Tasco Spotting Scope
Having never owned a spotting scope, I decided it should be on my Christmas list.
I did not want anything fancy or expensive, just something that would help me at the range.
The price of around $100 seemed to be plenty and reasonable enough so I told the intended buyer (the wife), that a gun shop that had them on special along with a competitor model.
It really made no difference to me which I ended up with. I do not understand optics, including binoculars and scopes.
If it is round and it rolls and it fits my truck, it's a tire. Now if you take a couple of pieces of glass, put them in a tube creating a 4x magnification it is a scope. Right ?
I am certain that price means quality, doesn't it?
Well anyway, I have never owned one of the "Finer" optics. With only so much disposable income, it may be a while before it happens.
I did however, have the opportunity to peer through a spotting scope that belonged to a fellow shooter at the range. Big difference! Why? I don't know. What I do know is that he spent a bunch more than I did.
The spotting scope. This model is a 12 to 36 power with a 50mm objective. I have read that the less expensive spotting scopes are fuzzy at the higher powers. Though I really wish this were power of suggestion, I find it to be true.
At the range, this spotter does fine up to about 18x, after that, the bullet holes become distorted. Now this is at the 100 yd range. At 200 yards with a 22 caliber bullet, it's a challenge but it beats walking.
Ok, so why have more power in it than it can deal with? Why do speedometers go up over 100mph? It sells !
But seriously, if you are trying to see if a stump is a deer at 200 yds or a lump is prairie dog, it will do it. I have played with it trying to see just how far it is effective and 400 yards is not a problem. You wont tell if the animals teeth are stained but you can verify species, (stump or game, coyote or shepherd, x-wife or pack mule). I could go on but you get the picture.
The spotting scope comes with a nice cloth case and a short tripod. The viewing lens is at a 45 degree angle which makes it nice at the shooting bench. You don't have to get up to use it. The tripod is a nice height, it puts the scope about eye level on the bench.
All in all, for the price, it is not a bad deal. Someday, I will own one of the "Finer" optics, but until such time, this will do the job.
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Last Modified: Saturday, November 27, 2004 7:51 PM
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