Bobster
.30-06
Product Review: SVBONY SV28 25-75x70 Spotting Scope (black model) from Amazon... LINK You can get much more info than I am going to describe from the link.
I've never had a "real" spotting scope and with a range outing planned, and because my eyes are getting old, I thought it was time to pick up a cheapie that could be returned if it sucked. Picked this guy up a month or two ago for a little over $60 (be sure to use the 5% coupon). SVBONY also makes a similar green model with a smaller (15mm vs 21mm) eyepiece for like $5 less. I looked at a whole bunch of similar imports (including the HF) and they are all around the $50-$60 range with 70mm objective lens. A little less with a 60mm objective. Next "step" up is over $100 and if you want a brand name, closer to $500. This model was very well-rated and came with a bonus "smart phone adapter", itself worth about $10-$15. Comes with a padded case, phone adapter, tripod, cleaning cloth and lens caps.
I'll start with the gripes and that is that the lens caps fit looser than I like. The included tripod is so-so but was rigid and worked OK at the range. Because the lowest the scope will go is 25x, you will have a hard time focusing on closer items say within 20'. Otherwise, the optics are acceptable and while I haven't had a chance to check it out at the rifle range, it worked good to call .22 shots on the black of regulation targets at the 50' pistol range. I DID set up at the bench in front of the 100/200/300 yard range and was able to see bullet holes in targets that had been left there by previous shooters.
The housing is plastic but every scope in this price range is also plastic. Overall, it was well molded with no defects noted.
The case is padded and has a padded divider for the tripod and everything fit inside it without much effort.
The smart phone holder clamps to the eyepiece and both will rotate if you adjust the magnification. It takes a little bit of finagling to get the camera lined up with the eyepiece but the holder held my "out of service" Samsung S5 with MagPul case just fine and recorded the pics of the moon below.
We had a "cheapie" telescope the kids used back in the day then it ended up in a closet. Then it disappeared and no one in the house knew where it went...
I just "found" it recently so I'll try to compare the view subjectively with an update.
I took these pics of the moon a few days ago. That is a video tripod I've had for nearly 20 years and is fully extended. The scope attaches with a standard 1/4-20 screw. I did have to sit on a milk crate to get a good look at the phone. It was easier to make minor adjustments by moving the base of the tripod than fiddling with the knobs and such. The phone screen really makes it a lot easier viewing through the eyepiece because you have to get fairly close otherwise. I took a video but it is probably too big to post here and I would have to edit my vulgar exclamations out. ("this is pretty f**king cool!") Note in the GIF the movement of the earth--I was facing up with the phone oriented up-down so the moon moves down (west). It is far more pronounced when watching the video. Not really noticeable was that there was a low mist blowing by that was visible with the naked eye but the scope didn't see it.
Another issue was trying to touch the "take picture" button on the screen without causing the whole view to jitter and vibrate but the tripod was a must for taking pics/video. A bluetooth controller would be a worthy addition and was included in some of the other scopes but I can always get one for $5-$10 or so.
The last pic is of a Made in Japan spotting scope I picked up at an auction for $20. It was probably a nice scope it its day and the base is really nice but it would need to come apart and have the lenses cleaned. I mean, it works but I don't think it would work for a 100yd range...
I've never had a "real" spotting scope and with a range outing planned, and because my eyes are getting old, I thought it was time to pick up a cheapie that could be returned if it sucked. Picked this guy up a month or two ago for a little over $60 (be sure to use the 5% coupon). SVBONY also makes a similar green model with a smaller (15mm vs 21mm) eyepiece for like $5 less. I looked at a whole bunch of similar imports (including the HF) and they are all around the $50-$60 range with 70mm objective lens. A little less with a 60mm objective. Next "step" up is over $100 and if you want a brand name, closer to $500. This model was very well-rated and came with a bonus "smart phone adapter", itself worth about $10-$15. Comes with a padded case, phone adapter, tripod, cleaning cloth and lens caps.
I'll start with the gripes and that is that the lens caps fit looser than I like. The included tripod is so-so but was rigid and worked OK at the range. Because the lowest the scope will go is 25x, you will have a hard time focusing on closer items say within 20'. Otherwise, the optics are acceptable and while I haven't had a chance to check it out at the rifle range, it worked good to call .22 shots on the black of regulation targets at the 50' pistol range. I DID set up at the bench in front of the 100/200/300 yard range and was able to see bullet holes in targets that had been left there by previous shooters.
The housing is plastic but every scope in this price range is also plastic. Overall, it was well molded with no defects noted.
The case is padded and has a padded divider for the tripod and everything fit inside it without much effort.
The smart phone holder clamps to the eyepiece and both will rotate if you adjust the magnification. It takes a little bit of finagling to get the camera lined up with the eyepiece but the holder held my "out of service" Samsung S5 with MagPul case just fine and recorded the pics of the moon below.
We had a "cheapie" telescope the kids used back in the day then it ended up in a closet. Then it disappeared and no one in the house knew where it went...
I just "found" it recently so I'll try to compare the view subjectively with an update.I took these pics of the moon a few days ago. That is a video tripod I've had for nearly 20 years and is fully extended. The scope attaches with a standard 1/4-20 screw. I did have to sit on a milk crate to get a good look at the phone. It was easier to make minor adjustments by moving the base of the tripod than fiddling with the knobs and such. The phone screen really makes it a lot easier viewing through the eyepiece because you have to get fairly close otherwise. I took a video but it is probably too big to post here and I would have to edit my vulgar exclamations out. ("this is pretty f**king cool!")
Note in the GIF the movement of the earth--I was facing up with the phone oriented up-down so the moon moves down (west). It is far more pronounced when watching the video. Not really noticeable was that there was a low mist blowing by that was visible with the naked eye but the scope didn't see it. Another issue was trying to touch the "take picture" button on the screen without causing the whole view to jitter and vibrate but the tripod was a must for taking pics/video. A bluetooth controller would be a worthy addition and was included in some of the other scopes but I can always get one for $5-$10 or so.
The last pic is of a Made in Japan spotting scope I picked up at an auction for $20. It was probably a nice scope it its day and the base is really nice but it would need to come apart and have the lenses cleaned. I mean, it works but I don't think it would work for a 100yd range...
