Swaro BTX users

Shaund7

FNG
Joined
Dec 4, 2021
Messages
9
I am thinking about buying a BTX setup and would like to hear from current users, is it worth the weight and space? I don’t really do backpack hunts anymore, mainly just day hunts from base camp. Do you find it to be a pain to deal with that much bulk and having to set it up on the tripod etc.

I have read a few other threads on here which have me at 50/50. Seems like some guys love them but equal amounts say not worth it. There doesn’t seem to be a defined side
 
Is it worth it? Wholly depends on the use. What are you hunting? Where and when are you hunting?

There are times, places and species where nothing beats the BTX or a big set of twins.
 
Typically hunt on the coast range of Oregon for Blacktail and Roosevelt. Mainly clear cuts and younger reprod. This year I will be hunting deer in the high desert of eastern Oregon. I don’t hunt big wide open country a lot but would like to try and get into that more and more.
 
My general hunting areas are big wide and open and I do enjoy mine. They’re a lot, of weight, space and money. Only worth it if you’re wanting to glass beyond a mile IMO consistently.
 
If you are hunting open country that allows long distance glassing for those periods of time where heat waves aren’t bad, the BTX will pick up animals at distances where standard 12s or 15s can’t. It all depends on what species and terrain. It definitely will help you find more animals when the conditions allow it with less eye strain when using a spotter. I love staying in the field longer and glassing as much terrain from one elevated position. Some like to move faster and glass shorter distances and periods of time. It definitely is a niche type of glassing that either you love or you think is a waste of time.
 
Typically hunt on the coast range of Oregon for Blacktail and Roosevelt. Mainly clear cuts and younger reprod. This year I will be hunting deer in the high desert of eastern Oregon. I don’t hunt big wide open country a lot but would like to try and get into that more and more.
Not sure where you’re at, but I have a BTX and I spend a lot of time working in the Brookings area. If you want to take a look through it, we can find a time.
 
For what it’s worth, however - in Oregon I spend most of my time with a set of 15s and the ATC as opposed to the BTX
 
Not sure where you’re at, but I have a BTX and I spend a lot of time working in the Brookings area. If you want to take a look through it, we can find a time.
That would be awesome, can you PM me? I don’t have enough posts yet.
 
I don’t currently own any 12 or 15 binos, just a couple pairs of 10x42. So I guess with that being said some of you are saying you use bigger binos in place of the BTX I would be out of pocket to buy those as well. I’m leaning toward the BTX and sticking with the smaller binos.
 
In the places I normally hunt 15x binos werent enough, so I had to carry a spotter too. I actually saved space and weight ditching the 15s and the spotter for a BTX, and haven’t looked back. Wasn’t a ton, but some. And yes, I backpack with that boat anchor in my pack.

The biggest difference is that I can actually glass with the BTX for extended periods, whereas the spotter was mostly to confirm and/or field judge. I can pick up deer in the open with 10x on a tripod from a long ways away, but deer in the brush can be hard to see without the magnification beyond about a half mile. I can find those with the BTX, and I use it a ton since I don’t get the eye fatigue I did with a regular spotter.

Last scouting trip I picked up a buck that was half obscured by a fir tree at 2.49 miles according to OnX. I have no idea what he looked like since I could just barely make out that it was a buck due to the mirage, but that gives you an idea.

I firmly believe I find more game with 10x and a BTX than I did with 10x, 15x and an 82mm spotter combo. As others have said, you gotta use it, and at distance, to get the value out of it though.
 
In the places I normally hunt 15x binos werent enough, so I had to carry a spotter too. I actually saved space and weight ditching the 15s and the spotter for a BTX, and haven’t looked back. Wasn’t a ton, but some. And yes, I backpack with that boat anchor in my pack.

The biggest difference is that I can actually glass with the BTX for extended periods, whereas the spotter was mostly to confirm and/or field judge. I can pick up deer in the open with 10x on a tripod from a long ways away, but deer in the brush can be hard to see without the magnification beyond about a half mile. I can find those with the BTX, and I use it a ton since I don’t get the eye fatigue I did with a regular spotter.

Last scouting trip I picked up a buck that was half obscured by a fir tree at 2.49 miles according to OnX. I have no idea what he looked like since I could just barely make out that it was a buck due to the mirage, but that gives you an idea.

I firmly believe I find more game with 10x and a BTX than I did with 10x, 15x and an 82mm spotter combo. As others have said, you gotta use it, and at distance, to get the value out of it though.
Thank you, this was helpful.
 
I think it really depends on the kind of hunts you do.

For me, either BTX, and now STC big eyes, have changed the outcome of several hunts finding deer I would not otherwise have known about. Especially helpful if you are scouting a new unit, or going in blind to a new place and don’t want to burn a morning or evening hunting a relatively small area. Big eyes let you greatly expand the amount of country you can look over.

The first year I had the BTX we were in a Montana general unit for the first time. One evening the snow cleared and I glassed 5 or 6 different groups of bulls on the various hillsides anywhere from 3-6 miles away. And found a new deer spot glassing 3 miles across a highway that was loaded with deer.

Way too far to chase after right then but put us in the game for the next morning. Same can be done with a spotting scope but not as effectively and not for as long of periods.

STC big eyes are a very small/compact package for what they are, but certainly they weigh a lot. I switch off between them and 15s depending on if I’m at a more commanding glassing knob vs doing more hiking and working through country. The BTX was awesome but bulky and fixed power.
 
I like the BTX for deer hunts. Can't beat using 2 eyes vs 1. They are heavy, bulky, and expensive. For day hunts I'd pack them every time. I hunt country that you can see a mile or three so they come in handy.
 
Back
Top