Spotting Scope recommendations

[bsumoba]

Thinking about upgrading my tried and true Barska :-[ spotting scope. This thing has been with me through the years and provided lots of aggravation, lack of eye relief, foggy lens', and color distortion.

So I need this scope to do double duty as a mirage reading scope as well as a spotting scope for out to 1K so I can read the spotter disks on the target board. There is a small chance of doing field work past it in BLM land or taking it to the range for spotting my friend's target.

A part of me wants to get the 25x long eye relief attachment on a kowa because I have heard so many good things about it, but the 20-60 seems so much more versatile.

Any opinions on which way to go? I cannot get both? Maybe I can get one for now, then another for later, but not both now.

 

[Scott Harris]

Get the LER lense. Variables have less eye relief, narrower field of view. They might be useful for hunting, but I prefer the benefits a fixed magnification eyepiece offers for target shooting. A Kowa TSN-661 w/ 27x LER gets my vote for a reasonably-price spotter. The Celestron Regal M2 LER 27x80 ED Spotting Scope might be an even better choice....but I have no direct experience with that model.

 

[RDavies]

How about doing a search on Vortex Razor HD85 spotter. It has top class optics at a much lower price than the Kowas. I bought one going off reviews and am extremely happy with it, great for finding bullet holes and reading mirage . So far I have only used the 20-60x eye piece, but have ordered a 23x LER eye piece for it also.

 

[Alex Wheeler]

I bought a Razor, opened the box and saw the sticker, made in China. Too much for a Chinese scope. I sold it and am saving for a Kowa.

 

[dbaird]

Leica is an expensive spotting scope but you will not be disappointed with the quality.

 

[ShootDots]

I have a cheap Nikon Spotting Scope but it works. A guy showed up to where I shoot and he had a Nikon "FieldScope HD 75mm" that set him back about $2000.00.. It was as clear and bright as any Kowa or Zeiss that I have seen to date. $2000.00 is not "cheap" but it APPEARED to MY eyes to be every bit as good as anything I have peered thru at greater expense!

 

[CatShooter]

I have been through a bunch of spotting scopes and I have learned a few things:

1 - a good 60mm scope is better than a iffy 80mm scope.
2 - used spotting scope (especially iffy ones) will get you nothing back when you go to upgrade.
3 - I am too poor to buy cheap spotting scopes

Save up and get the best you can - buy once and cry once... then smile forever.


My current is a Pentax 80mm ED with a 20x60 eye piece. The only scope I would consider up grading to is a 100mm ED Pentax.

 

[chkunz]

One thing to consider is the scope stand that will be required work with the scope you buy and the type of competition you will be using it for. The larger scopes require a more robust stand. This all gets more complicated if you are going to use this scope for XTC as well as prone shooting. One size does not fit all. So you will get better answers if you describe the application for the scope in more detail.

 

[jamesl]

I recently went through this as well and went with a sightron. It is the exact same as the scope below in the review but the sightron can be bought for about $500 if you shop around. Hawke also offers an ler eyepiece for a reasonable price that works with the sightron. In my opinion it is the best bang for your buck scope in the sub $1k price range. It is optically comparable to the celestron and sub $1k kowas. If you are looking to spend more than I would consider the vortex razor in the $1500 price range or the kowa 883 if you have over $2k to spend.

http://www.bestspottingscopereviews.com/HawkeEnduranceED20-60x85SpottingScope-13.htm

 

[lawman29]

I have a Razor HD 16-48x65 angled. It was $1,200. I also got the 18x LER eye piece for ~ $300. So for $1,500 you'll have two eye pieces and the flexibility you were interested in. Used it at the SWN with the 18x LER, worked great. I also like the more compact size.

 

[ryanjay11]

used spotting scope (especially iffy ones) will get you nothing back when you go to upgrade.

This is nonsense. Get a used Kowa TSN-821M with the 27x LER eyepiece. They have maintained the same resale value of around $600 for the past 10 years.

There is a reason you see tons of these at matches.

 

[Judd]

Someone had a Razor in the classifieds for 1350...that's a deal. I recently upgraded my Barska ED (yes, that ED makes a difference...it was a good scope for the money) to the Razor and WOW is about all I have to say. Everyone that looks through it comments about the clarity. I'm impressed...I did break down and buy the mrad eyepiece in addition to the 20-60x. It will do everything I want it to do.

