The new Vortex Razor HD 13-39x56mm, The Mini Razor

[WeekendWarrior1776]

Today, Vortex launched a new mini-spotter and I was lucky to get my hands on it prior to release. You can read my article on it HERE!! Every time I use it, i become more impressed with this sub 2 pound unit. Its hard to beat for backapackers setup with a street price of 1k$.

Here is more information from Vortex HERE!

What are your thoughts?

Thanks for the great review! Planning to pick one of these up.

 

[4090Sharps]

So for eastern hunting what would be the consensus between something like this and the Razor UHD binoculars? I currently have a pair of Vipers and the 27-60 spotting scope, debating if it’s better to pick up a smaller spotter to pack with me or pick up better binoculars instead?

Mostly picking out deer in thick cover out to the 300 yards or so but will have the opportunity to occasionally look out to 600 to 1000+ yards depending on where I end up sitting.

In my opinion, good binoculars first.

Buying a really nice pair of 8x binoculars (paired with a convenient bino harness) had an unexpectedly large impact on my eastern hunting, especially when still hunting. I found that I could see into shadowed/thick areas better, and was more likely to use them frequently to scan the area ahead/around me. As a result, I picked out more game before they saw me, was able to prepare or move into a better position, and had more shot opportunities that would have otherwise been a white tail waving goodbye.

 

[donrleonard]

Thanks to another recent Rokslide review I finally picked up a digiscope adapter (ScopeCam) and did some practicing at a local metro park with my old Vortex Razor 11-33x. Since I’d love to see how this spotter compares to the one reviewed, I thought it only fair that I provide some baseline material.



These images below were taken at last light (about 20 or so minutes after sunset) with my iPhone 14 pro using the main (1x) camera. They are screenshots of 4K video of some game-looking bushes at around 370 yards and a cell phone tower at around 600 yards.

The first is the bushes at 11x, the second is with the smartphone zoomed in just enough to get a full landscape view of the spotting scope image circle.





The next image is zooming in the spotting scope at 22x. Significant loss of light from the 50mm objective. 33x was pretty much unusable. Am curious how the new 56mm baby razor would fare here.



Lastly here is the same scene with the spotter zoomed back out to 11x and the iPhone main (1x) camera zoomed in digitally to 6x. If I were counting tines I’d definitely use the spotting scope to do most the zooming and use software to boost the brightness. It seems to retain more color and detail than the 6x digital zoom below.



Lastly, for resolution, here’s a screenshot from some 4K video footage of a cell phone tower at around 600 yards. Same time of evening. I’ve cropped in to show what kind of detail/chromatic aberration performance the 11-33x50 is delivering.



Like I said, would love to see comparable shots from the 13-39x56.

 

[CMP70306]

In my opinion, good binoculars first.

Buying a really nice pair of 8x binoculars (paired with a convenient bino harness) had an unexpectedly large impact on my eastern hunting, especially when still hunting. I found that I could see into shadowed/thick areas better, and was more likely to use them frequently to scan the area ahead/around me. As a result, I picked out more game before they saw me, was able to prepare or move into a better position, and had more shot opportunities that would have otherwise been a white tail waving goodbye.

I pondered it for several days and ended up going with the spotter, I could get the 13-39 spotter for several hundred cheaper than the 10x50 UHD and after looking up multiple reviews I’m not sure the UHD would be worth the cost over the 10x50 Vipers I’m currently using for my application.

The smaller lighter spotter however would work better to pack with me compared to the 27-60 I currently have and subsequently more likely to travel with me on my hunts.

 

[wilkup]

Has anyone compared it with the Kowa 553?

 

[TheBootBowhunting]

Any of you that have had this for a bit still recommending them? Been thinking about grabbing one but was waiting on some longer term reviews.

 

[Hnthrdr]

Any of you that have had this for a bit still recommending them? Been thinking about grabbing one but was waiting on some longer term reviews.

Will use it over over third rifle, I’d imagine December there will be better reviews

 

[Mike D Texas]

Any of you that have had this for a bit still recommending them? Been thinking about grabbing one but was waiting on some longer term reviews.

I haven’t had mine long term but I did have an opportunity to test its limits in Wyoming for antelope. I was able to pick up good detail on bucks at a mile, maybe a little farther.

It was no contest with the guides Swaro full size spotter at long distance but within its limits I could see almost everything he could.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[BroccoliRob]

I'd love to hear more about how this specifically compares to the Athlon Ares and the Nikon ED50. If the Razor can match the image quality & usability of the Ares with the weight & size of the ED50, it's a winner for me.

 

[PredatorSlayer]

I would love to hear how it compares to the Kowa. There are some reviews on youtube that compare this to the maven and swaro, but for some reason they leave the Kowa out .

 

[ZackP]

Anyone personally compared this to the little Kowa?

 

[Jayman_77]

Excellent writeup, thank you Travis.

 

[RVarland]

Thanks for the review! I’m excited to look through one in person.

