12x Bino or spotting scope?

[randal]

So I have a pair or Swarovski el 10x42 which work great but sometimes i wish I had some more power, most of my hunting is on a 18k ranch in foard/Knox county which I hunt 1/2 deer stands and 1/2 sitting up on top of hills where I can see a long ways.. I also put in for nm elk hunts every year.. I’m debating on either selling the 10x42 and buying 12x50 or keeping the 10x42 and buying a spotting scope..??

[Johnny Dangerr]

Spotting scope all day.....................

[RdRdrFan]

My current optics setup includes the following:

8x32 EL’s for most archery elk and high country hunts where weight savings is important.

12x50 EL’s for any situation where weight savings isn’t at a premium.

STX & BTX 85 for when I need to reach out there.

I’m gonna be honest, if I had to sell one of the three pieces of my optics setup it would be the ATX/BTX 85. I hunt a lot. I hunt out west a lot. I rarely use my spotter unless a truck is close by. Its nice to have but not vital for most types of hunting.

My 12’s off of a tripod are much more useful for most glassing scenarios. The spotter is nice when you need to decide whether or not a buck/bull is worth going after from 2+ miles away. Otherwise, the 12’s off of a tripod will win out just about every time.

[M16]

Spotting scope. That extra 2X won’t gain you much.

[wytex]

Get a Leupold HD spotter, nice and lightweight.
We have a Swaro spotter, use it all the time but the Leupold spotter spouse has is lighter and gets carried more in the pack.
12x50 will be heavy to carry around your neck. You will have to have a tripod to use them for glassing, same with a spotter.
The spotting scope is a game changer at long distances.
Get a window mount too.

[rtp]

I have a swaro spotting scope which I use for really long distances but I really like my 15x56 swaros. With the proper bino harness I dont find them heavy at all. Ive used them for my caribou hunt in Canada and my elk hunt in Montana. Never once did I feel like they were too heavy.

[twosixteens]

I have a swaro spotting scope which I use for really long distances but I really like my 15x56 swaros. With the proper bino harness I dont find them heavy at all. Ive used them for my caribou hunt in Canada and my elk hunt in Montana. Never once did I feel like they were too heavy.

Are you able to use them without a tripod?

[bboswell]

I switched from 10x to 12x after my elk hunt last year and it was a huge improvement, I can’t tell a difference in carrying while hiking but I did add a bog pod to my pack for extended ranging sessions.

Spotter never left the truck and really only came out 3 times in a week.

[bmac]

I would think spotter as 10 to 12 isn’t a huge gain.


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[bboswell]

I would think spotter as 10 to 12 isn’t a huge gain.


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I think it added 3oz over my 10# but can’t feel any difference while carrying

[Texans42]

So I have a pair or Swarovski el 10x42 which work great but sometimes i wish I had some more power, most of my hunting is on a 18k ranch in foard/Knox county which I hunt 1/2 deer stands and 1/2 sitting up on top of hills where I can see a long ways.. I also put in for nm elk hunts every year.. I’m debating on either selling the 10x42 and buying 12x50 or keeping the 10x42 and buying a spotting scope..??

I run 11x45 binos, ATS 80 - 20-60x, and razor 11x30x5o spotter.

If I could only have one it would be 11 or 12x binos.

Very seldom in texas will you have enough acreage for a big spotter to matter. Also field of view is rough. Even in New Mexico I seldom use my 80mm, In fact only time I really use my big spotter is my west texas mulie lease, where I use it for digi scoping/pictures, more them anything

I actually use my 11-30 more then sts, just handier and easier to toss up on the window and get a kick judge. Especially on my ranch in the panhandle when I'm pronghorn hunting from truck.

I'd step up to a pair of Swaro NL’s 12x before I went the new spotter route

[randal]

Man y’all are making this a hard choice lol.. I spot lots of deer far off that I could go get closer to but it’s hard to tell if they are worth the trip or not..

[DocHolliday]

Of note, the new Swaro 12x42s have they same field of view as the EL 10x42s.

[jaker_cc]

I like the 15x56 SLC swaros and my 95mm ATX spotter as a combo. But I hunt more open country a lot out west and usually have about 6-800 yard roads in 4 directions that I feed all of for whitetails. High magnification is a real help in my situation. I also have a pair of zeiss 15x45s that are pretty light and come in handy.

[wytex]

I don't know how open the terrain is where you hunt but the 8,500 acres we hunt up here is open country and we can judge a deer from a mile away with the spotter to make a decision if he's worth a closer look. The binos find them and the spotter helps make determinations on a stalk or not.
You have great 10x binos, do you need 2 pair of great binos ? Binos get used on every hunt for us. The spotter, when we are truly looking for specific caliber of animal or age class, which is actually often.