Vortex Razor, Athlon Cronus or Leupold GR spotting scope?

Sendit6.5

Sendit6.5

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Minuteman
Apr 29, 2009
467
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Sabinal, TX
www.brushyhill.com
#1
I'm finally in a position to buy a decent spotting scope but I'm not 100% on which one will be the best one for the money. I was pretty settled on a new Vortex Razor HD but then I saw a review of the Athlon Cronus spotting scope and it got me wondering. Below are the models I can afford - Under $2k. I can get all of these scopes in the range of $1400 - $1600, so pricing is comparable. Which one would you recommend and why?

Vortex Razor HD 27-60x85 ($1400 at my door)
Vortex Razor HD 22-48x65
Athlon Cronus ED 20-60x85
Leupold GR 20-60x80 (w/ impact reticle) $1235 (my price)
Leupold Mark 4 20-60x80 w/ TMR reticle $1560 (my price)

I'm a guide/outfitter in South Texas and I do some shooting out to maybe 1200yds. That's about as far as I can ever see to glass for animals around here; but I do, occasionally, get to go mule deer and elk hunting in the mountain states. I hope to do more of that in the future but I need a scope that's best suited to what I'm doing now. I like the idea of 60x but the low range of 27x (Razor 27-60x85) kinda concerns me - if a deer pops out at 250yds and I need to get on him quickly, I'm thinking 27x will make it significantly more difficult to find him vs. a scope that'll go down to 20x-22x. What do y'all think - is this an issue or am I worrying for nothing?

 
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#2
Anybody?

I also may have an opportunity to pick up a very gently used Kowa 77mm Prominar. Guy from Japan left it at the ranch and told me to make him an offer. The thing about the Kowa is that they only have a 10yr warranty and I don't think it's nearly as robust as the Vortex or Cronus unconditional warranty. As a year-round guide and game manager, I'm VERY tough on gear. While I've never destroyed an optic....yet...I sure like the security of knowing I can replace an optic with no extra money.


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#3
I don't have any experience with the selection you've enquired about but you might add the meopta meopro 80 to that list. I have it and it's very clear. I am considering selling it to go to the lower powered razor just for packing reasons but it is a very nice spotter for that price point.
 
#4
The new Razor 27 has the field of view of the old Razor at 20X. One of the upgrades. However, when I hunt, I use a spotter and binos. To each his own. I'm impressed with my Vortex 27-60X85. I still would prefer they have the increased FOV and go down to 20. I never use 60 power.

Good hunting.
 
#5
All those options are very heavy if you plan to pack the scope. I'd be looking at the 60-65 objective sized spotters, the Mk4 Loopy being the lightest and I'd add the Minox spotter (w/ reticle) if weight is not an issue. Unless you have a very stable base 60x is useless in terms of field of view, mirage and shakes. Plus you really wont need that power at less than a mile. 40x is plenty.
 
#6
I have the Razor 20-60x80. I had the chance to play with a GR (didn't pay attention if it was 20-60 or 12-40) and was blown away. The eye relief was amazing and the image clarity was as good if not better, to my eye.
 
#7
Yep I agree, Last month I went with the GR 12-40x60 HD Kit, If it is good enough for the Military It's good enough for me, and they are built to take the knocks and the camera mounting kit works with my NV as well, I also bought the Leupold ARD for mine, I was lucky enough to find my favourite store had the Brown version which means I don't have to Camo it up, The 30mm eye relief works for me and Leupold have a solid history in Hunting and the Military and that is all the Guarantee I need to confirm I bought the right Gear.

The Tripod that comes in the Kit is all metal construction and is very robust and the Truck window mounting adapter is a nice bonus too,

A person could spend 0000$ on scopes but depending on our Age and eye condition there is only so much Optics can do for us and I think The Leupold GR system is right up there, Personally I would not own any other for all of the above,

Hope this helps.

John.
 
#8
From what I've read, the new razor spotters glass is comparable to the gen1 razor spotter. I haven't read anything where the glass is better. With that being said, you could prob find a gen1 razor spotter for around a $1k or less for the 85mm. I'm very pleased with mine and the guys I shoot with like it very much as well
 
#9
Why buy the big spotter if you can't glass past 1,200 yds? I carry the big swaro but I live in AZ and with the little coues deer and our terrain more is always better. With the lighter units you will carry the scope and use it more. The GR was a standard go to for a long time for a lot of guides.
The smaller version is light and compact so you can use a lighter tripod as well, just seems a lot more efficient if you are not glassing at a mile.
 
#12
After being deep into photography and long range shooting, it has turned me into a glass snob. I hate to admit it, but once you mess around with really nice glass, it’s very difficult to go back. Definitely take a look thru that Kowa prominar! See what you think about it and compare it to what you can find locally. I know that it’s excellent glass and a lot of birders speak very highly of them. This comes from the guys that spend multiple thousands of dollars on glass and are glass snobs in their own right. Don’t discount that Kowa! That’s what I really wanted when I found a killer deal on a razor HD 20-60x80 with tripod.
 
#13
If you are still thinking about the Cronus, take a look at the Ares. For 1/2 the price you get glass that is so good I have yet to find anyone that can see much of a difference between the Cronus and Ares view. The only big difference is the focus ring on the Ares versus the fine tune wheels on the Cronus.
 
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