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Joined: Jul 2013
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OP
Campfire Regular
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 1,417 |
This coming week will be my first time hunting the West. I grew up in Ohio and now live in New England, so this is really going to be out of my comfort zone.
One area where I felt sufficiently lacking (besides my penchant for sea level) would be optics. The strongest scopes on any of my rifles is a 2-7 on my 35 whelen, if that helps add perspective.
After reading a pile of Eastman's and elk hunting related books I decided that I needed some quality glass for this trip. I looked on Ebay at a ton of used 8.5-42 Swaros, and some Leica ultravids, and was actually getting ready to enter a bid when I thought 'this is crazy'.
Which it is. I'm going hunt the open country of the West maybe once every two years and my gear-queer side was getting the best of me.
So I googled "renting binoculars", and found a site called "Optics4Rent". Before clicking on that site there was a review of the service on Field & Stream. It looked promising, so I gave the company a call. No Answer, left a message at 10am on Saturday. The owner, Todd, called me back at 6:30 that evening and we had a great conversation. He offered to quick ship the Binos at the same price and allow an extended rental because of my flight schedule.
I'll end up paying $200 dollars to rent new 10x42 Swaro EL's for a week of back country elk hunting.
I don't get them until later in the week and fly out Friday. I'll add a review of how it worked out overall, but on the surface it seems to be just what the doctor ordered.
Go Bearcats
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Joined: Jan 2006
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Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,333 |
The strongest scopes on any of my rifles is a 2-7 on my 35 whelen, if that helps add perspective. 7x is more than enough. Lots of guys use fixed 4x scopes. while 3-9 is popular, you'll find that 9x is rarely needed. My scope is an exception - a Bushnell 3200 3-9 with the Firefly reticle. With the Firefly, the x-hairs are too thick for long range shooting. I need to crank it up or they cover too much of the target.
“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
― George Orwell
It's not over when you lose. It's over when you quit.
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Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 2,085
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 2,085 |
This coming week will be my first time hunting the West. I grew up in Ohio and now live in New England, so this is really going to be out of my comfort zone.
One area where I felt sufficiently lacking (besides my penchant for sea level) would be optics. The strongest scopes on any of my rifles is a 2-7 on my 35 whelen, if that helps add perspective.
After reading a pile of Eastman's and elk hunting related books I decided that I needed some quality glass for this trip. I looked on Ebay at a ton of used 8.5-42 Swaros, and some Leica ultravids, and was actually getting ready to enter a bid when I thought 'this is crazy'.
Which it is. I'm going hunt the open country of the West maybe once every two years and my gear-queer side was getting the best of me.
So I googled "renting binoculars", and found a site called "Optics4Rent". Before clicking on that site there was a review of the service on Field & Stream. It looked promising, so I gave the company a call. No Answer, left a message at 10am on Saturday. The owner, Todd, called me back at 6:30 that evening and we had a great conversation. He offered to quick ship the Binos at the same price and allow an extended rental because of my flight schedule.
I'll end up paying $200 dollars to rent new 10x42 Swaro EL's for a week of back country elk hunting.
I don't get them until later in the week and fly out Friday. I'll add a review of how it worked out overall, but on the surface it seems to be just what the doctor ordered. This sounds like a great way to test out some high end optics. I am a big believer in renting anything that you do not need on a regular basis, but I guess I would have to estimate the number of times I am planning to hunt out west and see if it pays to rent. Optics are ridiculously expensive, but once they are bought I have never heard of a person saying that they regretted buying quality optics. You can use the good stuff at home too you know  Either way, good luck!
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Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 455
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I have been hunting for years with Nikon Action porro prism like this: http://www.amazon.com/Nikon-7216-Action-8x40mm-Binoculars/dp/B0001AOGAOor this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Nikon-Actio..._DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1e7ef0c9afand had never had a problem. They are not as sexy as a pair of Swaro's but I have spotted elk with them just fine. And, if you look around you can find them for $50. P.S. BTW, people under-appreciate porro prisms. Inherently, they are much easier to make because the light does not fold back twice through the same glass, and image quality is superb in porro prisms even without phase coated optics that are necessary in roof prism designs. Without phase coats the roofs will have strong color fringes, which are not present in porros.
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Joined: Mar 2006
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Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Mar 2006
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That's a great idea but....all you did was add to the price when you buy a set....grin.
I am betting less than six months and you own a pair.
Dink
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Joined: Jul 2013
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Campfire Regular
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OP
Campfire Regular
Joined: Jul 2013
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That's a great idea but....all you did was add to the price when you buy a set....grin.
I am betting less than six months and you own a pair.
Dink You might be right. I was scouting with a friend in July at a farm he hunts. I have some Cabela's compacts that I really like for the woods, but he let me look through his new Swaro 8.5x42 EL's and it was like looking an angel in the eyes. But, I don't even own a car so I don't think my conscience would allow.
Go Bearcats
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Joined: Jan 2006
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Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,333 |
Some places will give you a break on the sale price if you rent them and fall in love.
“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
― George Orwell
It's not over when you lose. It's over when you quit.
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Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 19,074
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 19,074 |
Nothing wrong with the scope you have. I used an old Weaver 2.5-7x for many years up until a few years ago and killed one heck of lot of elk with it. I can't remember any elk I killed with the setting above 4X
What you have is a good match for the 35.
High dollar scopes are over rated.
If God wanted you to walk and carry things on your back, He would not have invented stirrups and pack saddles
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Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 11,522
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 11,522 |
If you want to drop 200 coins on optics to hunt Elk, than feel free to do so, But,
You do not need that kind of glass to find/evaulate critters that weigh several hundred pounds,
Elk are easy to spot, Big Bulls are almost blonde, they can stick out like sore thumbs, like Dall sheep, they really don't blend in all that well,
take what you have, or purchase outright. Good optics do make hunts more enjoyable.
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Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 7,108
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 7,108 |
I would have bought a pair of cabelas brand meoptas for $600 ish.
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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 13,110
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 13,110 |
$200 would buy a decent used set of binos
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Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 740
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Aug 2006
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Just buy a decent set of binoculars or good used ones and be done with it. Rent those 2 or 3 times over a few years and you could own a couple good pair of binoculars
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Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 8,659
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 8,659 |
Optics4rent are great to work with, Todd has fixed me up more than once! I have rented Swarovski 15x56 for a elk hunting trip to Colorado for $200! Why pay $2k for something you may not need again?
After renting I purchased my current Swarovski spotting scope from him at a great price plus the rental cost was put towards the purchase!
Any way you work it you get to use the best optics available today for your trip.
Ted
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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 968
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 968 |
Call Doug at CameraLand and ask about some Minox... A friend bought a pair (on closeout I think) a couple of years ago in that price range and we compare them to some Nikons Monarchs and something else I forget the brand. But everyone thought the Minox were better. I called the next business day and ordered me some.
"...buzzards gota eat same as worms" Josey Wales
NRA lifer
Hunting is Conservation
RMEF Member
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Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 8,896
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 8,896 |
The rental thing sounds interesting for some specialized optics, but a good pair of binoculars is a useful tool for much more than hunting, and is certainly something worth owning. If you don't have a decent set, I'd look at Cameraland's Minox Sale....suspect you could have a really really good pair for 400 or less. Think two Swaro rentals, but you get to keep 'em!
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