Opinions on HR 80 GA ED please (1 Viewer)

MikeEvans · Nov 4, 2005

Hi folks,

I'm soon to invest in my first spotting scope, and am considering the 45 degree Opticron HR 80 GA ED with the SDL zoom eyepiece. Obviously I'll want to try one out first, but I was wondering if anyone here has any experience of this model they would care to share - I can't seem to find any reviews on the web.

Cheers!

markho · Nov 4, 2005

I have the ES80GA ED 45 angled with the SDL 20x60 zoom lens and can't fault it. I used to have an Imagic 65 and the difference is huge I also use it for digiscoping and have no problems with it. I don't know how it compares to the HR but its not a bad scope.

jackied · Nov 4, 2005

I also have the ES80GA with 20-60mm HDF eyepiece, the only fault I can find with the Scope is weight. It is a big, long and heavy scope, but optically superb.
Jackie

markho · Nov 4, 2005

Yes I agree about the weight problem that is a factor especially when you have to carry the tripod etc. But the better quality images are worth it and if you go to a reserve with plenty of hides then I always leave the tripod behind and just use the clamp.

Geoff Brown · Nov 6, 2005

markho said:
I have the ES80GA ED 45 angled with the SDL 20x60 zoom lens and can't fault it. I used to have an Imagic 65 and the difference is huge I also use it for digiscoping and have no problems with it. I don't know how it compares to the HR but its not a bad scope.

I have the same scope as Marko and agree with everything he says about it. It's a fine scope for the money.

poledark · Feb 1, 2006

Hi, further to the above comments, would you care to comment on the choice of the ES80GAED/45 with the DTL eyepiece (12.5X )

I have a "tube" type attachment for my Olympus C3000z camera (3x optical) which looks as if it will simply slide on to the DTL lens. If not, I can make a different size tube to suit.

Is it simply a case of fitting the camera, zooming out, and getting good pics ? (subject to all the usual problems

)

Den

Ruby · Feb 2, 2006

Hi Den,

I use the 20-60HDF eyepiece for digi-scoping, but it's pretty much useless at anything other than 20x (but perfectly fine at that mag...)

I don't have any experience of the DTL lens, but imagine that it will let quite a bit of light through (which is obviously a very good thing!) but that you would have to be pretty close to your birds to get a nice, screen-filling image if it's fixed at 12.5x....

As it is, at 20x, I would ideally like to be no more than 10m or so from a sparrow-sized bird, and my camera is usually at 4x....

Sounds like you've already got all this stuff - best bet might be to just have a go....

Ruby

poledark · Feb 2, 2006

Thanks Ruby, I have the camera and home made adaptor (made to fit a cheap scope) but nothing else.

I do also have a Nikon 8800 with 10x optical zoom and bought a "cheap" 3x converter which is almost totally useless, the images very fuzzy.

The Nikon does produce quite good images with 2x digital (giving me 20x magnification) so I am not looking for huge magnifications, but will be using the Olympus with only 3x zoom.

I think I will go for the 20-60 eyepiece...
Den

scampo · Feb 2, 2006

MikeEvans said:
Hi folks,

I'm soon to invest in my first spotting scope, and am considering the 45 degree Opticron HR 80 GA ED with the SDL zoom eyepiece. Obviously I'll want to try one out first, but I was wondering if anyone here has any experience of this model they would care to share - I can't seem to find any reviews on the web.

Cheers!

I think that Warehouse Express currently has the new Nikon ED82 with 30xW for a very good price indeed (and, I think, the straight Zeiss 85). It is a much better scope than the otherwise fine, but similarly priced, Opticron.

pduxon · Feb 2, 2006

scampo said:
I think that Warehouse Express currently has the new Nikon ED82 with 30xW for a very good price indeed (and, I think, the straight Zeiss 85). It is a much better scope than the otherwise fine, but similarly priced, Opticron.

the Nikon is with the old style fold down eye cups. and yes the Zeiss is available as well.

both scopes are straights.

Curiously I've seen little about the HR80ED. the HR66ED was a super little scope .

scampo · Feb 2, 2006

pduxon said:
the Nikon is with the old style fold down eye cups. and yes the Zeiss is available as well.

both scopes are straights.

Curiously I've seen little about the HR80ED. the HR66ED was a super little scope .

The old style is still a top eyepiece so no worries there. Quite a few have them here, I think and have commented favourably.

Henry B · Feb 2, 2006

Is their any info on the HR scope, for Mike.

Bernard the cat · Feb 12, 2006

Opticron ES 80 GA ED/45 deg

MikeEvans said:
Hi folks,

I'm soon to invest in my first spotting scope, and am considering the 45 degree Opticron HR 80 GA ED with the SDL zoom eyepiece. Obviously I'll want to try one out first, but I was wondering if anyone here has any experience of this model they would care to share - I can't seem to find any reviews on the web.

Cheers!

