General purpose game spotting and shooting to 1000. Vortex Razor HD 65 mm 22x48 or Swaro 20x60 65mm at the higher price?? Need an opinion for this purpose!
I’ve been debating what scope to get for some time. I think the swaro is optically much better to my eyes but the razor is great. I am leaning towards an 80 or 85 since my purposes won’t need me to pack it much. I like the fact than you can get a ballistic reticle eyepiece for the razor 85. A used razor and then a new eyepiece would still be cheaper than the swaro and I would have multiple uses for the same scope. Even though I would lose a little optically, I’d be okay with it since I don’t have a spotter currently.
If those are your two options, I would shop ebay. an old style Japan made vortex razor can be had brand new for $800 on ebay including a window mount. They are better than the new model in my opinion. I do not recommend anything new vortex. 65mm if planning on packing it anywhere, but obviously 85mm is better. If you have the money though, a swaro ats is a much better scope, better resale value. That old style razor though is all that most people need. Don't worry about anything over 48x, the conditions often are not good enough to see clear past that anyway. Good luck