One Glass to Rule the West

[jwhit]

Hey long time reader! Ive been looking for a strictly tripod set of binos that could on very rare occasion be hand held but only 5% of the time. That being said my lower power vortex glass has worked fine but looking to get into the alpha territory. I typically hunt coues and occasional elk in AZ with rifle. What you guys got? Thanks

 

[RockAndSage]

One setup to rule them all...would probably be a Big Eyes setup.

 

[TimberHunter]

Simple, 15x56 SLC


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[BluMtn]

12x50EL's or 14x52 NL Pure's.

 

[codym]

My NL 12x42’s have been great for coues. I’m sure the 14’s are excellent as well. Just bought some el ranges in 12’s and these are the best glass in a RF bono on the market

 

[jwhit]

Im definitely torn between going for the nl 12s for their crazy good FOV and going for a SLC 15s or even the newer 14s for the extra magnification. Ive never had 12s so I dont know how theyd be out past a mile. I love sitting and glassing the day away so the 14/15s seem cool. But also dont know if the nl 14s a worth the price jump over the 15s

 

[nphunter]

I would skip the 12's personally, I preferred my 15 meostars to my buddys NL12's for most glassing, even caught him sitting behind my 15's while on a hunt when I left to go grab a spotter.

If you want magnification and to handhold for a quick look the NL14's are the ticket, much eaiser to hand hold than the other 15's and incredible on a tripod.

I don't think there is one optic that can work well across the board, I currently use 8x32NL's, 14NL's and a S2 spotter, if I could only have one bino it would probably have to be the 8's.

 

[Walker6]

I went with NL 12’s, but if it’s 95/5 tripod as you say, I’d go NL14’s.

 

[skmoore108]

I mainly hunt Coues deer and have NL 12s with an STS 65 spotter. I recently went from Zeiss Victory HT 10x42s to the NLs, primarily because I got a good deal on them, otherwise I may have gone with 14s. I do like having essentially the same FOV with the NL 12s as most 10x binos. NL 14s and a lightweight spotter would be hard to beat, but you'd obviously be losing some FOV compared to the 12s.

 

[Hunthigh1]

I’ll go a little against the grain. I don’t hunt AZ , but don’t underestimate the importance of FOV. You will move your binos less and that helps find game. 15’s are never a true replacement for 10’s unless you are looking really really far all the time. 15s are significantly less enjoyable to spend many hours behind. The user experience is more finicky than 10’s.

I use meopta 10’s, 15’s and swaro 65. I would never be caught without a good set of 10’s or 8’s.

Even when briefly testing NL 10’s vs 14’s the 10’s just make me want to hang out in the glass all day.

 

[Pnw_heli]

@huntinghigh1 have you been happy with the meo 15s? I’m considering a good deal on b1.1s to augment my 10x42. Seemed like a better next step (on tripod) than jumping right into a spotter?

The NL 14s are described like a grail optic especially for the west. I wouldn’t want to sacrifice fov of my 8x and 10x on my chest just yet..

 

[skmoore108]

@huntinghigh1 have you been happy with the meo 15s? I’m considering a good deal on b1.1s to augment my 10x42. Seemed like a better next step (on tripod) than jumping right into a spotter?

The NL 14s are described like a grail optic especially for the west. I wouldn’t want to sacrifice fov of my 8x and 10x on my chest just yet..

The FOV of NL 12s is 339' which is as good or better than basically any 10x. If you like a wider FOV (like me) the 12s are a good option I think, especially when paired with a spotter.

 

[mighteywhitehunter]

Swaro NL Pure 14x or SLC HD 15x. I have used the SLCs in the older and newer version since 2010. Just switched to the NL Pures 14x at the beginning of 2025, both are great options, if on a budget get the SLC, if money is not an issue and you want to save size and weight and have a larger FOV go NL.

 

[slatty]

Nothing helpful to add, just love the title of your post!

 

[Hunthigh1]

@huntinghigh1 have you been happy with the meo 15s? I’m considering a good deal on b1.1s to augment my 10x42. Seemed like a better next step (on tripod) than jumping right into a spotter?

The NL 14s are described like a grail optic especially for the west. I wouldn’t want to sacrifice fov of my 8x and 10x on my chest just yet..

I am happy with them and will be keeping for several more years. The center of the image is comparable and very similar to NL’s. The outer 40% of the image and the massive FOV is where the NL’s are just mind blowing. In response to spotter vs 15’s that’s a matter of hunt style. If you are trophy hunting deer and need to field judge at distance, the spotter is irreplaceable. If you prioritize just finding game then I think 15’s are best.

For me the order of purchase is 10’s, spotter, 15’s. You can find a lot of game with 10’s on a tripod! I care a lot about field judging bucks so the spotter is a must have.

The NL 14’s are also significantly more compact than most 15X56’s. The user experience feels more like 10’s than 15’s, but the meoptas are excellent for the price.

 

[Duckhunter14]

X2 for the 15x56 SLC. Workhorse of the west.

 

[SuperDUECE22]

15X56 would be my choice and i'm one of the oddballs that keep them on my chest in bino harness for most of my rifle hunts.