 

[CatShooter]

used spotting scope (especially iffy ones) will get you nothing back when you go to upgrade.

This is nonsense. Get a used Kowa TSN-821M with the 27x LER eyepiece. They have maintained the same resale value of around $600 for the past 10 years.

There is a reason you see tons of these at matches.

The Kowa is NOT an ifffy scope.

 

[JamesnTN]

Heres a two yr old review of spotting scopes including some mentioned here.

Only four stood out as excellent scopes.
Swarvorski, Leica, meopta, and kowa


http://www.petersenshunting.com/featured/bes-spotting-scopes-of-2013/

 

[ryanjay11]

used spotting scope (especially iffy ones) will get you nothing back when you go to upgrade.

This is nonsense. Get a used Kowa TSN-821M with the 27x LER eyepiece. They have maintained the same resale value of around $600 for the past 10 years.

There is a reason you see tons of these at matches.

The Kowa is NOT an ifffy scope.

If you would like to rewrite your list, go for it.

 

[gunnermhr]

I have a cheap Nikon Spotting Scope but it works. A guy showed up to where I shoot and he had a Nikon "FieldScope HD 75mm" that set him back about $2000.00.. It was as clear and bright as any Kowa or Zeiss that I have seen to date. $2000.00 is not "cheap" but it APPEARED to MY eyes to be every bit as good as anything I have peered thru at greater expense!

I'm not trying to downplay what shootdots is saying, I too looked though a Nikon HD75mm scope and liked it a lot, so I bought one. I bought it wanting to see bullet holes at 500 yards, I asked the dealer if I could return it within a week if I wasn't 100% satisfied? I took it home set a target at 500 and compared it to my friends Swarovski HD, old style, the Nikon was good no doubt, but in questionable conditions, mostly mirage when I lost bullet holes thought he Nikon I was able to pick them up most of the time with the HD Swarovski. I returned the next day and bought the Swarovski, never once did I think I made a bad decision.

The Nikon is an excellent scope for the money, it just didn't do what I was looking for, If I didn't care about bullet holes at 500 I would have kept the Nikon.

 

[ShootDots]

I have a cheap Nikon Spotting Scope but it works. A guy showed up to where I shoot and he had a Nikon "FieldScope HD 75mm" that set him back about $2000.00.. It was as clear and bright as any Kowa or Zeiss that I have seen to date. $2000.00 is not "cheap" but it APPEARED to MY eyes to be every bit as good as anything I have peered thru at greater expense!

I'm not trying to downplay what shootdots is saying, I too looked though a Nikon HD75mm scope and liked it a lot, so I bought one. I bought it wanting to see bullet holes at 500 yards, I asked the dealer if I could return it within a week if I wasn't 100% satisfied? I took it home set a target at 500 and compared it to my friends Swarovski HD, old style, the Nikon was good no doubt, but in questionable conditions, mostly mirage when I lost bullet holes thought he Nikon I was able to pick them up most of the time with the HD Swarovski. I returned the next day and bought the Swarovski, never once did I think I made a bad decision.

The Nikon is an excellent scope for the money, it just didn't do what I was looking for, If I didn't care about bullet holes at 500 I would have kept the Nikon.

I am glad you stated what you stated.. I am seriously considering a Spotting Scope purchase. I looked at the fellow's at a target at 300 yards. It was fabulous for that range. However, that is my FULL experience with that scope. So think not that you are "downplaying" what I stated. You are ENHANCING my reply with actual long-range experience! Your reply has changed my perspective and the choice I was considering! Thank You!

 

[ryanjay11]

The price of the target cameras are getting to the point that they are probably a better option if your only use is spotting bullet holes.
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/846730/bullseye-camera-systems-long-range-edition-1000-yard-target-camera-system?cm_vc=ProductFinding

 

[gunnermhr]

Yes, but a camera is not allowed in Competition.

 

[red_mamba]

The price of the target cameras are getting to the point that they are probably a better option if your only use is spotting bullet holes.
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/846730/bullseye-camera-systems-long-range-edition-1000-yard-target-camera-system?cm_vc=ProductFinding

I'm creating my own with rasperry pi. should be cheaper than this and it's going to be good enough for practice.
I got a cheap 5Mpixel cammera that I'm happy with. All I need to do now is put everything together and write some software to pass the images to phone/tablet/laptop