Spotting scope - angled or straight?

[yobuck]

I have both. I like angled at the range and it's kept in my range box. I like straight for most hunting situations. I find it easier to find game in than angled and works better when window mounted.

However, when watching up mountain side with a lot of elevation an angled eye piece is more comfortable for all day viewing. It doesn't put as much strain on your neck to look down as it does up. I like 15X56 binoculars best of all if I'm going to glass a mountain all day.

Angled eyepiece spotting scopes were pretty much created for prone target shooters.
Of coarse shooting from a bench would favor an angled eyepiece as well.
In PA, the vast majority of long range hunters use two spotting scopes installed in a machined aluminum bracket which is adjustable for inter eye distance.
Angled eyepiece scopes wont work for that purpose however, due to the scopes having to be rotated in the bracket in order to allow for the inter eye adjustment to work properly.
Otherwise, especially with the large objective scopes, you couldnt get them close enough together for proper inter eye distance.
In the early days, shortly after WW2, the large military optics brought back for souvenirs were finding use by long range hunters.
Of those, the German 10x80 flak binoculars were the most commonly seen and used.
They have angled eyepieces, and an enormous field of view due to the purpose they were created for, observing flak bursts from the guns shooting at enemy aircraft.
They have fixed eyepieces, meaning they dont rotate as most of the other types of large military optics do.
But most of the other types, like the very large ship binoculars have eyepieces that can be rotated.
They were quite popular as well back in the day.
Modern day large binoculars like the Kowa Highlanders for example, also have rotating eyepieces which allow for proper inter eye adjustment.
I have used both straight and angled extensively for all day glassing sessions in steep mountainous terrain.
If your location has you glassing uphill, then the angles might be favored by at least some people.
Whereas glassing down might favor the straight thru setup.
Tripod head height adjustment can also be a factor in those situations.
As for glassing with the large size hand binnoculars, like the excellent 15x56 Swaros for example, has become popular even by those owning the larger optics. BUT, as rule there will be a spotting scope or larger binoculars close by with higher power.
Reason for the smaller binoculars is mostly because 15 power is pretty much the optimum power for all day glassing.
Especially on days with a high mirage factor.
I personally believe that the optics we use for glassing are the most important item a long range hunter has.
Power therefore needs to be controlled based upon need and conditions.
And the only way that can be accomplished is by using spotting scopes with fixed power eyepieces.
Unfortunately, today most scope makers only offer the variable powered type.
Kowa to my knowledge is the only exception.
I had a set of 15 power eyepieces made up for my old 77 mm Kowas by using telescope eyepieces.
We used the eye cap threads on the scopes for attaching the eyepieces.
They are my favorite eyepieces by far for most of my glassing.
But i also have a set of 20x wide angles, and a set of 30x along as well.
Again, thats the beauty of using twin spotting scopes for glassing.