Nothern California (Trinity Alps) optics: should I upgrade my Leica Trinovid 10x42 to a higher magnification binos, if used with a spotting scope?

[alex8023]

I am a beginner blacktail deer hunter.

Based on my guided hunt experiences, I am planning to glass up to 800-1000 yards in the area where I will be hunting (public land in Trinity Alps, California).

I already have a Leica Trinovid 10x42mm binos, and I am planning to purchase a good quality spotting scope (Leica Televid 25-50x65mm or comparable) and a tripod for my planned blacktail deer/black bear backpacking hunts.

Should I plan on upgrading my Leica Trinovid 10x42mm to a higher magnification binoculars (12x? 18x?), or will I be fine with my 10x Leica, switching between it and a higher magnification spotting scope on a tripod?

Thank you!

 

[ReddingArcher]

I’d keep the 10s personally. When you put 10s on a tripod it’s a huge difference. If you didn’t already have them I might say 12s but since you do I’d use those. 10s can still be used hand holding them, it gets tougher with 12s to hand hold. On the spotter side, unless I’m wanting to count tines way out there I don’t pack my spotter. I can tell if a buck has a good frame and is worth going after from a looong way out with my 10s on a tripod. For me it’s not usually worth the weight to pack my spotter.

 

[amassi]

^agree im done packing spotters unless in a big group and we can share the load
10s on a tripod are sufficient
Now that we’ve saved you money on a spotter you can upgrade your leicas


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[alex8023]

@ReddingArcher and @amassi : thank you for some very good tips!

From my limited glassing experiences in the Trinity Alps area, I speculated that a quality spotting scope with 25-50x magnification may be used to glass suspicious area (shaded areas or the areas partially blocked by the tree or a rock) and to help spotting the deer there.

Am I right that your experience in the Trinity Alps area (many debris, stones, rocks, standing and fallen trees possibly camouflaging the deer) is that the deer can still be spotted at up to 800-1000 yards with a good 10-12x binocular on a tripod, even if visible only partially?

 

[amassi]

Absolutely - 10s off the tripod are sufficient
You’ll also have significantly less eye strain and be more effective glassing
I would sell your current trinovids and use your spotter budget to buy some alpha 10s - swaro NL pures, Leica noctovids, zeiss sf or swaro els.


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[ericmcd]

I hunt the same area. I have spotting scopes and only use them from the truck, not worth the weight into a wilderness area. I've also had good 12s and never warmed up to them when still hunting. I've finally landed on compact 8x with 15s in my pack for glassing. 12s and 10s are both great but I also still hunt during the day, I don't like a harness when doing it and the compacts work great for that stuff and are nice on a strap

 

[StinkyPete]

Absolutely - 10s off the tripod are sufficient
You’ll also have significantly less eye strain and be more effective glassing
I would sell your current trinovids and use your spotter budget to buy some alpha 10s - swaro NL pures, Leica noctovids, zeiss sf or swaro els.


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This is the way.

I've got a nice, lightweight spotter that I take with me, but it almost always ends up staying in the truck in favor of the fancy 10x binos on a tripod.

Less eye strain, less gear to carry with you, less weight, and you can tell from the binos if it's worth pursuing or not. Also, much better FOV on the 10x than most, if not all of the lightweight, small front exit aperture spotters.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

My range finding Meopta 8x50s on a tripod is all I’d bring for the trinity alps. Cool country there and I’ve been lucky enough to kill some dandy hybrid bucks over the years in there.

It’s a very busy area with hikers and hunters but you will find deer everywhere in there if your patient and learn to glass the correct terrain.

 

[Yoteassasin]

My range finding Meopta 8x50s on a tripod is all I’d bring for the trinity alps. Cool country there and I’ve been lucky enough to kill some dandy hybrid bucks over the years in there.

It’s a very busy area with hikers and hunters but you will find deer everywhere in there if your patient and learn to glass the correct terrain.

There are no hybrids in the trinitys

 

[Yoteassasin]

Absolutely - 10s off the tripod are sufficient
You’ll also have significantly less eye strain and be more effective glassing
I would sell your current trinovids and use your spotter budget to buy some alpha 10s - swaro NL pures, Leica noctovids, zeiss sf or swaro els.


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100% agree the spotter stays at the truck or is packed as a squad get the best 10x you can afford and spend more time out there

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

There are no hybrids in the trinitys

Fish and game has assured me otherwise.

 

[alex8023]

Thanks to everybody for good suggestions!

 

[eLightfoot]

8s on the chest and 15s on the tripod is a sweet set up. I run El range 10x42, if Swarovski made range finding 15s I’d be running those.

 

[j3h8]

I have a set of Vortex 18x56 Razor UHD I'm looking to part with if you're interested in discussing.

 

[wormser2]

Fish and game has assured me otherwise.

until people see a blood test, Id be lead to believe fish and game is full of it.

 

[RockAndSage]

OP, in the Trinitys I'd be much more concerned about the optical quality of my 10s, and max out on those, than I would be with adding a bunch of weight with additional binos or spotters, partially for reasons others have shared here.

That big timber country has a lot of shadow, and it's also overcast quite a bit, at least in the parts of the Trinitys I've spent time in. I'd want glass that will penetrate those shadows deeply, and give me excellent optical quality in very, very dim light, before sunrise and after sunset. Even in timbered land, deer tend to prefer bedding down in the shadows, and in timber that dark it slashes visibility at dusk and dawn even further. Those Leicas of yours are good glass, but I'd jump up a few rungs on the binos with a really good glassing tripod setup, before spending a bunch on anything else.

That said, I'd also strongly consider adding a lightweight, compact spotting scope you could use to double-check on something you think you might be turning up in your binos. Not something you glass from for more than a few minutes at a time. Something like a Kowa TSN-501/502 for lightest and cheapest, or a step up at the Kowa 553/554. Highest end might be something like the Swarovski ATC.

 

[Muley Tag]

Fish and game has assured me otherwise.

The Trinity Alps are 100% Columbian Blacktail……verified through DNA testing.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

The Trinity Alps are 100% Columbian Blacktail……verified through DNA testing.

So they've blood tested every deer killed on the east side of the Trinity Alps? Source please? I have a buddy who lives in Carrville and manages a lot of the Sierra Pacific Timber lots there. He and I have both been told that bucks in those mountains are not always 100% Blacktail from more than one fish and game member... Maybe they are full of shit, or maybe your are stating things as facts that you don't know; just letting folks know what we've been told.

 

[Muley Tag]

So they've blood tested every deer killed on the east side of the Trinity Alps? Source please? I have a buddy who lives in Carrville and manages a lot of the Sierra Pacific Timber lots there. He and I have both been told that bucks in those mountains are not always 100% Blacktail from more than one fish and game member... Maybe they are full of shit, or maybe your are stating things as facts that you don't know; just letting folks know what we've been told.

Boone and Crockett

 

[owtuvdorz]

terrain varies quite a bit in the Trinities, so if you are in the steep/rugged granite country a lightweight spotter wouldn't be a bad idea.

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