Spotting scope question, need unbiased opinion

[Hatrick]

Well, I talked to my old man and it made the decision easy. He said I could borrow it for a 2 week hunt I have planned here shortly. He said if I liked it, then I could buy it. Sounds like a win/win.

As long as you both don't hunt at the same time buy 1/2 of it.

 

[imyourhuckleberry]

For Gods sake! He is your father he may need the money but you will never know it as that is what fathers do, keep their children from knowing if they need help.

 

[LeddSlinger]

So, the Vortex Razor spotting scopes leave a lot on the table when compared to high end spotters. I once owned the 16-48x65 Razor and was not very impressed. Sold it and never looked back.

My hunting partner had the 25-60x85 Razor. I had purchased the Meopta S2 HD 20-70x82 after selling my Razor and been using the Meopta for a few years. We used them side by side in all conditions on a hunting trip for 4 days. It wasn't even a comparison between the two spotters. The Meopta easily manhandled and outshone the Vortex Razor in every situation, at any distance, in any weather, and in any lighting. Not even a close race.

Now don't get me wrong, the Razor is respectable glass for the money, but it's a far cry from top tier when viewing in less than "ideal" conditions at longer ranges.

I now own the Swarovski ATX with 95mm and 65mm objective modules and 1.7x magnification extender module. It is unreal. Hands down best money can buy. But it doesn't come cheap.

My best advice to you would be to save up for a Meopta S2 HD and wait for a big sale on it somewhere. If you want to wait and save longer, go for a new Swarovski HD spotter, whether it's the ATX or ATS. All will be much better than the Vortex Razor.

 

[kiwikid]

Trying it out for a couple of weeks on your hunt is a great outcome. Please let us know how it goes.

 

[cbobclark]

All my Swarovski scopes are first rate and the two Vortex are not bad, so my preference shows. I like putting optics a couple hundred yards in front of a brick wall and choose for yourself.

 

[dfanonymous]

Just thinking outside the box..
Call swaro and ask what they think the value would be at maybe?

 

[Nitroman]

Pentax PF80ED. If Leica and Swaro are 100 on a scale of 0-100, then the Pentax is a 95 at 1/4 the price, and with the 1" eyepiece it is much brighter at higher mag.

 

[archerhmr]

If you were purchasing new, check the warranty. Swarovski no longer has their no fault warranty they once did. I used to sell them and of course own binoculars and one of their spotters. With the warranty change, not sure that I would purchase another.

 

[LeddSlinger]

If you were purchasing new, check the warranty. Swarovski no longer has their no fault warranty they once did. I used to sell them and of course own binoculars and one of their spotters. With the warranty change, not sure that I would purchase another.

That was my reservation before purchasing the ATX spotting scope package. My buddy is a long time Swaro dealer and I asked him about this. He told me they state 'limited' lifetime warranty against defects, but they always come through and take care of people even when it's clearly been damaged by the user.

 

[30BR]

For Gods sake! He is your father he may need the money but you will never know it as that is what fathers do, keep their children from knowing if they need help.

Yep. Just buy it and say Thanks, Dad!
Its not like you are buying junk. Even so you should buy it.

 

[Crockett12]

I own a 20x60x85 Vortex Razor angled. When I bought it from Cabela's, they let me take it outside along with a Swaro non HD 65mm straight eyepiece and compare them. I felt the Vortex was as good as the non HD Swaro, and less expensive than the Swaro, so I bought the Vortex Razor. If I had to do it over again, I'd buy the Swaro. The Vortex Razor angled is too heavy to pack and doesn't go into a pack very well because of the angled eyepiece. Also, I broke the rotating tripod collar while on a hunt -- so won't carry it attached to a tripod any more -- even though Vortex stood behind their warranty and fixed it. The guy who said the Swaro would appreciate in price while the Vortex would go down has a good point. Plus $850 for the Swaro is a great price and it's probably worth more than that! Buy the Swaro!

 

[stever88]

IMHO, if you are 'spotting' for game then the edge-to-edge clarity is what you really want to see that game that is almost off the 80mm grid. My 1995 Swaro AT-80 still functions "like new" and the view continues to impress!

 

[SidecarFlip]

Lets put it this way, even non HD swaro glass makes Vortex glass like a coke bottle. Buy the swaro for 850, sell it for a grand on Flea Bay and buy the Vortex and be happy. me, I'd keep the Swaro. But then I have Swaro EL Range Bino's. You get what you pay for like everything else and Swaro guarantees the optics for life and I mean against everything plus they clean and recondition for free.. I know I've used their service in Cranston Rhode Island before. Also have a pair of 10-40s and sent them in for cleaning and realignment, no charge. I really like Swaro, So does my wife, she collects Swarovski Crystal. Remember Vortex is a distributor of products sourced in Pacific Rim countries. While it's not an issue (I have a couple Vortex scopes) none compare to Swaro glass.

 

[jpfrog]

Yeah, I'd buy it and say thanks for the deal. Don't worry about the straight eyepiece especially for digiscoping...it'll be better for that than an angled eyepiece would. $850 for a Swarovski spotter...I don't care how old it is I'd be all over that, especially if I knew the guy I was buying it from as well as you do.