Assuming you are talking about the Opticron ES 80 GA ED/45 deg fieldscope, then I can advise you of the following: I bought one a few weeks ago, having upgraded from a Nikon 80A spotting scope with a 20-60 zoom lens. I admit that I am not hugely experienced in birding, but maybe that is good because it means I may be devoid of some of the snobbery that seems to imply that to be good, a scope must be a Swarovski one that costs at least £900! Although I've only used my new Opticron scope a handful of times, I think it is EXCELLENT, & am completely happy with it. The image is (to my eyes at least) perfect, the scope weighs hardly anything, & the 20-60 zoom lens is amazing, even when you zoom right in. I also think the scope is really good value for money when you consider that it costs less than £500!!

A word of acution on the zoom lens though: I was going to buy the SDL 20-60 zoom lens, though I thought I should check between this and the HDF first. I phoned Opticron & they were really helpful - they basically said that unless I wore glasses (which I don't), I'd be better off getting the HDF 20-60 zoom; this shows that Opticron also provide good customer service, as they could have made another £50 or so out of me by advising me to buy the SDL (I bought the lens girect from them).

If I have any complaint about the scope it's that, when fitted with the stay on case, it can be a little awkward to access the focus wheel as its located under a velcro 'pouch'. This is however only a very very tiny gripe, & in no way detracts from what I think is a really good purchase.

Andy Fallan

scampo · Feb 12, 2006

ocelot said:
Assuming you are talking about the Opticron ES 80 GA ED/45 deg fieldscope, then I can advise you of the following: I bought one a few weeks ago, having upgraded from a Nikon 80A spotting scope with a 20-60 zoom lens. I admit that I am not hugely experienced in birding, but maybe that is good because it means I may be devoid of some of the snobbery that seems to imply that to be good, a scope must be a Swarovski one that costs at least £900! Although I've only used my new Opticron scope a handful of times, I think it is EXCELLENT, & am completely happy with it. The image is (to my eyes at least) perfect, the scope weighs hardly anything, & the 20-60 zoom lens is amazing, even when you zoom right in. I also think the scope is really good value for money when you consider that it costs less than £500!!

A word of acution on the zoom lens though: I was going to buy the SDL 20-60 zoom lens, though I thought I should check between this and the HDF first. I phoned Opticron & they were really helpful - they basically said that unless I wore glasses (which I don't), I'd be better off getting the HDF 20-60 zoom; this shows that Opticron also provide good customer service, as they could have made another £50 or so out of me by advising me to buy the SDL (I bought the lens girect from them).

If I have any complaint about the scope it's that, when fitted with the stay on case, it can be a little awkward to access the focus wheel as its located under a velcro 'pouch'. This is however only a very very tiny gripe, & in no way detracts from what I think is a really good purchase.

Andy Fallan

Swaros are, I think, now £1400+ which makes the Opticron even more of a bargain. It's just that at present there are some amazing deals on Zeiss and Nikon around. Still - if you got the ED version with zoom for less than £500-00, you can't complain.

Henry B · Feb 12, 2006

Andy, you are quite right about the SDL zoom,I tried it ,but could not find any improvement over the HDF. I returned it to suppliers for a refund.

Paul Jarvis · Feb 13, 2006

I also agree with Andy's comments about the prices of the top scopes because I can't see a 800 quid diffence in the image over the opticron compared to the likes of swaro.

scampo · Feb 13, 2006

Paul Jarvis said:
I also agree with Andy's comments about the prices of the top scopes because I can't see a 800 quid diffence in the image over the opticron compared to the likes of swaro.

But aren't there other top makes, too - and they are not, as has been suggested, £800-00 more expensive?

But - and despite what South-West Optics say in their ad, I do not think that you can truly compare the Opticron with the Swaro, nor for that matter with the Zeiss, Leica or Nikon.

I bought the Opticron ES80 before my Zeiss and it was unquestionably a good piece of kit but... I went through two scope bodies and three eyepieces with micro bubbles and other internal marks in them before finally giving up. Now I use the Zeiss 85 and, for the price Warehouse Express currently ask for that scope (or the Nikon) there is surely nothing to compare.

The more expensive scopes do genuinely offer a more "3D" image in terms of contrast and solidity. Well, that's my experience.

level seven · Feb 13, 2006

Paul Jarvis said:
I also agree with Andy's comments about the prices of the top scopes because I can't see a 800 quid diffence in the image over the opticron compared to the likes of swaro.

I've got the Opticron scope with a 32x HDF lens. On a recent trip I had the chance to compare it with a Leica 77 with a similar mag eyepiece.

I thought the Leica's colours were slightly more neutral, the image marginally more contrasty (and just a bit brighter under poor conditions), but the resolution of detail for both was hard to separate.

Yes, the Leica was a better scope, as it should be at about twice the price, but I'm not fretting as the difference was small and I'm still more than satisfied with mine.

Paul Jarvis · Feb 13, 2006

Just thinking back to the bird fare when I spoke to the opticron guys, from what I can remember the HR scope is an older design but produces a better image. But the difference is very slight though, hence why most folk save they're money and opt for the ES80 which is better value for the money.

scampo · Feb 13, 2006

Paul Jarvis said:
Just thinking back to the bird fare when I spoke to the opticron guys, from what I can remember the HR scope is an older design but produces a better image. But the difference is very slight though, hence why most folk save they're money and opt for the ES80 which is better value for the money.

If I remember, the HR weighed in at twice the weight, too (and twice the price?).

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