Spotting scope vs binos

[jinxx4ever]

thought i'd revive this thread as it pretains to my current dilema. I'm in the ballpark to purchase one or the other. I'm strictly going to be using it to spot distance. I'm not going to be hiking with this. Not hunting either. I have a pair of Sig's bdx bino's for ranging. My eyes are not the best anymore. I want to be able to see bullet holes in paper as far as possible and splash's on steel. I won't be behind these constantly as i'll interchange between these and a scope. My scopes are NF, Steiner, and Kahles so i'm used to good glass. Is it possible to get the same quality results out of just one vs having both? thanks

 

[Alan0728]

In the last month I upgraded from a Bushnell Legend T 15-45x60 to some Vortex gear. I bought a Razor HD 27-60x85 spotting scope and a pair of Viper 12x Binoculars. Oh what a difference. Here are my observations - Two weeks ago I RO for a Mile Competition and this weekend I participated in a PRS club event. - The Spotting Scope I could see impacts (splash on steel) at a Mile until the mirage got cooking too much. We also had indicators and cameras for the Mile so most of the time we were looking at the camera. Seeing impacts on steel for the Spotting Scope was really good out to 1200 yards. Honestly I only looked at paper at 100yd and 200yrd and could see holes at both. Spotting Scope is a pain for PRS that is where the binos shine. A couple of months ago I RO a two day PRS event and my stage had 3 targets at 740, 770 and 790 with a pretty big left to right swing between 1 and 2 and a decent swing between 2 and 3. We were provided the Viper 12x binos (which is what sealed the deal for me on those) - I was able to spot comfortably for two days on the binos. The binos with the larger field of vision made it pretty easy to swing between targets. I could see splash on steel and see the dark spots where the paint came off the target. This weekend in the club event I could see splash and trace out to 800 yards (that was the longest stage) and in practice I can see splash on steel at 1100 and sometimes 1200. The binos worked all the way to 1 mile picking up the hit indicators at 1400, 1500 and 1760, without the indicators the binos would not have been that useful. For me both was the answer and I have pretty defined use cases for both. I have looked through the Razor and RazorHD binos and at 12x or even 15x I don't think they give you enough bang for your buck moving up to them.

This may be a little long but hopefully it is helpful.

 

[Joee Dirt]

great thread, as a new shooter into the PRS world and getting more into hunting I am realizing buy once cry once with great glass.

 

[aljones_315]

Thank you for all the information! It’s funny you mention upgrading my scope, as that is #1 on my list. Sounds like binos are a good all around way to go. Is 10x enough mag? Or should I be looking for more?

I run 15x56 slc swaros and have since sold my razor hd spotting scope. Which was a 17 to 48 x65mm binos are faster to get on target. Ive very reliably called impacts on steel in rain and snow at 1400+/- viewed elk at 1800 plus with enough detail to dicide if i wanted to get closer or leave them be i have an older pair of 10x swaros that are very crisp and sharp BUT they definatly are not 15x. Me personaly. 10x is not enough for me to be satisfied. Others may disagree

 

[Alan0728]

I run 15x56 slc swaros and have since sold my razor hd spotting scope. Which was a 17 to 48 x65mm binos are faster to get on target. Ive very reliably called impacts on steel in rain and snow at 1400+/- viewed elk at 1800 plus with enough detail to dicide if i wanted to get closer or leave them be i have an older pair of 10x swaros that are very crisp and sharp BUT they definatly are not 15x. Me personaly. 10x is not enough for me to be satisfied. Others may disagree

I agree, 10x not quite enough. I went with 12x so if I needed to I could use them without a tripod. 15x without a tripod can be difficult to get a good view without being shaky.

 

[LRRPF52]

When RO’ing for things like Steel Safari, because the stages are on 5 minute time constraints, we mostly use binos as ROs. Some of the top-ranked shooters are so fast with their TGT-to-TGT transitions, that it’s all you can do even as an experienced spotter to keep up with them. On a flat range or someone’s field set-up for a match, where the stage has a pretty limited azimuth to traverse, you can get away with a spotting scope as an RO after going through your targets and sticking to lower magnification setting, or using a micro RDS mounted to the spotter.

For my long range courses, I always take my spotting scope, LRF, and binos, in addition to loaner rifles. In the field stages I do, I find myself using both, depending on the weather and if I’m using tripods for rifle supports. One thing I’ve been asking myself more and more after each LR course I run is how hard would it be to have the FOV of binos, with the magnification of spotting scopes, so I don’t get eye fatigue.

When hunting, I have even packed my heaviest Vanguard tripod, but more for a rifle rest with the HOG Saddle.

 

[Joee Dirt]

I run 15x56 slc swaros and have since sold my razor hd spotting scope. Which was a 17 to 48 x65mm binos are faster to get on target. Ive very reliably called impacts on steel in rain and snow at 1400+/- viewed elk at 1800 plus with enough detail to dicide if i wanted to get closer or leave them be i have an older pair of 10x swaros that are very crisp and sharp BUT they definatly are not 15x. Me personaly. 10x is not enough for me to be satisfied. Others may disagree

Hmmm. Thought about my next purchase either being a set of 15s swaros or a new spotting scope. Right now, I have the Vortex Viper 20-60x, and they arent too bad. But my concern was for hunting if the 15s would be good enough (with the quality/tripod) to discern detail of game.

 

[aljones_315]

Hmmm. Thought about my next purchase either being a set of 15s swaros or a new spotting scope. Right now, I have the Vortex Viper 20-60x, and they arent too bad. But my concern was for hunting if the 15s would be good enough (with the quality/tripod) to discern detail of game.

I put antlers on elk at 1800 yds and could tell the lil guys from the big bull i run off my pack when needed. But prefer. The swaro stud mount with arca adapter and a pro media gear tripod

 

[carbonbased]

Why isn’t anyone running a fujinon or canon (or other even more $) image-stabilized binocular and blowing off the tripod? One could use a monopod, perhaps, to ease shoulder strain. Although the Canon’s IS works only when you press the button. edit: at least some Canon models keep the IS working for a set time period after button push. I'm unclear as to the differences in operation across the Canon range.

I realize the image-stabilized binos weigh more than regular binos, but I would think if you don’t shoot off your tripod, the weight savings and ease of use might be significant. Maybe not?

I wonder if this sort of thing with an IS bino would work ok. Called the BinoPod. Maybe only in short spurts? You guys tell me.

 

[tango11]

I would personally spend more on the spotter. You can't pick up vapor trails, read mirage, read corrections, etc...without good glass on the spotter. Again the Leupold 12-40x60mm with the TMR (mil) reticle is just about perfect as it is in just the right zoom range for the field, has great glass and has a reticle. Leupold also has a good discount program for military, LE and certified NRA instructors.

That being said, you may get addicted to good glass and want to upgrade the binoculars later.

How much magnification do you need to see mirage? I have no luck yet with my 10x42 leupold bino

 

[Bambamoda]

Something like this might be good for ya.

 

[Punkur67]

How much magnification do you need to see mirage? I have no luck yet with my 10x42 leupold bino

Most guys I see are running 12x or 15x. But I think your having a hard time seeing mirage due to glass quality.