails, easy to pack and still waterproof. If you're like me and 1000$ + scope is not an option I can recommend this one
Ardent
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Nobody is going to laugh you off any page with your rams lledwood. I started guiding with a Bushnell Japan spotter, you can do it, I just really prefer working with the present Swaro. Can be the difference between setting out on a six hour cross valley pack after an obscured in timber big bodied... nanny... or not. 
- Location
- Blaster land, Okanagan BC
Wow!
The moon viewed through a 65mm Swaro last night, with a iPhone handheld (image to the eye is clearer).
Way to ruin the vortex without me even looking through one...
Ardent
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Yea and the celll camera pic trying to wobble around and focus behind the eyepiece doesn’t do it justice. You don’t appreciate good glass even on the first look through it, it’s when you need to figure out how many growth rings, points, nanny or billy from a valley away you notice the order of magnitude difference in the minutia. And then that fine detail plain let’s you see things you’d otherwise miss. This is just a basic old Swaro 65mm, dirty lense truthfully too.
Ardent
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
STS 65 yep, wish I had bought the ATS. Angled is much more comfortable and better for the non viewing eye to be looking at the dirt, as it’s darker.
The Outsider
CGN Regular
Don't cheap out on optics, you'll regret it!
I've done lots of research on good spotting scopes over the last year and I'm ready to pull the trigger myself.
I've narrowed it down to the Kowa TSN-883, and the Swarovski ATS-80.
They both will set you back about $3500.00.
Call the guys at Pelee Wings in Leamington Ontario, very knowledgeable and friendly staff,
and they claim the best prices in Canada, with super low shipping costs.
If I couldn't afford the Kowa or the Swaro, I'd go for the Vortex Razor HD 85mm 27-60x.
I've done lots of research on good spotting scopes over the last year and I'm ready to pull the trigger myself.
I've narrowed it down to the Kowa TSN-883, and the Swarovski ATS-80.
They both will set you back about $3500.00.
Call the guys at Pelee Wings in Leamington Ontario, very knowledgeable and friendly staff,
and they claim the best prices in Canada, with super low shipping costs.
If I couldn't afford the Kowa or the Swaro, I'd go for the Vortex Razor HD 85mm 27-60x.
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I've spent a good bit of time on a gen 2 razor 27-60x. Might be a bit bigger than your looking for but man its nice. Plus you got the unconditional warranty. When the lighting is right i have no issue seeing 50 cal holes in paper at 1000 meters. Only negative i can see (and this is being super picky) is that i wish it had a fine focus knob as well.
