fieldscope spotters??

[mixedbag]

I'm looking to buy a spotting scope and can't make up my mind.I've looked at the therons,and vortex.I've just started looking into the fieldscopes offered by Vortex and Nikon.Does anyone on here use a field scope???They have less magnification but are super lightweight and small in size for backbacking.The vortex razor fieldscope is like25 oz. and 10 1/2 long.I'm leaning that way due to size and ease of packing.But, am I losing to much in its viewing capabilities?I'm hoping some on here have used one or have one of their own.Nikons version is the ed50 fieldscope.Is this going tohave enough power to locate animals far off or are they no better then 10x42binos.Don't want to save weight and space only to have a scope my binos could do just as well as.The specs for the razor are 13x33x50;Nikons are 11x30x50

 

[Bambistew]

IMO, skip the small compact jobbers unless you plan to specifically plan to use it in perfect conditions. They're actually worse than a quality set of binos on a tripod. They sucks in morning and evening, and the power is really only use able to determine size and no real detail. You will miss a lot of critters. Personally I wouldn't get anything smaller than 65mm and 20-45x. I've had a half dozen spotters including the compact versions. The weight of a full size scope is worth it in virtually every circumstance I would be hunting to include extended backpack hunts. It sucks to pack that weight but so worth having it when I want it.

 

[JohnCushman]

I bought a Theron Saker straight body from Predator Optics and love it!!

 

[Stubaby]

My favorite piece of glass that I own is my nikon ed50. I have the cabelas euro hd 10x42s that I use on a tripod when I can and a meopta Meostar 82 hd spotter with a wide angle eyepiece.

I love my ed50 so much that I just bought a 16x fixed wide angle eyepiece for it. If you get the nikon make sure and get the 13-40 power eyepiece and not the 13-30x. It's got way better eye relief than the 13-30x.

I find that I can get close enough with the zoom to make the call to hike closer or not from some pretty far distances.

Here are the two eyepieces for my ed50. The 13-40 and the 16x wide angle.

 

[Stubaby]

Here is a pic at 13 power at a building that's 659 yards away with my iPhone through the 13-40 eyepiece.

 

[Stubaby]

Here's the same building at the same distance with the 16x fixed wide angle. With both these eyepieces out in the field and the ease of switching them out in 5 seconds I think it's a pretty lethal combo.

 

[schmalts]

I agree with Bambistew. The 50mm spotters are good but don't expect to use the highest magnification settings on less than perfect days in bright light. Everything is a give and take. Sometimes you can't cut weight on everything. The thing you need to consider is the maximum distance you will be glassing as a big factor for your decision.

 

[Hatchie Dawg]

I am not sure what type of country you will be hunting or what type of shape you are in but after a couple of days in the mountains I am comparing shirts to see which one is the lightest. I am very pleased with my ED-50, love it really. Weighs just over a pound and has excellent clarity. I am not trying to count growth rings at extreme distances, just trying to identify legal elk. I would look through one in different light conditions before I completely discounted the ED-50. It is a wonderful piece of equipment.

HD

 

[Elkmagnet]

I have the fieldscope III ed in 60mm it's a good piece.