NEED HELP WITH A PACKABLE SPOTTER...

[MuleyFever]

If you want to judge deer you will be disappointed in the magnification range on many of the small spotters. I wouldn't go lower than the Razor.

 

[Wrongside]

For someone trying to strike a balance between budget, packability, and performance- I’d lean Maven or Tract’s 65mm spotters. Really great optical performance- not Alpha, but really great for the dollar.

I went with the Tract 65mm over the Maven mainly for weight, and have been extremely happy with it. It was an huge factor in getting my bighorn ram this year. I’ve owned a couple Razors- still own a G1 85mm- and have buddies with other Razor samples. The Tract Toric outperforms them optically by a noticeable margin.

 

[280ai_alaska]

I love to use the razor hd spotting scope. It’s great for backpacking in the mountains and super clear glass.

 

[FRONTIERSMAN87]

For someone trying to strike a balance between budget, packability, and performance- I’d lean Maven or Tract’s 65mm spotters. Really great optical performance- not Alpha, but really great for the dollar.

I went with the Tract 65mm over the Maven mainly for weight, and have been extremely happy with it. It was an huge factor in getting my bighorn ram this year. I’ve owned a couple Razors- still own a G1 85mm- and have buddies with other Razor samples. The Tract Toric outperforms them optically by a noticeable margin.

Interesting, I'm gonna look into it

 

[FRONTIERSMAN87]

I love to use the razor hd spotting scope. It’s great for backpacking in the mountains and super clear glass.

That's what I'm after

 

[7mm-08]

There are used Kowa 553s and 554s in your price range. They are awesome lightweight spotters. I upgraded to one from a Nikon 50 and could not be happier.

 

[Lil-Rokslider]

There are used Kowa 553s and 554s in your price range. They are awesome lightweight spotters. I upgraded to one from a Nikon 50 and could not be happier.

Yep, I got a Kowa 553 in the classifieds for $1,000 and it's amazing.

 

[hereinaz]

Used Kowa 553 and 554 are in your price range. They are in a higher class than any of the others you mention. And, they are ounce for ounce lighter. Clarity with the Flourite crystal is better and it needs fewer coatings for color correction.

Clarity trumps magnification, IMO. The Kowa are the only one I recommend over a good pair of 15x56 class binos.

 

[Pilsner]

Find somewhere you can check out the maven if possible. I thought I was in your shoes and bought a CS.1A. After a few years of being frustrated with it compared to my buddy's V1 65mm Razor I ended up upgrading to a Swaro STM 65 and have been WAY more happy with it. I felt like the Maven crapped out above 35x vs the Swaro works well nearly all the way to 60x. Where I deer hunt is restricted to 3 point plus and the Maven let me down at distance a couple times.

Maven is a direct to consumer only company so there aren't any brick-and-mortar stores to test them out in.

 

[nm.otter]

Find a way to spend some time with 2-3 compact spotters and a couple of 15x56 (ish) binos on a light tripod at the end of shooting light. You might be surprised.

 

[dkim]

I bought a first gen baby Razor on sale. You may still be able to find them. I'm very happy with it both optically and for its small size.

 

[dkim]

You can still find the Gen 1 11-33x50 Razor spotter. I saw them on ebay and found this link (but cannot vouch for it - just did a quick search)

Vortex Razor HD 11-33×50 Spotting Scope (Straight Viewing) – Rent Outdoor Gear

rentoutdoorgear.com

 

[elsb0048]

Find a way to spend some time with 2-3 compact spotters and a couple of 15x56 (ish) binos on a light tripod at the end of shooting light. You might be surprised.

Any recommendations on how to actually do that? Are there any stores you know of in this country that actually carry several brands of spotting scope and 15x56 and will allow you to look through them outside or anything?
Are there ever events at trade shows with a similar opportunity?
I'd be willing to drive hours for a chance at that kind of comparison I'm just not aware of a spot you might have that chance

 

[nm.otter]

Retailers are dicey (though not impossible) even in big cities.

Find a local NRL Hunter team/group and make friends. A birder group might also make sense.

 

[flyfisher117]

I wasn’t that impressed with Mavens CS spotters. I’d use one if I got it for free but i wouldn’t buy one.

I tried to love the baby razor. Ended up buying the 65 mm razor, had it for a couple months and sold it. It worked but even it wasn’t that great unless glassing conditions were perfect.

Like mentioned above the used Kowas are right in your price range. Get those.

 

[hereinaz]

Any recommendations on how to actually do that? Are there any stores you know of in this country that actually carry several brands of spotting scope and 15x56 and will allow you to look through them outside or anything?
Are there ever events at trade shows with a similar opportunity?
I'd be willing to drive hours for a chance at that kind of comparison I'm just not aware of a spot you might have that chance

I can help if you are in AZ. @iflyskyhigh met up with me one evening. He struggled through the same sort of thing. I think there is a thread he started about glass.

Bottom line, there are many for which “lesser” scopes are acceptable. You will get lots of affirmation in a thread like this. And, they are not wrong and you may fall into the category that they fit. Doesn’t mean anything other than just that. They are not slouches no more than others are snobs.

There are others, like me, who are natural born cheapos and default to getting it done with less. But, over time we see the difference and become snobs.

Baby scopes suffer from lack of clarity and lack of magnification. When you are looking far away, the compromise by going small objective AND lesser glass is more significant. They falter most in the margins where we see more animals, like dawn and dusk.

You have to compare in low light to really understand and see.

 

[gtriple]

Yep, I got a Kowa 553 in the classifieds for $1,000 and it's amazing.

This is the way. The Kowa 553/554 is an excellent ultralight spotter.

 

[FRONTIERSMAN87]

Any recommendations on how to actually do that? Are there any stores you know of in this country that actually carry several brands of spotting scope and 15x56 and will allow you to look through them outside or anything?
Are there ever events at trade shows with a similar opportunity?
I'd be willing to drive hours for a chance at that kind of comparison I'm just not aware of a spot you might have that chance

I agree, that's where guys like us come in. I'd imagine that if a group of 10 or 15 guys could organize something so people could actually look at the different options. It's mostly just opinions (hence why I'm not interested in Kowa or Swaro) because it lacks perspective

 

[FRONTIERSMAN87]

I wasn’t that impressed with Mavens CS spotters. I’d use one if I got it for free but i wouldn’t buy one.

I tried to love the baby razor. Ended up buying the 65 mm razor, had it for a couple months and sold it. It worked but even it wasn’t that great unless glassing conditions were perfect.

Like mentioned above the used Kowas are right in your price range. Get those.

Lol I'm gonna look into it

 

[hereinaz]

I agree, that's where guys like us come in. I'd imagine that if a group of 10 or 15 guys could organize something so people could actually look at the different options. It's mostly just opinions (hence why I'm not interested in Kowa or Swaro) because it lacks perspective

I think you are unfairly excluding the 553/544 Kowa, unless you are only buying new.

I had in my possession a Kowa 554, Razor HD 65 and Maven spotter. Objectively, the Kowa is better in every regard and you can find used in your budget. Anyone who has looked through all three agree.

I have bought and sold Kowa 554/553 for a hunt. I just traded one for a scope because I don’t need it for any hunts this year. I treat them like rentals…