Big Binos or Spotter for the Alpine

[lnelson]

I have never had the money for either in the past but I was curious what everyones thoughts were. I'm not a trophy hunter per say, just looking for legal animals. A pair of 15x56 binos on a tripod seem like they might be more comfortable to look through for long periods than a spotter. Price is going to be about the same and the binos should be a little lighter.

[Elkaddict]

Binos to find, and scope to judge. I've never used "large" binos but if I'm trying to find critical detail on a rack I am usually well over 15X.

[bigwhiteys]

A good quality spotter is not hard to look through when you've got it setup properly... If you're uncomfortable after 10 minutes of glassing, then you never got comfortable in the first place!

Sometimes all I use is a spotter, other times just binos and other times both...

15x56 binos are going to be just as heavy as a spotter (or fairly close) and couple that with the fact that you want to pack a tripod???

You aren't saving much weight IMO.

Carl

[shawnwells]

i'll say this....was thinking my leupolds...10X42 were amazing...until my buddys Leica (dunno if i spelled that right) binos...X 50 objective....made the leupolds look stupid...amazing spotting ability. that would be a definite asset ....to living life as a human...im telling ya crazy difference...better than a couple X60 spotting scopes I've owned....

[troutseeker]

For hunting purposes I believe you will still be best served by owning both binoculars and a spotting scope. Carrying a set of heavy, cumbersome binoculars might be ok if you use them only as a spotting scope, but once the hunt is on I much prefer compact bino's around my neck. Scrambling around mountains is tough enough with smaller, lighter gear. A set of heavy and BIG bino's would just make things more difficult.

If you are bird watching, by all means get the big bino's...

[Johnnybear]

I use 10x 42 leupy's for bino's and have never used my spotting scope in the field (only use it at the range) here on the Island. I can see the use of something more powerful in more open country and here is a great read about using high powered bino's....

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/index.html

[stoneguide]

I always pack good quality binos around my neck and usually always have my spotting scope and tri pod in my pack. I use the spotter lots and can pick out small details that have revealed animals or have been able to tell legality of an animal alot easier, plus at alot farther distance saving miles traveling to get close enough to be able to tell.

15x binos can in no way do what a spotter will. My opinion is that get a pair of 15x binos just replaces your own binos with a heavier set. A quality 10x set of binos are the best. They are clear, large field of veiw and heat waves dont bother them near as bad as it will on 15x.

Just my opinion but higher end binos(or the best you can afford) in a 10x are the best. Then get a spotter, of coarse high end is best but even a lower end one (bushnell,tasco, etc) will be better than nothing.
SG

[Hunt'n Guide]

For most of us the top brands of 10x binos do the job very well. But I have seen the 15x binos mounted on a tripod rig used, and used very effectively by a client. He was spotting parts of moose palms in the buck brush several miles away, things that I wasn't able to see with Zeisss 10x 40's. If I had the extra cash I would consider some 15x swarovski's and one of those glassing tripods from outdoorsmans. The lighter tripod would compensate for the heavier binos.
For now I will stick with the classic setup of good 10x40 binos and a top quality spotting scope.

[lnelson]

Thanks for the advice guys. I have a pair of Swaro 8X SLC's that I love. Sounds like its time to start rat holing some money for the spotting scope.