Budget 20-60x Spotting Scope

[travisurkul]

Hello,

My buddy and I recently drew a Wyoming deer tag for our first out of state and western style hunt. The area we drew for (Area X) looks to be mostly wide open sage brush, so I'd like to have a higher power spotter to take along and see deer at distance in what may be a relatively barren land. I know the old adage of "buy once, cry once" and "you get what you pay for", but I'm still not looking to spend a lot, especially since I have seen a few spotters in my price range recommended. The ones below are the ones I'm looking at. Looking to stay under $500 (I know...)

Vanguard Endeavor HD 82A
I see this one has been recommended on here before, and used to be the go to "budget option" before the Athlon Ares came around. ED Glass and is supposed to punch above it's price range. Can be had for $360.

Leupold SX-2 Alpine HD 20-60x60mm
I have seen good reviews of this spotter, including a few on here. I would go with the 60mm in for this spotter for compactness and because I read a report that the optical quality of the 60mm is superior to that of the 80mm. I like the Leupold name as well. Concerns are that it may not have ED glass and may not be fully multi-coated. The lenses are said to be "calcium-fluoride" which I believe means they are ED. None of the higher end Leupold models explicitly say ED either and are also "calcium-fluoride", so maybe they use HD synonymously with ED? Higher end Leupold models do explicitly state they are fully multi-coated, which concerns me that the SX-2 is not. I thought full multi-coating was pretty much standard on spotting scopes. I will contact Leupold with my questions, but maybe some of you have some insight. I was able to check this one out at Scheels. Seemed nice, but hard to tell in store. $400.

Hawke Endurance ED 20-60x68
Can regularly be had for ~$450. Just yesterday on Camofire even. Seems to be limited information, but what is out there seems mostly postive.

Cabela's Intensity HD Spotting Scope
Just to throw another competitor in the mix. ED fully multi-coated glass for $350. Anyone know who makes this scope?

Right now I'm leaning more towards the Endeavor HD and SX-2. Just looking for your thoughts. Open to other suggestions.

I know... spend more...

 

[Whiskey_Fish]

You could always rent one for the trip and decide if it’s something you want/need in the future. I did that and ended up deciding a compact spotter was plenty for me and half the time I don’t even feel like I need it.


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[Forkieslayer]

I bought a vanguard endeavor 65 for my first spotter 2 years ago. I took it to wyoming last year and ended up being kinda disappointed. I had to count the number of tines on a side for the buck to be legal and it had trouble past 600 yards. I recently sold it and bought a athlon areas and love it. I have no experience with the other spotters but from what I have read the vanguard is the best in that price category.

 

[philos]

Might be a good idea to reach out to the guys at Cameralandny.com

I've bought a few things from them and they have given me solid advice

 

[fmyth]

Can you stretch your budget to $599?

Vortex Optics Razor HD Angled Spotting Scope -16-48x65 mm 79PJA - Save 43%

Vortex Optics Razor HD Angled Spotting Scope -16-48x65 mm 79PJA at Sierra. Celebrating 30 Years Of Exploring.

www.sierra.com

 

[IowaNative]

I bought an Athlon Ares Compact spotter 15-45. First time using one and first time out west for spring bear. Loved it and I'm glad I didn't carry bigger. I also like mine for shooting and being able to see the target, yet it's not too bulky on the bench. I learned that a compact spotter is all I needed and I need to upgrade Bino's first lol. I think the bigger/better spotter is for determining trophy quality from miles away, which for spring bear wasn't an issue.

 

[gr8fuldoug]

Our Store Wide 4th of July Sale Now through July 5th so give us a call, 516-217-1000, and let's discuss what would be best for you

 

[Gone4Days]

FYI I got my Athlon Ares g2 65mm for $487…. Can’t be beat for that price. Very happy with it. 45x is plenty of magnification.

 

[travisurkul]

I understand that everyone is recommending lower power, more compact spotters because you can get higher glass quality for the price, but I really feel like I would prefer the extra magnification. I find it hard to imagine a scenario where I am trying to see something at long distance where I would prefer slightly clearer glass over having an extra 15x of magnification. You only lose 5x magnification on low end too, which is a range that can probably be filled in by binoculars. I also think if there is an application for the higher power spotter, it is the hunt I am going on. From what I can tell on google maps and onx it is very wide open and I have to seek out cover even.

I am new to western hunting though, so I could be completely wrong on this. I think if I mess up on this decision, not having enough magnification would be worse than carrying a bit of unnecessary extra weight and bulk. I'll just use the higher power spotter at the range and pick up a compact spotter for future hunts then.

