Spotting Scopes????

[Sako7STW]

I am trying to decide on what 80mm+ spotting scope to get. I have read rave reviews about the Pentax and everyone knows the Zeiss is top notch. Swaro is over priced I think, your just paying for the name. Biggest thing is I found the complete Pentax 20-60x 80mmED scope for $1049 shipped. I then found the Zeiss 85mm for $1295 and I would need an eye- piece that I could find for roughly $400. That makes it $650 more than the Pentax. I am wondering if the Zeiss is worth the extra money or not?? WWUD?

I would also love to hear of any good deals anyone may know about or if ya have a used one, shoot me a PM!

 

[sreekers]

Talk to ERSS. Not sure what brands he can get, but he seems to do his best to be competitive with his prices, often trying to beat other prices.

 

[Oak]

You need to look through them yourself and decide whether the Zeiss is worth the extra money to you. You should also look through a Leica. I've never looked through the Pentax, so can't comment. Before buying my Zeiss, I compared the Swaro, Zeiss and Leica side by side. It's a lot of personal preference. The dealer said that he sells 50 Swaros for every Zeiss.

 

[The Hedgehog]

I compared all of them, would have preferred to save some money, but ended up with the Swarovski.

 

[Dangerous Dave]

I used a top-of-the-line 80mm Swaro for a couple of hours last year and though it was the best spotter I've ever looked through. I had to throttle back on spending money, so I went the cheap route: a Vortex for $330. It's OK but not in the same league as Leica, Swaro or Zeiss.

 

[JLG]

I just filled out my Swaro trifecta last week. I have 15 x 56's, the HD80 and I just bought the 8 x 30 rangefinder.
You are probably right about Swaros and the money, but we were looking at a spike coues deer buck the other day at 1500 yards and you could see a thumb size knob about 4"s down from the top of his tine.
It was also neat to see definition in his face and watch his ears rotate to various sounds.
Another thought is your not getting younger either so having great glass to make up for older eyes is a plus as well.
Swaro also has a great warranty. If you ever look at coueswhitetail.com. One member drove over his binos with his car and they fixed them for him. I don't think he was charged. If you do a search you can probably find the thread.
The one thing I used to rationalize my purchase was it is a one-in-lifetime thing if you take care of them and they don't get stolen, so over the long haul its not a ton of money. Good Luck, JLG.

 

[1_pointer]

Some of the Kowa's have been getting rave reviews by the birders. Then again, not much is more subjective than optics...

http://www.livingbird.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=272&srcid=667#top

 

[Sako7STW]

JLG, How do you know how old I am?? LOL.

Dont get me wrong guys, I am not downing Swaro. I know they are top notch and considerd the best out there by many. The thing is, right now the american dollar is so weak against the Euro that a scope that would have been $1250 is now $1600. I have found a few places like the Zeiss one I mentioned that has older existing stock they are selling for the original price. They have said though that once they are gone it will be the higher price. Haven't found the Swaro in this scenario except in an angled and I dont want one of them.

My dad is going to a Sportsmans Warehouse tomorrow and he is goinbg to take a look for me. We will see what he says when he comes back.

 

[schmalts]

I have heard a lot of buzz about the vortex line for the value and quality. Worth a look at least

 

[wyomuley]

I agree I really like the Vortex I have a few pair of thier Bino's and aslo some Swaro El binos and as far as they go there is very very little difference. Therefore I will be buying there Spotter you can pick up there Skyline 80ED for around 600 I believe. Look at cameralandny.com They have a ton to choose from

 

[The Hedgehog]

I really like the Vortex I have a few pair of thier Bino's and aslo some Swaro El binos and as far as they go there is very very little difference.

haha. like what the outside color of the binos??

 

[Dangerous Dave]

Not trying to disparage anyone's opinions, but there's a noticable difference between the optical clarity when comparing the Vortex 80mm and Swaro 80mm spotters. (And I'm a Vortex owner. I went the cheaper route and I can live with it.)
Spotting a mule deer buck at 800 yards with a Swaro reminds me of what it would be like to be looking through a crystal-clear diamond at a perfectly focused 3 dimension image of the same animal. Things like split ears, bent eyeguards and creases in the deer's coat show up. Things like that are easy to miss or just can't be seen plainly with cheaper glass like the Vortex.
The Vortex works great, just not as well. When I crank it up to 50-60X late in the evening, it dims more than the Swaro would. Dang good clarity; just not as perfect as it could be.

