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BACK TO THE MANCHESTER BIRDING WEBSITE HOMEPAGE -> Manchester Birding Forum -> GENERAL BIRDING DISCUSSION -> Which scope do you use?
Post Info TOPIC: Which scope do you use?
Mike Crawley


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RE: Which scope do you use?
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just shows, it's all about personal preference - I'd crawl across broken glass to keep my Zeis scope.....

Not wishing to be a sycophant but always had good advice at FocalPoint. Advice is also good at Stockport Telescope and Birdnet Optics but they are both in towns and allow less of a viewing opportunity.

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Craig Higson


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Ditto Nicks post. I found it even more critical to try scopes than bins! I didn't like Kowa's just because they seemed to give a slight cast, and the focus wheel was on the wrong side, Nikon and Swarovski were out because I don't like the round the body focus and I just didn't like the Zeiss. I ended up going for a Leica 77APO which, if you look around you can now find for sale secondhand with an eyepiece for around the £800 mark. Downside is its a heavy old beast.

I'm assuming by the way that £800 is mid range given the price of top of the range stuff is now £2.5k? If your looking at cheaper, Opticron gear is pretty good.

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Nick Isherwood


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Blinkers wrote:

I'm looking for a new scope, I have a 25 year old Mirador Merlin and I'm looking for something new sort of mid range priced model, is there anything I should stay clear of?




You'll probably get loads of different answers to this question, so rather than recommend a particular make or model the best advice I could give you would be to try a few out. From there you should be able to decide which one suits your style of birding best as well as your pocket.

I think there's a birding exhibition on at Martin Mere on the weekend of the 24th/25th November. A few of the main scope manufacturers are there so you'll be able to try different models out. Also, there is In Focus on site too where you can purchase scopes and test them out on site.

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Brian Blinkhorn


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I'm looking for a new scope, I have a 25 year old Mirador Merlin and I'm looking for something new sort of mid range priced model, is there anything I should stay clear of?

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Brian
Doc Brewster


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Like Craig I still use a Leica APO 77, cracking scopes & ahead of their time when they launched. As Craig says they are heavy & if you buy a 2nd hand one be aware that they are now obsolete, so no eyepieces are made for them now & no stay-on cases. As eyepices get broken they are getting rarer & rarer 2nd hand - so much so I have bought a spare zoom & a spare 30x in case I break my first zoom!! Again as Craig says it is absolutely essential to try out as many scopes as you can before deciding, all our retinas are more different than our fingerprints & so we all perceive the image through each scope in a different way, find the one that suits you rather than being told by 'an expert' which is 'definitely the best'!!

If Ian will allow - I run Focalpoint Optics, so pop out & see me & I will give unbiased advice - with absolutely no obligation to buy!! (just call first as I am in the field 3 days a week with my job - lucky sod I know!!!)

Cheers
Paul



-- Edited by Doc Brewster on Monday 12th of November 2012 01:21:07 PM

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