help in buying my first spotting scope :P

[Mace_3000_99]

Hey guys,

i was just wondering what you thought of these models

i will most likely be using it for looking at wildlife from about 300 - 400 m i think.

im not sure what kind of quality i would be getting from ebay

these are the 2 i have been looking at

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/CAMO-25-75x60-HUNTING-TELESCOPE-SPOTTING-SCOPE-LOW-POST_W0QQitemZ120219036483QQihZ002Q QcategoryZ7307QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewI temQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262

and the other was

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Zoom-Spotting-Scope-Telescope-With-Tripod-NEW_W0QQitemZ350054962448QQihZ022QQ categoryZ3636QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewIt emQQ_trksidZp1713.m153.l1262#ebayph otohosting

thanks in advance for your help everyone

mace

[Jarrod]

heey mace,

welcome to Ice In Space.

what kind of quality would you be getting from ebay..?

not much.

these cheap ebay scopes really must be avioded, they'll bring nothing but frustration. the optics are generally pretty pathetic, and the tripods on these scopes are so unstable you wont be able to keep anything in view. the stuff on ebay is mostly junk that wont sell anywhere else.

you'd be far better off spending your money on a decent pair of binoculars from a store that specialises in optical equipment such as telescopes, binoculars, etc.

try:
http://www.andrewscom.com.au/site-section-11.htm
or
https://www.bintelshop.com.au/ (https://www.bintelshop.com.au/)

Jarrod.

[Mace_3000_99]

thanks mate,

thats a good enough answer for me :)

[Dennis]

Hi Mace

Welcome to the Forum!

With optics, generally you get what you pay for! Inexpensive optics tend to produce soft images, maybe even tinged with blue/yellow fringes where all the colours are not brought to a common focus.

Also, the build quality is usually not that good and you may get slop in the focuser and the general design may be poor; that is, the ‘scope may not handle well and be made of inferior materials.

So, if you are definitely going to get into wildlife observing, you will want sharp optics so you can see the fine detail and markings on the bird or animal, with a nice focuser, handles well, etc.

Cheap quality scopes are soon outgrown – you may quickly become dissatisfied with the results and then you’ll have to throw the thing away and buy a more expensive one, so maybe save your money and get the correct one first up?

Cheers

Dennis