Vortex Viper 20-60x 85mm HD Angled Spotting Scope v502

I did not receive an email indicating that the scope was ready to pick-up. I called customer service, and the representative indicated that was ready to pick up. I went to the store, the team lead said that the scope was in the store, but he could not find it. It was signed up by a person who he did not know. I waited 45'-60' minutes that day. I told him that I would give him sometime to find it. I called again the next day, and the scope was found in less than five minutes by another staff. After picking the box up, it was already opened, the body of the scope was dirty, and with small scratches, but still smelling like new, The ocular lens and the objective lens were cleaned and in perfect conditions. I tested and I could see the quality of a Vortex scope in ... MoreI did not receive an email indicating that the scope was ready to pick-up. I called customer service, and the representative indicated that was ready to pick up. I went to the store, the team lead said that the scope was in the store, but he could not find it. It was signed up by a person who he did not know. I waited 45'-60' minutes that day. I told him that I would give him sometime to find it. I called again the next day, and the scope was found in less than five minutes by another staff. After picking the box up, it was already opened, the body of the scope was dirty, and with small scratches, but still smelling like new, The ocular lens and the objective lens were cleaned and in perfect conditions. I tested and I could see the quality of a Vortex scope in comparison with other cheaper scopes. This is an expensive scope ($483.72), and the box should not be opened, and the body of the score should not be with marks and dust. Particularly, the tripod mounting foot was very dirty. I keept it because it was working fine, and I bought it with a discount of approximately $200. The current cost is $699. If I would have returned it, I would not get the same price.

Bought both Athlon Talos and this Viper at the same time. Also brought along my Leopold 15-30x 50mm to do some side by side. (sidenote: I tried the Vortex diamondback (20-60) in the store, it was terrible. Minimal eye relief, challenging to get focused and 150 yds, the quality of the glass was absent, so did not buy it.)I took someone's "home flipping" sign from the median of the local highway, made of white posterboard. Put some 2" diameter blue circles on it and took some shots with my 6.5 (.25 in) rifle at 100 yds. Took now bullet riddled sign out to 300 yds at local football field. I found if the sun were back-lighting the sign, I could just barely make out the hole, the caveat being I knew what to look for and where to look. I doubted I'd be able to find it as ... MoreBought both Athlon Talos and this Viper at the same time. Also brought along my Leopold 15-30x 50mm to do some side by side. (sidenote: I tried the Vortex diamondback (20-60) in the store, it was terrible. Minimal eye relief, challenging to get focused and 150 yds, the quality of the glass was absent, so did not buy it.)I took someone's "home flipping" sign from the median of the local highway, made of white posterboard. Put some 2" diameter blue circles on it and took some shots with my 6.5 (.25 in) rifle at 100 yds. Took now bullet riddled sign out to 300 yds at local football field. I found if the sun were back-lighting the sign, I could just barely make out the hole, the caveat being I knew what to look for and where to look. I doubted I'd be able to find it as a result of just taking a shot. The resolution past 300 yds is just not there with this Viper. The Leopold, was clear, but for my senior eyes, I could not make out the hole with certainty, as it does not zoom enough. The Athlon @40x and 300 yds could not resolve the hole, and by 60x was just a fuzzy image of the target. even the blue circles were fuzzy.Angling the target to face the sun, non could resolve. Perhaps if I tried splatter targets and/or dark targets I might be saying something different.Maybe I need to upgrade my eyes, but I've come to the conclusion a adequate spotter to 500 years is going to cost well over $1k. So suck it up and buy once, cry once if you are serious. Anything less is too many compromises.

My wife bagan birding and we researched spotting scopes. Swarovski and Kowa were not even considered due to price. We tested three different scopes, the Viper, Razor, and a Nikon. We ruled out the Nikon because the warranty on the Vortex units is the best bar none.We had the two Vortex scopes side by side for our comparison. Both were a max 60x with the zoom eyepiece. The Razor appeared to be lighter which for us proved to be a con for us. Both were very bright and worked well. The selling point for us other than the lower cost was that the zoom control was much easier to read (old eyes). We truly couldn't detect any difference in clarity or brightness. In fact, the Viper to us did appear brighter especially at the closer zoom ratio. The bottom line is that it was ... MoreMy wife bagan birding and we researched spotting scopes. Swarovski and Kowa were not even considered due to price. We tested three different scopes, the Viper, Razor, and a Nikon. We ruled out the Nikon because the warranty on the Vortex units is the best bar none.We had the two Vortex scopes side by side for our comparison. Both were a max 60x with the zoom eyepiece. The Razor appeared to be lighter which for us proved to be a con for us. Both were very bright and worked well. The selling point for us other than the lower cost was that the zoom control was much easier to read (old eyes). We truly couldn't detect any difference in clarity or brightness. In fact, the Viper to us did appear brighter especially at the closer zoom ratio. The bottom line is that it was the perfect choice for our needs.Pros:1.The heavier design on a sturdy tripod helps control any movement or bounce2. The price was about half that of the Razor3. The zoom eyepiece was much easier to read.