Thanks for the response. I looked through that scope you posted today and had a Nikon Fieldscope ED 20-60x60 to compare it to and the Nikon was much better IMO. They didn't have the Kowa but I think I may pull the trigger on that Nikon. About the large ocular, I figured since most of the higher end scopes had larger ones, that it would make for better viewing. Not necessarily true I guess after todays testing.
I agree the Nikon is a great scope, and well built. I just prefer a little more eye relief and field of view. I think the Pentax is best with a fixed Pentax XW eyepiece, but you lose the flexibility of a zoom. It seems that all 60-65mm objective scopes get pretty dim when you ask them for 50x to 60x magnification.
Did you test the scopes under lower light conditions? I would think the Kowa and Pentax would have a bit of an advantage with their bigger objectives.
You might also want to look for a used Zeiss Diascope 65, as they can be found around that $1000 mark, and they are an excellent spotter, with a useful 15x-45x magnification range.
In any case, you are doing the right thing by finding what suits your eyes best.
Keep us updated, I am curious to find out how it turns out for you.
