For the past few years I’ve been using an Athlon Cronus 12-36x50 on a Vortex Summit tripod.
I bought the spotter because it was lightweight, compact and affordable. I bought the tripod, because I really didn’t know much about tripods and it seemed like a good deal and was lightweight.
This is a budget set up and I’ve found myself not using the spotter much or preferring to use my binos instead. Sometimes I don’t even put the spotter and tripod in my pack because I don’t feel like fooling with it. The adapter plate from the tripod to the spotter is finicky and rotating the head isn’t very smooth.
For a long time, I thought I was just impatient and didn’t like to look behind a spotting scope for a long time. However, after upgrading my binos recently, I’ve realized that glassing isn’t as dreadful as I once thought it is.
Now I’m thinking, that upgrading my spotter, tripod, and/or head may help me to actually enjoy glassing.
If you were in my shoes, which would you upgrade first, the spotting scope, the tripod, or the head? My budget for this year is about $1,000-$1,500 and I’m hoping I can find a Black Friday deal to help stretch what I can afford. I’ve noticed the Kowa 553 is 50% off which seems like a pretty good deal. However, I wonder if I should invest in a better tripod and head first, use the spotter I have for next season, and save up some more money and upgrade the spotter after next year
I bought the spotter because it was lightweight, compact and affordable. I bought the tripod, because I really didn’t know much about tripods and it seemed like a good deal and was lightweight.
This is a budget set up and I’ve found myself not using the spotter much or preferring to use my binos instead. Sometimes I don’t even put the spotter and tripod in my pack because I don’t feel like fooling with it. The adapter plate from the tripod to the spotter is finicky and rotating the head isn’t very smooth.
For a long time, I thought I was just impatient and didn’t like to look behind a spotting scope for a long time. However, after upgrading my binos recently, I’ve realized that glassing isn’t as dreadful as I once thought it is.
Now I’m thinking, that upgrading my spotter, tripod, and/or head may help me to actually enjoy glassing.
If you were in my shoes, which would you upgrade first, the spotting scope, the tripod, or the head? My budget for this year is about $1,000-$1,500 and I’m hoping I can find a Black Friday deal to help stretch what I can afford. I’ve noticed the Kowa 553 is 50% off which seems like a pretty good deal. However, I wonder if I should invest in a better tripod and head first, use the spotter I have for next season, and save up some more money and upgrade the spotter after next year
