I’ve written about Alpen’s super-sized 80mm spotting scope (Model #788)
in the past and have found it to be a top notch performer. Couple that
with its very reasonable price tag (generally around $365 or so on the
internet), and you definitely have a “Best Buy”. Yes, there are other
80mm scopes that are less expensive, but their quality and performance
doesn’t come anywhere close to Alpen’s, and are marginal at best for use
when conditions are overcast or less than optimum.
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Upgrades in the eyepiece of the
new Alpen 788 provide increased resolution and brightness |
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Recently I was visiting the Alpen plant, and the owner/president showed
me the latest version of their 788, which is a 2006 midyear product that
is just starting to be introduced into the marketplace. The most
significant change is the new and improved eyepiece. For one, the glass
lens is a little over 15% larger than the old model’s which translates
into a brighter image. Additionally, the new eyepiece housing measures a
whopping 2.25 inches across. Twist the collar around the eye piece to
the left, and it rotates up and out about an inch to form a very
effective lens shade which blocks out any side light from degrading the
image. This is a feature that one sometimes sees on binoculars, but I’ve
never seen this before on a spotting scope. This is a good idea.
The really big news however, is what’s inside the new eyepiece. For one,
the design is more sophisticated, and as such uses more lens elements
than what was found in the older model. The result is a definitely
higher quality image.
It’s a more refined image as well. This comes from the fact that higher
quality BaK-4 glass (the best) is used versus BaK-7 glass. Additionally,
the lens elements in the new eyepiece are also multicoated. All this
translates into a significantly impressive image. Seeing the results of
these improvements made me realize how much we consumers focus our
attention solely on the objective lens, and tend to take the eyepiece
for granted - a big mistake.
One of my
favorite scope evaluation targets is this big, high power electrical
transmission tower that sits just adjacent to a golf course near my home.
Thanks to a new Leupold laser rangefinder, I was able to determine that
the tower is located exactly 300 yards away from my back yard. I like
using the tower because it’s a complex structure with a lot of interesting
features that can be used to determine the practical resolution of an
optical product.
While I was scanning the tower at 20X, I hit the jackpot. Sitting on one of
steel cross beams near the very top, was a magnificent red tailed hawk. The
red tail is the largest of the hawks in the U.S. and typically has a body
length of around 20 inches and wing span of as much as 56 inches. He was just
sitting there, cooling it, and surveying the country-side while looking for an
evening meal of field mouse, lizard, or perhaps spotted dove. I immediately
cranked up the magnification of the 20-60 zoom to around 45X. I then noticed
some side to side looseness in the zoom mechanism and later found out that
this is just a normal characteristic of this particular design. Anyway, when I
did so, this majestic bird filled approximately 60% of the eyepiece and the
resolution and vividness of the colors were absolutely remarkable. Just to see
what would happen, I then cranked up the zoom to the max at 60X. The
resolution predictably dropped off , but the brightness, while somewhat
dimmer, was still very acceptable unlike many other brands at this power. I
then backed off slightly to 50X. Resolution and brightness immediately jumped
back into the exceptional category. I was amazed to see every fine detail on
the hawk that there was to see - everything, and without exception. It was
like looking at it in a zoo from just a few feet away. Just as important as
the resolution I was getting, was the color fidelity. It was dead on perfect.
No tinting, no color aberration, no fringing, nothing but true and correct
color.
The bird was sitting face on
to me and I could see its buff colored downy chest feathers with small,
elongated brown spots speckling its front. I could even see the small white
markings which resembled eyebrows above each of the alert eyes against the
brown background of its face and head. Every once in awhile, the wind up there
in the tower would ruffle its chest feathers allowing me to see their edges
clearly. Similarly, when the hawk would preen itself, I could actually see the
central shaft of the larger feathers and even the individual side branching
spines on single feathers. To be honest, I really didn’t think this was
possible at that distance.
Probably the
most definitive demonstration of the Alpen’s resolving power was when I was
able to clearly see the very tip of the red tail's three very impressive front
talons gripping the light gray painted cross beam that it was perched on. What
a fascinating experience it was to see this very impressive creature in such
fine detail. This was truly exceptional performance from the Alpen.
The bottom line here is that if you want a high
quality, water proof, 80mm spotter at a reasonable price, you should
definitely first look at the 06 mid year, Alpen Model 788 with the new
eyepiece. (Remember, it’s the one with the 2.25” eyepiece housing.) If you do,
there’s a good chance you probably won’t look at anything else.
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