Compliment my 15x56

[HarvDog]

I picked up a pair of Leupold Santiam 15x56 that I really liked for all day glassing off a tripod. Would adding a compact spotter like the Kowa 550 or similar make sense next to my 15x56? Or should i go with something bigger at the same price point.

The spotter will be a shared glass and packed by my hunting partners. We all carry chest bino in the 8/10x flavor and do a mix of backpack and truck hunts.

 

[dtrkyman]

15s on a tripod are my go to, unless you really want to judge size I wouldn't even worry about a spotter.

I have a Kowa 774, more money but if you are going spotter I think it is worth it to go into the larger objectives and zoom..

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Depends on the hunt, the species, and the terrain. I find myself almost never taking the spotter out. 8x50 range finding binos in the harness and 15x56 in the top of my pack is 95% of hunts for me now.

 

[HarvDog]

Depends on the hunt, the species, and the terrain. I find myself almost never taking the spotter out. 8x50 range finding binos in the harness and 15x56 in the top of my pack is 95% of hunts for me now.

15s on a tripod are my go to, unless you really want to judge size I wouldn't even worry about a spotter.

I have a Kowa 774, more money but if you are going spotter I think it is worth it to go into the larger objectives and zoom..

That’s the reason I’m wanting a spotter. Not necessarily to judge inches, but to judge frames at distances the 15x56 can’t.

 

[HarvDog]

Or would adding some sort digiscoping on the 15x56 to up my distance on judging frames be worth a look?

 

[Brian Fahs]

I dont have any experience with the leupold 15s but i own the newest version swaro 15s. I tried multiple smaller spotters up to the leica 62apo. None gave me better resolution than the 15s.

I run a kowa 884 with the 25-60x eyepiece. It is unbelievable good. The kowa 774 would be my minnimum suggestion to compliment your 15s

 

[jbspec]

Nice binos!

 

[willfrye027]

I think you will need something comparable to the 77 series kowa or better as mentioned above to make a noticable gain over your 15s in terms of judging the “frame”. I’ve got an 55 series kowa and also 15s that my wife uses so quite a bit of experience with those. The 55 kowa will help see some additional detail inside of a mile or so. The 77 kowa will push that out to maybe 2-3 miles in good lighting. Inside of that the 15s will probably tell you what you need to know about a buck, and they will be more enjoyable to use than anything other than the btx. So really it’s all about how far away you need to judge that buck from.

77 series kowa will be able to tell you if that buck has mass, or extra, or deep forks, etc. the 15s will tell you if it’s worth pulling out the spotter for, in general.

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

If you plan on paying $1800 for the Kowa 55, then just skip over the Kowa 77x ($2350) and buy the Kowa 88x ($2500). But if you get the 55x for $1350, then it gets interesting.

I do not bring my Kowa 554 when I am chasing Coues and mule deer in the desert. With that said, my 554 is going on more and more hunts than my STX 65/95. It has proven itself on many hunts and I’m a fan of its small size, low weight and clear glass.

Worst case buy the 55x on sale and give it a go. If it won’t work for you sell it once the sale is over; you’ll come out ahead and the buyer will save some cash.

 

[jbspec]

Hey 15x56! Your objective lenses are so big and nd your very budget friendly!

 

[HarvDog]

Hey 15x56! Your objective lenses are so big and nd your very budget friendly!

Nice binos!

Thanks Pal!

 

[HarvDog]

I think you will need something comparable to the 77 series kowa or better as mentioned above to make a noticable gain over your 15s in terms of judging the “frame”. I’ve got an 55 series kowa and also 15s that my wife uses so quite a bit of experience with those. The 55 kowa will help see some additional detail inside of a mile or so. The 77 kowa will push that out to maybe 2-3 miles in good lighting. Inside of that the 15s will probably tell you what you need to know about a buck, and they will be more enjoyable to use than anything other than the btx. So really it’s all about how far away you need to judge that buck from.

77 series kowa will be able to tell you if that buck has mass, or extra, or deep forks, etc. the 15s will tell you if it’s worth pulling out the spotter for, in general.

There’s a buck in the center of my avatar bedded at just under a mile. Picked him up in the 15s and didn’t need anymore confirmation, he is what I thought he was. He was sunlit though, might have needed a spotter had he been tucked away?
Appreciate the input

 

[HarvDog]

If you plan on paying $1800 for the Kowa 55, then just skip over the Kowa 77x ($2350) and buy the Kowa 88x ($2500). But if you get the 55x for $1350, then it gets interesting.

I do not bring my Kowa 554 when I am chasing Coues and mule deer in the desert. With that said, my 554 is going on more and more hunts than my STX 65/95. It has proven itself on many hunts and I’m a fan of its small size, low weight and clear glass.

Worst case buy the 55x on sale and give it a go. If it won’t work for you sell it once the sale is over; you’ll come out ahead and the buyer will save some cash.

kinda what I did with my Leupold 15s. I can dump them and not take a big hit. And I may…

Thought about dumping the 15s and going 12x50, which allows me to drop the 8x42. And get a big spotter. I do like this option , plenty of time to dial it all in.