Optic upgrades!!?

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Jan 3, 2021
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Looking to upgrade scope, binos as well as purchase a spotter.

i hunt WA state rifle season. Next year I plan to hunt Montana and Wyoming. I use a .270 ( 3-9x). Using some 10x42 binos. No spotter currently.

If $3500 is my total budget for a scope/binos/spotter what do you guys recommend?
 

CoStick

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I have a .270 win with a 3-9x40 trijicon accupoint with a mil dot reticle, 10x42 SLC and nikon Ed 50 spotter. That for me is ideal and probably keeps a grand in your pocket
 

LaHunter

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I would prioritize the binos as #1. You will depend on them most. You can find some used SLC 10x42 binos for a reasonable price. #2 would be my rifle scope. I have had good performance from the NF SHV scope. The Trijicon Credo HX scopes look interesting, but I have no experience with them. The spotter would be #3 priority for me. My opinion, a budget spotter is of limited use and value under field conditions and less than ideal lighting. Not saying you need a Swaro, but don’t waste your money on a $500 spotting scope, in my opinion
 

ZackP

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Go ahead and add a tripod in that budget for both your bino’s and tripod.

Check out the classifieds and find your fancy of $1k bino’s a lot cheaper.

Add a tripod and go from there.
 

colby12

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Second on the tripod. I’d go with Meopta binos and spotter. Good value for what you’re going to pay. Rifle scope in a 3-9 has a lot of decent inexpensive options, personal preference I’d say.
 
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Ucsdryder

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If you’re like me you won’t be happy until you have the best. So I would break it down a little and maybe spread it out a couple years. Spotter would be 3rd priority and binos first.
 

ferch

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If you’re like me you won’t be happy until you have the best. So I would break it down a little and maybe spread it out a couple years. Spotter would be 3rd priority and binos first.
I'm in a similar situation and this is the best idea I've seen...
 

Solby

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In my opinion it really depends on your hunt(s). If you already have a reliable scope on your .270 leave it alone. If you are upgrading calibers to shoot longer range then a scope may be necessary.
Binos and a tripod are probably your best money spent. Especially a tripod you are going to be able to shoot off of. Spotter is useful if you need to determine the class of the animal. So you might give some details on your hunts.
I live and hunt in WA and out of state in Montana. To me my spotter has only been useful with a special permit elk tag here in WA. When I go to Montana with a general tag if I can see it is a mature animal with my binos or scope its best to go after it. No sense trying check it with a spotter since opportunities are limited.
 
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I would prioritize the binos as #1. You will depend on them most. You can find some used SLC 10x42 binos for a reasonable price. #2 would be my rifle scope. I have had good performance from the NF SHV scope. The Trijicon Credo HX scopes look interesting, but I have no experience with them. The spotter would be #3 priority for me. My opinion, a budget spotter is of limited use and value under field conditions and less than ideal lighting. Not saying you need a Swaro, but don’t waste your money on a $500 spotting scope, in my opinion
Out of curiosity, what level of spotting scope would be your "minimum usable"?

I'm in the market for a spotter, but don't need the crazy performance required by many hunters. It will mostly be used for spotting deer within 1 mile of my glassing spot trying to size them up, and occasionally Elk on private land that I couldn't hunt anyways. I figure something in the $400-$600 range would be sufficient for something like that, but now you have me thinking about it.
 

LaHunter

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Out of curiosity, what level of spotting scope would be your "minimum usable"?

