Kowa TSN 550 Series 55mm Prominar Spotting Scope

Starting with the pros - Massive step up from the vortex and leupolds Ive owned in the past and very much on par with the Swarovski’s I’ve looked through at a fraction of the weight. Unfortunately, the build quality and QC leave a lot to be desired. I want to start by saying Rob was great and responded to my concerns immediately and reached out to Kowa on my behalf but frankly I was surprised to see the spotter come out of the box with a paint line front and center that was difficult to distinguish from a small crack or deep scratch. Additionally, there appears to be a blemish in or behind the crystal. I’m very impressed with the scope so I hate to nitpick but it’s hard to be excited about a big purchase like this when it comes out of the box looking the way it did. And to make matters worse, I purchased the premium Kowa case for this spotter and didn’t catch the fact that the inside liner had sharp points until after it scratched up the paint on the spotter (hence my comment about the Kowa build quality and QC).

I've had a lot of expensive optics. Leica, Swarovski, Zeiss. This scope is right there optically with them. It's lightweight compact and easy to carry up the mountain. The customer service at S&S Archery is the second to none!

I ordered this scope when they were on sale - arrived within a week of ordering. I ordered an angled one but received a straight one (shipped direct from manufacturer from what I can tell). Thought long and hard about whether I should exchange it but decided to keep the one they sent me (straight) based on how I glass, testing it, etc. This scope is insanely light and the image quality is amazing for something this size. It’ll never leave my pack when I’m out in the woods - straight will help with that game plan. Highly recommend.

Haven’t used the scope much yet but I have its great
The dual focus is really nice compared to my Swarovski that I sold
Love it so far

Sold my 65 razor to put it toward this little guy. Outperforms it any day! Amazing spotter in such a small package. Clarity even through 45x. Can’t wait to spot some bears w/ it!