Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics Alpen spotting scope???

I have a rewards catalog thru work that I can order stuff from and am in need of a spotting scope. The only ones they have in the catalog is Alpen 15x 45 x60 or 20 x 60 x80. I chose the 20x60x80. It may not be a top end scope but hey...it's free! What authoritative feedback can you guys give me about the alpen 20-60x80 spotting scope? Thanks

Not what you want to hear, but my experience with Alpen has been very unsatisfactory.

denton, which one did you have experience with. I was not impressed with the smaller one based on a few reviews I was able to find, but I'm hoping for better with the 80 mm objective..???

I bought one of the 20x small spotters several years ago when it was on sale. It's worked fine at the range for 100 yards and because of its size I use it frequently when hunting in open country. There are certainly better spotters on the market but for the below $50 paid for this one, it's worked very well, easy to focus and the small size has made it very handy.

Alpen scopes and spotters have made either the Outdoor Life or Field and Stream list of best buys for several years as I recall. I've looked through a few of the spotters and liked what I saw for the price.

I have one of the 15-45x spotters. I keep it in my wife's car for checking out wildlife if we are traveling without other optics. Its ok for what I paid for it (nothing, I won it) but I'd rather look through my 10x Vortex Razor binoculars if I am looking for any length of time.

I am not sure that this mention has added to my level of confidence in the brand

No doubt others will agree with that, but it's really not a very helpful comment without more information, hence this question:


Denton may have experience with Alpen's spotters, but he didn't say he did. His experience with Alpen might have been with their low-end binoculars, but he just doesn't say. Alpen has a very, very wide range of quality in their binocular line: Promotional, Sport Compacts, Magna View, Pro Series, Shasta Ridge, Wings, Apex, Teton, & Rainier. Not saying this is what denton did, but it wouldn't make much sense to judge the Ranier by using the Magna View.

Regarding spotting scopes, on the one end of Alpen's spectrum I have the 20x50, and it serves well at the range and for riding around in my truck. At the other end I have the 20-60x80, and it's a real nice spotter, though I don't use it much. I'd use it more if it had the straight eyepiece rather than the angled eyepiece.

Under your circumstances, choosing the Alpen 20-60x80 doesn't seem like much of a decision.

Steve.

P.S. I just went to the Alpen site and found their guarantee. Added it at right. With that, I see only three ways someone could have a bad experience:
(1.) Complain that a $50 product doesn't equal a $1,000 product, or...
(2.) Alpen failed to live up to their guarantee, or...
(3.) You live outside the USA (and probably there, a legality is involved.)

The good news is that it's free, so your expectations won't be very high anyway, therefore you will most likely not be disappointed if it does not meet your expectations, yet may be delighted if it is a satisfactory optic given what you paid for it ($0).