Re: Which spotting scope to get
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: GUNENTHUSIAST</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Thanks for all the input and good information! I found a really good deal on a used USO here on the hide so I will give that a try. I love my USO scopes! If its not enough magnification or isn't quite clear enough i will sell it and give the vortex a try.
Thanks to snyper for a perfect transaction! </div></div>
From reading your thread-starter post you seemed to have already decided between a Leupold 12-40X[60mm] and a USO Field Scope so I wasn't going to post here. However, if you find that you want more magnification and/or the USO's clarity isn't good enough for you and you then consider a Vortex Razor I highly recommend that you look into <span style="font-style: italic">(pun intended)</span> an Optolyth Compact. Optolyth Compacts are available in "straight" and "angled" models, as well as in HD and non-HD.
Optolyth isn't very well known in the U.S. and doesn't have the name recognition of Zeiss, Hensoldt, Swarovski, Leupold, or Kowa, but their optics are outstanding. In photographic and medical fields Optolyth lenses are considered to be on par with Zeiss (considered to be "the best"). Also, Optolyth is a smaller German company, so if you are hung-up on buying an "American" product you probably won't buy one, regardless of how good the optics are. You can read my in-depth comparison of my Optolyth S80 HD Compact and my Zeiss Diascope 65T FL in my <span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="font-style: italic">"
Optolyth S80 HD Compact Spotting Scope"</span></span> thread.
That said, if you don't mind buying a German-made product look at the HD versions of the Optolyth S80 Compact (Angled) or the Optolyth G80 Compact (Straight). You can get a 20-60X Variable Eyepiece as well as a 30X Wide Angle Fixed Eyepiece with a ROTATING MIL Reticle. The reticle can be rotated <span style="font-style: italic">independently of the Eyepiece</span> 360 degrees, which allows you to orient the reticle to be parallel with the horizon, the target, or anything else <span style="font-style: italic">even if you rotate the scope within it's Collar</span>. Without the ability to rotate the reticle within the Eyepiece to maintain correct orientation to the target area, the reticle will be canted in relationship to the horizon (and usually the target).
Because the selection of spotting scopes that are available with reticles isn't very big, the shortcoming of non-rotating reticles is most often overlooked. However, once you set up the spotter and rotate it off of a 12:00 orientation the advantage of a rotating reticle becomes very apparent.
Normally, when an Eyepiece with a reticle is used on a spotting scope the scope must be positioned within it's mount and/or collar in manner that allows the reticle to still be oriented "square" with the target, allowing the target to be measured accurately and to allow accurate correction calls by an individual "spotting" for a shooter. Without the ability to compensate for a spotting scope's cant when placed on uneven ground and/or when the scope is rotated within it's collar, the reticle will often be skewed in relation to the target area.
However, if the reticle can be rotated within the Eyepiece itself (such as with the Optolyth MIL Eyepieces), the reticle can always be oriented to be square in relation to the target and/or landscape. This is highly desirable on a "straight" spotting scope, but indispensable for an angled spotting scope because the Eyepiece is at a 45-degree angle in relation to the Scope Body.
For illustrative purposes below are some photos of my Optolyth S80 (Angled) HD Compact spotting scope. In the photos below the (45-degree angled) spotting scope has been rotated in it's Collar approximately 45-degrees to the Right. This would normally cause the reticle to sit at a 45-degree angle in relation to the target area. However, the reticle in the Eyepiece on the scope has been rotated 45-degrees to the Left to keep the reticle perfectly aligned with the target area. The through-the-scope photo was shot hand-held in fading light, 90+ degree heat, and over a freeway, so there is a bit of mirage, crappy air, and camera shake that muddies the image a bit.
<span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="font-style: italic">Gitzo GT1550T Traveller + G2285MB Adapter and Optolyth S80 HD Compact w/30X WA MIL Reticle Eyepiece. Here the scope is set-up to the Left of the shooter/spotter.
The spotting scope has been rotated to the Right within it's Collar, while the Eyepiece's Reticle has been rotated to the Left to remain "square" with the target area:</span></span>
<span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="font-style: italic">Through-the-scope photo of Optolyth 30X Wide Angle MIL Reticle Eyepiece. The "+" at -5 MILs' Elevation is at 1,032 yards:</span></span>
<span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="font-style: italic">Crappy, off-center, through-the-scope photo of the Optolyth MIL-based "Ranging" Reticle:</span></span>
Keith