Which Swaro spotter would you choose and why?
- Thread starter RTH1800
- Start date
What is your intended use? Please elaborate or give us a call, 516-217-1000, to discuss what would be best for you
Have a great day
Doug
Have a great day
Doug
I chose the Swaro SLC HD 15x56. My purposes: 90% spotting at matches using a tripod and 10% scenery viewing/travel.
Cost no object, stationary spotting all day from a single position... BTX 95
Cost no object, need for maximum resolution at farthest distance, slightly more packable... ATX 95
Practical use, carry it everywhere, more affordable. SLC HD 15x56.
I have a very nice spotter, on par with Swaro glass, almost never use it and use the SLC's regularly. Was spotting for a friend shooting 6x47 at 1300 yards yesterday with them.
Cost no object, need for maximum resolution at farthest distance, slightly more packable... ATX 95
Practical use, carry it everywhere, more affordable. SLC HD 15x56.
I have a very nice spotter, on par with Swaro glass, almost never use it and use the SLC's regularly. Was spotting for a friend shooting 6x47 at 1300 yards yesterday with them.
The absolute cream of the crop is the BTX 95MM. I have used one for the last year in ELR competitions and hunting .... it’s above and beyond my expectations.
Expensive ... yes. Heavy ... yes. Is it worth it .... most definitely.
Good luck and great shooting.
Chris Schmidt
Tennessee
Expensive ... yes. Heavy ... yes. Is it worth it .... most definitely.
Good luck and great shooting.
Chris Schmidt
Tennessee
I have a Swarovski STS 65 HD stright and I wish I would have bought the angled one. Getting it a little closer to the ground really helps in the windy condetions.
The ATS/STS 65 is a great compromise. Its size and weight makes it quite nice to pack. At the same time it is one of the few 65mm spotters that actually looks great at 50-60x, as long as the light is good (daytime). It really doesn't give up much to the Swaro 80/85mm spotters under good viewing conditions. The darker it gets the more the larger objectives shine. The price is better than the ATX 65 too. That being said, for pure viewing pleasure, nothing comes even close to the BTX 95. It is fantastic, almost unbelievably good.
I have a CT75 and really like it. Main use is hunting, and the ability to use it without a tripod is very handy. Weight is good, and optics the usual Swaro quality.
I'd probably prefer an angled unit for mainly range work, but for what I do the draw tube is awesome.
I'd probably prefer an angled unit for mainly range work, but for what I do the draw tube is awesome.
Kowa is excellent, no question about it. I have owned several and for a lightweight high country backpacking spotter the 554/553 series has no peer. I have the straight TSN554.
But when it comes to pure performance and finding my quarry, nothing and I mean nothing at all comes close to the BTX95. The pictures below are a direct result of the unique qualities of glassing with the BTX95.
Try staying on the glass all day with a traditional spotting scope. One eyeball or even switching back and forth just doesn’t cut it. I can stay on the BTX literally all day without fatigue.
I have the doubler for getting in closer if necessary butt normally just run the 35X.
A great example this year was taking a buddy out for late season elk this last season in an area he believed would be productive. Very cold, very windy. Lots of snow and nothing was moving at alL. After a few hours he asked me where I thought the bachelor bulls would be hanging out. I pointed to a timbered bowl a little over 9 miles away (GPS) - the bowl was deep enough to have the requisite all day shade that elk desire with very difficult human access.
I swung the BTX95 into that bowl and within 2 minutes I found a mature bull laying at he base of a large Fir in the midst of large boulders. Two hours later of non-stop glassing and my count was up to 7 mature bulls, a few 5x5’s, 2 rag horns and a spike. Yes, 35X with excellent glass and two eye viewing I could see that kind of detail.
Exceptional clarity and time on glass trumps magnification everytime.
I have owned or do own top shelf Zeiss, Leica, Vortex, Kowa, Bausch & Lomb, all excellent but not even close to producing the results I have with the BTX 95.
But when it comes to pure performance and finding my quarry, nothing and I mean nothing at all comes close to the BTX95. The pictures below are a direct result of the unique qualities of glassing with the BTX95.
Try staying on the glass all day with a traditional spotting scope. One eyeball or even switching back and forth just doesn’t cut it. I can stay on the BTX literally all day without fatigue.
I have the doubler for getting in closer if necessary butt normally just run the 35X.
A great example this year was taking a buddy out for late season elk this last season in an area he believed would be productive. Very cold, very windy. Lots of snow and nothing was moving at alL. After a few hours he asked me where I thought the bachelor bulls would be hanging out. I pointed to a timbered bowl a little over 9 miles away (GPS) - the bowl was deep enough to have the requisite all day shade that elk desire with very difficult human access.
I swung the BTX95 into that bowl and within 2 minutes I found a mature bull laying at he base of a large Fir in the midst of large boulders. Two hours later of non-stop glassing and my count was up to 7 mature bulls, a few 5x5’s, 2 rag horns and a spike. Yes, 35X with excellent glass and two eye viewing I could see that kind of detail.
Exceptional clarity and time on glass trumps magnification everytime.
I have owned or do own top shelf Zeiss, Leica, Vortex, Kowa, Bausch & Lomb, all excellent but not even close to producing the results I have with the BTX 95.
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I picked up an STR 80 w/ Mrad reticle from Doug and love it. Best part is that you can turn the reticle off.
Detroit is that the RRS Cinema rail you are using for the spotter and LRF? Looking for the same type of setup, need to run a swaro 95 and the Sig 2400 on the same tripod. I was looking at the RRS MPR but its only 192mm in length. Yours looks longer than that.
I have the STR80 with MOA reticle. Very nice for practically anything, but slightly heavy. Mostly use it on the range for calling shots. It is absolutely amazing with the camera adaptor. Trying to attach an iPhone video. If you can view the frame by frame you can actually see the bullet in the air heading to our 600 yard golf ball. If money weren’t an option - I’d probably also have an STR 65 - just to make the packability better. No complaints on the STR.
What is the intended use? There are a lot of great options out there, but knowing if it’s for PRS, ELR, hunting, backcountry, etc would help. It’s kinda like asking what is the best caliber. Different models for different applications.
- Apr 17, 2019
- 139
- 91
The ATX/STX system is certainly amazing, optically and functionally. I'm 6'3 so I tend to prefer angled spotting scopes in general but besides just angled versus straight, the power you need gunna come from your mission. I'd say for birding (usually) and use in dense environments, the 65 is the way to go. For stalking game at long range or viewing in wide open spaces, the 95 is a thing of optical marvel. The 85 sort of blends the two, but I tend to recommend at least considering going with either the 65 or 95 first and later on down the road getting the other one.
