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Should I Replace My Nikon 50ED? (1 Viewer)

J

JBT

Well-known member
I just had my beloved 50ED stolen from my vehicle and need to get a new scope. It's been awhile since I got the 50ED and I was wondering if anything new has come out that would be a better replacement. My favorite lens for the 50ED was the 16x wide. I love the wide views I got from this set up. So my new scope needs to have a nice wide view like I got from the 50ED. I was actually thinking on getting the Nikon 82mm w/ the 30x but I'm afraid I'll be disappointed FOV compared to the 50ED. I've heard great things about the 82mm and the 30x but like I said before I love wide views the wider the better. Is there any 80mm or bigger scopes out there that has a wider view than the Nikon 82mm or is this the cream of the crop when it comes to wide views on a bigger scope?

I still have 2 Nikon eye pieces the 13x-40x and the 20x wide so I'd prefer to get another fieldscope but if there's a better scope out there that has a wider view I might consider buying it instead of another Nikon.

Any advise would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Joe
 
My Zeiss 65 has a wider view than the wife's ED50, I can't imagine it would be any narrower using the the Zeiss 85, (but someone is sure to correct me if it is).
 
John P said:
My Zeiss 65 has a wider view than the wife's ED50, I can't imagine it would be any narrower using the the Zeiss 85, (but someone is sure to correct me if it is).
Click to expand...

you're wrong ;) they have a narrower FOV on the 85 than the 65 and more magnification.

also what lens do you have and what does your wife have?

for the original poster I'd get another 50 if you still have those lenses and you were happy with the 50. or get both :D stick the fixed on the 82 and the zoom on the 50
 
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Joe, very sorry to hear about the theft of your ED50. I have the ED82A with 30xw and love it, I don´t find the FOV a problem. It´s a tiny (unnoticeably) bit narrower than the ED50 with the 27xw (which is my ep of choice on that set-up). And you´d be saving on ep´s as you have the zoom and 20x already. Commiserations on the loss of the ED50 again. Best Wishes,
 
I hope I never having anything stolen from me again its a horrible feeling. Thanks for the replies guys. I think I'm leaning toward getting another 50ED. I sure wish Nikon had a wide EP for the 82mm that was between 20x-25x. If they had an EP like that I would get the 82mm in a heartbeat. I had the 27x wide for the 50ED and I didn't like view as much as the 16x or 20x wide.
 
JBT said:
I hope I never having anything stolen from me again its a horrible feeling. Thanks for the replies guys. I think I'm leaning toward getting another 50ED. I sure wish Nikon had a wide EP for the 82mm that was between 20x-25x. If they had an EP like that I would get the 82mm in a heartbeat. I had the 27x wide for the 50ED and I didn't like view as much as the 16x or 20x wide.
Click to expand...
Using a Nikon angled ED82/30X DS eyepiece combination my wife and I regularly acquire and track flying Eagles, Ospreys, Red-tails, Northern Harriers, kiting Kestrels, and Short-eared owls. I rarely see other scopes tracking birds in flight and I'm at a loss to explain it. To us, it's one of the great pleasures of owning a good scope. Last year I had three adult Bald Eagles in my FOV (ED82/50X DS eyepiece) when two of them suddenly locked talons and began a long downward plummet. It was near dusk, I was standing next to other birders, and I was the only one to witness the spectacle.

I'd probably like the ED50 but I love my ED82.

John
 
John Traynor said:
Using a Nikon angled ED82/30X DS eyepiece combination my wife and I regularly acquire and track flying Eagles, Ospreys, Red-tails, Northern Harriers, kiting Kestrels, and Short-eared owls. I rarely see other scopes tracking birds in flight and I'm at a loss to explain it. .........................I'd probably like the ED50 but I love my ED82.

John
Click to expand...

Interestingly, I´ve only ever seen a Hobby once in Ireland (rare here). An assembled group of 4 or 5 birders were watching it with binos, at a great distance, maybe half a km, hawking insects at altitude. I, being a rank amateur, set up my Nikon ED82A with 30xw ep. One of the guys said, "Ah, you´ll never get it with that". But I did, right away, and had superb views of it that I would never have gotten otherwise. I´m an FOV freak, and perfectly satisfied with the ED82. Although I love my ED50, and formerly used it nearly all the time, if I had to choose only one it would be the ED82 (ever since I got a "Mule" scope-carrier from a BF member, and find it great for carrying the bigger scope).
 
Well after reading the last 2 replies and doing some more research I'm going to give the 82mm a try. Weight and size is not an issue for me and it sounds like the 82mm is the better overall scope. Now some more bad new I'm going to have to put off getting the new scope for awhile because I just found out I have a cracked tooth and I need to get a crown put on it which is going to cost me $800-$900! Ouch! there goes my scope fund. The new year is starting off a little rough for me. I can't wait to get the new scope and put all this behind me. Thanks again for the replies.
 
JBT said:
Well after reading the last 2 replies and doing some more research I'm going to give the 82mm a try. Weight and size is not an issue for me and it sounds like the 82mm is the better overall scope. Now some more bad new I'm going to have to put off getting the new scope for awhile because I just found out I have a cracked tooth and I need to get a crown put on it which is going to cost me $800-$900! Ouch! there goes my scope fund. The new year is starting off a little rough for me. I can't wait to get the new scope and put all this behind me. Thanks again for the replies.
Click to expand...
Ouch. Two hits- scope nicked, tooth cracked. Hope you get sorted out soon, the New Year can only get Happier!!!B :)
 
Though you have already made up your mind I would still like to suggest my little favorite...the Pentax ED A 65 mm with the 20 mm XW eyepiece. I believe the field of view (at 19.5x) is over 170 feet if not 180. It is exceptionally wide and very easy for me to do much the same as John does with his Nikon. I love using the scope with this combination because it makes tracking birds so much easier.

As a less expensive alternative I am in the process of trying some less expensive 20 mm eyepieces on the Pentax. They are all wide-angle so it should prove interesting how they compare with my experiences with the XW.

Just a thought.
 
Thanks I'll have to look into the Pentax as another option. The one thing that keeps drawing me back to the Nikon 82mm is the 75x on the zoom. Even though I love wide views and the Nikon 25-75 zoom does not have a wide view. I think I will be satisfied with the 30x eyepiece when it comes to a wide view and if I ever need 75x its there. The one thing I didn't like about the 50ED is that it only had 40x and a couple times I found myself wanting more power.

I'm very curious if I could get a good wide view from the Eagleeye digiscoping eyepiece which with the 82mm it should be around 12x I believe. From what I've read it has a good image for digiscoping but I haven't been able to find any info on the image you get when looking through it with your naked eye. I wrote Eagleeye but they couldn't give me any specs for the eyepiece as far as FOV and stuff like that. So I might just have to buy and try and to see if I like it or not. If anyone knows anything about this eyepiece I'd love to know more about it.
 
I look forward to hearing further comments on the 82 mm when you get the opportunity and/or if you ever get the chance to try out the 65 mm Pentax. 60x is definitely practical on it but I doubt I would go any higher and expect decent optical performance.
 
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