Can any of you give me a report positve or negative about the 12-40X60HD Leupold spotting scope?

Have you used it at the range to look at targets? What range are the bullet holes still showing up ok?

I want to use it both for spotting game for hunting, and range work.

I'm interested in this as well.

Zeiss has gone a bit nuts on pricing and I've seen Leupold whoop on the foreign glass before. Just curious what the take is on these spotters.

I gotta believe that for 1k a guy could get something pretty decent, if not exceptional, rather than having to pay twice that.

If you're in the market for a 60mm class spotter, I'd highly recommend the Kowa 663/664 Prominar, which is actually a 66mm objective spotter. The Leupy you mention is tough with good glass, but the view of the Kowa is fantastic, on par with the Swaro 65 HD. The Kowa can be had for the $1k budget.

Have a read of the webiste Better View Desired website.

This is an optics site famous for its independant, factual reviews of all types of optics relating to birdwatching. As you imagine, various European brands come highly rated. With that in mind, read what they have to say about the Leupold 60mm Gold Ring Scope and keep in mind the scope review was the older none HD version..

Regards

Peter

How is the Kowa for eye relief?

For many glasses wears eye relief is critical and otherwise good scopes are let down by it..The Leupold 60mm Gold Ring however is exceptionally glasses wearer friendly with probably the longest eye relief of any comparable scope..

I have one and love it. Super clear - you can judge racks at 2 miles. The compact size makes it easy to pack, the tripod that comes in the kit is very nice and solid. Never used it beyond 100 yds at the range, but you can easily tell a .22 cal hole from a 7mm hole at 100 yds. Have looked through both the Swaro and Zeiss and I'll take mine for $1k every time. The nylon case on the scope itself is also perfect - easy to open and not cumbersome at all. You can't go wrong with this spotter!

I don't wear glasses, so it was adequate for me. You probably won't believe this, but my buddy showed up at deer camp with a Bushnell Excursion ED 15-45x60 spotter, the clone of the Leupold you mention. It was exceptionally good, especially for the $300 he gave for it.

If portability is an issue, the smaller 60mm spotters are great, but if range work at long range is important, or if you want a superior view in poor light conditions the 85mm class spotters are the way to go. The 60mm spotters just will never match the view of the bigger ones in tough conditions.

I've been considering that one as well pimarily because it can be had with a Mill Dot reticule..Trouble is that it, and the Leupold Mk4 equivalent are virtually impossible to get over here in the UK and I really want try one before ordering..

For an compact spotter, the Nikon Fieldscope ED50 seems to be the one to beat and is a reasonable price too considering it has ED glass..Again though its eye releif has a question mark over it, depending on the eyepiece choosen..

I have the non HD version, have been using it for a year and it is really good glass-both for use on game and for a fine target spotter. I'd buy it again in a heartbeat, I'm sure the HD glass is even better.

I have the HD Gold Ring, and as I've posted before I'd buy it again even if money were no option. Granted, I use mine mainly for hunting the mountains of Idaho, but I'm convinced it's an awesome piece of glass for all-purpose duty.

The eye-relief in particular is superb...as well as the view......and the size.....and the manner in which it is protected (soft-case I mean)....and the price....and the toughness...and the weight......you get the point.

There is a reason so many guides can be seen using the Leuplold spotting scope.

I used one belonging to an elk hunting partner a few years ago. Good glass, but so hard to turn the magnification ring that I could not hold the scope on something I was looking at while dialing a closer view. That's a statistic of one.

A nephew who recently left the Navy Seals returned with one as his personal use scope. He never said where he'd been nor what he did with it and we never asked. That's probably a more significant statistic of one.

Okanagan;
I hope this finds you well tonight.

I was surprised to hear that bit of information about the focus ring being hard to turn.

I have one of the older Leupold straight tube spotters, a 25X50 I guess it is. The only complaint I have with it is you almost need to pack 2 pipe wrenches to focus the thing when it gets below about 50�F.

I'd hoped they had remedied that on the newer models, but it seems they didn't on that one anyway, eh?

On another note it's good to hear your nephew made it back and out OK.

Dwayne

Make that a sample of two actually. Although I have already proclaimed my love for this spotter, the first one I bought had to be returned because of the exact issue being mentioned here....stiff focus ring I mean. The poor woman behind the counter at Cabelas, literally couldn't turn it at all. The one I replaced it with was of course much better, and I hadn't given it a second thought until I read the posts that preceded this one.

Again, I'd buy another in a hot mintue, but I'd be sure to purchase one from a reputable dealer just in case this stiff focus/magnification ring is a more widespread issue.