You could always rent one for the trip and decide if it’s something you want/need in the future. I did that and ended up deciding a compact spotter was plenty for me and half the time I don’t even feel like I need it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

How do you rent a spotter?

I bought a vanguard endeavor 65 for my first spotter 2 years ago. I took it to wyoming last year and ended up being kinda disappointed. I had to count the number of tines on a side for the buck to be legal and it had trouble past 600 yards. I recently sold it and bought a athlon areas and love it. I have no experience with the other spotters but from what I have read the vanguard is the best in that price category.

Curious, where in Wyoming did you go? What power Ares did you go with then?

Our Store Wide 4th of July Sale Now through July 5th so give us a call, 516-217-1000, and let's discuss what would be best for you

Does email or DM work?

 

[gr8fuldoug]

It’s most productive to have a conversation rather than email back and forth

 

[Lionhound1975]

For just under $500 I would buy an Alpen 786 (straight) or 788 (angled) 20-60-80 spotter. I have a 786 that I bought in 2009 and have had no problems with it. I compared it with a Vortex Viper spotter and I thought the Alpen was much better. It's a long scope but fairly light for an 80mm spotter. Alpen went out of business a few years ago but I have had no problems with my spotter after many years of field use. So I have never had to worry about the warranty. I still keep it as my beater spotting scope for places I don't want to risk damaging or losing my Meostar S2.

The Alpen 788 was a big favorite a few years ago with the birding crowd and was considered better than anything else its price class.

 

[Antares]

I understand that everyone is recommending lower power, more compact spotters because you can get higher glass quality for the price, but I really feel like I would prefer the extra magnification.

Spotters are entirely about glass quality and light transmission. The problem with cheap spotters is that the high-end magnification gets dark and grainy to the point of being unusable. A higher quality mid power (30-45x) spotter is going to be a lot more fun to look through than lower quality high power (45-60x) spotter. I think that's what folks are trying to say.

 

[Yon181]

Spotters are entirely about glass quality and light transmission. The problem with cheap spotters is that the high-end magnification gets dark and grainy to the point of being unusable. A higher quality mid power (30-45x) spotter is going to be a lot more fun to look through than lower quality high power (45-60x) spotter. I think that's what folks are trying to say.

Agree with this 100%

 

[ropeup79]

There's a Athlon Ares 20-60x85 on ebay right now.

 

[travisurkul]

There's a Athlon Ares 20-60x85 on ebay right now.

Thanks! I’ll check it out.

 

[Banded_spooney]

Thanks! I’ll check it out.

July is Vortex Month at Sportsmen’s wharehouse. I think 65mm Gen 1 razors are $700 plus you get 15% off if you get a sportsmen’s credit card to pay for it. To top it off They give you a gift certificate as a bonus to your purchase. Get some cash back on active junky and you are down around $500 for a really nice scope.

If you really want the extra magnification pony up another hundred and get the 85mm

 

[travisurkul]

July is Vortex Month at Sportsmen’s wharehouse. I think 65mm Gen 1 razors are $700 plus you get 15% off if you get a sportsmen’s credit card to pay for it. To top it off They give you a gift certificate as a bonus to your purchase. Get some cash back on active junky and you are down around $500 for a really nice scope.

If you really want the extra magnification pony up another hundred and get the 85mm

Any idea how the Gen 1 Razor compares to the Athlon Ares? Seems to be similar price.

 

[Banded_spooney]

Any idea how the Gen 1 Razor compares to the Athlon Ares? Seems to be similar price.

Sorry, never touched the Ares

 

[Hnthrdr]

Can you stretch your budget to $599?

Vortex Optics Razor HD Angled Spotting Scope -16-48x65 mm 79PJA - Save 43%

Vortex Optics Razor HD Angled Spotting Scope -16-48x65 mm 79PJA at Sierra. Celebrating 30 Years Of Exploring.

www.sierra.com

Great scope for the price +1

As far as athlon goes, I grabbed a 8x bino from them after reading some stellar reviews and having several birders say it was par with 8x lecia. I use it for archery elk and am super happy it, no experience with their spotters though. I do have all the gen 1 razors from the little one to the big one and I am a big fan, bought them a while back and haven’t felt the need to upgrade yet

 

[travisurkul]

Great scope for the price +1

I actually ended up getting the 20-60x version from the Sportsman’s Warehouse deal. $450 is a very good deal for the 16-48x