Swaro 80... Worth the weight?

[Dixie07]

I currently have a Swaro 65 HD. It is a great scope,but the image gets somewhat dark past 45x. In your opinion, would it be worth $200 and 9 ounces to trade my 65 for the ATM 80HD? Both would have the 20-60x eyepiece. Also, if bought second hand, does Swarovski honor the lifetime warranty? Thanks.

 

[Craig Van Arsdale]

I have the Swaro 80HD and have not looked through the 65 but would imagine that your not going to see a huge difference, low light conditions is where it will be more noticeable between the two as most scopes lose most of their image quality after 40X anyways.

Depends too on what type of hunting you do most and if you do a lot of fine detail spotting with your scope now.....

Instead I would put the money towards a nice set of high power binos like the swaro SLC's 15x56 or the Vortex Kaibab 15x56 if you don't already have a pair.

 

[justin davis]

Better light gathering Forsure! I don't have one but I did at one point and I think it is worth the weight.

 

[Matt Cashell]

The 80mm will be similarly bright at 60x as the 65mm is at 49x.

 

[tstowater]

I was just reading the warranty on my Swaros. Says only good for original purchaser from authorized dealer, etc. Unless someone knows something that I don't, I would say warranty is not transferable.

 

[shaun]

I just bought Ats 80hd and if I remember right it is .5 lb difference

 

[Matt Cashell]

Warranty is not transferable as written, but SONA tends to take care of you anyway. You might have to pay a small amount for a repair.

 

[Ryan Avery]

They fixed my SLC that I bought second hand.

 

[Whisky]

I went from an 80 to a 65 and I have not regretted that decision. I also went from the 20-60 to the 25-50 wide eye piece. Even with the 80mm, I rarely used it beyond 50x. I would either be fighting heat waves, or in low light, the bigger 80's do also get much darker on that high of power like your 65 does. I'd rather have the much smaller package with very little loss in "usable" performance, IMO.

 

[Dixie07]

thanks for the input. this kind of experience is exactly what i was hoping to hear. it also appears that even if bought second hand that Swarovski tends to still take care of you.

I went from an 80 to a 65 and I have not regretted that decision. I also went from the 20-60 to the 25-50 wide eye piece. Even with the 80mm, I rarely used it beyond 50x. I would either be fighting heat waves, or in low light, the bigger 80's do also get much darker on that high of power like your 65 does. I'd rather have the much smaller package with very little loss in "usable" performance, IMO.

 

[dirtytough]

I have had an 80 for awhile now. My buddy got a 65 this past year and I had a chance to try it. I didn't like it as much as the 80 cause I was used to the bigger field of view, but otherwise it was nice. I have thought about getting a 65, but that kind of turned me off of getting it.

 

[Matt Cashell]

dirtytough,

I am a little confused, are you saying the 80mm has a wider fov than the 65mm with the same eyepiece?

Or, Do you mean your 80mm has the 25-50 and the 65 has the 20-60?

Both eyepieces provide the same respective magnification and fields of view on the 80mm and 65mm bodies.



The 80mm will be apparently brighter because the exit pupil is larger at the same respective powers as the 65mm.

 

[actionshooter]

I have the 80mm and my buddy has the 65. For a hunting situation I would prefer the 65 and on the range I like the 80.
For hunting its just too much more weight for little advantage.

 

[Gman]

dirtytough,

I am a little confused, are you saying the 80mm has a wider fov than the 65mm with the same eyepiece?

Or, Do you mean your 80mm has the 25-50 and the 65 has the 20-60?

Both eyepieces provide the same respective magnification and fields of view on the 80mm and 65mm bodies.



The 80mm will be apparently brighter because the exit pupil is larger at the same respective powers as the 65mm.

Not to hijak, but BB I have a question for you. I run the standard ATM 65 and like it quite a bit. Would it be a significant upgrade to add the Swaro WA piece or should I think about unloading the standard and starting over with all the (perceived) upgrades in HD glass and lower price points? The one thing I like about the Swaro WA is that it's adjustable versus something like the Vortex fixed. Sorry for the hijak!

 

[Matt Cashell]

Not to hijak, but BB I have a question for you. I run the standard ATM 65 and like it quite a bit. Would it be a significant upgrade to add the Swaro WA piece or should I think about unloading the standard and starting over with all the (perceived) upgrades in HD glass and lower price points? The one thing I like about the Swaro WA is that it's adjustable versus something like the Vortex fixed. Sorry for the hijak!

Gman, I prefer the HD versions because I am sensitive to Chromatic Aberration, I glass in high-contrast situations (especially snowy burns) a lot, and I digiscope very often.

I would much prefer a WA Zoom like the 25-50 over a fixed WA eyepiece, because they are more versatile.

With Swaro ATM/S spotters I like the 25-50 on the 65mm spotters, and the 20-60 on the 80mm models, since the magnifications make the best use of the objective sizes, IMO. To me, it is still nice to have those extra 10 x's to make full use of that 80mm objective, when conditions allow.

The 25-50 would be an upgrade for your existing scope, in that it is much, much wider angle than the 20-60 at similar magnifications. While it will not eliminate CA in your scope, if you already like the performance of your ATM 65, I would guess you would prefer the wider 25-50 eyepiece.

A 25/30-60 WA would be even better on the 80mm, and I am glad to see the new ATX 85mm is of that configuration. I am anxious to see one.

Hope that helps.

 

[Gman]

Thanks BB!

 

[dirtytough]

bb now I'm kind of confused. Because like I said I thought it had a smaller fov then the 80, but reading the specs it doesn't. It was hard for me to find animals that I previously spotted with the binos in the 65mm. So now I'm not sure why since the fov is supposedly the same. ???

 

[Matt Cashell]

bb now I'm kind of confused. Because like I said I thought it had a smaller fov then the 80, but reading the specs it doesn't. It was hard for me to find animals that I previously spotted with the binos in the 65mm. So now I'm not sure why since the fov is supposedly the same. ???

That is what had me confused. The spotters use the same eyepiece, and the 65mm has the same focal length as the 80mm, so magnification and FOV are exactly the same. The only difference should be exit pupil size.

That exit pupil advantage offers better viewing brightness and more light for digiscoping shutter speeds.

 

[Muledeernv]

I love my swaro 80 for low light only wish I had bought the angled not the straight but can't afford to change.

 

[Dixie07]

I ended up staying with my 65mm. But I found out the better solution to having a 80mm Swaro HD, having a hunting partner that owns one ; )