Maven C series spotter and Bino Combo OR B.2 11x45

[Huntin_GI]

Title says it all.
Budget is a little over 1K.

I can grab Maven C3 10x50 and the spotter CS1 15-45x65

OR

Maven B2 11x45

and go!

 

[willfrye027]

Depends on how picky you are about glass. My buddy kills more nice deer than I do with his maven C series binos...didn’t have any spotter until this year. I’m dragging around the latest and greatest alpha glass (because I’m picky) but it’s definitely not necessary to kill stuff or be a good hunter.

If you are the type to be happy with less than the best, that’s a great combo and will do more than just the 11x45 can.

If you will probably upgrade your glass Next year...I’d spend 1000 on binos and save up for a better scope.

for 1000 I’d look elsewhere than the maven 11x45 and I’m a huge maven fan..

 

[nobody]

I LOVE my Maven C1 10x42's, but will be upgrading to the B2's as soon as I can get the wife on board. The C's are a SIGNIFICANT step up in terms of quality compared to my previous optics (broke college kid running cheap Leupold BX1 McKenzie's for a few years) and compete handily with anything on the traditional retail market that goes for about 2-3 times the price. Having said that, the B2's are just go good of a value to pass up one day. Until then, the C1's will run circles around the optics anybody I know runs, but the B2 just lets in more light and has a better field of view.

The AK prism in the B2's is definitely worth the upgrade, unless you already run Swaro or Leica or high end Zeiss. However, anything less than that, and the Maven will outperform them ten times over. I'm with everyone above, I would buy the B2's this year, save for one more year, and buy a good spotter in the next year or 2. Buy an S.1A to match the custom B2's you order!

FWIW, there's a thread on here for a good pair of lightly used b2's for like $800 right now over in the optics classifieds. I'm working on my wife right now to try and convince I need them more than we need to re-landscape the front yard, but if I don't get them, someone should snag them up! I think the seller's username is Parshal?

 

[Firehawk]

I have a C1 8x42 that is a good little bino. Nice view, although a bit narrow in the FOV, but it is good nearly to the edge and they have good color for my eyes. That said....I also have a B2 9x45 and it is outstanding. They are really good and have such a nice wide FOV that it makes the C1 seem really small. But the C1 are at least as good as the Vortex Viper for 25-30% less money.

I also have the CS.1 spotter and it is a very serviceable, compact spotting scope. You will use your binos ALOT more so spend money there first. Spotter can come later.

I just spent one week in the Book Cliffs of Utah with my brother who drew a LE ML deer tag. I had so much fun looking over a lot of country with my binoculars. I had also borrowed my friends 15x56 Swarovski bino and I will say I used them ALOT. So much so, that I just purchased a 15x bino from someone on this forum. I enjoyed looking through them significantly more than the spotter and toward the end of the trip, the spotter rarely made the hike or even left camp. The big and "little" binos on a tripod were all I needed most of the time and a bino is so much easier to look through for long stints.

So....in my opinion, buy a B2 off the classifieds here on Rokslide and then save for the CS.1 or a similar spotter down the road.

By the way, my other buddy has a B2 11x and he uses them ALOT on a tripod and rarely carries his spotter at all. So whichever you do, make sure you have a good tripod.

All the best!

FH

 

[Huntin_GI]

Well, I pulled the trigger on the b2s. Couldn’t be happier.

 

[Firehawk]

Well, I pulled the trigger on the b2s. Couldn’t be happier.

I am sure you will love them. Enjoy, and don't overtighten your tripod adapter. See my PSA topic in the forum for an explanation, but I made a stupid choice and am now working with Maven to get it fixed. Totally my fault, and I am really glad to be working with a great company to get the issue resolved.

FH

 

[SlothStalker]

I'm in this exact predicament now. Have a mule deer hunt in the fall and orginally wanted the spotter but then realized how bad my cheap bushnells really were.

 

[nobody]

I'm in this exact predicament now. Have a mule deer hunt in the fall and orginally wanted the spotter but then realized how bad my cheap bushnells really were.

You could realistically hunt your entire life without a spotting scope and be extremely successful. But a good pair of binoculars are a necessity. Junk the bushnells and get something decent, you'll be glad you did.

 

[SlothStalker]

Yeah currently leaning toward the B2 just got to decide between 9x and 11x. Considering renting a quality spotter between our 3 man group on this particular hunt.

 

[Huntin_GI]

I really like the 11x magnification. Especially for the west. If you are thinking you may need a spotter in the unit it sounds like you will benefit from the 11's.

 

[bird35]

Midway USA has the Sig Zulu 9 11x45 and the 9x45 on sale the 9s are $708 the 11s are 740. There a couple guys on here that have compared them to the Maven B2 and said they were pretty much identical. They are supposedly produced by the same oem manufacturer. I have a pair and they are good glass.

 

[nobody]

Midway USA has the Sig Zulu 9 11x45 and the 9x45 on sale the 9s are $708 the 11s are 740. There a couple guys on here that have compared them to the Maven B2 and said they were pretty much identical. They are supposedly produced by the same oem manufacturer. I have a pair and they are good glass.

Maybe similar glass suppliers, but the Maven's are made in the USA, and the Sig's aren't. Definitely not the same OEM.

 

[bird35]

Maybe similar glass suppliers, but the Maven's are made in the USA, and the Sig's aren't. Definitely not the same OEM.

Maven are not made in USA they are assembled here. Pretty sure the parts come from the same factory in Japan.

 

[bird35]

Maven are not made in USA they are assembled here. Pretty sure the parts come from the same factory in Japan.

 

[nobody]

Maven are not made in USA they are assembled here. Pretty sure the parts come from the same factory in Japan.

Fair enough, you're right in that they're ASSEMBLED in the USA, I misspoke. But they're a totally different product, and their glass (to my eyes) is vastly different. That's all I was mainly getting at.

 

[bird35]

I agree they have their differences. But plenty of similarities also, their specs are pretty much identical. I am sure the Maven are great. I mentioned the sigs because they are on a great sale, which will save a person a couple hundred dollars. To my eyes they are so similar I'd save the money and get the sigs.