Firefield spotting scopes feature a rubber eyecup and adjustable
three-section tripod that ensure comfortable use during long-duration
nature observations, hunting, or sessions at the range. An included
carrying case keeps your optics clean on long treks into the wilderness
and the hard shell case keeps your investment safe during transport. The
nitrogen purged housing provides operators with a lightweight spotting
scope that is engineered to perform in the elements.
Welcome to my review of the Firefield 20–60×60 SE Spotting Scope.
Firefield is known for budget-friendly optics, but their products aren’t
always the best quality-wise. Because of this, I began my review of
this spotting scope with as open a mind as I could, but wary of poor
results. Let’s see if I was wrong.
This model has a 60mm objective lens and utilizes the straight eyepiece design that’s great for use at the shooting range but not always so useful for birdwatching or backyard astronomy.
The eye relief
on this scope is absolutely horrendous, ranging from 13.5mm to 17mm.
Basically, you have to practically press your eyeball against the rubber
eyecups to see the entire field of view. This isn’t good for eyeglass
wearers, obviously.
The scope measures 13.78 inches long, and weighs a mere 1.41 pounds.
What’s Included With My Purchase?
Every purchase of this model of spotting scope comes with everything
you need to get started glassing. You’ll find the following items in the
box:
- The Firefield 20–60×60 SE Spotting Scope
- Lens and eyepiece caps
- Hard carrying case
- Soft carrying case
- Full-size (43.5-inch) adjustable tripod
The cases are both quite good, but the tripod is another one of those
throwaways. It won’t hold the scope steady enough to keep on your
target at the range, so you continually have to reacquire your paper to
find your shot placement.
How Powerful Is the Firefield 20–60×60 SE?
This spotting scope provides magnification from 20X to 60X. Image
clarity, sharpness, contrast, and color reproduction are excellent from
20X to about 40X, after which serious distortion sets in. You’ll notice a
pronounced fish-eye effect as well as other forms of distortion from
40X to 60X. On the other hand, there isn’t a hint of chromatic aberration at any magnification.
This scope’s field of view
ranges from 57 feet to 110 feet from 1,000 yards, depending on your
selected magnification. That’s about average, so no complaints there.
Minimum focusing distance is a bit far out at 15 feet, but it’s still
quite serviceable.
How Easy is the Scope to Use?
The Firefield 20–60×60 SE is pretty easy to use, with the controls
located exactly where you’d expect them to be. The magnification wheel,
located on the eyepiece, and the center focus knob spin smoothly but
with enough friction to keep you from bumping them loose.
How Well Does It Gather Light?
The twilight factor for this scope ranges from 34.6 to 60, demonstrating reasonably good transmittance
for such an inexpensive scope. If it weren’t for the distortion at
maximum magnifications, this would be great for stargazing or checking
out the larger planets and moons of our solar system.
How Are the Optics and Focus on This Glass?
The porro prism construction of this spotting scope utilizes BaK–4 prism glass, with appropriate phase correction coating applied; there is little to no phase shift at any magnification. The lenses and other optical components are fully multicoated, maximizing light transmission and lending to a high quality image (at least at lower magnifications.
Focusing is quite easy, and achieving a sharp, clear image is quick
and painless throughout almost the entire range of magnification. Only
at 60X magnification does it become difficult to get a perfectly sharp
image.
What’s the Housing Like on the Spotting Scope?
This model has rubberized armor covering the scope, giving you a
non-slip gripping surface to hold the scope as well as protecting the
inner workings from bumps and falls. It does feature a tripod mount, but
said mount is fixed in place and cannot be rotated for different
viewing angles. The scope is also camera adaptable, with an optional
bracket, for digiscoping.
How Durable Is It?
Not only is the spotting scope shockproof, but it is also fogproof and waterproof. The lenses are O-ring sealed and the optics chamber is nitrogen-purged.
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