"Budget"/Value 85(ish)mm Spotter

[armiller1991]

Hello Everyone!
I am looking for a budget/Value 85(ish)mm Spotter. I am hoping someone could help provide any real-world experience, comparisons, or options I am missing. Thank you very much for your time!

Plans/Needs:
I plan to use this for hunting and the range. I already have a Vortex "Baby" Razor 13-39x56 for packing on long hunts, but I would use this out of the truck or on short hikes when big glass is needed. Because, I already have the Baby Razor, I am not interested in a 65 and want to go all the way up to 85. Despite this, weigh is still a big consideration for me... While I am an avid hunter, I am not a guide or social media influencer.. my life/lively doesn't depend on the performance of this optic, so "value" is the key word.

Priorities:
Cost/Value
Weight
Warranty/Resale
I PREFER a straight spotter but am open to an angled

I have pulled the specs of a bunch of options. They are sorted by best price I have access to.

I narrowed (and highlighted green) a few standouts.
The Maven CS.2A is the most intriguing on paper for its combo of mag range, weight, FOV, and warranty... but reviews are very limited.
The Athlon Ares seems to have amazing reviews when considering the price. Few reviews seem comparable to Maven CS. You trade a few hundred bucks for some weight.
The Athlon Cronus seems to have amazing reviews considering the price, punching way above its price point, but the weight may be a deterrent for me.
This Kowa TSN-82SC w/ TE9z Combo is the only one in the budget that fits my needs. Seems to be an older scope that may not be as competitive. Warranty is weak compared as well. I know Kowa has a great reputation.

The field:

Brand	Model	Range	Obj	Weight	Eye Relief	Linear FOV @ 1000	Best Price	Straight vs Angle	Link to Mfg Site	Warranty	Warranty Link
Athlon	Ares G2 UHD	20-60	85	70	17.75-19.5	99-47	$717.49	Both	https://athlonoptics.com/product/spotting-scope-ares-g2-20-60x85-uhd/	Lifetime/Transferable - "Any damage from Normal use"	https://athlonoptics.com/lifetime-warranty-2/
Leupold	SX-4	20-40	85	78.2	17.8-19	91.7-50.6	$719.99	Both	https://www.leupold.com/sx-4-pro-guide-hd-20-60x85mm-straight-spotting-scope#additional	Lifetime/Transferable - "These warranties do not apply if the product has been modified, misused, or has been damaged by accident, abuse, or misapplication."	https://www.leupold.com/lifetime-guarantee
Vortex	Viper HD	20-60	85	76.4	17.8-19.6	101-50	$810.00	Both	https://vortexoptics.com/vortex-viper-hd-20-60x85-spotting-scope-straight.html	Lifetime/Transferable - No Matter What	https://vortexoptics.com/vip-warranty
Athlon	Cronus G2 UHD	20-60	86	73.5	17.78-19.7	111-60	$937.49	Angled Only	https://athlonoptics.com/product/cronus-g2-uhd-dual-focus-20-60x86-45-degree/	Lifetime/Transferable - "Any damage from Normal use"	https://athlonoptics.com/lifetime-warranty-2/
Kowa	TSN-82SC w/ TE9z	20-60	82	62	16-165	93-51	$950.00	Angled Only	https://www.kowaoptic.com/Optics-Accessories/Spotting-scopes/TSN-82SV/	Lifetime/NON-Transferable - Limited about damage/wear and tear.., must register within 30 days	https://kowaoptics.com/pages/full-l...1z8g8D13WE0LDcOTfQWBmoI2cS48dNTwPbPkrY2bNe31L
Maven	CS.2A	26-66	85	59.9	16-17	113-56	$1,040.00	Angled Only	https://mavenbuilt.com/collections/spotting-scopes/products/cs-2a-26-66x85	Lifetime/Transferable - No Matter What	https://mavenbuilt.com/pages/return-policy-warranty-returns
Leupold	SX-5	27-55	80	68.7	16.6-19.2	105-73	$1,295.99	Both	https://www.leupold.com/sx-5-santiam-hd-27-55x80mm-straight-new#additional	Lifetime/Transferable - "These warranties do not apply if the product has been modified, misused, or has been damaged by accident, abuse, or misapplication."	https://www.leupold.com/lifetime-guarantee
Zeiss	Gavia	30-60	85	60		99-69	$1,399.99	Angled Only	https://www.zeiss.com/consumer-prod...-scopes/conquest-gavia/conquest-gavia-85.html	Lifetime/Transferable - Defects Only (doesnt cover damage, normal wear and tear, etc)	https://www.zeiss.com/content/dam/c...-warranty.pdf?vaURL=www.zeiss.com/us/warranty
Vortex	Razor HD	27-60	85	65.6	16.7-17	117-68	$1,440.00	Both	https://vortexoptics.com/vortex-razor-hd-27-60x85-spotting-scope-straight.html	Lifetime/Transferable - No Matter What	https://vortexoptics.com/vip-warranty
Maven	S.1S	25-50	80	64.5	17-18	115-84	$1,560.00	Both	mavenbuilt.com/collections/spotting-scopes/products/s-1s-25-50x80	Lifetime/Transferable - No Matter What	https://mavenbuilt.com/pages/return-policy-warranty-returns

