15x or 18x for glassing mule deer

[bwp]

I’m looking to pick up some binos for mule deer/elk hunting. My current binos are Kowa 8.5x44 that I use for archery whitetail in Missouri. I’m in my third year of accumulating points for mule deer/elk and am wanting to pick up a Bino for glassing. The Razor UHD seem like a good value in either 15 or 18x…I’d love to hear what you all run and recommend.

 

[littlebigtine]

I use 10x and 14x binos but the use case for the big bins is much more specific/long distance. I find that every thing inside of 1.5 miles doesnt really require the 14s but if your glassing 2-3-4 miles away they are pretty sweet. I probably use my 10s 90% of the time.
Keep in mind that the terrain I typically hunt is broken timber with open pockets. I typically am trying to catch elk and deer feeding through these open areas dawn and dusk and usually the bigger FOV is an advantage for this use case rather than the increase in magnification.

Times when the extra magnification helps is when your glassing extreme distances typically during scouting season and your trying to identify or score an animal mid-long range.
Honestly for hunting I rarely bring the bigger binos instead of a compact spotter, but once again an optics setup should be specific to what you are trying to achieve.

Personallly if I was in your position and I was going to spend the money Id buy a pair of nl 12s in the optics classifieds. For the most part that would solve the debate between low vs high mag without sacrificing fov, but also for another $1000 bucks on top of the razors?

Hope this is helpful.

 

[bwp]

I use 10x and 14x binos but the use case for the big bins is much more specific/long distance. I find that every thing inside of 1.5 miles doesnt really require the 14s but if your glassing 2-3-4 miles away they are pretty sweet. I probably use my 10s 90% of the time.
Keep in mind that the terrain I typically hunt is broken timber with open pockets. I typically am trying to catch elk and deer feeding through these open areas dawn and dusk and usually the bigger FOV is an advantage for this use case rather than the increase in magnification.

Times when the extra magnification helps is when your glassing extreme distances typically during scouting season and your trying to identify or score an animal mid-long range.
Honestly for hunting I rarely bring the bigger binos instead of a compact spotter, but once again an optics setup should be specific to what you are trying to achieve.

Personallly if I was in your position and I was going to spend the money Id buy a pair of nl 12s in the optics classifieds. For the most part that would solve the debate between low vs high mag without sacrificing fov, but also for another $1000 bucks on top of the razors?

Hope this is helpful.

I plan on running the 8.5x on the chest and the other in the top of the pack with a tripod handy. The 14x pures sounds like the optimal setup…but is it worth the money.

I’ve never spent any time behind a spotter…that could be an option if it’s a better solution. The terrain I’m hunting will vary quite a bit. This fall I plan on chasing mule deer in SD. So maybe grab what’s needed for that this year and add a spotter or bino for the next hunt I draw.

 

[BasicUtahrd95]

I’ve used the Swaro 12x NL Pures for the past 3ish seasons primarily for mule deer. If I could go back and buy again I’d probably get the 10x version for the wider FOV. The 12’s are sweet, but I don’t think there is much that I can see at 12x that I couldn’t pick up at 10x. IMO high power binos (15x+) are a pretty niche product for very long distance glassing. They can’t give me the detail I get out of my spotter, and can’t be handheld near as effectively as lower power options. Keep in mind that things like dust, smoke, fog, heat, and the angle of the sun can degrade the image in your optics, rendering them almost useless at range in certain conditions. At the distances where high power binos start to make sense (1 mile plus?), you will need almost perfect glassing conditions.

 

[bwp]

I’ve used the Swaro 12x NL Pures for the past 3ish seasons primarily for mule deer. If I could go back and buy again I’d probably get the 10x version for the wider FOV. The 12’s are sweet, but I don’t think there is much that I can see at 12x that I couldn’t pick up at 10x. IMO high power binos (15x+) are a pretty niche product for very long distance glassing. They can’t give me the detail I get out of my spotter, and can’t be handheld near as effectively as lower power options. Keep in mind that things like dust, smoke, fog, heat, and the angle of the sun can degrade the image in your optics, rendering them almost useless at range in certain conditions. At the distances where high power binos start to make sense (1 mile plus?), you will need almost perfect glassing conditions.

