Spotting scopes and spotting scope stands

Spotting scopes and spotting scope stands are a shooting staple, allowing shots to be called from the comfort of your shooting position. This has saved many a shooter from long, silent, and usually awkward walks down the range to mark hits and commiserated over misses. In a time where we demand instant feedback, spotting scopes and spotting scope stands work in tandem to deliver the quick validation of your scores, and sharp rebuke from coaches the world over.

To the elation of shooters everywhere we are seeing the price of quality optics come down. Shooters can afford to employ optics with larger objectives, generating clearer and brighter pictures, at higher magnifications. However, the pain is not solely felt in the wallet, the larger scopes use larger lenses, making the spotting scope heavier, which shifts the scope stands center of gravity (CG) higher. While there is no adverse effect in prone, the shift in CG can drastically reduce the stability of the spotting scope stand when the scope is raised for use in a standing position. A brush or bump that impacts the stand, or even a gust of wind can disturb the picture sufficiently to miss that bullet strike, or at worse, cause the stand to tip causing everything including your $3,000 spotting scope to hit the ground.

There is a simple fix to this, add weight to the base of your stand. Whether it is a sandbag, or the convenient Spotting Scope Stand weights that we produce, the additional weight lowers the CG of the stand which drastically increases the stability of the stand. This dampens the effects of wind, or accidental brushes with the scope stand resulting in a more stable, easier to read picture. There is no doubt about it, today’s quality optics give you a competitive edge, and a properly stabilized spotting scope stand with weights will further protect and hone that edge.