 

[wyomuley]

haha. like what the outside color of the binos??

Dude say what you want they are a great product especially for the price. I can look through them side by side everyday and like I stated i dont see a 1800 dollar difference at all not even close.

I am saying that it would be in your best interest to go outside somewhere and try them all side by side to see what fits your eyes the best.

 

[The Hedgehog]

I'm not saying they aren't a great product for the price. And most might not see a 1800 dollar difference.. but there is much more than "a very little difference." ..unless you're blind or don't care much about perfection in optics. The ELs are possibly the best optics money can buy.. and the Vortex (great product, no arguing) are nowhere in the same league. I have looked through them more than once, and I do use my glass more than a little bit.

I dumped about two grand I didn't have into my 80mm swarovski. If I thought I could get something "almost as good" for 1/3 the price I'd of done it in a heartbeat. Unfoturnately, that wasn't the case. I compared the Nikon, Swarovski, Leica, and Zeiss. The others, all of them, were nowhere near in the same league. To me, it came down to the 80 vs. the 65.. and at twilight, no comparison - and I felt the extra 1.5" in length was worth it. I also compared side by side, evaluting pronghorn horns at a distance between the Swarovski HD and regular. I couldn't tell the difference so saved the $450 on that option.

But don't even attempt to try to convince somebody that the Vortex binos are not much different than ELs.. gosh. Good friend of mine is a Vortex rep, pro-staffer, etc.. he even ain't about to do that.

 

[Dinkshooter]

And a Corolla is just as good as a Lexus.

 

[Moosie]

Swaro's....... Zeiss are for Utards

 

[schmalts]

All said and done the vortex option is there for someone on a budget and not needing the best of the best. There are a lot of times I wish I had a 80mm with a 60X eyepiece but most of the time my 60mm MinoxED with the 15-45X gives me what I need and any more zoom just gives me more heat waves. This is me though, and I do not carry it with me most of the time either and do not use it in the mountains that much. I also cannot handle using a spotter to "spot" game all day because my eyes get whacked from using a spotter VS Binos at long times so my spotter gets used less because of that as well.
I looked through Greenhorns spotter and had it set up next to mine and yes there is a difference besides the 1200$ but for me, I can do without it. If i lived where he does, i would probably buy what he has (hell i popped for the Geovids).

 

[JLG]

Its probably becuase it is new to me, but I carry both my spotter, binos and two tripods. Its fun to spot somthing with the binos, than get out the spotter and get more detail.
I have or am going on 3 deer hunts, 1 elk hunt and a javelina hunt this fall and I am really excited about having my toys with me.
My comment on age really was a reflection on myself. I am 46 soon to be 47 and my eyes aren't what they were. I have been hunting with kids in there 20's and early 30's and they do a good job spotting game with glass a whole lot less than I spent. Its just nice to go out there and have some nice toys, Take Care, JLG.

 

[Sako7STW]

Well Dad's report was good. He felt the Swaro was the clearest and showed the most detail. It was a darker, gloomy day and he said the Zeiss was not far behind in clarity BUT absolutely blew the Swaro away in light gathering. Overall he felt the Zeiss was the better scope for the money. Unfortunately they didnt have Kowa or some of the of the better brands to also compare with. I am on several sites and again and again I am reading recommendations on the Kowa's. Going to look into them now more as well.

 

[BuzzH]

More importantly than arguing the differences between optics...is knowing how to use them...IMO.

I agree that swaro, leica, zeiss etc. are really good glass...but I've found as much or more game with leupold glass (both binos and spotting scope) when hunting with people that had top of the line glass.

What I am convinced of is that the better glass will let you evaluate small details like maybe a small sticker point on a mule deer, better estimation of mass on an antelope, etc.

But, for the average hunter, that likely isnt real important and makes the huge jump in price between good solid glass and exceptional glass not worth it.