Spotting Scope Help Needed!

[tlee]

Which is the best spotting scope for the money? I'm talking about the <$500 range not a $3500 Swarovski. It will be used both on foot and from the truck window.

[Phil T]

Check the optics forums on various hunting websites(including archived comparison articles in Field and Stream and Outdoor Life), and be sure to read recommendations in birdwatcher sites and the "digitscoping" sites. Also call camaralandny, and B&Hphotovideo. When calling the stores, you need to know what you actually want, and what your uses (all of them) are.
For portability, a 65mm objective is easier to carry than an 80mm, if low light viewing is important, the larger scope is better. Necessary optical quality depends on use. Birdwatchers need better optics than big game hunters, and the people who use a spotting scope and compact digital camera to photograph wildlife need even better optical performance.
It's easy to make a good telescope, but it's much harder to build a good eyepiece. I own a discontinued Nikon scope that is very useful when the zoom eyepiece is set to its lower power, but useless at maximum zoom. Pentax is a good brand (excellent eyepieces), but probably out of your price range. Cabela's has a couple models of different quality and proce, as does Luepold. Some of the Chinese imports are pretty good for hunting.

Shop, shop, shop. Shopping and reading recommendations is the fun part, writing the check is the bad part.

[Stu]

Very good advice. I too own a discontinued Nikon. While you're at it, invest in a quality tripod. I bought a cheap one and found that it was too flimsy to provide a steady base.

[Phil T]

Since you are going to use the scope both from the ground and from a window mount, you have another choice (or complication). When on the ground, the straight eyepiece is easier to use, but from a window mount, the angled eyepiece is more convenient.
Since you have limited personal mobility in your truck, it's easier to turning the scope in its mount makes the eyepiece easier to look through(the eyepiece doesn't have to angle upward). My scope has the straight eyepiece, and I do a lot of bending and twisting to use it on its window mount. The angled eyepiece is also more convenient if you use the scope to look for bullet holes in the target when at the shooting range bench.

[Phil T]

I just visited 24 hour campfire's forums.
Check out the archives in the optics forum, and look for a posting about Zeiss photos, perhaps in the "hunters campfire." The last one contains digital photos shot with a pricey (but cheaper than Swarovski or Leica) Zeiss spotting scope. The archives in the optics forum has some good comments about a Minox spotter and hints about the eyepiece to chose, and a Minox sale price from cameralandny. Also look in the archives for comments about the China-made Vortex brand.

[Noah Cantell]

Seems this brand has been forgotten. Very good optics at reasonable prices.

[Phil T]

Pentax is certainly not forgotten at betterviewdesired.com. Pentax makes some of the best eyepieces (and they are in a thread that fits astronomy scopes) available. Their best eyepieces cost more than I paid for a whole spotter. Only Swaro makes a better eyepiece, and their zoom eyepiece is their only one that's better than Pentax.
However, Pentax is out of his price range.

[Noah Cantell]

https://www.eagleoptics.com/cart

[Noah Cantell]

For the spotting scope I listed above the eye piece costs extra. But I also listed a pair of binocs that could do well under most spotting scope conditions.

[MrBob]

I'm in the market for the same range of spotting scope. I've been checking reviews at:

Amazon's Spotting Scope section (not bad)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=sr_nr_scat_3168061_ln?rh=n%3A3168061%2Ck%3Aspo tting+scope&keywords=spotting+scope&ie=UTF8&qid=1283868964&scn=3168061&h=db298fa513bf546ff55ba5f44e16359850a8edfa

Spotting Scope Reviews (not much but some good tips)

http://www.spottingscopereview.net

If you find a good scope do let me know. Last recommendation was a low end Alpen and I haven't been happy

[Wade B AKA: Ruger2506]

Are you sure about not wanting Swarovski? They are simply unreal. A $500 scope simply can't even touch the quality of Swavorski. I know, I've had the cheap scopes before and done the side by side comparison. After that particular hunt, I ordered my new Swavorski as soon as I got home.

[Magic]

I have one of these, for the price it's great. Celestron Ultima 80 Straight Spotting Scopes. Optics Planet has them for less than $200