Tonight, we take a quick look at stuff related to spotting scopes. I needed a tripod for my Leupold scope, and, for $26, thought I'd take a chance on this racy Swedish model, complete with stinky rubberized canvas carrying case:
It's made by Nife, a respected Swedish optical maker, and is (except for the case) in near-mint condition. But at 8 pounds, is a bit too massive for my little scope. But when attached to a super-high-end military rangefinder, it looks something like this Zeiss:
So I stopped by REI (the nearest camera shop has gone out of business), and got a $15 chicom mini tripod.
I still have to get a killflash for the big 60mm lens, and then fit everything into a hard case. That requires plucking tiny little boxlets of foam from the pluck-foam lining, and I hate pluck-foam. Fortunately, the "Foam Factory" is nearby, and I can buy the stiff black foam for one quarter the price of what the manufacturer sells replacement foam. I already ruined a fitting job on one Pelican case, and a new sheet of foam cost me $10, as opposed to the $40 Pelican wants.
While on the subject of rangefinders, I found myself doing an unplanned upgrade of my Leupold laser rangefinder with their newest latest-and-greatest. One web site had a special on the RX-IV in camo for $100 under the next best price. For $100 off, I'll make an impulse buy.
This little (about the size of a compact camcorder) gem has a digital compass, inclinometer, ballistic computer, hygrometer, and other goodies built in. It can supply the complete ballistic solution (less Coriolis effect) for several different classes of cartridges. It displays the answer either in inches of hold over/under or clicks. It also has about a dozen different reticles to choose from. A further product review will be provided once things slow down here (a few more weeks).