Vortex Question

justinspicher said:
Is vortex the new Kuiu? I can't seem to understand why folks have such a hard time hearing that another person likes a brand of something they don't use. I'm willing to bet 90% of the folks on this forum spend less than 30 nights a year in the woods using their "top rated" products. I don't know how the trappers and pioneers every got along and made their way with out Kifaru packs, First Lite clothing and Swarovski optics. They had muzzleloader not kimber rifles and no rangefinders. If most of you spent the amount of time actually using your gear instead of talking about it, we'd all be a lot happier.
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That's funny right there! you have 1.2 posts per day for over 4 years.
 
I'll throw in my experience. I had one of the original vortex skyline spotters. The box wasn't even marked and I bought it from cameraland for $200 as a "demo unit". It didn't even have a brand listed. I was young and poor with a new baby. Low and behold it arrived and it was a vortex. Fast forward 10 years to me talking on a cell phone and trying to use the other hand to take my spotter off the window of the truck and I dropped it out the other side. Optically it was fine but the mounting bracket for a tripod broke. I was leaving for a mule deer hunt that same week. I called vortex and explained my dilemma. I also told them exactly how I bought it and they said it didn't matter. They had me overnight it and 3 days later I opened the package of a brand new spotter. They no longer made that model so they sent me the closest one to it. Which equated to a $300 benefit to me. I actually felt guilty. So if you buy the gen I and it breaks they will still take care of you. Not sure who has had bad luck with customer service but mine was stellar. Not the case with a pair of Bushnell Elites with the alleged same warranty. Are they swaro's? Nope. But they're also a grand cheaper. As far as lifetime warranties few companies had one. With vortex offering it they have had to follow suit to keep up.


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Well, that escalated quickly. I've had binos that cover the gambit of quality. Vortex, like many companies makes some products that are hits and some that are misses. You can't write a company off wholesale by making blanket statements about quality and performance without backing it up. Are Razors the same as SLCs? Nope, but then again they retail for $500 less, so why should I expect them to? Do they get close? Yup, and if I had a $1000 budget, they would certainly warrant consideration, among a few others. As far as their quality control, I rocked a pair of Razors for 6 years and I sent them in once for a diopter knob issue. I sent them in once for a nasty drop. I never paid a cent and I had a good experience with the company. I sold them and bought some SLCs and when I was looking for a spotting scope, I bought a razor. For the weight, the size, the price, and the optical quality I couldn't do any better at my price point. There is better glass out there, but you will pay for it. Oh yeah, and I'll put my money where my mouth is:

Best of the Best 65mm Spotting Scope Review - S&S Archery Backcountry
Travel Scopes Review 2014 - by Michael and Diane Porter

Boom. Ma, the meatloaf!
 
Something not a single person mentioned? The fact that I believe Vortex still sponsors Montana Wild. That right there ensures they will never get another dime of my money.

Nothing wrong with their gear, if it's in your budget it's fine, I've had a viper 3-9 a pair of razor binos, a razor spotter and a pair of talons. All of them besides the scope went back under warranty and the talons (the only thing I have left) needs to go back again.

There comes a point where you do get what you pay for,but if all you can afford is Vortex, it's not going to keep you from killing an animal.

Either way if you have 1k for binos mylist would be

1.Leica trino's, the one with diopter in the center

2. Maven b2

3. Meopta's

4. Vortex razor.


(Or score a bitching deal on some closeout SLC's!!!)




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tipsntails7 said:
Something not a single person mentioned? The fact that I believe Vortex still sponsors Montana Wild. That right there ensures they will never get another dime of my money.

Nothing wrong with their gear, if it's in your budget it's fine, I've had a viper 3-9 a pair of razor binos, a razor spotter and a pair of talons. All of them besides the scope went back under warranty and the talons (the only thing I have left) needs to go back again.

There comes a point where you do get what you pay for,but if all you can afford is Vortex, it's not going to keep you from killing an animal.

Either way if you have 1k for binos mylist would be

1.Leica trino's, the one with diopter in the center

2. Maven b2

3. Meopta's

4. Vortex razor.


(Or score a bitching deal on some closeout SLC's!!!)




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Click to expand...

I would also include Zeiss Conquests.
 
oenanthe said:
Not a bad list, but you left out the Zeiss Conquest HD. But then you can get them for a bit less than $1K! :p
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I personally do not like looking through anything Zeiss, never have, but again that's just me.


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tipsntails7 said:
I personally do not like looking through anything Zeiss, never have, but again that's just me.


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I'm right there with you. Zeiss has a blueish color that my eyes don't agree with and it's just not the Conquests, I don't like the Victory or SF series.

That's why I always recommend getting optics in the woods and checking them with your eyes. Like boots, everyone is just a bit different.
 
tipsntails7 said:
Something not a single person mentioned? The fact that I believe Vortex still sponsors Montana Wild. That right there ensures they will never get another dime of my money.

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I'm not sure I follow you, why is this important? Maybe I missed something, but I've enjoyed quite a few of their fly fishing videos.
 
Ryan Avery said:
I'm right there with you. Zeiss has a blueish color that my eyes don't agree with and it's just not the Conquests, I don't like the Victory or SF series.

That's why I always recommend getting optics in the woods and checking them with your eyes. Like boots, everyone is just a bit different.
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Absolutely, I was a maven skeptic until I signed up for a demo pair and actually took them out in the woods., I really really dig the 9x45's now, if I hadn't scored on a pair of SLC's I'd probably be running them.



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JWP58 said:
Do you have a moral high horse list of companies we shouldn't do business with? Let see....Kuiu, Vortex, who else?
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Your free to do as you like, as am I.

But last I checked kuiu doesn't have 45 game violations hanging on them.


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I am a little late to the game, but to Bwana's point, I think that anything below the Razor line has subpar glass for their price point. I have owned a few Viper scopes and a pair of Viper HD binos and the Talon HD's and I thought none of them punched at their price point when it came to the glass. My Endeavor ED II's blow the Viper HD's and Talon HD's out of the water. I dont have any time in the field with the Razors but from what I have seen when comparing glass at the store, they are a big step up. That being said, I did try some Kaibab 15x56's and was very unimpressed, so I am not sure where that leaves me. Also, on a side note, that allbino's review should not be automatically disregarded because of where they rank the Razors. That was the old, non-HD Razor.
 
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