Kowa TSN-553 Review, By Luke Moffat

[twall13]

Ya, I'd probably just put that ball head in my truck for the window mount. Is that tripod a comfortable height to use sitting?

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[tdhanses]

Ya, I'd probably just put that ball head in my truck for the window mount. Is that tripod a comfortable height to use sitting?

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I think it is but it also has a center section for even more height.

 

[aaronoto]

Anyone running the Kowa branded phonescope adapter? I ordered the Phoneskope brand adapter since I have the case for my phone, but I'm less then impressed with it on the 553, it works fine on my other spotter though. Just wondering if the Kowa one is worth the price...

 

[AkMtnRunner]

Anyone running the Kowa branded phonescope adapter? I ordered the Phoneskope brand adapter since I have the case for my phone, but I'm less then impressed with it on the 553, it works fine on my other spotter though. Just wondering if the Kowa one is worth the price...

Yes I am running it in the video posted on the previous page. It has worked well for me so far and I have no real complaints.

 

[AkMtnRunner]

Ya, I'd probably just put that ball head in my truck for the window mount. Is that tripod a comfortable height to use sitting?

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I think it is plenty tall but I am also using an angled spotter so I don’t need as much height as with a straight spotter.

The additional center column, I have found, to not be stable enough to be worthwhile and it also doesn’t collapse into the legs. It has to be unscrewed unless you don’t mind it all being about 25” long. So I don’t use it at all.

 

[twall13]

So I ended up getting both the RRS BPC-16 head and the little Aoka tripod. I've been playing around with them a bit and I'm actually quite impressed with both. Being from RRS I'm not surprised by the quality and smoothness of the head and I do like it better than my old Sirui K-10x ball head. We'll see if that changes with some wear and tear. The quality of the tripod really surprised me. The ball head that comes with it is very compact as well but not nearly as smooth as the RRS, especially the panner. I agree that the center post extension is useless but otherwise it's a solidly built tripod. Given its size and weight it won't be as stable as alot of the popular tripods out there but for what it is it's going to be tough to beat. I really like the metal twist locks and compactness of it. Side bonus, it comes with a screw in hook/carabiner to hang weight from and add stability, I wasnt expecting that. It also comes with an arca compatible cell phone mount so you can use it to take cell phone photos off the tripod. I could have used that last year on my mule deer, being solo I was doing the outstreched arm selfie thing with that buck.

For the ultra lightweight crowd willing to sacrifice a bit of stability this is a solid setup. I'll be using it in select situations and have zero hesitation about using it with both my binoculars and Kowa 553 spotting scope. I wish it was a few inches taller for glassing uphill with binos while seated but with the angled spotter it's perfect. I only notice it's a bit short on steep uphill glassing with the binos and for most guys even that won't be an issue as I'm on the tall/long torso side.

Thanks to those above posting about the head and tripod, time will tell how they hold up, but so far I'm pleased with both and looking forward to using them on some hunts this fall. They aren't for everyone or for every situations but will be a nice tool in the kit for the right situations.

Here are some photos for size reference. Left to right:

Top- Sirui K-10X Ball Head, Aoka Ball Head that came with the tripod, RRS BPC-16 Ball Head, Outdoorsman Tall Bino Adapter with Arca Plate attached.
Bottom- Promaster XC525C, Aoka CMP163CL Tripod, Kowa TSN 553, Maven B.2 9x45 Binoculars

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[SecretSpot]

So I ended up getting both the RRS BPC-16 head and the little Aoka tripod. I've been playing around with them a bit and I'm actually quite impressed with both. Being from RRS I'm not surprised by the quality and smoothness of the head and I do like it better than my old Sirui K-10x ball head. We'll see if that changes with some wear and tear. The quality of the tripod really surprised me. The ball head that comes with it is very compact as well but not nearly as smooth as the RRS, especially the panner. I agree that the center post extension is useless but otherwise it's a solidly built tripod. Given its size and weight it won't be as stable as alot of the popular tripods out there but for what it is it's going to be tough to beat. I really like the metal twist locks and compactness of it. Side bonus, it comes with a screw in hook/carabiner to hang weight from and add stability, I wasnt expecting that. It also comes with an arca compatible cell phone mount so you can use it to take cell phone photos off the tripod. I could have used that last year on my mule deer, being solo I was doing the outstreched arm selfie thing with that buck.

For the ultra lightweight crowd willing to sacrifice a bit of stability this is a solid setup. I'll be using it in select situations and have zero hesitation about using it with both my binoculars and Kowa 553 spotting scope. I wish it was a few inches taller for glassing uphill with binos while seated but with the angled spotter it's perfect. I only notice it's a bit short on steep uphill glassing with the binos and for most guys even that won't be an issue as I'm on the tall/long torso side.

Thanks to those above posting about the head and tripod, time will tell how they hold up, but so far I'm pleased with both and looking forward to using them on some hunts this fall. They aren't for everyone or for every situations but will be a nice tool in the kit for the right situations.

Here are some photos for size reference. Left to right:

Top- Sirui K-10X Ball Head, Aoka Ball Head that came with the tripod, RRS BPC-16 Ball Head, Outdoorsman Tall Bino Adapter with Arca Plate attached.
Bottom- Promaster XC525C, Aoka CMP163CL Tripod, Kowa TSN 553, Maven B.2 9x45 Binoculars

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

Did you purchase a 3/8 to 1/4" adapter thread piece to fit the rrs to the promaster as well?

