angle vs. straight eye piece on spotting scope?

[7shot]

Demi -

I have 2 Manfrotto tripods that I use the most. A big, heavy 190 Mag that is great for short hikes or glassing close to the truck or 4 wheeler. The light one is a Manfrotto Compact - MKC3 - it is what I will pack in.

 

[smokepoler63]

I have used both and the advantages of the angled outweigh those of the straight. For inexperienced glassers, the straight are a little easier to line up initially. With a little practice, this quickly becomes a non-issue. Many on this thread said that they prefer a straight for looking out of a truck. I feel the exact opposite. Sitting in a truck seat, looking 90 degrees from my natural seated position quickly becomes a pain in the neck, literally. Rotating the barrel of an angled scope makes this much more comfortable! As mentioned before, for long duration glassing, it's much easier and more comfortable to move the scope around and stay in the same position, than to continually change positions to follow the back end of a straight scope around. Casual glassers may be better served with straight glass, but if you spend hours behind your spotter, do any digi-scoping, want a shorter/lighter tripod, want less neck strain, do yourself a favor and get an angled scope!

 

[akrem44]

I have a angled and i love it even if i look down hill i just put it lower between my legs and it makes it really easy to use

 

[Mule3006Elk]

I prefer angled. Great for my entire family. Set it up and anyone can take a look without adjusting the tripod height. Huge plus for my kids. Getting on target is not an issue IMO. Digiscoping with an angled scope is easy. With a rotating collar glassing from my truck is not a problem. Great for glassing uphill. When glassing downhill, just use the rotating collar, which creates a similar position to glassing with a straight scope. Either will work. I find angled to be more versatile.

 

[crockett]

I bought an angled Vortex 85mm spotting scope before my last hunt. Never had angled before! I love the glass but hate the weight. However, that's another story! -- I adjusted to the lining up the angled eyepiece without too much trouble but I did learn something I hadn't thought of! The angled scope is more difficult to pack in the backpack than a straight scope would be! Oh -- I can get it into the backpack but it's simply more difficult to get back into the pack after taking it out and then back out again. It also seems to take up more room because of it's shape. If I had it to do over again, I'd buy a straight eyepiece.