Which spotting scope would you choose?

Melnibonean

Melnibonean

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Been hemming and hawing over a couple of models with no clear decision being made. Every time I get to the point where I want to pull the trigger, another consideration comes into play and I go back to hemming and hawing. To be brief, I'm looking for a spotting scope for Precision shooting (bullet holes @200 and markers @ 1,000) AND one I can hump with me into the field when hiking or hunting without it taking up an enormous amount of space or weight. Would have to have a rotating base for using solo and preferably the ability to buy an attachment for digiscoping.

I narrowed it down to (all are angled bodies), but know next to nothing about them:


1) Celestron 52304 Regal M2 65ED 16x48x65

2) Nikon Prostaff 5 16-48x60 Fieldscope

3) Nikon ED50 Angled FieldScope (no eyepiece)

4) Vanguard Endeavor HD 20x60x65

5) Vortex NOMAD 20-60X60

6) Kowa TSN-600 Series

7) Vortex Diamondback 20x60x60


If there's something else I should consider, please feel free to let me know. I would ideally prefer to keep it under $600 or so
 
Not identical to the model you posted but close.
This is the model I have. I've had it for for going on 8 years now and been more than happy with it's performance. I bought it from Efston Science in Markham which I do believe is closed now. Paid around $300 back then. I originally bought it because I shot competitive archery and needed to be able to tell the difference between my 6 arrows and 18 others in 1 target at 90 meters. It did that with ease. I have used it at 300 yards and could see 22 cal holes clearly as well.
http://www.celestron.com/browse-shop/sport-optics/spotting-scopes/ultima-80-45-degree-spotting-scope
Scott...
 
I use a Vortex Razor HD 11-33x50 to spot bullet holes at 200m (PoCo range is limited to 200m.
It is light and clear and high resolution and pretty good value for the $800US I paid at the time.

Previously I owned a 30-60x80mm Tasco spotting scope and it doesn't even compare.
 
After reading glowing reviews for them on a birding website, I picked up an Alpen 20-60x80 spotter recently on the EE, $400 IIRC. Not a $3000 Zeiss, but amazingly close to it, an amazing value for the money and far ahead of others I looked at in that price range and also much higher.

Birdwatchers are the guys to ask about optics...they are highly demanding of the best quality possible, and know how to tell the difference between great and merely very good.
 
Melnibonean said:
5) Vortex NOMAD 20-60X60
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do they even make these anymore? Ive been using it for a few years now. the glass quality is high. for the $400 i spent on it, it was a hummer of a deal imo. The quality is on par with the leupold 20-40s imo. I hump the thing all over the place. Ive spotted on a f tr ranges and it sees perfectly clear at 1k. The only thing that would have made it better would have been to add a mil reticule in there at the front focal plane. the value of it compared to some leupold or swarvo at twice, three, ten times the price is obvious to say the least.
 
I have a Celestron for spotting at 100 yds. Find the optics are clear with no distortion. Neat to see the .22's going into the target at 100 yds.
There is a dealer in Ottawa that carries a variety of different makes and models. I would suggest going to a dealer and looking through the glass. It makes a huge difference as seeing is believing.
 
What's the name of the dealer? The only place I've seen here is Sail, and they didn't have what I was looking at.

How about a good scope body with say a 1.25" telescope eyepiece? The fixed magnification would work out to between 65-78x depending on which model I'd buy. I suppose it might be worth it at that point to go with Kowa, although I don't know if their eyepieces are proprietary or if they too take 1.25" barrels.
 
Kowa eye pieces are proprietary. I would avoid a zoom eye piece and go with a fixed. Kowa has LER eye pieces as well as wide angle eye piece. I have a 22X WA on my Kowa TSN-1 and can take in 10 targets at 900m at Connaught.
 
maynard said:
Kowa eye pieces are proprietary. I would avoid a zoom eye piece and go with a fixed. Kowa has LER eye pieces as well as wide angle eye piece. I have a 22X WA on my Kowa TSN-1 and can take in 10 targets at 900m at Connaught.
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X2... of the choices I would pick Kowa as my first choice.... or the Nikon ED 50 which is very compact.
 
Archer Sam said:
Not identical to the model you posted but close.
This is the model I have. I've had it for for going on 8 years now and been more than happy with it's performance. I bought it from Efston Science in Markham which I do believe is closed now. Paid around $300 back then. I originally bought it because I shot competitive archery and needed to be able to tell the difference between my 6 arrows and 18 others in 1 target at 90 meters. It did that with ease. I have used it at 300 yards and could see 22 cal holes clearly as well.
http://www.celestron.com/browse-shop/sport-optics/spotting-scopes/ultima-80-45-degree-spotting-scope
Scott...
Click to expand...

What targets are you using in order to see .22 holes @ 300yards?
 
Konus Konuspot 20-60x80mm is another budget option for the range, maybe a bit big for the pack but it's not too heavy.
 
Kowa is the best spotter you can buy. Bar none. Others come close at the same price point but none beat Kowa. They are true "buy once cry once" gear.
 
So I pulled the trigger tonight and bought a Pentax PF-65 ED II Angled Spotting Scope. Some of the features it had that sold me were the porro prisms, the ED glass, the rotating ring, it's light weight, and the fact it accepts 1.25" eyepieces (the most common telescope eyepieces with a crap load of options and focal lengths.....which translates into magnification options from 16x to 78x)). I also ordered at the same time 2 different eyepieces - 1 fixed 78x and 1 variable 16x-48x. I'll order some other optics later on to stargaze with the kids when the weather warms up.

The Kowa was a little more, but owing to it's non-rotational ring and proprietary eyepieces (only 4 that I found), I thought it wouldn't as flexible as the Pentax. There's also the fact the eyepieces on the Pentax are metal and lock into the body (supposedly more securely than the Kowa.....according to the reviews).

So a thanks to everyone who chimed in with their opinions and insights. It gave me more data points to look for.
 
Could you please post here how the 78x eyepiece fares in this scope?
I keep on wanting more magnification but my eyes are getting older and don't do well with small exit pupils.
 
legi0n said:
Could you please post here how the 78x eyepiece fares in this scope?
I keep on wanting more magnification but my eyes are getting older and don't do well with small exit pupils.
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Sure thing. As soon as I get it and head to the range, I'll let you know.

One thing I need to specify is that there is no 78x eyepiece per se. Magnification is an effective value calculated by dividing the Focal Length of the scope body by the Focal Length of the eyepiece. So in the Pentax example, it's FL is 390mm and the FL of the eyepiece is 5mm, so 390/5=78x.

In another scope body (with a different FL), it might be more or less.
 
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Melnibonean said:
So I pulled the trigger tonight and bought a Pentax PF-65 ED II Angled Spotting Scope. Some of the features it had that sold me were the porro prisms, the ED glass, the rotating ring, it's light weight, and the fact it accepts 1.25" eyepieces (the most common telescope eyepieces with a crap load of options and focal lengths.....which translates into magnification options from 16x to 78x)). I also ordered at the same time 2 different eyepieces - 1 fixed 78x and 1 variable 16x-48x. I'll order some other optics later on to stargaze with the kids when the weather warms up.

The Kowa was a little more, but owing to it's non-rotational ring and proprietary eyepieces (only 4 that I found), I thought it wouldn't as flexible as the Pentax. There's also the fact the eyepieces on the Pentax are metal and lock into the body (supposedly more securely than the Kowa.....according to the reviews).

So a thanks to everyone who chimed in with their opinions and insights. It gave me more data points to look for.
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All Kowa's rotate on the body except for the 600 series. The Pentax is also a very nice scope, I don't think you will be disappointed.
 
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