I'm in the market for a spotter, but don't need the crazy performance required by many hunters. It will mostly be used for spotting deer within 1 mile of my glassing spot trying to size them up, and occasionally Elk on private land that I couldn't hunt anyways. I figure something in the $400-$600 range would be sufficient for something like that, but now you have me thinking about it.
I used a gen 1 Vortex Razor 65 mm HD spotter for a couple years hunting out west. It worked well. Under good atmospheric conditions it did pretty good. For the $$ I think it is a good value. With that being said, a buddy has his gen 2 Razor spotter come apart during a hunt, so the durability is something to consider
 
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I used a gen 1 Vortex Razor 65 mm HD spotter for a couple years hunting out west. It worked well. Under good atmospheric conditions it did pretty good. For the $$ I think it is a good value. With that being said, a buddy has his gen 2 Razor spotter come apart during a hunt, so the durability is something to consider
Yeah durability is something I think about often. I've heard buddies who have had Vortex spotters discuss how often they take their Vortex stuff in, and it caused them to switch to Leopold or Athlon. Wondering if I'm better to get one of those brands, even if the warranty isn't as good.
 

Matt G.

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You can find some killer deals in the classified section if you are willing to wait. I would also figure out which binos you like prior to buying. Everyones eyes are different. Some prefer warmer hues other prefer cooler hues. I think I wasted more money buying/selling/shipping then anything else. If you have buddies close to you with different tiers of optics, go try them out. Trying in the store is only part of the picture. Out in the field, cloud cover, shadows under trees totally different. My list would be bino's, tripod, rifle scope then spotter.
 

LaHunter

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Yeah durability is something I think about often. I've heard buddies who have had Vortex spotters discuss how often they take their Vortex stuff in, and it caused them to switch to Leopold or Athlon. Wondering if I'm better to get one of those brands, even if the warranty isn't as good.
I have no experience with Leupold or Athlon spotters, so I can’t say either of those would be better or worse. From what I have read on line (take it for what it’s worth), guys that have the Leupold gold ring spotter seem to be happy with it.
 

Marble

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Out of curiosity, what level of spotting scope would be your "minimum usable"?

I'm in the market for a spotter, but don't need the crazy performance required by many hunters. It will mostly be used for spotting deer within 1 mile of my glassing spot trying to size them up, and occasionally Elk on private land that I couldn't hunt anyways. I figure something in the $400-$600 range would be sufficient for something like that, but now you have me thinking about it.
In order for me to fully comment with my recommendation, I would need to know what type of hunts you and plan to do.

Someone NTN above doing a piece at a time. I would say yes to this.

1st priority is binos. To save find used SLCs.

2nd, for a spotter, find someone with top tier glass and also something you are considering in the price range you mentioned. You need to look at them in the field at the beginning or end of the day. If you plan on western hunting which means spotting at very long distances for quite some time to come, make the choice to get the best. You will save money because you will buy and sell 3 spotters before you figure out you've wasted your time and money buying almost what you want. I'm 45 years old, had my glass for 3 years and expect to hunt into my 70s. That's about $230 a year for the best of the best.

3rd. Rifle scope, not sure why you want another. Explain why so we can give our .02.

Tripod. If you plan on shooting from the truck, get a window mount. It's a cheap very effective alternative. If not, the weight of your spotter, what you'll be doing with it (backpacking/truck/terrain expectations) can all play into it.

For about 5 years I used a $40 Burris 20x compact spotter and several $35 Bushnell tripods in the back country. I couldn't count tines, but it certainly helped to find animals.

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk
 
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2nd, for a spotter, find someone with top tier glass and also something you are considering in the price range you mentioned. You need to look at them in the field at the beginning or end of the day. If you plan on western hunting which means spotting at very long distances for quite some time to come, make the choice to get the best. You will save money because you will buy and sell 3 spotters before you figure out you've wasted your time and money buying almost what you want. I'm 45 years old, had my glass for 3 years and expect to hunt into my 70s. That's about $230 a year for the best of the best.
Luckily I am only looking for a spotter. I already have sufficient binoculars for what I do, I have a tripod and never hunt from a truck. And I'm already out West and have looked through a few different models of spotting scopes in the field - unfortunately it was always one spotter per trip so I had no way to compare one scope to another. I understand suggesting getting the best of the best (buy once cry once), but like you described I don't need to count tines at this point. I appreciate the thoughts!
 
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