-
Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.
Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
Scope advice (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Lagrange
- Start date
Hi Lagrange and a warm welcome to you from all the Staff and Moderators. I've moved your post to form its own thread in the Telescope forum, as I presume you are looking for advice on your purchase.
Does the £4k budget include buying a tripod?
I'm sure you will enjoy it here and I look forward to hearing your news.
Does the £4k budget include buying a tripod?
I'm sure you will enjoy it here and I look forward to hearing your news.
A decent carbon tripod and head will take a quarter of that. Then how much weight are you happy to carry about… will determine if you want a 60mm or 80mm class scope. If you aren’t far from Norfolk then Cley Spy are probably the closest to get to for a comparison of possible options. Try Swarowski, zeiss, Kowa, Opticron and see which one works for you and that you like the views through. A decent scope really does extend the reach and detail you can see.
TheBlackGrouse
Well-known member
The first important question: are you birding by car or are you hiking, riding a bicycle?
That determines the size and weight of the equipment. Nothing beats large scopes (+ 80 mm) but they require heavy tripods and videoheads.
That determines the size and weight of the equipment. Nothing beats large scopes (+ 80 mm) but they require heavy tripods and videoheads.
On a German forum Holger Merlitz, an acknowledged expert and author, recently suggested that there are only two premium scope manufacturers, Kowa and Swarovski. I don't think many would dispute that, although the Nikon Monarch 82 ED is allegedly excellent and is also very reasonably priced.
The Leica Apo Televids are of high quality but optically fall a little short, and the Zeiss Harpia is a maverick that makes some serious compromises in the interests of a wide FoV at the lower magnifications.
Don't make the mistake of overestimating the importance of maximum magnification. You will probably use mags of <40x most of the time and a Kowa 99 or Swarovski ATX 115 with suitable tripod would be a serious burden in the field. Occasionally an ID is beyond the reach of even the best scope.
Two suggestions: For lighter weight and usefull magnifications up to about 45x in good light, either a Kowa 66A or Swarovski ATS 65.
For a scope that will fulfil 99% of requirements, either a Kowa 88A or a Swarovski ATX 85.
The Swarovski ATX 65 is heavier and more expensive than the ATS 65 and optically no better, but is a possible option as a travel scope should you want to add an 85 mm or even 95 mm objective module at a later stage.
John
PS:- Don't buy Swarovski tripods or heads! They are rebadged Gitzos at an inflated price.
The Leica Apo Televids are of high quality but optically fall a little short, and the Zeiss Harpia is a maverick that makes some serious compromises in the interests of a wide FoV at the lower magnifications.
Don't make the mistake of overestimating the importance of maximum magnification. You will probably use mags of <40x most of the time and a Kowa 99 or Swarovski ATX 115 with suitable tripod would be a serious burden in the field. Occasionally an ID is beyond the reach of even the best scope.
Two suggestions: For lighter weight and usefull magnifications up to about 45x in good light, either a Kowa 66A or Swarovski ATS 65.
For a scope that will fulfil 99% of requirements, either a Kowa 88A or a Swarovski ATX 85.
The Swarovski ATX 65 is heavier and more expensive than the ATS 65 and optically no better, but is a possible option as a travel scope should you want to add an 85 mm or even 95 mm objective module at a later stage.
John
PS:- Don't buy Swarovski tripods or heads! They are rebadged Gitzos at an inflated price.
Last edited:
