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Thread: Spotting scopes

  1. #81
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Location
    Golden
    Posts
    652

    Re: Spotting scopes

    Quote Originally Posted by KodiakHntr View Post
    I'm fairly certain that the OP has expressed an interest in getting into sheep hunting in a couple of years. Fairly certain that someone has mentioned for him to get out after it this coming August on that thread to see how much he likes it before he gets too carried away with buying gear instead of waiting till 2022 (or whatever his proposed start date is...)
    Very few guys who go on their first sheep hunt think to themselves "man, I dunno. Maybe I should try that one more time to see if I like it", you are either hooked, or it just isn't for you. Beg and borrow gear. Do what he needs to, to get out there after it and see what it is all about. Find out if he is going to be a sheep hunter or not. If he isn't, then he can reassess his hunting priorities in life.

    Now before you gloss over that, fully comprehend what that statement is all about. The OP has stated that he doesn't have any background in mountain game hunting on another thread, but he is putting a plan in place to work towards his goal. That takes some drive to do that when none of your buddies are mountain hunters that have been talking up their trips.
    To me, that says that he might be leaning more towards getting bitten by the sheep bug. Or at the very least, expand his hunting horizons. Good for him, that takes balls. There are a lot of guys out there that never do that, never hunt outside of their home region, or never try anything different as to species.

    As to the buy once concept... I heard it a lot when I first started to read online forums. And I wish that I had taken it to heart earlier on.
    I wasted a lot of money to start with before I came to fully understand that there are guys out there with a lot more disposable income than me, who buy gear and try it side by side with other stuff, simply because they want to. And a lot of those guys are more than willing to share what they have learned. A lot MORE of those guys are NOT willing to share what they have learned due to people shouting them down with the "not everyone makes as much money" or "this does just as good as that for less money" and they simply don't like conflict.
    And there is a very big difference between the opinion of someone who has "done research online" and bought "this particular one because it is just as good so you should buy it too and validate my opinion" and the guy who has used X versus Y side by side and Y is better than X in this condition and under these circumstances and because of this specification.
    Buy Once Guys are more likely to ask "hey, what do you really think your use level will be, and what do you want to do with it?" and then give you an option that they have used. Or tell you that "you know what, I wish I had saved up a bit longer and did it once because it would have saved me money in the long run, which let me buy more gas money for more trips, or upgrade this piece of equipment sooner which increased my overall enjoyment".
    I personally have done it with optics - binoculars, spotting scopes, rifle scopes, and rangefinders. I have done it with rifles. I have done it with packs and tents and sleeping bags and pads. I have done it with horses, and trailers, pickups and bikes. In several of those things I listened, and jumped over several levels of upgrades and saved myself money in the long run, and found equipment that will best suit my needs. And that was from listening to guys who had tried it all, who could properly interpret what they were seeing, and who weren't afraid to say so.


    The OP stated that he was looking to spend around $700, and then stated that he was adjusting that upper level of his budget a bit higher.
    Dru, if you are thinking of bumping that budget up a bit, as much as I hate to say it, a Vortex Razor is going to be probably 80%+ of what a lower end Swarovski spotter will be. At last light you will be on par counting caribou tines at 1000 yards. Early mornings though, when the sun is at a bad angle and shining towards you, you will lose clarity, especially once you get to the edges. Colors might be a bit washed out in comparison, which may not be important to you, until you are trying to pick out a rock colored stationary animal bedded among rock colored rocks. That will be more pronounced towards the edges of the field of vision as well. And THAT will be a problem if you are trying to pick apart a hillside using it with proper glassing technique. If you are going to be using it looking at goats or assessing bears that you have already found with your bino's, then you are pretty close to where you need to be in regards to quality of spotter, IF you are going to be getting serious about that stuff.

    For a mountain hunt though, robust glass is an important feature. Dropping your pack or having it fall against a rock and having a fragile spotter inside probably isn't a great feeling, especially on day one of a multi day hunt.

    And I have no doubt that the scuba divers and golf players and expensive liquor drinkers who have too many hobbies and may be living beyond their means are going to find fault or shit to nitpick in this post, but I don't really GAF. For some of us hunting isn't a hobby, its a lifestyle, and we take this shit seriously.
    Good post! Well said.
    "A true conservationist is a man who knows that the world is not given by his fathers, but borrowed from his children." John James Audubon

  2. #82
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    ladner bc
    Posts
    376

    Re: Spotting scopes

    Thanks to all for the great information. As stated earlier Weatherby Fan has graciously offered to let me use his angled Leica angled spotting scope on a bear hunt(scouting for bighorns as well) this spring to test out the angled vs the straight and look through some decent glass too. It seems to me that after reading all the posts on this thread I might be better off saving a little more cash and maybe looking at something used to get more bang for my buck.