 

[NickyD]

I haven’t used the Maven CS.2 spotter but if it’s anything like the CS.1, you’d be better off using your current spotter.

I compared the razor 13-39 and the 27-60 and found there to be a significant jump in performance, especially in lower light

I haven’t used the rest of the spotters you’ve listed but I’d make sure they’re actually better than what you have. I’d be surprised if anything besides the last 3-4 in your table was better than what you have

 

[armiller1991]

I haven’t used the Maven CS.2 spotter but if it’s anything like the CS.1, you’d be better off using your current spotter.

I compared the razor 13-39 and the 27-60 and found there to be a significant jump in performance, especially in lower light

I haven’t used the rest of the spotters you’ve listed but I’d make sure they’re actually better than what you have. I’d be surprised if anything besides the last 3-4 in your table was better than what you have

I appreciate your input!
I have been impressed with the Baby Razor, for the size and weight.
It's low light performance compared to my razor HD (not UHD) 10x binos was pretty dark and I would like a little more max mag. My gut tells me, I am hoping, that some of the ones I highlighted will improve upon those shortcoming. But that's a great callout and I'm hoping more people can jump in as well.
Thanks!

 

[Wrongside]

The Tract Toric is worth a look. Buddy and myself have the 85mm Razor, with both eyepieces. He also owns the Tract 65mm. It’s optical performance is much better than either of our Razors.

 

[armiller1991]

The Tract Toric is worth a look. Buddy and myself have the 85mm Razor, with both eyepieces. He also owns the Tract 65mm. It’s optical performance is much better than either of our Razors.

Hello,
I am not very familiar with them. I see they also offer a veteran discount. I will check them out! Thanks!

 

[jimh406]

I have the Vortex 27-60x85. I find it pretty good although I haven't tested it against anything. Youtube has quite a few comparison videos. You may want to check those out.

 

[armiller1991]

I have the Vortex 27-60x85. I find it pretty good although I haven't tested it against anything. Youtube has quite a few comparison videos. You may want to check those out.

Thanks for sharing your experience with the Vortex!
I will continue to dig for more videos. I have found most are either scopes above my price range or don't include some of the less mainstream brands, specifically the models I am looking at (Maven, Athlon, kowa sv82, etc).
Hopefully more of the fine Roksliders see this and can comment.
Thank you and Merry Christmas!

 

[waspocrew]

The Gen 1 Razor was a pretty good spotter (at least to my eyes). I had a 15-45x60 and I regret selling it. Very easy to pack and would be a nice back up.

I’ve looked through the newer Razor and was not very impressed.

 

[elkmeat]

I posted the below reply in the cs2 vs Cronus thread, figured I’d just copy and paste it here as well, since this was the thread I had I mind in addition, as I was writing.

