Thinking of taking the plunge and getting a Swarovski spotting scope. Haven't researched it much and don't know a ton about spotting scopes in general. This was my first year hunting using one and I was surprised at how helpful they are. I definitely spotted animals that I couldn't see with my binoculars.
It seems like people will argue about angled or straight eyepieces all day and it's mostly personal preference. I kinda like the idea of the straight for glassing out the truck window and having it be easier to line up on things.
Probably what I'm wondering about the most is which objective diameter to get. 65 mm would be ideal for backpack hunting and the 95 mm would be ideal for the truck & shooting range. Where would I use it more?? I feel like the 80mm might be a compromise that I won't be happy with on either end.
I'm not much of a trophy hunter. Lately, if it has bone on it's head and it's elk tan, I'll try to take it out. My rifle scope goes up to 24 power, so I can use that backpack hunting in rifle season to help ID things at longer ranges. The binoculars occasionally leave something to be desired in archery season though. Where I hunted for most of this year, I don't think a spotter would have helped me much - it's wide open parks and dense timber that you can't see into much at all. There isn't much to dissect with high powered optics, at least in my experience. I'm sure there are areas where the added magnification is a huge help though. The trophy hunter thing will change if/when I draw a good tag....
The only time I have used a spotting scope was for this year's shoulder season, glassing from the vehicle to locate elk. The big 95 mm objective would surely work great from the truck window. How would the 65mm fare? How much would it give up?
Shoulder season is the only time I hunt from the truck initially. The rest of the season, I'm miles back in before sunrise. Kinda makes me think the 65 mm would be a better fit for me, but I don't know how much I'm going to want to carry it and/or need it in the backcountry.
What tripod would you suggest for backpack hunting?
Any suggestions on a vehicle window mount?
Thanks for any help!
It seems like people will argue about angled or straight eyepieces all day and it's mostly personal preference. I kinda like the idea of the straight for glassing out the truck window and having it be easier to line up on things.
Probably what I'm wondering about the most is which objective diameter to get. 65 mm would be ideal for backpack hunting and the 95 mm would be ideal for the truck & shooting range. Where would I use it more?? I feel like the 80mm might be a compromise that I won't be happy with on either end.
I'm not much of a trophy hunter. Lately, if it has bone on it's head and it's elk tan, I'll try to take it out. My rifle scope goes up to 24 power, so I can use that backpack hunting in rifle season to help ID things at longer ranges. The binoculars occasionally leave something to be desired in archery season though. Where I hunted for most of this year, I don't think a spotter would have helped me much - it's wide open parks and dense timber that you can't see into much at all. There isn't much to dissect with high powered optics, at least in my experience. I'm sure there are areas where the added magnification is a huge help though. The trophy hunter thing will change if/when I draw a good tag....
The only time I have used a spotting scope was for this year's shoulder season, glassing from the vehicle to locate elk. The big 95 mm objective would surely work great from the truck window. How would the 65mm fare? How much would it give up?
Shoulder season is the only time I hunt from the truck initially. The rest of the season, I'm miles back in before sunrise. Kinda makes me think the 65 mm would be a better fit for me, but I don't know how much I'm going to want to carry it and/or need it in the backcountry.
What tripod would you suggest for backpack hunting?
Any suggestions on a vehicle window mount?
Thanks for any help!