I already have my 8.5x Kowa so I struggle to justify a 10x. Can I get by with my current binos to identify/find deer and then get a small spotter to confirm? Or is the 8.5 too short to identify most game?

 

[BasicUtahrd95]

I already have my 8.5x Kowa so I struggle to justify a 10x. Can I get by with my current binos to identify/find deer and then get a small spotter to confirm? Or is the 8.5 too short to identify most game?

For finding animals, wider field of view is almost always more helpful than more magnification. I’ve never owned binos smaller than 10x, but I would not hesitate to use 8.5’s on any western hunt. With your current setup you should have no issue finding and identifying deer/elk/moose etc, but may struggle to verify size or differentiate a small buck from a doe. That’s where a spotting scope is useful. Binos are a finding tool and spotters are a verification one. High power binos can kind of do both, but don’t excel at either. I think you would be better served by adding a spotter to your lineup than another pair of binos.

 

[bwp]

For finding animals, wider field of view is almost always more helpful than more magnification. I’ve never owned binos smaller than 10x, but I would not hesitate to use 8.5’s on any western hunt. With your current setup you should have no issue finding and identifying deer/elk/moose etc, but may struggle to verify size or differentiate a small buck from a doe. That’s where a spotting scope is useful. Binos are a finding tool and spotters are a verification one. High power binos can kind of do both, but don’t excel at either. I think you would be better served by adding a spotter to your lineup than another pair of binos.

Which spotter would you look at for $2k or so

 

[BasicUtahrd95]

Which spotter would you look at for $2k or so

Oof, that’s very much a personal preference/use case dependent question. Plus it’s been a while since I’ve been in the market for one, so I’m not the most up to date on what the current options are and I haven’t looked through most of what is out there.

For most of my mule deer hunting I require a high degree of detail before I make a play on a buck, so I carry a relatively large spotter (Kowa 77mm 20-60x). I mostly backpack hunt, but the weight penalty is worth it for me to be sure I am going after the right animal.

With spotters, it’s almost always a trade off between image detail and weight. The best option for you depends on your use case.

 

[Eastonsgrandpa]

I already have my 8.5x Kowa so I struggle to justify a 10x. Can I get by with my current binos to identify/find deer and then get a small spotter to confirm? Or is the 8.5 too short to identify most game?

If you’d like to stay under a certain price, I’d take the Meopta 15 over the UHD for optical performance. Though the warranty on vortex seems to sway people.

I personally don’t like big binos in 18 as their performance in low light drops off quick.

If you are willing to go the distance on price, there is no better than the NL Pure 14 (actually about 14.6). They outperform all of the above in every regard.

 

[Tmac]

Your 8.5’s will work fine and when hand held can actually work better than 10x as the image will appear steadier. Used 8.5x in the west for years and still do sometimes. Now I mostly use 10x because that was a great deal I could get.

I pair them with a spotter in the 15-45x65 size range or 15x Bino’s. The big eye Bino’s are more comfortable to use, mine are 15x, they allow me to spot game better vs spotting scope, so depending on terrain and my needs they may replace the spotter. If I can spot game adequately at 10x, spotter comes along, if I need more power to spot game, 15x Bino’s come along.

 

[flyfisher117]

Overall I’m pleased with 15s.

There’s been specific scenarios where I wished I had 18s but where I hunt I would say 15s are fantastic the majority of the time.

 

[rkcdvm]

10 or 12 . I like the sig 15’s with image stabilization. I purchased some 15’s . Took them out twice and left them in the truck there after

 

[bwp]

If you’d like to stay under a certain price, I’d take the Meopta 15 over the UHD for optical performance. Though the warranty on vortex seems to sway people.

I personally don’t like big binos in 18 as their performance in low light drops off quick.

If you are willing to go the distance on price, there is no better than the NL Pure 14 (actually about 14.6). They outperform all of the above in every regard.

I’ve considered these as well. Need to keep an eye out for a deal in the classifieds