they definitely ain't light but for certain glassing intensive hunts I figure out a way to fit them in the pack. A specialty tool for sure but damn well worth the pain when you need them.Too heavy to carry around
That’s for sure. I’ll pay just about any price to carry them on a desert sheep or Coues hunt. Some mule deer and elk hunts too. 15’s just get left in the dust. I pummel my buddies that are limited to 15’s, it’s no contest. I’ve also said it many times, twins have some advantages over BTX but come with the weight penalty. Most of the time I’ll take the twins.they definitely ain't light but for certain glassing intensive hunts I figure out a way to fit them in the pack. A specialty tool for sure but damn well worth the pain when you need them.
664 = 1335gramsOn the topic of weight. Recently acquired an Optolyth TBS 100 APO(flourite HD) and decided to compare. It’s a tank and though I’m waiting to get an adapter for eyepieces I used the Kowa 30x EP and there’s not a massive difference between it and the 664. Also weighed the 824.View attachment 564230View attachment 564231View attachment 564233
I’d say this is accurate, haven’t compared with the highlanders. The other advantage of the 664’s is the straight viewing, if you’re into that kind of thingTo answer query , in theory
Big eye 2x 66mm =68.42 cm.squared total aperture area
85BTX = 56.75
95 BTX = 70.88
115 BTX = 103.87
So the 664 Big eye should outperform the BTX85 and be around level of BTX95.
It would be very interesting to compare against the BTX115 , I’d bet the difference isn’t that huge.
Hatchet Jack said they can hang with Highlanders that have 105.62.
Also reminds me a buddy had the Swaro 30x75. They were known as the Twin Telescope.
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They were pretty cool but heavy. He put them into a large gimbal mount (Swaro) on a surveyors tripod. The binocular itself was 20 lbs? They were definitely heavier than Highlanders.Those are wild! I had no idea they existed.
Antares did you get the bracket setup ? I see a 774 for sale and that may be my next big eye project. I’d love to be able to test 88/77 big eye side by side with a Highlander for good measure.Not a DIY setup, but I have a pair of 884s and Adam (of Adam's Adapters) is making me a bracket for them. Should have it in the next month. I can't wait. As far as Kowas go, I think these are as big as you can go and still get a usable PD. The new 99S and 88S are both too big, from what I've heard.
I've got two wide-angle, fixed 35x eyepieces and two 1.6x extenders, which will give me the option of making them 56x. I'm pumped. They're beautiful to look through singly, so I can't wait for the pair. Sometime in the next few months I'll take them to Haleakala for some star viewing... probably a fair bit of deer viewing as well.
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Antares did you get the bracket setup ? I see a 774 for sale and that may be my next big eye project. I’d love to be able to test 88/77 big eye side by side with a Highlander for good measure.