Rifle Scopes What to get first?

[TwoNiner]

So I'm currently at a dilemma of optics: I currently have an SWFA 10x42 rifle scope but I am saving up for a Nightforce F1. In the meanwhile I need a spotting scope so I purchased a Konus 20-60x100 that I plan on testing out tomorrow bird watching since I can't get to the range for a couple of weeks.

However, from the few minutes I looked through the scope today I can tell that anything above 30X on the Konus is basically zooming in on ocular distortions, and the glass has heavy purple fringing. I can live with the Konus for now, but I am thinking, should I buy the F1 first, or a better spotting scope instead of replacing it down the road? FYI I plan on shooting around < 650 yards for a while and then moving to the 1k mark after I settle in with my rifle and handloads.

 

[roggom]

Return the Konus while you can, better to get a refund than lose money later. Get the F1 and just do some walking if you have to.

 

[B3dlam]

Rifle optics will trump the spoting scope every time. Like roggom said I would return the Konus and get yourself that F1. Personally I am waiting on the new 8-40 bushnell tactical spotting scope to come out!

 

[TwoNiner]

Any idea what the price will be on that bushnell?

 

[Goin'Hot]

MSRP on the bushy is supposed to be $1700 with no reticle and $2200 with a horus.

 

[steve123]

Yep, cheap spotting scopes sure are a let down, been there and done that.

It took me a while to get into a Pentax PF100 25-78 but the wait was worth it, only problem is I hardly use it because I shoot steel for the most part and can usually see my hits with my riflescopes.

 

[Nysios]

I don't know what your price range is for the spotting scope. But I am very happy with my Vortex Viper HD. However I would return the spotting scope if able and and hold until you could get the F1.

 

[Beyschaefer]

Here's an honest question..
What are expecting to see out of the best spotting scope?
What are going to get if you dump another grand into a spotting scope?
We did a little side by side test with about 7-8 different spotting scopes, including a Konus, Kowa, Swarovski, Pentax, Leupold and Nikon are the ones I remember...and one $2800 european scope whose name escapes me..
10 guys going down the line comparing scopes against a few different "spots" downrange from 100 to 600 yards, and yes... We could clearly see differences, but after we all talked about it a while we decided that NONE of them could really see bullet holes past 300 yards, and the difference between the "low end" scopes and the $2800 one wasn't worth the extra coin... The mid-grade Konus was picking out 90% of the detail at 20% of the price.

Konus's have become fairly popuar at our club.. But I will admit at least one was a lemon out of the box.. A 100mm also, I think.
At the price, buy five of them, pick the best to keep, resell the other four at $30 under "new" price, and spend the other $1500 on ammo or the rifle scope.

I know to a lot of folks are happy to drop a wad of cash on a spotting scope to GET that extra 10%, and I respect that... But being from smallbore prone and highpower, I can read mirage and spot holes in reasonable enough conditions with the Konus.. And when the day comes that it goes face down on concrete and makes that tinkling noise, I'm not going to feel like commiting suicide...

 

[TwoNiner]

Hey guys update on the 100mm Konus for you all.

I went bird watching today and got to know this heavy duty spotter a lot better. First thing I learned is my $50 Targus tripod from Walmart is a pile of crap. Especially in the wind! After wrestling with the head on the tripod that kept bouncing the spotter around for hours on end I promised myself to return the Targus tripod and pony up for the $130 Manfrotto (which I did after the sun went down). I have this tripod set up in my garage and it is a night and day difference in stability.

Ok moving along...after some serious time behind the lense I have to say I am very impressed with this spotting scope. I was able to focus at all ranges after getting used to the controls and pick out all sorts of neat features on birds--like the ruffling of their feathers and colors of their beeks--at distances from 100-275 yards. I was also able to read the fine print on a buoy at 100 yards and 200 yards (eg. "no docking allowed Civic Code #14 blah blah") probably in about a quarter inch tall font. Purple fringing was still painfully prevalent on the high-contrast silhouette of certain birds, such as a bright white Grand Egress at 225 yards against the dark mud he was hunting on. Same thing with the edges of roofs. Also there was heavy mirage at the estuary today that made spotting past 300-400 yards difficult. At 700-1000 yards it was as if you looked at a picture that had a Photoshop ripple effect applied to it.

However later in the day I went to a second lake and the atmospheric conditions were much improved and I was able to read a license plate on a truck at 415 yards! I confirmed this distance with the GPS distance app on my phone. I had no idea how much the atmosphere could cloud or brighten up your image.

So far with the improved tripod I am happy with this setup so I think I am going to stick with it. I've got another 45 days thanks to Midwayusa's return policy to evaluate it in the field on targets. I think that if I can see .223 holes at 100-150 yards on paper and 6.5mm holes on a shoot-n-c target at 400 yards I will be happy. Also hearing that this gets me 90% of the performance of the big boys is reassuring and makes a delay in the F1 purchase worth the wait.

Out of curiosity, does anyone have an F1 and a Konus? I'm interested to see how much more detail you can pick out from the spotter's 100mm glass @ 20-60X compared to the F1's much better 50mm glass at 15X.