I’m looking at getting a high quality pair of binoculars or spotting scope I mostly shoot nrl22 and would like to shoot nrl22x this year and centerfire out to 600yards both steel and paper. My question is would a pair of 15x binos either swaros or meopta cover this just fine or a spotting scope mostly looking at mk4 style 12-40 with reticle. I want to be able to use it for nrl22 matches. If you had to choose what would be your preference. I plan on eventually owning both but the budget will not allow but one at a time. Also I like to mention I do not have a decent pair of binos in 8-10x range so if a pair 10x42 would be better I could consider getting that first. I don’t mind spending money on quality so I don’t feel like I have to upgrade later on.
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You can always go to a match without glass and ask to look through them. Almost no one will say no and you can ask if they'd make the same purchase. That's how I made my choice.
My opinion, binos 100%.
You say matches, so I'll assume impacts on steel and not looking for holes in paper at 600 and out. For this purpose, binos are better in every way (field of view, eye strain, watching trace, etc). At the local 22 match most of us have binos and I've heard one of the guys with a spotter wish it was binos. At local centerfire (PRS style) matches I don't think I've ever seen a spotter.
I've got Zeiss 15x binos and they are great, Swaros are barely (?) an improvement (again just my opinion) but quite the upcharge. Bushnell Forges are decent if you're looking for a little lower budget.
You say matches, so I'll assume impacts on steel and not looking for holes in paper at 600 and out. For this purpose, binos are better in every way (field of view, eye strain, watching trace, etc). At the local 22 match most of us have binos and I've heard one of the guys with a spotter wish it was binos. At local centerfire (PRS style) matches I don't think I've ever seen a spotter.
I've got Zeiss 15x binos and they are great, Swaros are barely (?) an improvement (again just my opinion) but quite the upcharge. Bushnell Forges are decent if you're looking for a little lower budget.
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I agree with the above.
Bino’s 100%
Really, anything 10x or above from the normal companies you see recommended will be good.
I use an old par of Leupold’s that are 10x and have no issues seeing trace or impacts out to 1,000. If I’m shooting groups at 300 and beyond I walk to the target.
Bino’s 100%
Really, anything 10x or above from the normal companies you see recommended will be good.
I use an old par of Leupold’s that are 10x and have no issues seeing trace or impacts out to 1,000. If I’m shooting groups at 300 and beyond I walk to the target.
The Riton 10x42 has worked great for me. I also have Athlon Cronos 15x56 set and everyone who looks through them at matches, like the Riton more
I bought the Meopta 15X binos from Doug on his recommendation. I was prepared to buy the Swaros at 35% greater cost, but don't feel I'm losing much with the Meoptas.
Having said that, I still occasionally use my Leupold spotter just because it is so compact and ideally suited for my needs.
Having said that, I still occasionally use my Leupold spotter just because it is so compact and ideally suited for my needs.
I personally get headaches from looking though spotters. Never have with binos. X15 on a tripod for the win.
mine is a more budget minded set up but i am in your boat in regards to NRL22 style matches.
i have a pair of vortex vulture 15x on a pig-0311 tripod. they are more than capable at a fraction of the cost of the higher end.
i also looked at the bushnell forge 15x and the athlon cronus 15x. they are awesome too but i ended up winning a 50% of Vortex Cert so i got the Vultures
i have a pair of vortex vulture 15x on a pig-0311 tripod. they are more than capable at a fraction of the cost of the higher end.
i also looked at the bushnell forge 15x and the athlon cronus 15x. they are awesome too but i ended up winning a 50% of Vortex Cert so i got the Vultures
At almost any price point, I think you can find a 12x50 that gets you more clarity in glass than a 15x. I would rather have a clear 12x than magnification of 15x. Lots of people spot with 10x, so 12 is the happy medium in my mind.
As good as Swaro 15x slc are, the 12x EL are so much better, and cost more. If you have SLC money, get them. But, don't count out lower magnification glass if on a budget.
If on a budget, I would buy used Razor HD 12x50 binos if I could.
When it comes to seeing mirage, which is really just a disturbance in the light, having clear glass allows you to see it. There is a huge difference in ability to see mirage and other details out to 1000, with good enough glass and awesome glass.
That is why I buy clarity over magnification once I get enough magnification.
As good as Swaro 15x slc are, the 12x EL are so much better, and cost more. If you have SLC money, get them. But, don't count out lower magnification glass if on a budget.
If on a budget, I would buy used Razor HD 12x50 binos if I could.
When it comes to seeing mirage, which is really just a disturbance in the light, having clear glass allows you to see it. There is a huge difference in ability to see mirage and other details out to 1000, with good enough glass and awesome glass.
