novice scope buyer

[Sprout]

i'd very much appreciate any help or advice any of you scope users would care to share as we're seriously considering buying our first scope. we've had a look through some in hides, and chatted to some users about them, but the more info we have, particularly from experienced scope users, the better. we have a budget of up to about £500 for the whole thing. thanks in advance.

[boogle]

hi, for the money you have available you should purchase a good mid range scope..if i was you i would be reading many reviews on scopes that you may of had a look at or even tested somewhere.
take your time and consider what you want ( size, weight and zoom or fixed eyepeice)...also consider if its good enough for digiscoping at some point in the future if you fancy taking that up.
there are plenty of scopes on the market and some good offers around...i have a opticron es 80 ga ed v3 and it is perfect for me...i have seen them available for a lot less than you are willing to pay. i have also noticed a lot of birders use opticron ..they seem popular.
good luck with your choice !
boogle !

[Sprout]

thanks boogle. we have looked at opticrom, they seem to have a good range and were recommended by one of the chaps we got chatting to in a hide. appreciate you taking the time to reply, it's always good to have users opinions.

[ChrisJB]

Hi Sprout. With five hundred 'dabs', have you considered a decent second-hand scope? The birdy magazines have stacks of retailers doing second-hand. Try In Focus. I went down the second-hand route with my Kowa. It's battered looking now, but has been a loyal servant. Having spent as much as I did on my Swarovski binoculars, I felt a bit queasy paying something similar for a top-notch scope. Besides, the missus put her foot down.
If you do go down the Opticron route, I think they are great mid-price scopes.

Regards, Chris