Vortex Optics Viper HD Spotting Scopes

I have been casually shopping for a scope for about a year. I sampled them every time I was in a sporting goods store or a friend brought one along. I'm glad I waited. You can't beat this scope. You can spend twice the price and get performance that is only discernable with great effort and sophisticated measurement equipment. I use this at the range and in the woods observing wildlife. A perfect combination of large objective, reasonable weight, and nice price point.

This scope is better than the other scopes at the rifle range. You get a very clear and well magnified image. The glass lenses have a very low bubble density.

quality only Vortex can deliver, with a fit and finish only Vortex can deliver

I will use this for hunting. it's clear/sharp far beyond my expectation i paired it with a vortex tripod very solid combination. it's probably not for backpacking weight wise . way ahead of the curve with price vs clarity great glass for the money. unconditional lifetime warranty on scope and tripod win win.

The variable eyepiece that comes with the Viper HD 85mm spotting scope is great at shorter ranges, but struggles at long range in both image quality and field of view. Fine if you’re scanning for deer in the hills, not as good if you’re looking for holes in a target at 500 yards. This VS-85 REM (MRAD reticle version) is fixed at 33.5X, but the picture and field of view looking at the same target with the stock variable eyepiece are hands down better. I can read Texas on a Texas license plate at 550 yards with no problem as long as it’s not too distorted in the heat of the day with heat waves. And even then, I can read the larger license number. The field of view is vastly wider and edge to edge picture is solid. If you’re buying the Viper 85mm spotting scope, you really need to pick up this reticle eyepiece. Game changer. As an aside, you really need a decent tripod and some time learning how to operate the scope to reap the full rewards of the setup. Too many reviewers describing problems that are almost certainly user error. Just my two cents, hope it helps others.

The media could not be loaded. This scope is GREAT! I’m gonna be using it for some Moose and Black bear hunting next year in Alaska. The photos you see are of the front scope glare shroud and the eye shroud. I wear glasses and have noticed that using the eye shroud doesn’t help. But! My brother in law who does not wear glasses says it helps a lot. The build quality is top notch and the sleeve it came with will help protect it while walking through the brush. I also provided photos of the zoom on the scope looking from my driveway to the peak of pioneer peak in Palmer Alaska at 20x, 30x, 40x, and 60x zoom. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND This scope :)

Just came back from Yellowstone and this scope was worth every penny! We would have missed most of the wildlife if we didn't have the scope.The image of the bald eagle was taken with my cell phone camera through the scope at 400 yards. The clarity is amazing, you can even make out the eye.In the Lamar & Hayden valley's which are massive you need a scope to look among the tree line for moving animals. With this scope we were able to see 13 bears, 3 wolves, 2 bald eagles, and numerous bull elk. With out it we would have missed all these animals. The bear eating the elk carcass was about 250 yards away; again these are images taken from my cell phone throught the spotting scope.Look at the images with and with out the scope, I would have never seen those bull elk.I did look through another higher priced scope and the difference was minimal but not enough to warrant the price tag.My girlfriend loved the scope as well and we would spend the afternoons looking for wildlife; that's a huge win in my book!Freddy G from Texas

I bought this slightly used. I guess it had been returned. I was a little hesitant at first to buy it but Vortex has a lifetime warranty so I figured if there was any issue and if for some reason I couldn't return it to Amazon, I could always send it to Vortex to have it fixed. Didn't need to worry as it was fine. Nice image. I like that it's angled as I'm often trying to read band numbers on birds sitting up higher. So you still have to get close and I think it might be harder if the scope was not angled. Would need a tall tripod for that I think. But with an angled scope the tripod can be lower with a better center of gravity and maybe more stable.