Leupold 20x50 gold ring spotter vs the new 15-30x50

[North61]

I have a little 20x50 Leupold I have liked a lot but the bushing in the focusing lens has worn out..the Canadian warranty depot doesn't have the bushing to fix it and offered to let me trade it in for a new 15-30x50 model, or wait in case they get an old 20-50 in that they could cannabalize for parts. I partially fixed the little 20 with electrical shrink tubing but while usable it occasionally skips a beat. Has anyone used these two generation of mini spotters from Leupold? How do they compare? My old model has 20mm of eye relief and is good with glasses. The new one is 17mm which is probably ok too?

 

[Fatcamp]

Dang. That's too bad. Can't help with your question but I will bump your thread.

Really like my 20x60 Leupold. Will the US warranty center not work on them?

 

[North61]

Nope..here in Canada we need to go through Korth Industries in Alberta. Great shop but not the volume of replacement parts as in the USA.

 

[Blockcaver]

I’d try calling Leupold in OR. Dealt with a RF warranty from Canada in the US. Worth a try. Good luck,

I liked my old 20x50 GR bought new by me in 1987. Passed it on to a young friend a few years ago.

17 mm eye relief is about minimal for an eyeglass wearer. Your old scope was about an inch, (25 mm) it memory serves me.

 

[North61]

Took out an optical chart and compared my old Leupold 20x50 spotter with a Minox 50 mm 15-30X. The Minox is supposed to be slightly better or on par with the newer Leupold 15-30X50 but with worse eye relief. The old Leupold was equal in resolution to the new Minox with way better eye-relief and a much better field of view when both are set to 20X. Brightness seems about the same as well. I thought the Minox would pull ahead when dialed to 30X but on a dull overcast day the image got bigger but no sharper and I couldn't see any more detail than I could through the fixed Leupold at 20X. For fun I put on my Leica 65mm and it saw all the detail the chart offered at 25X and much brighter and at 50X the image was breath taking. Much like just getting 50X closer. Of course it also weighs 3X as much as the little loopy and wasn't exactly cheap. Probably worth lugging most of the time! Upshot is I'll keep the fixed 20x50 Leupold and if all else fails manufacture a teflon bushing myself. The compactness/ eye relief (20-25mm) and image clarity of the fixed eye piece is hard to beat in a 20 ounce package and maybe 30X in a 50mm medium quality scope is pushing it?

 

[Fatcamp]

Only so many of these old fixed Leupolds left. For what they can be had for they are a great tool.

 

[Brian Fahs]

My old leupold 25x50 is a sweet little spotter. It will do just fine 80 % of the time for my needs.
For that other 20% I break out the kowa 884.
For its size and weight the old leupold is a great tool.

 

[North61]

Sorry to bump this from the dead but I built a bushing from a 25 cent nylon bolt... turned it down on my mini-lathe after machining a centre hole that fit over the little bolt that keeps the bushing in place. Put it together and the little fellow now works like it should. Paired with a Kramer designs tripod and I have a sub 30 0z caribou instrument. After testing the 20-50X Leupold a bit more it does suffer a bit of softness in the image and though bright the lack of phase-coating does take away from the sharpness of image some. Still..nothing quite like it on the market and I love the eye-relief. I can use my glasses easily and my uncorrected astigmatism is way worse than the lack of phase coating.

 

[tracker12]

I had to send my old 25X50 in for repair. Same as you they offered the 15X30X50 compact as a replacement. I took the deal and its do to arrive tomorrow. If I don’t like it I sell it and upgrade. The old one did serve me well for over 30 years.

 

[Jason Snyder]

Love my little 20x50