15 year old birder, looking for spotting scope suggestions

[David Tonnessen]

Hey CObirders,

I'm looking to buy a spotting scope for the first time. I have $750 right now, but would prefer not to spend that much. 

I'd really appreciate any recommendations/suggestions you in the Colorado birding community have on the best ones and where to get them.

Thanks, and good luck with fall migration.

David Tonnessen

[Tom Behnfield]

David,

Costco sells an Alpen 20-60 x 80 spotting scope that is currently on sale for $299 if you have a Costco membership. If you are on a limited budget it is worth looking into. It reviews well compared to other mid-priced scopes, but it does not carry the "no questions asked" warranty that you would get from a scope from Vortex, which is the "go to" mid-priced scope. I had the opportunity earlier this year to use one, and I thought it worked well. If you want to spend less than $750, I suggest you check it out. Just my 2 cents. Good Birding!

Tom Behnfield
Lakewood, CO
behn...@q.com

www.flickr.com/photos/behnfield

[David Tonnessen]

Thank you Tom, I'll look into that.

[Tom Behnfield]

Or maybe a generous member of this group has an okay scope that they upgraded from and could offer you at a price you can afford. Good Birding

[Cathy Sheeter]

Alpen actually does have a no questions asked warranty, which I assume would cover the Costco scope as well: http://alpenoptics.com/warranty.html

I have an Alpen scope and it is ok in good light, falls short in dim light, but inexpensive as indicated. I had a minor problem with the eyepiece and they were easy to deal with for repairs. Compared to top of the line scopes of course it can't compete in clarity and brightness, but it is decent for the price.

Cathy Sheeter
Bergen County, NJ