Alpen 15-45x60 w/45 deg. eye piece, wtrpf Spotting Scope

I was disappointed in the performance of this spotting scope. The eye relief is too short, but my main complaint was that the focus is not maintained when changing the magnification setting. That is, when observing an object after properly focusing the scope, re-focusing is always required when the magnification is changed. The more the change, the more correction is needed. This is something that should not be necessary in a good spotting scope.

The Alpen 15-45 x 60 spotting scope was purchased to sit on a tripod in our lakeside family room so that we could look at birds, boats on the lake, etc. The 45 deg eyepiece is useful in this setting. At 15x the spotting scope is OK, but as you increase the power the image becomes darker and harder to use. We'll probably never use the zoom feature because of this, and just treat it as a fixed 15x optic. Knowing this now, I would have purchased some other product with an angled eyepiece, even if it was more expensive.

First, don't be fooled by the product image now offered by Amazon; this is indeed the model 728 with 45-degree eyepiece; Amazon pictures the similar model 725 with straight-through viewing. I use a spotting scope for birding, and I've been quite content with my trusty Bushnell Spacemaster (vintage 1992). But in preparation for a vacation that involves international airline flight I wanted a lightweight alternative. If I had unlimited financial resources I might have considered a few of the big-ticket products with impressive reviews, but money IS an object. But so is quality, and I knew I wanted a BAK-4 prism, multi-coated lenses (of course I would have preferred fully multi-coated), waterproof construction, compact design, light weight, and reasonably good close focus. The Alpen 728 specifications looked good, and I took a chance. I'm glad I did. This scope weighs less than two pounds, is quite compact, has a nice retractable sunshade, and delivers very good optical performance (especially when used in the range from 15X to about 30X). Light transmission is quite satisfactory below 30X, as is color rendition. I get a good sharp image. I can focus to less than 25 feet. The 18mm eye relief at 15X is quite sufficient for those of us who wear glasses, and even at 45X (with 15mm eye relief) it's still usable. The 45-degree eyepiece does facilitate shared viewing, and perhaps most importantly allows the use of a shorter tripod. I even like the threaded eyepiece cover. The cloth case is a nice touch; I'm not sure I'll ever use the tabletop tripod, but it looks like it would work for those who do use such a support. I'm not sure that sentiment will permit me me to replace the Spacemaster as my primary birding scope, but I feel quite confident that the Alpen 728 will see its share of use, even when airline travel isn't involved.

I purchased this spotting scope for my son to use for target shooting in 4H. We havn't had the opertunity to use it for that but we have been using it for watching Deer and other wildlife. It is working great, it may not gather as much light and be as bright as some much more expensive scopes but it is well worth the price paid and should work great for target shooting.

I purchased this for fita archery too, but also use it for stargazing. The image gets a little dark past 30x and color isn't as great, but at 15x on a bright sunny day the image can be too bright. I can see through it clearly with sunglasses on, so you don't have to stick your eye right on the eyepiece, this may be why I think that it starts to get dark past 30x, probably still bright without sunglasses on past 30x. Can focus to as close as twenty feet. Great scope for the money.