That is why I buy clarity over magnification once I get enough magnification.
I was recently debating the same thing. Ended up going with binos and I’m happy I did. I’m happy with the clarity and magnification. Easily picking up trace in the right situation and seeing mirage was a breeze. Was able to see hits (it was difficult) out to 1150 yards with heavy mirage this past weekend. I haven’t looked through a spotter for extended periods of time but with binos I’ve had no problems with eye fatigue.
What binos did you end up going with?
I'm a dealer for Athlon, and had wished for quite awhile that they'd bring out a good pair of 15x56 binos. OTOH, I've had a pair of Leupold Golden Ring 8x42 HD binos for several years, and have been very impressed with them. So when Leupold brought out their BX-5 15x56 binos, I thought seriously about getting a pair. However, I had no way to compare them to the Swaro SLCs, so I just sat on my hands for a couple of years, using either my Kowa 661 or Celestron Regal M2 20-60x80 spotters. Then a couple of years ago, Leupold announced a MSRP drop of I believe $200 on the BX-5s, so together with a bunch of Cabela's Club points, I got into a pair of the Leupolds for around $800. I've been nothing but satisfied with these glasses, though I'd still kind of like to do a side-by-side comparison with a pair of Swaro SLCs, just to find out if my 68yr old eyes can tell the difference. Whatever - when Athlon announced their Cronus 15x56 binos a year or so ago, I was really curious about how they'd compare to my Leupolds, so last winter, in anticipation of displaying at a few winter gun shows, I ordered in a pair to first compare to the BX-5s, and hopefully to sell after I'd satisfied my curiosity. I really didn't expect the Cronus binos to be as good as the BX-5s, but honestly, they're pretty close. For the price, I think most shooters would be pretty satisfied while using them in place of a spotter. Still haven't sold them, but since I took them to a 500/600yd practical rifle match last weekend, they qualify as a demo set, so MAP doesn't really apply. I'm going to keep on taking them to local matches and maybe someone will decide to take them home with them after a match...
I’ll play devils advocate and say unless your engaging multiple targets quickly I prefer a spotting scope.
I think where people go way wrong with a spotter is too much magnification. Many have upwards of 45x which is t needed and doesn’t work well.
my go to spotter is the Celestron M2 regal. For the money it is very hard to beet with solid ED glass and it has the advantage of 1.25” eyepieces. This is the standard size for most telescopes.
I run the long eye relief eyepiece it gives my 32mm of eyerelife which is about double that of the 15x swaro. Binos.
Set up behind it even with glasses on the image is huge like looking at a screen.
FOV is like 135’ which is definitely less than binos but for most things is more than enough.
I think where people go way wrong with a spotter is too much magnification. Many have upwards of 45x which is t needed and doesn’t work well.
my go to spotter is the Celestron M2 regal. For the money it is very hard to beet with solid ED glass and it has the advantage of 1.25” eyepieces. This is the standard size for most telescopes.
I run the long eye relief eyepiece it gives my 32mm of eyerelife which is about double that of the 15x swaro. Binos.
Set up behind it even with glasses on the image is huge like looking at a screen.
FOV is like 135’ which is definitely less than binos but for most things is more than enough.
for 22LR matches ive learned that Swaro 15x56 are just perfect and for centerfire matches, I use my pig of a BTX...yes, i know its an expensive set up, but darn well worth every penny
I just picked up a Kowa 664m at great price used. I will be saving up now for either the slc or meopta 15’s. Due to Covid and pregnant wife I haven’t made it to many matches lately but hopefully I will have a nice set of binos when I do start going again.
Now that you have had your 18x Binos for a bit, would you stay with 18x or drop back to 12x?
I run Leica Geovid 10x42 in PRS and do just fine.
18x is nice but I think some extra FOV would be helpful. I guess it depends on what you want to use them for, however I would almost lean towards less magnification and a bigger field of view.
Mostly they would be used for PRS. Your response is the exact reason I’m stuck on what way to go. Lol
Interesting thread. Just getting into some longer range shooting and considering the Vortex Fury HD 5000 as a do-it-all one solution to needing both a rangefinder and a set of bino's for spotting.
I would look into some 15x meopta meostars, I don’t know the model but they have a new version and from what I’ve read they are nice binos. Should be around the price of UHD binos. I feel like 15x is a good spot.
I just picked up a set of the new meopta Meostar B1 plus 15x binos. They worked excellent spotting this weekend
If interested I’m selling my Zeiss Victory Diascope T* FL 65mm spotter with a fixed 30x Wide Angle eyepiece in the Optics PX here. Amazing glass that is perfect for the range, matches, or for hunting...
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