Looking for some feedback from those experienced with car window mounts. I have a Meopta MeoStar S2 (angled) which has a clamp that allows rotation of the body. I’ve rigged it up and it can be used with a car mount, but to me positioning appears a bit more limited than with a straight scope. It is also quite a big beast for a window mount. So, it may just be a convenient reason to buy another spotter, but that works too. There are several national wildlife refuges with huge driving loops which are my targeted use. Bird ID of distant waders and shorebirds as well as some digiscoping. Any ideas or suggestions are most welcome.
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Straight vs Angled for Car Window Mount (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter AlphaFan
- Start date
There are a lot of small spotting scopes (65mm and under as travel scopes even work well) you can buy for car windows but yes, a 80mm is just too large.
A straight spotter would work best too. I have tried several spotting scopes and surprisingly found an old pentax worked well, ....the Opticron travel scope is an option...an of course just about any 65.
While you can just rest the spotter on top of the window you might want to have some clamp holding it in place. I have tried rolling the window down all the way but then you are too high and it is uncomfortable for viewing. Best of luck as I am sure others have ideas on this too, jim
A straight spotter would work best too. I have tried several spotting scopes and surprisingly found an old pentax worked well, ....the Opticron travel scope is an option...an of course just about any 65.
While you can just rest the spotter on top of the window you might want to have some clamp holding it in place. I have tried rolling the window down all the way but then you are too high and it is uncomfortable for viewing. Best of luck as I am sure others have ideas on this too, jim
Thanks Jim,
I should have also said up front that I just received this Vanguard Window Mount as a Christmas gift, so I was looking to put it to good use.
I should have also said up front that I just received this Vanguard Window Mount as a Christmas gift, so I was looking to put it to good use.
Should be universal! jim
Hermann
Well-known member
I normally only use angled scopes. However, in the car I also prefer straight scopes, so I got myself a straight Nikon EDIII when I found one at the right price. Works nicely. I don't use a window mount though, I prefer a decent monopod with a ball head.
Hermann
How do you work the monopod in hermann? Just sit in drivers seat and have it snugged in between seat and door? .... I guess I can visualize that working. Hey, the Nikon EDIII is a great option!
Hermann
Well-known member
Yes. Not quite as stable as a car window mount but a lot more flexible. For instance, if something turns up on the passenger side of the car, I can easily switch to that side. I use monopods with a foot (like the Monostat, www.monostat.de), I find they work very well.
Yes, it is. And since I have been using angled Nikon fieldscopes for many years I've got a nice collection of eyepieces. So when I could get a new straight EDIII it was a no-brainer ...
Hermann
Thanks for the inputs. I’m slowly coming to the realization that a straight spotter will work better with the window mount. Now the big question is = which is a better option: (1) since I have multiple eyepieces for my Meopta Meostar S2, should I just buy another straight body; or (2) buy another straight bodied spotter like Nikon Monarch Fieldscope ED82-S or some similar option.
If I went with other than a straight S2 body, I would really like to get something with close to the same level of optical performance, maybe just a bit smaller/lighter. Anyone familiar with both or these scopes or maybe another option?
If I went with other than a straight S2 body, I would really like to get something with close to the same level of optical performance, maybe just a bit smaller/lighter. Anyone familiar with both or these scopes or maybe another option?
That sounds like a big financial outlay for something similar, which is only going to find limited use.
A Zeiss Dialyt 18-45x65 or Swarovski CTC 30x75 would involve a small compromise in optical quality but might find wider applications.
John
A new Meostar body would be cheaper than a full scope and eyepiece of similar quality from another brand, but it does seem extravagant. How about getting a cheap and light scope like a Kowa TSN-502?
Alexis Powell
Natural history enthusiast
Although I own optically superior options, when I'm doing long auto loops at refuges, I usually use binoculars and keep a Nikon Fieldscope 60 straight with 20x eyepiece (regularly available used for under $180) at the ready on a simple window mount. That works for almost everything, and when it doesn't, I usually want a much better view than any scope will provide on a window mount, in which case I stop, get out of my car, open the hatch, and pull out a bigger fancy scope with fancy eyepieces already mounted on an already fully extended tripod.
On occasion, when birding in the same situation but with very high winds and when I have no passenger, I will set up my big scope on its partially collapsed tripod inside the car so that it is essentially in the front passenger position and can be used to view out the rolled down passenger side window (You just have to be good at making u-turns on top of levee roads if you need to see the other direction!). Another option in my Honda Fit is to fold the back seats flat and set up the scope in the rear passenger compartment. In that case, I squeeze like an astronaut from the drivers position to the back when I need to view, with the advantage that I can look out any open window to either side.
--AP
On occasion, when birding in the same situation but with very high winds and when I have no passenger, I will set up my big scope on its partially collapsed tripod inside the car so that it is essentially in the front passenger position and can be used to view out the rolled down passenger side window (You just have to be good at making u-turns on top of levee roads if you need to see the other direction!). Another option in my Honda Fit is to fold the back seats flat and set up the scope in the rear passenger compartment. In that case, I squeeze like an astronaut from the drivers position to the back when I need to view, with the advantage that I can look out any open window to either side.
--AP
