spotting scopes 80 vs 100mm objective. left hand friendly set ups.

[mac1911]

I been looking around for spotting scopes. Jarheadtop deal on the konus seems like a good one. I have also been looking at the creedmore branded scopes. I'm guessing with the konus reviews and both respected sources supporting these. Products they must be ok.
I'm getting a creedmore pole cat no matter what scope I get. I'm tired of the small tripod shooting prone.
The 62mm square spotting scope has been recommended a few times.
the eye relief on the creedmores is pretty good if true.
is 100mm over kill for service rifle?

 

[jasons]

You don't see too many 100mm scopes on the line for whatever that's worth. I use a Konus with an 80mm objective and I've never wished for a larger one.

 

[Jasper]

If youre buying from Jim owens, look at his Iowa deal. He lets you do a no-interest payment plan for the kowas for an extra $20 ....worthwhile IMHO. you'll never need another scope, and they retain their resale value extremely well if you decide to get rid of it. Kowas's customer service is also excellent.

As for size, mine is an 82mm, and would be hesitant to go any larger. (my 82mm is 4.5lbs)

 

[economist]

I'm not very experienced in competition, but I have looked through a lot of glass (photography is a major hobby of mine). I checked out as many scopes as I could find before buying, and just like camera lenses you get what you pay for. As with all glass, the objective size is only part of the equation. Most important is the quality of materials (and construction) in the lenses. I decided on a Kowa TSN-883. It offers an 88mm objective with very nice lens construction. Looking through it is similar (but inferior) to a Canon L series camera lens. The scope is very sharp, even in the edges, with minimal chromatic aberration. The 25x eyepiece is the way to go due to the 32mm of eye relief. The magnesium body brings the weight of the 883 down to 3.35lbs.

 

[mac1911]

eye relief is a big key in my decision. I have yet to find one where i did not need to remove my glasses......im not sure if the kowa deal is for me...? even with the no interest deal I would find it hard to spend that kind of money right now.
All imput is a plus.

 

[Jasper]

where are you located?

my Kowa is back @ the manufacturer at the moment (lost a tensioning screw, they insisted i send it in for "repair", and they're gonna completely disassemble / clean / recharge with nitrogen while its there), but it'll be back *hopefully* by the middle of the week. I'll be in NC next week for the Eastern Creedmoor Cup, but you're welcome to take a peek through it once I get back (Monday the 14th). Once you've had one / used one in a match, you'll have a hard time using anything else (you get spoiled being able to see EVERYTHING)

 

[jasons]

If you're on a budget the Konus is a decent buy. I wear glasses and I don't need to take them off to get into the scope. Just don't drop it or bang it around too much - it's not a Kowa.

 

[amb]

Even if you have glasses eye relief with either of the Kowa or Konus zoom eyepieces is fine down at the low-mag end, and if you're just looking for spotters or mirage they're both fine. (The Kowa LER eyepiece really is fantastic, though.)

I own a Konus 80, and I also use someone else's Kowa 821 a lot. While the Konus is absolutely adequate, the clarity of the Kowa is amazing. (A couple of weeks ago I was coaching a couple of people at 100 yards. With my Konus, finding bullet holes was sometimes a bit of work but not bad. With the Kowa they were just THERE.) Other scopes have great optics, too; Swarovski's may be better, Unertls are usually good, there are some nice Pentax scopes, etc., but I think the draw of the Kowas is that you can also drive nails with them.

Mostly I hear about 100mm scopes for team coaches, especially for long ranges. I've seen a few 90s at highpower matches. Depends how much crap you want to haul around for the most part.

 

[mac1911]

Im calling Jim Monday to see what he has to offer. The LER of the kowa might get me to dig deep....I'm used go less durable equipment. My 50.00 spotter finally lost the tripod to breakage after 1 year which is much longer than the 2 range trips I gave the life of the plastic pos.

 

[bpm990d]

Im calling Jim Monday to see what he has to offer.

Google TSN1 and look for used. Kowa will stand behind old scopes and give them a tune up if need be.

B