Leica Spotting Scope - Does Anyone Have One

<p>Saw the latest APO-Televids at the NRA Convention in Phoenix AZ last year. 25-50 power 85mm objective.<br>

Tack sharp. Wondering if someone out there has one. Can you view planets well?</p>

<p>You may want to ask this question at a bird watcher's web site. They are the ones most likely to have such an item.</p>

<p>Frank -- I use a Swarovski -- killer scope -- but I used one of the Leica's at a hawk watch and loved it -- great optics (although I love mine a bit more) -- I'm not sure about planets - but I don't see why not...</p>

<p>I've been fortunate enough to use Nikon, Leitz, Swarovski, Leopold, and Zeiss (for rifle shooting). IMO (!) the Leitz takes all, Zeiss and Swarovski are close behind (but you'd have to know what to look for, then Nikon and Leopold (not bad, but not the Holy Sh*t reaction you have the with Leitz.<g></p>

<p>Michael-<br>

Yes, that "Holy S--T" reaction is exactly what I had when I first looked through the APO-Televid! I wonder if the collapse of the Euro has brought down the price, which was about $4000?</p>

<p>I've never looked through one but can relate a bit to the responses here as I've had a similar reaction when first looking through Leitz binoculars (and still do).</p>

<p>With the Harbour Freight 94555 here one can see Jupiter's moons with ease ; Saturns rings too. It was 35 bucks on sale awhile back. I attach it to my old Tiltall tripod. I own a 3 and 6 " reflector and a mess of astro stuff. The real issue with the HF is the tripod is token; good for spotting rifle targets; poor for astro work if one has the magnifacation up.<br /> <br /> http://www.harborfreight.com/20-60-x-60mm-spotting-scope-with-tripod-94555.html<br>

<br /> To look at Jupiter's planet features; my 6" old edmund reflector works well. It has a clock drive thus one is not loosing Jupiter or Saturn when using higher powers.</p>

<p>50 power like you Leica uses is really not enough to see much planet features; it is really low for viewing the features. It is enough to see Saturns and Jupiters moons. I can see all four of Jupiters moons with my 10x50 binos. </p>

<p>Here's a site that reviews binos and spotting scopes.</p>

<p>http://betterviewdesired.com/</p>

<p>I used to have a Swarovski, 20-60x with a 80mm objective lens. It is sharp as anything. It's good for birdwatchers and hunters, and I'm neither. They are good for mostly static objects, and you use only one eye, so I sold mine and use binoculars instead. Looking at the moon is a challenge, as it moves out of the field of view. A good bino is better.</p>