    Again thanks to all who take the time to help out.

  3. #83
    Join Date
    Jul 2005
    Posts
    1,542

    Re: Spotting scopes

    The budget is determined by the buyer. You can get the most bang for your buck quality wise buying used. Another method which has worked well for me is buying demos or show samples after the big trade shows - especially US ones...when our dollar was high I picked up a Swarovski 20-60x65 spotter (new in box, which had been opened, for $1,500. Last year I decided my son was old enough to take care of good binos, I picked up a set of 10x42 Leica Trinovids, $850 to my door. He gets to use my Minox HG, another bino I picked up after a trade show for ~$500 that retails over $1,000.

    All that said - I’d never suggest that someone save money and sit at home vs buy what you can and get out there. I shot my first sheep using $300 Bushnell Legend binos (gasp) and NO SPOTTER, NO RANGEFINDER (crazy I know).

    Also I don’t think upgrading equates to money lost. There is value in the use you get out of those initial purchases. My old Bushnells which did me just fine on my first several mountain hunts owe me nothing - and still ride in the console of my truck all year so there’s always something in there.
    Twist and pull.

  4. #84
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Central BC
    Posts
    961

    Re: Spotting scopes

    Oh boy, this thread is still going....oh yeah, it's February.

    I think I mentioned in a previous post that I have a pair of EL Range binos and a Leica spotting scope. It is worth mentioning that I hunted for 35 years before I felt I could justify the expense. I do okay, but my family and household always came first. I managed with a 20 power Celestron spotting scope and an old pair of 7x50 brand x binos for years. We managed, the kids were basically raised on game meat.

    You don't NEED anything more than an iron sight 303 British to fill the freezer. Can one be more effective with better gear - absolutely although I used to work with a guy who could do amazing things with an old 303 Brit. When I did make the jump it was after doing a couple of lower or midrange upgrades and I paid cash because I am not going to incur debt for something like that. I started out using a Winchester Model 670A 3006 with an old 4x Leupold scope for years - damn, somehow I managed to survive and kill stuff most years. Heck, it's a wonder I lived because that was a push feed action and we all know how dangerous a push feed is when compared to a CRF action when hunting upside down....

    The OP was looking for reasonable council on a lower midrange upgrade and a lot of us shared our experiences. From what I could read some pretty good council.

    I would offer to our little community that almost everything on this thread is well intentioned council which others can take or leave. If one thinks that x is the limit then good for them - but consider this if you have not used the good stuff you are not qualified to judge. And by use I don't mean glancing through someone's spotter at the range on a bright summer day, I mean glassing slides for hours for days on end. You truly don't know until you have used them - extensively. Just saying, let's keep it light.

    Oh yeah, and that SWARVO thing, that's just gold. I think I'm going to dig my SWARVO's out and look at something. Just going to get the popcorn....
    Last edited by wlbc; 02-09-2021 at 03:49 PM. Reason: sp

  5. #85
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    Aldergrove, BC
    Posts
    4,466

    Re: Spotting scopes

    Quote Originally Posted by wlbc View Post
    Oh boy, this thread is still going....oh yeah, it's February.

    I think I mentioned in a previous post that I have a pair of EL Range binos and a Leica spotting scope. It is worth mentioning that I hunted for 35 years before I felt I could justify the expense. I do okay, but my family and household always came first. I managed with a 20 power Celestron spotting scope and an old pair of 7x50 brand x binos for years. We managed, the kids were basically raised on game meat.

    You don't NEED anything more than an iron sight 303 British to fill the freezer. Can one be more effective with better gear - absolutely although I used to work with a guy who could do amazing things with an old 303 Brit. When I did make the jump it was after doing a couple of lower or midrange upgrades and I paid cash because I am not going to incur debt for something like that. I started out using a Winchester Model 670A 3006 with an old 4x Leupold scope for years - damn, somehow I managed to survive and kill stuff most years. Heck, it's a wonder I lived because that was a push feed action and we all know how dangerous a push feed is when compared to a CRF action when hunting upside down....

    The OP was looking for reasonable council on a lower midrange upgrade and a lot of us shared our experiences. From what I could read some pretty good council.

    I would offer to our little community that almost everything on this thread is well intentioned council which others can take or leave. If one thinks that x is the limit then good for them - but consider this if you have not used the good stuff you are not qualified to judge. And by use I don't mean glancing through someone's spotter at the range on a bright summer day, I mean glassing slides for hours for days on end. You truly don't know until you have used them - extensively. Just saying, let's keep it light.

    Oh yeah, and that SWARVO thing, that's just gold. I think I'm going to dig my SWARVO's out and look at something. Just going to get the popcorn....

    well said!! ^


    what's SWARVO? Is that the new Chinese spotters on ebay?

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