 

[twall13]

Did you purchase a 3/8 to 1/4" adapter thread piece to fit the rrs to the promaster as well?

It took me a minute to figure it out but the Promaster tripod already had the correct stud. I had to essentially unscrew the 3/8" stud and flip it around and screw it back in. On the reverse side is a 1/4" stud. No additional adapter needed.

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[SecretSpot]

Gotcha, wonder if my surui has that option. Thanks for the input

 

[WLD]

Luke Moffat spends more than his fair share of time behind quality optics and has spent years fine tuning his glassing system. Earlier this year Luke was intrigued by the new 55mm spotter Kowa released and decided it was worth a closer look. In this review Luke explains what he likes and dislikes. Will the Kowa TSN-553 Prominar find a permanent place in Luke's hunting pack?

Kowa TSN-553 Prominar Review

Thanks for the review, I plan for this to be my next scope purchase based on this review and a few others like it

 

[SecretSpot]

So I ended up getting both the RRS BPC-16 head and the little Aoka tripod. I've been playing around with them a bit and I'm actually quite impressed with both. Being from RRS I'm not surprised by the quality and smoothness of the head and I do like it better than my old Sirui K-10x ball head. We'll see if that changes with some wear and tear. The quality of the tripod really surprised me. The ball head that comes with it is very compact as well but not nearly as smooth as the RRS, especially the panner. I agree that the center post extension is useless but otherwise it's a solidly built tripod. Given its size and weight it won't be as stable as alot of the popular tripods out there but for what it is it's going to be tough to beat. I really like the metal twist locks and compactness of it. Side bonus, it comes with a screw in hook/carabiner to hang weight from and add stability, I wasnt expecting that. It also comes with an arca compatible cell phone mount so you can use it to take cell phone photos off the tripod. I could have used that last year on my mule deer, being solo I was doing the outstreched arm selfie thing with that buck.

For the ultra lightweight crowd willing to sacrifice a bit of stability this is a solid setup. I'll be using it in select situations and have zero hesitation about using it with both my binoculars and Kowa 553 spotting scope. I wish it was a few inches taller for glassing uphill with binos while seated but with the angled spotter it's perfect. I only notice it's a bit short on steep uphill glassing with the binos and for most guys even that won't be an issue as I'm on the tall/long torso side.

Thanks to those above posting about the head and tripod, time will tell how they hold up, but so far I'm pleased with both and looking forward to using them on some hunts this fall. They aren't for everyone or for every situations but will be a nice tool in the kit for the right situations.

Here are some photos for size reference. Left to right:

Top- Sirui K-10X Ball Head, Aoka Ball Head that came with the tripod, RRS BPC-16 Ball Head, Outdoorsman Tall Bino Adapter with Arca Plate attached.
Bottom- Promaster XC525C, Aoka CMP163CL Tripod, Kowa TSN 553, Maven B.2 9x45 Binoculars

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

So 2.5 years have gone by what are your views on the aoka and bcp-16 currently?

 

[twall13]

So 2.5 years have gone by what are your views on the aoka and bcp-16 currently?

Honestly not much had changed from my initial thoughts. It's a solid combo for those looking to keep things ultra light, especially if you are shorter.

The little RRS head is awesome for lightweight optics and I really have zero complaints about it for the optics I originally mentioned.

The Aoka has held up really well but it is shorter than I'd like personally. I picked up a Sunway center column to add some extra height but that makes it a bit top heavy and unstable in my opinion so it's not perfect. It's a super light and compact combo so I often throw it in the pack in situations where I might not normally bring a tripod, ie. turkey hunting, still hunting for elk, etc. Even if I never pull it out to glass I've used it a few times as a tripod for my camera phone with the included phone clamp.

It's not my primary tripod, but I still get a fair bit of use out of it and I'm happy with the purchase. I also have a larger spotter so I need a larger tripod and head for when I use that scope. As long as you understand it is a compromise in the stability and max height department compared to a larger, heavier setup, I don't know of a better setup that competes with it in a similar weight/size.

I'll put it this way, it's not my favorite tripod setup to use, but it is by far my favorite setup to carry. Decide what's more important to you and go from there.

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[SecretSpot]

Right on on, I just ordered an aoka but I've had the rrs bcp-16 on a sirui tripod. I use the micro head for everything up to my 85mm ATX spotter. You can't phone scope but it works. My next move is the ATC spotter+micro bcp-16 head+aoka tripod.

 

[eaglemountainman]

Though I mainly use a VA-5 head for my 554 and binos, I've been carrying a BPC-16 for about 4 years. At just 4oz, it's a little tank, and I can recommend it highly.

 

[SecretSpot]

I just got mine in the mail. Everyone says the center column is useless so I just cut all the extensions by more than half because you don't really need that skinny column at 3 ft long. Super easy.

 

[sagehunter]

I like this review and this scope sounds perfect for me. What tripods would you recommend using with this? I primarily hunt backcountry and am concerned with weight for sure but I also want a good sturdy tripod.

 

[gr8fuldoug]

I like this review and this scope sounds perfect for me. What tripods would you recommend using with this? I primarily hunt backcountry and am concerned with weight for sure but I also want a good sturdy tripod.

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