Nice scope, great eye relief, difficult focus - Minox MD Spotting Scope 88 W APO

I bought this scope because it has the highest advertised eye relief of any variable scope of this type that I could find regardless of price. I ordered it last May (2015), and waited until it was finally delivered in January 2016.

It delivers on that promise, and if I press my glasses up against the rubber eyecup, I can get full field of view even at 60x zoom. I would prefer to NOT have to press my glasses against the eyecup, but this is the best there is out there for this feature right now. With a top of the line Swarovski, you are reduced to looking through a small donut hole at high magnification. While nobody has better optics than swarovski, it doesn't matter how good the optics are if you can't see through it (to me, anyway).

I compared my new MD88 side by side with a brand new Vortex Razor. I would say that the optics were comparable, but the MD88 had much more eye relief. However, the Razor was MUCH easier to focus which leads to my one complaint about the MD88: THE FOCUS RINGS AROUND THE SCOPE BODY ARE MUCH TOO STIFF. Even when set up securely on a quality Manfrotto tripod, you have to apply so much pressure to the focus rings that you cause enough vibration that it is hard to see when the focus is perfect. The fine focus ring is easier to move than the coarse focus ring, but still stiff. The coarse focus ring is a two hand operation, one on the ring and the other on the scope body; you will almost certainly move the scope off of your object if you have to move the coarse focus ring.

Speaking of Manfrotto tripods, one nice feature that I didn't expect on this scope... . I had a Manfrotto adapter plate for my tripod head in hand when I unpacked the scope. When I went to install the adapter plate, I realized that the mounting plate on the scope was machined in the same configuration as a Manfrotto adapter plate. I tried it, and sure enough, the scope locked DIRECTLY onto my Manfrotto tripod head. Very cool.

The scope came with a very nice cover that allows use of the scope with it on. Rear lens cover is attached to the scope, but the front lens cover is not, and I don't see a way to attach it which means it will be easy to lose.