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Done with Viper HD - current best scopes for under $1000 (1 Viewer)

Others have been recommending the recently discontinued Nikon Fieldscope III (a 60 mm scope), but the discontinued 82ED version has also sold for under $1000 regularly for the past 6 months. Remaining stock may be dwindling, but I'll bet there are a few still out there.

--AP
 
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FrankD said:
Waterwagen,

...

Hope this helps in your decision making.
Click to expand...
Thank you very, very much. That is immensely helpful.

When I lived back in Virginia and primarily used my scope for hawkwatching and viewing waterfowl on small lakes, the smaller Pentax probably would have been perfect for me. Now that I live in Utah and do a lot of shorebirding and gulling, sometimes on the Great Salt Lake, with much bigger distances, I'm thinking I need something that handles higher powers. On the other hand, I'm a birder that loves to carry his scope with him on long hikes, and the weight of the combination of the Manfrotto tripod and big Viper HD got wearing at times. Tough choice for me.

Any thoughts on how high of a power the small Pentax can handle? Do you think it could handle the XW14 eyepiece as well as the XW20 you had? I think I would need the higher power.
 
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Alexis Powell said:
Others have been recommending the recently discontinued Nikon Fieldscope III (a 60 mm scope), but the discontinued 82ED version has also sold for under $1000 regularly for the past 6 months. Remaining stock may be dwindling, but I'll bet there are a few still out there.

--AP
Click to expand...
That would certainly seem like the clear best choice if I could find one, as much as that scope is praised.
 
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Waterwegen,

I think it is going to boil down to what you consider acceptable image quality. I do remember using the XW10 in the Pentax 65. I think the focal length of the Pentax 65 is 390 mm. That would give you 39x with the 10 mm. I found the image quality acceptable in one sense but eyeplacement was very critical which meant it was prone to blackouts for me.

From what I remember I think the general consensus was that the original Pentax 65 was good up until about 40x.
 
eddy the eagle said:
My advice is wait. Zeiss may bring out a new Conquest scope in the near future.....Eddy
Click to expand...
This is not a bad idea...Zeiss makes quality products and the Conquest series in Bino's is excellent, so....should be good in terms of a scope too.

You complain of a product with your Viper which is falling apart...well, learn a lesson and don't go with some average brands that look great out of the box and yet cannot stand up to the test of time. Zen ray....Optricron, Vortex etc... All look great out of the box....but as you found out with the Vortex, it doesn't last. So, learn your lesson is my sage....
 
Yeah, umm, I have had my Theron Optics for three years now with zero problems.

And my Sightron binoculars for 2.5 years...same story.

Daily use with both.
 
lmans66 said:
This is not a bad idea...Zeiss makes quality products and the Conquest series in Bino's is excellent, so....should be good in terms of a scope too.

You complain of a product with your Viper which is falling apart...well, learn a lesson and don't go with some average brands that look great out of the box and yet cannot stand up to the test of time. Zen ray....Optricron, Vortex etc... All look great out of the box....but as you found out with the Vortex, it doesn't last. So, learn your lesson is my sage....
Click to expand...
I understand your point, but my Razor binoculars have lasted me 7 years of constant use, including some falls.
 
I know I will take flak for my comment and will get plenty of folks that disagree. But I have lived long enough in life to realize that I am tired of buying a product 2x or more times. Save up, buy the best or near to it, and be satisfied forever. But something a bit cheaper (you pick...lawn mowers or scopes...it all applies) and you end up spending more for the end product as you have to buy 2x.

Case in point....the purpose of this thread, the initial question....
 
lmans66 said:
I know I will take flak for my comment and will get plenty of folks that disagree. But I have lived long enough in life to realize that I am tired of buying a product 2x or more times. Save up, buy the best or near to it, and be satisfied forever. But something a bit cheaper (you pick...lawn mowers or scopes...it all applies) and you end up spending more for the end product as you have to buy 2x.

Case in point....the purpose of this thread, the initial question....
Click to expand...
I'm usually of your mindset, but finances are tight for me currently.

To be clear, the fact that the Viper has to be repaired was really just a catalyst for me to act on the negative feelings I've had about the optics for a while plus my disappointment on using my Spacemaster again and realizing that in some ways it was better than the near $1000 Viper. The scope has a lifetime warranty so Vortex will be fixing it for free - no need for me to pay for another. On that note, the warranty issue does concern me with the Zen-Ray. At this point I have much more confidence that even Vortex will be around in 5 years.
 