“I ended up getting my bro in law the CS2A as a family gift for Xmas, once we get some time behind it I can report back. We will be able to go side by side with a Razor hd gen 1 20-60. If it helps you at all, Moondog did a YouTube review of both the Cronus and the CS2.. it was a good review but the mirage was moderate for both so overall clarity was a little hard to judge, but they were quite comparable I thought.
I opted for the little extra mag range of the Maven, I’ve had positive experiences over several of their products, spoken with them in person in Lander and generally have a good feeling of their crew and how they run their business. I also like to take a chance sometimes on a new, lesser reviewed piece of equipment and just see how it does — as all the other spotters in the price range are pretty heavily reviewed. Backup choice was the Cronus, seems like a great unit but sometimes I felt like the overwhelming hype gave me a little bit too much of a “marketing/product pushing” feeling… not saying that is in fact true, but it felt a little bit much at times. I would love to see them SxS for myself though, for curiosities sake.
My BIL doesn’t ever really pack his spotter with him, mainly just drives within a close range to most of his glassing spots whether it’s shed hunting or during season. The CS2 will sit on a Sirui VA-5 fluid head on top of an Innorel LT324C tripod so, needless to say, size/weight wasn’t really part of the decision for the intended use, just to throw that out there.”

I’d add, that it came down to these choices as the other scopes on my radar just came in 3-500 above the budget I had to work with. The mil/gov discount Maven offers and makes easy to apply also helped in the cost department.

Best of luck in your journey, have a Merry Christmas!

 

[snowtoy83]

Gen 1 razor 85mm from sportsmans for $750 is hard to beat

 

[HingleMcCringleberry]

If you go kowa 82sv, the 30x fixed eyepiece would probably be the best choice.

 

[armiller1991]

I posted the below reply in the cs2 vs Cronus thread, figured I’d just copy and paste it here as well, since this was the thread I had I mind in addition, as I was writing.

“I ended up getting my bro in law the CS2A as a family gift for Xmas, once we get some time behind it I can report back. We will be able to go side by side with a Razor hd gen 1 20-60. If it helps you at all, Moondog did a YouTube review of both the Cronus and the CS2.. it was a good review but the mirage was moderate for both so overall clarity was a little hard to judge, but they were quite comparable I thought.
I opted for the little extra mag range of the Maven, I’ve had positive experiences over several of their products, spoken with them in person in Lander and generally have a good feeling of their crew and how they run their business. I also like to take a chance sometimes on a new, lesser reviewed piece of equipment and just see how it does — as all the other spotters in the price range are pretty heavily reviewed. Backup choice was the Cronus, seems like a great unit but sometimes I felt like the overwhelming hype gave me a little bit too much of a “marketing/product pushing” feeling… not saying that is in fact true, but it felt a little bit much at times. I would love to see them SxS for myself though, for curiosities sake.
My BIL doesn’t ever really pack his spotter with him, mainly just drives within a close range to most of his glassing spots whether it’s shed hunting or during season. The CS2 will sit on a Sirui VA-5 fluid head on top of an Innorel LT324C tripod so, needless to say, size/weight wasn’t really part of the decision for the intended use, just to throw that out there.”

I’d add, that it came down to these choices as the other scopes on my radar just came in 3-500 above the budget I had to work with. The mil/gov discount Maven offers and makes easy to apply also helped in the cost department.

Best of luck in your journey, have a Merry Christmas!

Thank you so much for taking the time to write this up! This will most certainly help me in my decision!

It may he a little bit before I buy, so I may check back in for a longer term review, if that's alright.

Merry Christmas to you and your family as well!

 

[armiller1991]

If you go kowa 82sv, the 30x fixed eyepiece would probably be the best choice.

Thanks for the reply. Can you elaborate on why? The higher mag range is something I think I need/would like.

 

[Wrench]

Not on your list but....a nikon fieldscope ed 3 with a WA30X eyepiece will be really hard to beat forcless than $3k.

 

[Wrench]

Thanks for the reply. Can you elaborate on why? The higher mag range is something I think I need/would like.

A quality fixed eye piece gives wider FOV, better and image quality. My 30x will smoke my 75x. I never run my variable anymore.

 

[armiller1991]

Gen 1 razor 85mm from sportsmans for $750 is hard to beat

I hadn't considered the gen 1. I didn't know they were still available for sale. I'll add that to the mix! Thank you and Merry Christmas!

 

[armiller1991]

A quality fixed eye piece gives wider FOV, better and image quality. My 30x will smoke my 75x. I never run my variable anymore.

Thank you! I'll research that more!

 

[HingleMcCringleberry]

A quality fixed eye piece gives wider FOV, better and image quality. My 30x will smoke my 75x. I never run my variable anymore.

Correct. The te9z eyepiece just isn't as good as the wide angle 30x, at least on the 664m body.