Talk me out of a spotter!

[Yooper906]

Haha I’m s

Does your friend need another friend?

All good advice above. Top end bino's trump a spotter all the time unless your are a die hard trophy hunter/sheep hunter, IMO. With really upper end binos in 10x (or 12x) you will be amazed by what you can pick up. I bought a decent spotter a couple years ago, a Razor 22-48x65 and it stays in the truck or goes with me to the ranges

I’m sure he could use another friend…as long as you pay in beer!

 

[Redman]

I would not archery mule deer hunt without a spotter. My preference on binoculars is 8x 10x seems to magnify any shakes I have. If I see something that I can't size up with the binoculars I break out the spotter. If I am glassing I rest my binoculars on top of my spotter and scan and move to the spotter to close exam, or size up an animal. I am saving up to get Swarovski binos, to replace my Leupold
binoculars and keeping my Leupold spotter. Leupold is great but Swarovski is better.

 

[DFS]

I have a top of the line spotter for sale.

 

[deer_shooter]

Haha I’m s

I’m sure he could use another friend…as long as you pay in beer!

Isn't that a universal currency?

 

[TheGrayRider]

Swaro > Tasco > Barsca > Vortex

Buy once, cry once!

 

[amo16]

The Duovid is a great piece of glass, but to get the most out of it you'll want to put it on a tripod, particularly at 15x. IMO binos are great for scanning country and spotters are usually better suited for taking a closer look at game that has already been spotted with binos, whether that be to determine if an animal is legal or to field score it. That said I almost always carry a spotter. They can be bulky and heavy, but can also save you many miles of hiking. I've got a few spotters, but usually carry a 55 or 65 mm for mountain hunting. Ive also got a 95 mm but I generally use that from the truck or for shorter hikes or moderate terrain. If I were in your shoes I'd probably just pick up a good tripod and try using just the binos for a season and see how that works for you. You can always get a spotter down the road.

 

[sambo3006]

I'm with the other guys. High quality bino's first. That Leica Duovid is no doubt great glass, but may prove too bulky. High quality 10x42's are hard to beat. I also have a pair of Swarovski 8x30's that are great to bow hunt with.
As far as a spotter, a cheap one may as well be a bunch of rocks in your pack. Same weight, same value to your hunting efforts. Double that when it comes to cheap tripods and heads.
After a fair amount of research, I bought a used Kowa 663 TSN 20-60x and a Manfrotto tripod and fluid head. It was the absolute best value I could find for the money I had to spend, and I haven't regretted it once.

 

[runningmt]

Keep the Diamondback spotter for now and get a set of high end European binos…..

 

[Cheesehead]

Food for thought … I’ve spotted more out of my mid grade 15s than my higher end 10s and spotter put together.