A lot of the shooting I do is at the 100 yard range, which I’m guessing is pretty typical for a lot of shooters. My standard operating procedure is to fire 5 rounds, check my group size, then make any necessary adjustments. Depending on the optic and target used, sometimes I can see the bullet holes at 100 yards, sometimes I cant. Not being able to see the bullet holes means I have to make the 200 yard trek (down and back) to gauge my performance. While the exercise is great, it definitely takes away from valuable shooting time.
Since my shooting range expanded to give a 300 yard option, I knew I had to begin looking into spotting scopes. In all honesty, I really don’t have a lot of experience with spotting scopes, and picking one out can be a bit intimidating. Fortunately, I remembered that Meopta recently announced the release of their MeoPro 80 HD spotting scope. While I was admittedly operating from limited experience, everything I read about the MeoPro 80 HD sounded perfect. Well… I’m excited to announce that the Meopta MeoPro 80 HD spotting scope and MeoPod TP-1 tripod arrived yesterday.
This is just a “first look” post, so I won’t try to get into too much detail yet. But, wow! Everything about this spotting scope screams quality. Rather than rambling about a bunch of features I haven’t learned to appreciate yet, I’ve listed the specs below. Of course, future posts will get into more detail about my experience with these features.
Meopta MeoPro 80 HD Spotting Scope Specs & Features:
- Specs:
- Objective Lens (mm): 80mm fluoride lens
- Eyepiece: Integrated 20x-60x eyepiece with twist-up eyecup
- Body type: Angled
- Lens Coatings: MeoBright, MeoShield
- Length w/eyepiece (in): 14.36 in
- Weight (oz): 67.2 oz
- Close Focus (ft): 18 ft
- Focus control: CentricDrive, oversized, mid-body
- Focus rotation: 2 rotations from close focus to infinity
- Chassis material: Magnesium alloy
- Armor: Full rubber armor
- Tripod Collar: Rotating, integrated tripod foot (no adapter required)
- Waterproof: yes
- Nitrogen Purged: yes
- Shockproof: yes
- Exit Pupil (mm): Min – 1.4mm, Max – 4.05mm
- Eye Relief: Min – 18mm, Max – 20mm
- FOV (degrees): Min – 1.2º, Max – 2º
- FOV ft. @1000 yds: Min – 63 ft. Max – 105 ft.
- Apparent FOV (degrees): Min – 40º, Max – 60º
- Key Features:
- Built in the USA
- TO2™ (Twilight Optimized Optics) system delivers the highest light transmission when you need it most – in the low light of dawn and dusk.
- Proprietary ion assisted lens coatings. MeoBright™ coating eliminates glare and reflections and delivers incredibly bright (98.7% transmission per lens surface) and sharp images across the field of view. MeoShield™ coating protects external lens surfaces from abrasions and scratches.
- HD Fluoride objective lens element eliminates chromatic aberration (CA) or color fringing by bringing light wavelengths into a single common focus along the optical axis – delivering maximum resolution and vivid color fidelity in challenging lighting conditions.
- Centric Drive™ is an oversized, mid-body focus control featuring a large rubberized wheel that is easy to manipulate for fine focus requirements or when moving rapidly from close subjects to extended distances. CentricDrive™ is comfortable to use and easily accommodates users wearing thick gloves or users with limited grasping ability.
- Integrated tripod foot works with most tripod interfaces without the need for an adapter.
- Covered by Meopta’s North American Lifetime Transferable Warranty.
Before I bring this first look post to a close, I should quickly mention the MeoPod TP-1 tripod. This particular tripod was engineered specifically for use with spotting scopes, and it shows. It weighs in at 5.85 lbs and feels rock-solid.
The MeoPod folds to 26 inches and can be extended to a height of 70 inches. The following image gives you a look at the MeoPro 80 HD spotting scope mounted on the MeoPod TP-1 tripod.
As you might guess, we are very excited about the Meopta MeoPro 80 HD spotting scope and MeoPod TP-1 tripod. You will definitely be seeing a lot more of this equipment as we expand on our long range shooting and testing.
In the meantime, be sure to check out all the spotting scopes, riflescopes, and binoculars at Meopta.
Stay tuned for more…