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Spotting scope summary



I recently posted an inquiry soliciting recommendations for a new spotting 
scope.  Many of you sent me private E-mails asking that I forward any 
feedback I received.   Rather than forward the responses to just those 
specific individuals, I thought I'd make a general posting here for all to 
see.

All total, I received 12 responses from owners of Kowa(5), Swarovski(3), 
Leica (1), Nikon (1), Bushnell(1) and Fujinon(1).   Basically everyone was 
very happy with their choice of scope.  However, the Bushnell user and two of 
the Kowa users indicated that if they had to purchase again, they'd opt for a 
Swarovski.  And, the Fujinon user indicated that he'd opt for a Kowa the next 
time around.  They all based their opinions on actual comparisons they had 
made in the field.

Given the fact that I still see an abundance of Spacemaster models still in 
use, I was surprised that I did not get more responses (good or bad) from 
these Bushnell users. 

Without exception, everyone strongly recommended ED glass saying that the 
resolution advantage is readily apparent and well worth the extra bucks.

It was evenly divided between the preferences of angled vs straight eyepieces 
 The angled eyepiece is great if you are very tall or if you frequently have 
persons of varying heights looking through your scope.  But, an angled 
eyepiece makes it difficult (maybe impossible ) to use from a car window 
mount.  It boils down to person preference and how one intends to use their 
scope.

Finally, several people reminded me of the web site at 
(http://betterviewdesired.com) where Stephen Ingraham recently praised the 
very new Pentax 80mm ED.  According to Ingraham, this new Pentax offering is 
so good that it has displaced the Televue Ranger as his new standard of 
reference.

One CBC reader informed me that he had just ordered the new Pentax but had 
not yet had a chance to use it.  Unfortunately, I forgot his name so I hope 
he's reading this posting and will post a review of his own.  I'm all ears !

Len Kopka
Simpsonville