Spotting Scope Advice

L

LightningLink

New member
I would like some advice on an inexpensive spotting scope.

Shooting conditions:
50-100 yards. (maybe 200 some day)
Typically .22, .223 and .308
General range plinking, no competitions.
Shoot maybe once every couple months.

I basically have a budget of about $100. I'm currently looking at Bushnell, Simmons and Tasco.

A few questions:
1) Do any of the above brands stand out as being better?
2) What power/objective is best?
3) Is the eyepiece that is kinda offset better than the straight-thru type?

I've seen power values like: 12-36x50, 15-45x60, 20-60x60. I kinda understand that a larger objective collects more light and therefore provides a clearer picture. As for the power, more is not always better. For the range I'm looking at, is a low power (12-36) plenty? Is 15-45 a better middle ground power?

Thanks for any advice. I'm hitting the gun show this weekend and would like to have some ideas.

LL
 
Do you wear glasses? *Any* sort of glasses!


If so then you had better make certain to check out the `eye relief' of any spotting scope you have any interest in. *Especially* at the higher powers! From *my* own experience the majority of the spotting scopes in the lines / brands you've listed just *didn't* have enough `eye relief' to be useable with glasses, of *any* sort, and there were models where even at the lowest power the lenses of my glasses were banging into the eyepiece.


If you are lucky enough to find a dealer carrying the Swift line of spotting scopes you'll find that they have two models that can use zoom eyepeices that have `extended' eye relief and one of them comes close, it only exceeds your approximately $100 `limit' by about $200 {WAN GRIN!}, to the unrealisticly low limit you've set. (As with all optics you *do* get what you pay for! And a spotting scope that is selling for around $100, no matter how `glowing' a recommendation one may hear for it, is just that a $100 spotting scope. You may or may not be able to discern a .22 calibre hole in a piece of paper at even 50yds let alone 100 yds and a .308 calibre hole at 100yds may be as bad as the .22 calibre hole at 50yds. [Been there, done that, and learned my `lesson'. {FROWN]]) The Swift is going to be the `cheapest' `quality' spotting scope you are going to find.


The `top of the line' Swift *and* the Leupold varible spotting scopes are the `next step up, and *that* step is up to around $700! (But then, like I said before, you get what you pay for.) With those two you get detail `resolution' that will enable you to see a .17 calibre hole in paper at 100yds almost like looking at a .45 calibre hole at 25yds! You *won't* be banging the lense(s) of you glasses, or sunglasses, into the eyepiece and your eyes won't end up being tired after even looking through it almost all day! (With the *cheap*, IE: "Around $100 or so scopes" your eyes will be screaming for mercy after maybe a half hour or so.)

Now... You *could* get rediculous and pay even more than around $700 or so for a spotting scope but, for the most part, after that level you are only paying for a glorified `name' and not much more. (After just so far there is much more they can do to `improve?' the optics beyond writing fancier descriptions in their ads. {WICKED GRIN!})


But! But! You splutter and choke! I *don't* know *if* I am going to use this all that often! Hee! Hee! Hee! Actually you'll, *if* you get a *quality* spotting scope, be finding *all sorts* of uses for it. I've used *mine* for observing total and partial eclipses of the moon, watching and identifing assorted birds, (With and adapter and it was actually very inexpensive.) used mine for a long telephoto lense, followed `slurry bombers' dropping chemicals on a `wild fire', watched them clean up an accident scene about a 1/4 mile away from my house (The accident, btw, took out a power pole that supplied power to all the houses here on our farm along with quite a few other people in the area!), along with helping me `spot' shots when sighting in and when shooting `pasture poodles' that were destroying my hay fields and pastures. I've also taken mine with me whenever we go out in the fall to `go look at the fall colours' up in the mountains. And actually found it to be a nice `adjunct' to a good pair of 7X50 binoculars. (Locate something with the binocs and then get a good close look with the scope.) A good short and a good long tripod is a very handy combination for *both* the spotting scope *and* the binocs. Even my 4yr old son can look through either one without any problems *and* you don't have to worry about them being dropped or knocked off whatever it is that you are trying to show. (E-mail me and I can give you *a lot* more reasons for owning a *good* *quality* spotting scope. [And binocs.])
 
Thanks for the input Halfpint.

First, I don't wear glasses (other than shooting glasses that I can lift). As for discerning hole sizes, I don't need to know the difference, I just need to be able to see where they are.

Second, I understand that a $100 spotting scope may be crap. I just would like to get the best piece of crap I can ;) If money wasn't an object, I think Kowa is probably the single most recommended brand. But, alas, money is an object. I recently had a kid (well, my wife did anyway), and we went from DINKs to SIOKs so she could stay home with the critter. As it is, $100 will be tough to do, but I hate shooting up 4 targets before I can check them only to find I was off. Sure, I'm happy that I still grouped them, but I like to hit the center too :)

If anyone has experience with the above mentioned "crappy" spotting scopes, let me know what you think. Oh, and HURRY please.

LL

Note: I'm not knocking your suggestions Halfpint, but it's either a $100 scope or none at all. Thanks though :)
 
Look on E-Bay. I bought a super nice used scope for $95 plus about $10 shipping. Also put you want on the ads here on TFL, someone might have a good used scope they don't need but they do need a hundred bucks for that next gun. :)
 
Lightning, Natchez is the place you want. If you're looking for the best piece of crap $100.00 can buy then Natchez is the place you want to buy that spotting scope from.

They have Simmons, Tasco, Bushnell, Blazer, BSA, and a few other brands all under a hundred bucks most of the time. They also have refurbished spotting scopes that sell for $200.00 for less than $100.00 and they give you the full warranty with it.

I recently bought one from them. I bought a Simmons HydroSports for under a hundred. It's a 20X60X60. Came with a leather type case and a table or bench tripod. Natchez has it on sale now for $85.00.

Check them out at http://www.natchezss.com

Best of luck....Cag
 
Thanks *Cag!

I checked out their site, and they do have some great prices. Unfortunately, they don't have any of the scopes like you got (at least in the refurb catagory). However, their new HydroSport is still a whole lot cheaper than MidwayUSA (and they have good prices to begin with). I guess I'll put myself on their mailing list for a while and see what pops up.

Thanks again,
LL
 
Spotting Scope

I just purchased a Simmons 25x50 Spotting Scope from CDNN for $39.99. It came with a carry bag and tripod and it has a 45* angled eyepiece. OK you guys don't laugh. I know it's not the greatest but I wanted a cheap scope for the range and I didn't want to spend a lot of money and $40. bucks ain't a lot of money. But from what I can see it should serve my purpose just fine. If in time I need a better one then I will get a better one then.
I got this from CDNN in Texas and IMHO they are good people to deal with. Very prompt in getting my order to me and so far everything I have purchased from them has been exactly as advertised no problems. They are also very helpful and courteous over the phone. Lightning you may want to check this out at http://www.cdnninvestments.com

Hope this helps;)
 
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