Spotting scopes for Truck and Pack

[metau]

So I have been upgrading some of my hunting gear this year, including my optics, and am now at looking at finally getting a good spotting scope (or two). Most of my hunting is broken down into two types; back country spot and stalk archery that includes having everything on my back all day (occasional backpacking rifle coues hunts on leftover tags), and base camp hunts out of a vehicle with youth, new or disabled hunters. Time spent between the two used to be about 60/40, but has been closer to 40/60 the last few years as I've drawn fewer tags and focused on helping others more. With that in mind, and the budget that I would like to work with, I have been looking between the following set-ups:

 

Kowa 880 w/TE-11WZ eyepiece and 550 vs Swaro A/STX w/65 & 95mm lenses

 

Brand new (will buy used, but price differences hopefully will be similar) the Kowas will run about $1300 cheaper for the pair vs the Swaro's. The Kowa 550 is 28oz while the Swaro 65 is 58oz, but comes with a 60x max zoom and 40% larger objective lens as compared to the 45x zoom of the 550. While the weight of the larger glass is negligent being vehicle based, you do gain a 17% larger objective lens with the 95 vs the 88. Seeing as how the glass between the two large spotters is neck and neck for most purposes, the biggest factors would be cost and lens size. If the lens size warrants the cost, then the eyepiece is already paid for, which makes the smaller spotter for packing much cheaper for the Swaro lens then buying the Kowa 550. But then I look at the weight of the 65mm Swaro at 57.8 oz, and the Kowa 88, w/eye piece weighs in at 66.7oz. For a 10 oz gain in weight, you gain an 83% larger objective lens, and at that point, would you just carry the Kowa 88 and not worry about a second spotter at all?

 

And if a single spotter is the answer, you'd have to consider the Meostar S2 as well given the lower cost and near similar performance.

 

Thoughts?

 

Thanks.

 

 

 

 

 

As a side note, does anyone know where I could look through the Kowa's here in the valley? I'll also be in California (Sacramento, Tahoe, SD, SF and LA) and Nevada (Reno, LV) over the next two months and can check out places there too, if you know of any.

 

[dse]

If the Swarovski STX is within your budget I wouldn't even consider any other spotter! There is a couple higher end scopes I haven't got the chance to look through but I've used quite a few and haven't seen anything that was even remotely close to the STX.

[creed_az_88]

Kowa 550 is gonna be my next purchase.

[metau]

DSE, that's what I've heard from just about everyone, except those who have actually looked through the Kowas, but it's always been in comparison to the Swaro 85mm, not the 95mm. I can imagine with 17% more light gathering glass, that it could likely give it the edge over the Kowa.

 

Creed, the Kowa 550 appears to be a backcountry hunters dream come true. While I do way more day trips than backpack hunts, I've always ran into weight issues on those longer hunts and at 28oz, it'd be hard to beat.

[Swivelhead]

Spotters need substantial objective size to handle magnification 30X and beyond. Especially in low light. Personally, 65mm is the minimum I'd go with on a spotter. Assuming the Kowa 550 is optically the equal of the latest 15X56 Swaro HD's, @ 30X your image brightness will 50% of the Swaro HD's. However, with the Swaro HD's you.d be using both eyes increasing the apparent brightness. The single image will likely be somewhat further degraded when the gray matter is resolving the said image. Unfortunately, with spotters, size matters.

 

Another issue, Kowa (Leica too) only warranty product to the original purchaser. There is no question both companies make elite products, unfortunately, the resale is not as good as manufacturers who do offer transferable warranties. Good luck finding one but a used 62 mm Leica APO is a great compromise. Good luck with your search.

[metau]

Swivel, wrote up a detailed response, but lost it. You make good points, and I had not considered the warranty being non-transferable. I took a leap of faith this year and switched from SLC 15's to 12x50 EL's, and plan to use that as my primary glass for glassing. Will definitely look at the Leica 62mm APO.

[6AYoteHunter]

Kowa 77 is a nice middle ground you should consider running side by side with your 12s.

[6AYoteHunter]

Wish Swarovski would do a 75mm for the stx/atx. My 85mm is heavy.

[metau]

Well, after tons of thought, research and emails on various forums with owners of each, I ended up buying the 884 this morning from Doug at CamerlandNY. As always, customer service was top notch. Once it gets out here, I will get it out in the field and do a review on it. Lay also try to get a Meopta S2, Leica APO and Swaro ATX/STX out there too and do a full write up. Thank you to everyone who responded or PM's about this.

[Jimmer Negamanee]

I'm looking forward to your review. A lot of us are in the same boat, meaning we're looking for a spotting scope and weighing the pros and cons of the different types.

[cjl2010]

If you are near Payson when you do your review you can throw my ats 65 in the mix for a cheaper alternative.