Thank you.

He does talk a little. At a family dinner a few of us were standing around and I don't recall what started the topic but he kind of laughed and said that the most dangerous thing he'd ever done was to get from a small boat onto a ship underway in rough seas in the dark. Subduing the crew and taking the ship was easy compared to getting on the thing.

Thanks for that link Pete. Some useful info on there.

It would sure seem that my suspicions regarding the quality of the HD spotter were well-founded.

I've spent some field time with the Zeiss and was very impressed, but dropping anywhere from $1600-$2200 on a piece of glass seems on the edge of crazy. Even a $1,000 is a bitter pill to swallow, but I could justify that a lot quicker.

I just didn't want to get into something that costs that much, only later to regret not spending more and being completely satisfied with the purchase.

I currently have a $400.00 B&L that I've had for about 10 years that I received as a gift. It's heavy and as soon as the power goes past about 25-30, it's damn hard to make out much of anything. Eye relief is terrible and flat give up on spotting anything at lowlight. It's better than a 10x pair of binocs, but not by much.

Can't help but think that I'd use a good spotter a lot more than I do my current one, simply because of the portability factor and optic quality alone.

Besides, since I aquired a new Jim Horn Alaskan, complete with spotting scope pocket, it would only seem right to fill it. This of course is the tactic that I'm going to be using on my wife. I'm sure that it'll cost me another rifle build for her or two and perhaps a night or two on the couch, but she'll get over it.......(grin)

If you're into small obj spotters, the Nikon Ed 50 is the real deal. Amazingly so.

I had one of the non-HD versions of the Leupold. I liked it, a lot. When I bought my Big Eyes last year I decided that if things got tight I'd sell one of them, and so I did when they did, but I do regret it. Nice scope.

I compared the HD Gold Ring directly with the matching Swaro model. I use Swaro scopes and money although it mattered it was not a consideration. I boutght the Gold Ring for Eye Relief. The whole kit was about $1400. Swaro just scope was closer to $2000

I compared the HD Gold Ring directly with the matching Swaro model. I use Swaro scopes and money although it mattered it was not a consideration. I boutght the Gold Ring for Eye Relief. The whole kit was about $1400. Swaro just scope was closer to $2000

Why not buy whatever you are considering with the understanding that you can return it for a full refund if not satisfied ? That's what I've done. Both Cabela's and Doug at Cameraland will do this. E

I'm not big on returning items, unless they really fall way short of what I was expecting.

I'm gonna eyeball some at the warehouse sometime in the next few days and see how they do.

It would appear that that the HD is a good bet for the price.

I'm not either. But, when it comes to really important things for hunting, like quality optics, I'll do it simply because I know no other way. Looking at them in the store doesn't teach me much. Spending some time with them and using them at the longer ranges, really helps to show me what I have. E

Matt,

Why don't you hangfire on actually buying until January, and make the most of the January sales?

Regards,

Peter

I probably will.....I'm not in a big rush right now, but I like to have the research out of the way before I make a big purchase.

I don't buy many large price tag items, but when I do, I've thoroughly exhausted the possible snafus ahead of time.....That and I've come up with a very good story for the wife by then.....(grin)

I have been using the Leupold 12-45 GR scope for as long as they have been out. In my opinion, as well as those of a number of my guides who use them, they are the best scope when you consider optics, weight and ruggedness.
I have Kowa, Nikon and Swarovski scopes in my lodge and yes, they do offer better optics, but at a price. both in $$ and weight.

Matt ... I just finished reading the write-up myself ... which of your suspiicions are well founded in regards to quality. Seem the only real issue I read was the focus knob being difficult to turn.

I've been thinking about one of these for sometime.

I suspected that they were worth the coin, rather than not......sorry I guess I kind of left that one open-ended.

I've seen plenty of people spend a lot of money on gear, yet when it was said and done, a lot of times the money was wasted and just as good of gear was available for a lot less coin.

Every product demands a certain amount of money to purchase in the quality range, but several folks will go out and buy what they perceive to be the best, based on nothing except price. No question they more often than not end up with a quality product, but did they really have to spend that much to be as satisfied?

I have a Leupold 12-40X60HD and there is no sense in repeating the positive comments of previous posters. I can't imagine it not being adequate except for the most discriminating of users.

I discussed the HD vs non HD with a Leupold service rep. He said in his opinion the only advantage the HD has is if you want to use the scope in conjunction with a camera. Take that for what it's worth.

Personally I can't imagine needing to spend more.