Spotting Scope

[Arctic Lake]

Hi Fellas

Looking for help in buying a spotting scope. I would like to use it for sighting in at the range and also field use. I'm thinking weatherproof would be the way to go for sure. I don't want to break the bank. Limited funds but don't want junk either . Is there something to look for when buying used as in problems ?

Thanks
Arctic Lake

[Twogunns]

Watch out for past or present moisture inside.

[AgSilver]

I ended up ordering an Alpen 788 from Costco.com (just had to find a US address to ship to because Costco won't ship to the usual receiving services). I know I'm a n00b but I find the industry to be full of smoke and mirrors on what's considered decent quality and a lot of posturing, as well. Practical reviews suggested that there are quite a few scopes available for reasonable price ranges. Amazon.ca and .com have lots of reviews (hard to trust those, too) but, best I could tell, if you want to buy something decent new, you can definitely get away with less than $700 and probably less than $500. I personally spent $438 CAD. Just have to pop over the border to pick it up.

I'm sure it won't be the absolute best in low light conditions, but I always assumed that I'll be using it mostly during the day and a little less to spot something 3 miles away right at dusk (as that doesn't help me much, does it?...I guess maybe planning for tomorrow? I dunno...).