 

[cornfedkiller]

I'd love to hear more about how this specifically compares to the Athlon Ares

Vortex is crazy light. I like the eyecup and eye-relief are better on the vortex and I've never been a huge fan of the finnicky eye-relief on the Athlon, but it works. Zoom and focus rings are better on the Athlon - less resistance and smoother). Lens covers are better on the Athlon, specifically the objective lens cover (big fan of the covers with the center pinch things that lock inside of the scope body). Vortex doesn't have a rotating collar, so if you rotate your scope to use it with a window mount or something similar, the vortex doesnt allow you to do that. As others maybe mentioned, the footplate on the vortex fits in the VA-5 panhead without any QR plate, which is a plus. A huge bummer for me is that my Magview doesnt fit on the vortex.. the eyepiece is too small. I did reach out to Magview and they said they are coming out with more sizes next year.

Here is my completely unscientific comparison and assessment of the optics.. I stuck a USAF resolution chart up at 200 yards.

Compared them mid afternoon on a sunny day. With the Ares, I was able to clearly see line 3 or 4 under the -1 column. The best resolution was at 38-40x. With the Razor, the lines were a TINY bit sharper, and I was able to see the 6th line under the -1. I could see that same line sometimes with the Ares, but it took a lot more focus/concentration/squinting with my eye. The vortex was pretty good with the zoom in the mid 30s, but was usable all the way up to 39x. FOV is better with the Athlon, but that was to be expected.

Then I tested both during the last 20 mins of light. I would say through most of the zoom range, the brightness was pretty equal. The athlon obviously has a higher zoom range, but in the last 10 mins of light, it gets pretty unusable above about 38x. The vortex was no longer usable at 39x, but was fine around 34-35. I was able to see line 6 under the -2 column with both scopes all the way up til dark.

I had a little wind while testing.. Had the Athlon on an old tripod thats kinda a tank, and had the Razor on a Sirui 024. The lightweight Sirui with the lightweight scope definitely shook more than the other setup. I didn't put the Athlon on the Sirui to see how much less shaky it was.. I've contemplated a beefier and more solid tripod in the past, and I'm sure that would have made a difference, but that kinda defeats the purpose of going to a lighter scope..

 

[PredatorSlayer]

I am going to bump this because I am still trying to decide between this and the little kowa. Was hoping to hear from somebody who has looked through both. I have the Kowa Genesis 10.5x44 binos and love them. But I only use a spotter to take a closer look at something, I dont spend a lot of time looking through it…

 

[Hnthrdr]

Just got back from 3rd rifle mule deer and used it quite a bunch. It was used to get a better look at bucks, which it excelled at to about 1000 yards, you could tell it was a buck from much further double that distance at max power

 

[mrchomponthis]

Saw the spotter for $799 on gohunt. Is that less than the stand price? Vortex has a weird pricing structure.

 

[Megastink]

My quest for a mini-spotter lead me to a Bushnell Tac 15-45, which I really like. Particularly at the range when sighting in my mil based scopes. I mount my phone to it and record each splash, essentially acting as my own spotter. I hesitate to take it into the woods because of its bulk. I bought a Kowa TSN 500 once and was very unimpressed with the quality of the glass. I'm interested to see this one, but I'd be more interested if it were a UHD model.

 

[4090Sharps]

We went and looked through a mini razor at our local shop. From the parking lot looking at a butte in town about a mile away we were impressed with the vortex side by side with the Swaro atc and didn’t see the need to spend more than double. The Swaro seemed better in the lot comparison but that’s a big step up and didn’t seem necessary.

The big differences that we noticed were the edge to edge clarity, the refined movements in the zoom and focus wheel, and the focus/clarity at greater distances. To be clear I don’t have much experience with optics and this is only one sample, perhaps we got a “bad” scope.

It seems like a good scope for the price point and I’m sure I would’ve been happy with it had I not had more time with the Swaro.

I bought an STC and have spent the past couple days comparing it to my straight mini Razor. I think you nailed the comparison between the two:

• Focus and zoom movements are smoother and easier with the Swaro
• Swaro resolution is a little better
• Low magnification on the Swaro is higher than Vortex, but has a wider FOV
• Both scopes can be similarly picky about eye placement (in my experience) at higher magnification, but eye relief is better on the Swaro

BUT... The Vortex was on sale on Black Friday for for what, $800 on GoHunt? Less? While the Swaro is $2200-2400. The mini Razor is a great value. I'll be keeping it as a backup and loaner. The sort of loaner where you don't feel like you're handicapping the guest with inferior equipment, but also don't have to stress about the gear getting damaged due to the warranty--it always comes back to that warranty, for better or worse.

 

[Fritz D]

Been thinking about a compact spotter for a while now. Though I love the size of, and the view through, the Swarovski ATC I don’t love the price?
This new Vortex sounds pretty impressive. I may wind up owning something made by Vortex after all?
Does that mean I have to put a cheesy Vortex sticker on my truck now?