Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Kowa spotters?

Looking for opinions on the Kowa spotters. Specifically the 66mm. They are in my price range, as are a couple of the Vortex offerings, which I would just as soon stay away from. I can't find a lot of bad about the Kowa, but would like some real world hunting opinions. Thanks guys, mtmuley

IMO they ( the 66) are good, as all Kowa's tend to be. I recently extensively compared a 663 ( angled) Kowa against a 65 mm Swaro ATS, and the Kowa compared really well. The Swaro was a bit better in a few areas ( after all the Swaro 65 is probably top dog of the 65 size); but it was not dramatically better than the Kowa by any means. Side by side, it was a lot of going back and forth. The detail resolution on that 66 Kowa is really, really good. Very sharp and clear. Great spotter for the $$.

IMO, along with some others that I trust their opinion, think the Kowa 66 is optically better than the Vortex Razor 65. Plus the Kowa goes to 60x; and it is Japan made vs China made- if that matters to you.

I feel you would have to jump quite a bit in price to find a better spotter than the Kowa in the 65mm class. It seems you jump from the prices of Kowa 66 and Vortex Razor 65 up to the over $2000 prices.

I believe Kowa is in the process of upgrading their top 66mm scopes so I would hold off for now.

After a lot of searching, I think the Kowa is what I am after. I know the Vortex optics have a great warranty, I'm just not sold on their products. No dealers in my area offers Kowa spotters, so I am glad to hear any information on them, good or bad. Thanks, mtmuley

As far as Kowa updating the 66's- they just did that, and all they did was change the color on the armoring. Call Eagle Optics for any ?'s or ordering; they are a good outfit to buy from, and they have a good return policy if they do not work for you. They are partnered with Vortex, and I did find it interesting that 2 different sales people there recommended the 66 Kowa over the 65 Vortex Razor. So they don't just recommend the home team products.

Thanks llama2 and Timberbuck, appreciate the info. Anybody else use the Kowa spotters? mtmuley

I use a 663 angled and it's as good as the Swarovski as far as I and others can tell. Very nice. The Bpcr guys I know all use kowa if it matters.