High powered binos vs spotting scope?

[Craig Holland]

have a vortex viper hd 15x45 65 spotter. I don't really use it that much due to weight
and field of view, seemss I'm always using my binos. I was thinking about selling it and buying kiababs 18 power and using that off tripod for long distance glassing. Question is this a bad idea and would I regret selling my spotter?

 

[JimP]

I personally think that 18x is at least 3x too large for just using them as binoculars. Are you planning on packing a second pair of binoculars for closer viewing?

 

[Craig Holland]

Yes , 10x42s

 

[Craig Holland]

Was thinking replacing my spotter w them.

 

[JimP]

All I use is my 10x42's, even for long distance looking. Granted you can't tell exactly how big a animal is but they get the job done.

Even last year on my coues deer hunt in Arizona I used the 10x42's but had a hard time putting horns on the bucks. My partner had a pair of 15x60 or so that he would spot with and then he would pull out the spotter to see what they really were.

 

[mcseal2]

I love my 15x56 Swaros off a tripod. I still pack a Kowa 55mm spotter most of the time for evaluating a distant buck I've found with the Swaros. I sometimes just use my 10x42 Leicas off the tripod to save weight but once I got used to the bigger 15's I usually end up packing them too. Leica Geovids in the bino harness as my rangefinder and normal binos, 15x Swaros in the pack for the tripod. Elk or antelope hunting I don't feel like I need the 15's but for deer I sure like them.

 

[ando_31]

I think it depends on the terrain you hunt. In the wide open terrain I hunt I use my spotter as much, if not more, than my binoculars. The terrain I hunt allows me to glass for bedded deer a mile away or better. I'm often glassing with the spotter maxed out at 60x. I also use the spotter to judge deer that I've found with my binos (a pair of 15x65 swaros).

I'd imagine that I'd prefer set of binos with less power and more field of view if hunting in the woods or timber. Even so, I think I'd still like the 10x binos and spotter combo more than the 15 or 18x binos by themselves simply for the reason that the more specialized the equipment is, the better you can suit it to your situation.

 

[HighPlainsHunter]

Big binos can be a lot of fun but to be honest you really aren't getting the full benefits of the magnification with objectives smaller than 60mm. . Steiner makes and 80mm objective binocular in up to 25x that are quite nice to look through. There are many others from brands like Fujinon, minox, takahashi, etc...

I'd love to look through these some day. But that is essentially just two spotting scopes.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Kowa-Highlander-Binocular-Prominar-Fluorite-Lens-Tripod-Bags/163261817220?hash=item260329a184:g:FqQAAOSw0YJbnxOn:rk:1:pf:0

 

[Tim McCoy]

You mention weight. Might want to check the big eye bino weight vs your current spotting scope. Most of the good 15x or more binos get heavy fast.

 

[Bonecollector]

You mention weight. Might want to check the big eye bino weight vs your current spotting scope. Most of the good 15x or more binos get heavy fast.

Tim beat me to it- when looking into scenario myself last year, this was my dilemma.

 

[Craig Holland]

Thanks for the input..maybe I'll keep my spotter then.

 

[Tim McCoy]

Thanks for the input..maybe I'll keep my spotter then.

I use both. Spot more game with 15x out to a mile or so. But I?m not an inch counter. If I have to carry one very far, it?s usually 15-45x 60/65 ish spotter. On many hunts I?ll just carry my regular binos. Probably use the 15x binos more for scouting. Just my preference.