Weird one: Pentax PF-65EDII + Pentax XW7 eyepiece?

[carbon]

So, I have a Vortex Razor 85mm, which is decent. But I want a lighter and more compact spotter for the 100yd range.

Note that I have very poor vision, -12 and -10 nearsightedness. Used to be corrected to 20/20, but as of the last year I am developing slight cataracts, and my whole life I’ve had tons of floaters and astigmatism. Corrected I’m at 20/30 or 20/40.

I could buy a cheap POS and it would probably work. But I often shoot at the range in the winter under floodlights, so lighting isn’t ideal. The Razor, as mentioned, works decently and well enough, it’s just large and heavy.

I’m aware of the Maven and Athlon 60mm spotters. Their eye relief/weight is 17mm/40.4oz and 16-19mm/50oz, respectively. Since my big razor clocks in at 16.7-17mm/65.6oz they’ll probably work, but…

What about the Pentax? ED glass, 20mm eye relief with the fixed XW7 eyepiece (equals 55.5x) and with that eyepiece, about 51.45oz. Their XW ep’s are world class, I read.

I’m a bit concerned about how tight everything gets on a scope when at max zoom. At 45x, the Maven/Athlon would probably be like my Razor at 60x, where eye relief shortens and the image gets dark. I need to check, but I believe I use the Razor at 40-50x at 100yds to spot .22 holes.

But fixed eyepieces are a different animal. I am a very experienced photographer and know a fixed lens is easier to make better, and when compared to zoom lenses (esp similar physical size) the fixed lens tends to be much brighter.

Anyhow, for my purpose, I think the Pentax may be the best size/weight/magnification combo. Birders don’t really use the combo I am looking for, as they tend to either use 20-30x fixed EPs or 80mm+ objectives with higher mags.

Thoughts?

(The Kowa 553, while light/small/sharp, doesn’t have a rotating collar, is stupidly expensive, can’t swap out EPs, and sounds like it has a tight eye relief at 45x. The Opicron MM4 and Leupold GR 12-40 HD are also in the running.)

Edit: and I’ve always wanted to try that huge Pentax PF-100ED. With the XW7 = 90x mwhahahah!

 

[carbon]

I knew it was a weird combo that probably nobody would have tried.

 

[Southern Lights]

Pentax XW eyepieces are world class and all I use in my telescopes. Fixed eyepieces are almost always better than zoom eyepieces in any scope if you can deal with the limited mag range or needing to carry multiple eyepieces.

Most people get obsessed about front objective glass quality but often it's the eyepiece doing the grunt work in making the image look good. An average telescope can be made much better by using a good eyepiece. A great telescope will be ruined by an average eyepiece.

I used the PF-100ED in the past and it's awesome, but huge.

I think Pentax stuff is largely underrated but they have changed ownership over the years and am not sure how it affected quality since. The PF65ED I've used as well and it's again a great scope when I had it.

 

[Decker9]

Iv no experience with the fixed eye piece, but I stand by my word when i say my pentax 65 will do 99% of what my swarovski 65 will do, no joke, and in a more compact lighter unit.

 

[carbon]

Pentax XW eyepieces are world class and all I use in my telescopes. Fixed eyepieces are almost always better than zoom eyepieces in any scope if you can deal with the limited mag range or needing to carry multiple eyepieces.

Most people get obsessed about front objective glass quality but often it's the eyepiece doing the grunt work in making the image look good. An average telescope can be made much better by using a good eyepiece. A great telescope will be ruined by an average eyepiece.

I used the PF-100ED in the past and it's awesome, but huge.

I think Pentax stuff is largely underrated but they have changed ownership over the years and am not sure how it affected quality since. The PF65ED I've used as well and it's again a great scope when I had it.

What spotters do you use now?

 

[Southern Lights]

What spotters do you use now?

I use a Kowa 553. It's light, but I actually don't like the eye relief and very narrow FoV. I'd rather carry something a little bigger if I'm going to hassle with a spotter and get a larger objective so it's more forgiving and comfortable to use. I also own a Leupold MkIV with mildot reticle that is heavier, but more comfortable to use for longer periods. But the Kowa is a clearer image especially at the edges. But really it's so close in actual use that the Leupold is perfectly fine and seems more rugged vs. the Kowa which has a very plastic feel to it.

With that said, I like the Kowa and have investigated getting the 6xx series as an upgrade or maybe 7xx if I really wanted to deal with the extra weight. Kowa easily rivals much more expensive optics. But for that matter, so does the Pentax. I may also look at the Pentax 65 ED again and probably shouldn't have sold the original one I had. It was a nice light compact scope and took Pentax eyepieces which is a major factor in overall image quality.

At some point with all these optics you just hit a point where spending a lot more money gives you differences only perceptible on perfect days. In most field conditions I can't say I see that much of a difference in glass with any decent scope above low-mid tier price points. What makes or break a scope for me are the other ergonomic factors like eye relief, FoV and usable mag range. Glass clarity is fine, but if those other things are not great then the scope is hard to use for long periods regardless of how great the glass clarity is.

 

[Brink]

I have never used the Pentax (but it was a consideration last time I bought a scope, I just ended up getting a deal on a Nikon). I can, however, second the statement about fixed EPs. I pretty much only used fixed EPs now, and I think they make a world of difference over the zooms. I suspect that the Pentax with a quality fixed EP would be a great scope, and with the Pentax you have the luxury of being able to choose from a wide selection of EPs whereas other brands are most likely going to have a limited set of proprietary options.