Do I need a spotting scope?

[HappyHuntr]

Hey, I'm possibly going deer hunting this year in central montana and am wondering if I need a spotting scope.
I have a pair of Bushnell 7-15x economy model binos already. Any help is appreciated.

 

[sram9102]

Basically everyone is going to tell you to buy the best binos you can afford before you get a spotter. A decent pair of binos is better than a cheap spotter/bino combo.

 

[Westy35]

In my opinion, a spotter is pretty low on the gear priority list to be well set up. If you can find deer and see if they have antlers with your binos, you can always move closer to check them out more closely or verify legality. Hard to answer your question for sure without knowing the state of the rest of your kit or where you’ll be hunting exactly. Is a spotter useful? Absolutely. Critical to find and kill deer? No. I hunted without a spotter for years, and the animals I killed didn’t seem to care. Your mileage may vary.

 

[Westy35]

Basically everyone is going to tell you to buy the best binos you can afford before you get a spotter. A decent pair of binos is better than a cheap spotter/bino combo.

Agree 100%. A good pair of 10x binos will show more detail than a cheap 30x spotter.

 

[Mag_7s]

Get a good pair or boots Motohunter39. Use what you have for the time being, and maybe pair that with a tripod until you can get into the midrange glass. A spotter should be the last piece you add.

 

[Newtosavage]

Buy the best binoculars you can afford, then your 2nd investment should be in a tripod and tripod adapter system for those binoculars. 3rd would be a window mount that accepts that binocular adapter. 4th would be a spotter. That's my priority order. Last season I was in some BIG country glassing most of the day, and 99% of the work, including finding the buck I eventually shot, was done with my 8x32 Conquests mounted on a tripod. I was carrying a Nikon ED50 spotter and I used it a few times but I don't think I ever used it on the deer I shot. And he was 1/2 mi. away when I first spotted him.

Several years ago, I glassed up a small herd of bull elk from 2.3 miles away with a pair of 10x binoculars on a tripod. I could tell at least two of them were legal from that distance. My buddy shot a 6x6 out of that group the next morning.

Never underestimate the value of good binoculars on a good steady rest.

 

[kevin11mee]

Everyone will tell you the same here: get some decent quality binos and a tripod before thinking about a spotter. Look at the classified ads here, you probably won't find a better deal on glass.

 

[Tremain4414]

I’m going to say it depends on the type of glassing you’re planning on doing. I 100 percent agree, get the best binos you can afford, then a good tripod and lastly a spotter.

I primarily use my binos to locate game then the spotter to verify if it’s something I’m interested in. The last few years though, we’ve been getting up onto the other side of a river which borders the eastern boundary of where we hunt and glassing back across into our unit. It’s an awesome way to get glass on a ton of country from one or two spots but it’s a long long ways off (approximately 4-6 miles as the crow flies). This last season I was able to find elk, but there was no way I could even start to identify if they were worth the time and effort it would take to get where they were. I was using a gen 1 Vortex razor 16x48. This year I’ve upgraded to the Swaro ATS 20x60 and am hoping that the upgraded glass may help a bit in that department but I guess we’ll see this year

 

[f16jack]

concur. Great binocs before any spotter.

 

[Taudisio]

Killed dozens of deer carrying a $20 pair of tasco Binos only. No, you do not need a spotting scope.

 

[HappyHuntr]

I think I found out what to do haha

 

[William Hanson (live2hunt)]

No you don't. They help but you don't need one.

Sent from my SM-S908U using Tapatalk

 

[Tannerlowe]

I’ve been more than happy with a nice pair of 12x binos and a tri-pod. Really never had the need for anything more.

 

[jenkinsd]

Been knocking down yotes that have been stalking deer this past winter and spring. The other night, sun was down and I was glassing a north facing ridge with Bino's. Couldn't quiet make it out so I reached over for my spotter. What I was looking at was a burnt tree trunk with the bark off.

 

[Maverick1]

Hey, I'm possibly going deer hunting this year in central montana and am wondering if I need a spotting scope.
I have a pair of Bushnell 7-15x economy model binos already. Any help is appreciated.

You definitely need a spotting scope to be successful on your hunt. Either this one or this one would be the best fit for your needs.

Or, ditch the bushnells and get a pair of 8x42 or 10x42, a binocular harness and use the binos every single day.

Good luck on your hunt!

 

[Gone4Days]

Coues hunting in AZ. I use my 15x SLC’s and never took my spotter out of the pack. Ended up selling my spotter because I never used it. Invest in alpha 12x or 15x and good tripod/mount

 

[Fatcamp]

You don't. I do, but you have other things to worry about before buying a spotting scope.

 

[MTWop]

They can be nice to spare you some miles getting a closer look, but definitely not necessary

 

[Danomite]

You might consider renting a spotting scope. I know there is at least one outfit that rents high end spotters.

 

[erock12390]

I bought a cheap spotting scope and I regret it. I think if you're looking for a specific animal to harvest it could save you a ton of walking. But if you will shoot anything with antlers, I think 10x binos are fine. I'm able to see antlers at about 3/4 mile with 10x's on something stable (tripod, fence post, rock). Over 1 mile if the air is clear and the antlers are big.