Is your cover in the closet? (1 Viewer)

I am soon to be a new digiscoper and am curious what accessories I will need to buy for my scope. (I plan on buying the Zeiss 85mm with zoom eyepiece).

My question is about scope covers/cases. It sounds like the Diascope does not come with any case or cover at all. Zeiss sells a cordura canvas case for $139 USD. Does anyone that buys these actually use it or does it end up in the closet in a couple months? What do you do to protect your scope in between bird walks /photo sessions? Can covers get in the way of camera adapters and such? I never really see covers on scopes out in field. I want to protect my investment once I get it!

Eric Nelson

I just ordered the Zeiss case today, so it'd be here by the time I'm ready to go back out in the field. I've not seen a great number of cases in the field, but then again, I don't see a great number of high-end scopes in the field in my neck of the woods, either. Most of the cats using spotting scopes here are using them on the target range, in which case a hard-shell transport case is more than sufficient ( you DO have a hard-shelled case, don't you? <g>)

My case will stay on the scope as I gingerly lay it in the seat of the car while moving between locations, and then the scope (case and all) will be put back in the hard case until the next outing. It's a cheap price to pay for protecting a not-so-cheap investment...

GR

I think Skua will be supplying a cover soon - drop them an email.

It's a great scope for digiscoping - lots of light to give a good shutter speed and very sharp indeed.

I'm afraid my Skua case which came with the scope,has ended up in the "closet",far too stiff and bulky,and I found it interfered with the adapter.But having said that I did purchase a carry scope pack from Warehouse Express,which provides good strong protection for the scope during transportation and storage.

tenof10 said:

I am soon to be a new digiscoper and am curious what accessories I will need to buy for my scope. (I plan on buying the Zeiss 85mm with zoom eyepiece).

My question is about scope covers/cases. It sounds like the Diascope does not come with any case or cover at all. Zeiss sells a cordura canvas case for $139 USD. Does anyone that buys these actually use it or does it end up in the closet in a couple months? What do you do to protect your scope in between bird walks /photo sessions? Can covers get in the way of camera adapters and such? I never really see covers on scopes out in field. I want to protect my investment once I get it!

Eric Nelson

Click to expand...

I see a lot of high end scopes, especially when I go to the Barnes reserve in London, UK. They are almost always in a stay on case (SOC), the exceptions being the new rubber armoured Swaroski scopes, and one Leica APO 62. I have just bought a Leica APO 77 scope, with SOC, and would not use it without the SOC. It is not padded, much to my surprise, but it does protect the scope from abrasion and scratches. Also it has a shoulder strap that makes carrying easy. I can get the scope off my shoulder and on the tripod ready to use in less than 15 seconds, assuming the tripod legs are already extended.

Most people I see have the manufacturers own SOC. I saw a Zeiss one recently and it looked rather stylish inspite of a huge Zeiss logo. The only advantage of the non-manufacturer case might be that it does not scream "I'm an expensive scope, steal me" quite so loudly.

I have a "stay on case" on my Zeiss 85. And it has the screaming Zeiss logo! I think such a case is essential to prevent my scope from damage as I do handle it a little carelessly. It sure stays on all the time!

Eric,

I also have a Zeiss 85. I purchased a scope cover from Creedmore Sports that fits 85mm scopes and it works great. I leave it on all the time! As others have mentioned, I didn't want to advertise to everyone that I had an expensive scope so I opted for a much cheaper ($50) cover which is brown cordura (and padded). Both ends of the scope zip open and velcro fasteners help keep the cover out of the way while in use.

Jerry

Hi Eric,

On behalf of Admin and the Moderators, welcome to Bird Forum :t:

I favour the SOCs too. Apart from the obvious every day protectionagainst knocks and bumps, they help keep the exterior clean as a whistle. My Kowa had a Skua SOC and it was a perfect fit. I understand the Skua for the new Swaro scopes is not so good.

I'd certainly advise using a SOC, but it's worth checking which is best designed for your particular scope.