UKH

Yesterday I dropped my scope from a height and it is truly knackered!

It was a Celestron Ultima 80 and I've been happy with it. I use it for mostly bird/wildlife mostly from home. From about 20 metres it's pretty impressive but at about 50 metres the accuracy or acuity is notably less.

If I replaced the Celestron it would cost about £180 but would a more expensive scope make much difference? As an example I was looking at the Vortex Diamondback which is notably more expensive but would it be worth the extra?

Thanks for any opinions or suggestions...

I'm a very infrequent Bird Spotter and I can recognise a Sparrow from a Robin.

All that I can tell you is that when I was choosing a Spotting Scope, I saw a big difference between a cheap Scope and a mid-priced scope from the RSPB such as the Harrier 80mm ED telescope that I eventually went for.

My Scope was, to me very expensive. And while in the same shop, I compared my scope against a more expensive Swarovski of the same 80mm size. The build of the Swarovski was superior in every respect however the increase in image quality wasn't as big as I was expecting and not worth the £1k extra.

I found that there was a sweet spot "bang for buck" of the RSPB/Viking Harrier scope for my occasional trip maybe a few times a year.

Can’t help as I’ve yet to decide on a scope, though there was useful help on scopes in a previous post see https://www.ukhillwalking.com/forums/off_belay/some_recent_bird_photos-759149?... for example.

I’ve had some limited hands on tries since then and it does seem more expensive scopes are usually better, though it can be marginal gains (sometimes very marginal) at often premium prices. Whether the improvements are worth it is subjective, and whether you can appreciate the improvement and justify the cost is up to the individual. 

One thing I noticed though in a trial is how they are to handle, operate focus, etc. Some feel more natural and easier to use. Also, if your eyes need certain requirements (eg more diopter range) then that would be more important than magnification quality.

I tried out one of the RSPB scopes, probably like The Lemming’s one, and for the money it did seem a very good scope and such that it is on my list. I would like to try out other makes, however, in the same quality range to see what other makes are like.

I think it is essential to go and try a number scopes.

I suggest you set yourself a budget and then visit either an RSPB reserve

https://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/reserves-a-z/

that has a shop, and/or the nearest InFocus shop

(https://www.at-infocus.co.uk/in-focus-showrooms/)

I think the answer to your question is, "Yes", but how much more worth it a more expensive scope will be, depends quite a lot on you.

Dave

Here’s my story:

I bought a new scope only the other week. My old one was simply not good enough - it’s magnification is way too low and struggle with long range stuff.   I did lots of online research and decided on an 80 front lens and a 20 - 60 eyepiece.  I checked out In Focus (online) but was disappointed in their selection. The RSPB and WWT scopes (ie Lemmings) appeared well made and of a good enough quality/magnification. But I know that all their equipment is a bit over-priced. More research and I heard people chatting and raving about SVBONY 20-60X60 with extra low dispersion glass. In fact, some birders reckon they’re nearly as good as Swavorski equivalents. I saw one on eBay, new but had been out of the box, and bought it for £260.  BUT: I never realised that they also did a smaller version - 20-48X65. And this is what I now have! So in many ways a complete fvck up on my part. My reckoning was if I wanted to upgrade then I might get £200+ selling it. BUT : I like it and have used it every day for the past 9 days and highly recommend them. And I’ve had ‘goes’ at lots of telescopes and this one really does punch above it’s weight. The spec is very high  

This model would replace yours but with better glass (I think).  The letter ‘p’ means the better glass. Much cheaper svbony modes exist with standard glass  

SV406p 20-60 x 80

I have a Vortex Diamondback 16-48x65 (cost around £400) and am not that impressed. Too much chromatic aberration and upper half of zoom  not much use. Whilst picking out a curlew sandpiper from a pile of dunlin in low light last autumn I was able to also use a Kowa Tsn884. The scopes were an absolute world apart in terms of brightness and definition but you might expect that with the price difference of £2k. The problem now is I hardly ever bother with my scope. I think it all depends on how important a scope is to your birding. Usually I think you probably get what you pay for but I’d be very interested to try out the cheap alternatives suggested in this thread. I’d also be interested to see the difference between say the Zeiss Gavia and Harpia.