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According to their site.....

http://www.zen-ray.com/shop/warranty/

...they have a no fault warranty. Pay $10 and they repair or replace the scope for the lifetime of the product.

To the best of my knowledge, ZR started in 2005 or 2006. I was not aware of them until 2009. The same concerns you are voicing now are what I heard then. The difference is that they are still around and still producing excellent optics. I believe they have also started OEMing as well. Their customer service is excellent. Do a little search in the zen ray binocular sub forum. Charles always provides a satisfactory conclusion to any concern.
 
Interesting, they have been around for a good bit longer then I thought then. I do remember that many of the same concerns were voiced about Vortex when I first bought from them in 2007 and they have been a quality company.

I started looking into buying the Theron Mag82 also but it looks like it's no longer available?

Wondering if anyone thinks I should try to buy a used alpha or sub-alpha (e.g. 82mm fieldscope), if you can even find them on the used market.

Getting close to taking the plunge - may actually get both the Pentax and Zen-Ray so I can return the one I like less.
 
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waterwagen said:
That I will. I'm guessing that would be a hard task though.
Click to expand...
So I found a Fieldscope 82 ED and the body looks like what I expect, but I don't know the history of this scope line and it appears to have a 25-56 zoom, not the 25-75 I expected. The zoom label says 060 20-45x 078 25-56. Anyone have a quick opinion on that eyepiece?
 
This article is pushing me toward following my preference to get a small scope that is easy to carry, as I like to do. Though I may just use the Spacemaster for that, if I can find a replacement eyepiece for it (current one has sand grains in it from some beach birding).

http://www.betterviewdesired.com/How-Much-Scope-Does-A-Birder-Really-Need.php

I suppose I'm rehashing an argument that's probably been discussed ad nauseum, but does anyone find fault with the article? A smaller scope would let me chase the higher end glass a bit more, budget-wise.
 
That is an old article. The Nikon Fieldscope example he was using the old zoom, not the MCII zoom. Top magnification with this zoom is 60x in the 60mm and 75x with the 82mm[78mm] Fieldscopes.

Check with Cory Suddarth, maybe he could work on your eyepiece and you could just use the Spacemaster.
http://suddarthoptical.com/
 
waterwagen said:
Interesting, they have been around for a good bit longer then I thought then. I do remember that many of the same concerns were voiced about Vortex when I first bought from them in 2007 and they have been a quality company.

I started looking into buying the Theron Mag82 also but it looks like it's no longer available?

Wondering if anyone thinks I should try to buy a used alpha or sub-alpha (e.g. 82mm fieldscope), if you can even find them on the used market.

Getting close to taking the plunge - may actually get both the Pentax and Zen-Ray so I can return the one I like less.
Click to expand...

I can confirm your comment about the Theron Mag82. I had a few folks interested in purchasing one after using mine at one of the local waterfowl spots. I contacted them to see if it could be ordered and was told that they were sold out. They didn't have any left in stock and because they weren't a big seller they chose not to order any more.

I would encourage you to order both the Zen Ray and the Pentax and compare. Do it from a place with a good return policy...Camerlandny for example. I believe Doug carries both.

Reading your other comments about size being a concern I think you will be pleasantly surprised with the Zen Ray in particular because it is fairly compact for an 82 mm scope.
 
mooreorless said:
That is an old article. The Nikon Fieldscope example he was using the old zoom, not the MCII zoom. Top magnification with this zoom is 60x in the 60mm and 75x with the 82mm[78mm] Fieldscopes.

Check with Cory Suddarth, maybe he could work on your eyepiece and you could just use the Spacemaster.
http://suddarthoptical.com/
Click to expand...
Nice, thank you. I might just find a new (and better quality) eyepiece, but this looks like a good option too.
 
jayman_1975 said:
You found and ED 82 for sale?
Click to expand...
I found a used 82mm fieldscope for sale. It looks the same but it does have this zoom eyepiece with different specs.

I also found a used Fieldscope ED III, but without an eyepiece. I'll need to research eyepiece availability and pricing.
 
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