Looking for the best spotting scope for under $1000 (I prefer around $700). My goal is to be able to see bullet holes in paper as far as possible (bullet dependent) but still be able to take it hunting.

Basically open to all suggestions but prefer it to be a straight eye piece. I've read good things about Vortex Skyline ED.

Take a look at one of our mint as new show demos of a Pentax PF-80ED. GREAT scope you'll love working with

At a lower price point look at the Nikon Prostaff. I just bought one at a steal off ebay, and I have been amazed at the quality of the optics especially for the price. There are some different eyepieces available for it too. A zoom and several different fixed power ones.

Lots of competitive shooters swear by Kowa. You can get into a lower end Kowa for around $700 or so. www.bearbasin.com sells the full line of Kows.

LWD

DO NOT buy a Gander Mountain spotting scope. I have one and it is not a good scope. 100 yard holes are no problem but 200 yards you need shoot-and-see targets with my junker. I would hate to have to use it all day to look for critters.

Thanks for the info guys. I've been doing a lot of looking around and searching the web for an idea of what I need.

basically what I've found is that angled and straight bodies have their advantages...so I'm now open to just about any scope now. Unfortunately I do not have ready access to a store with a variety of spotters so I don't have a preference.

FWIW, my recent spotter buy was an angled one. It was my first venture into angled spotters, and one I like now that I have it.
I only use my spotter at a shooting bench, and it's easy to turn my head and look into the angled eye piece; as opposed to trying to get directly behind the spotter to view bullet holes.
YMMV however.
If I wanted a spotter to take hunting, it would be a straight one.
I think quality of optics is where its at with spotters, regardless of whether its angled or straight.
My .02 cents.

Don

There is a saying re optics..
You get what you pay for. We have a leupold scope then just got a swarovski 80 mm - 20-60; had it on a deck on first try with a PH friend. he had a scope and had my Swarovski. He now has one same as mine. No comparison.. Best price I could find is in 'whitehorse yukon.

Watson Lake

I have looked at the Kowa scopes for some time, and all told, they should fall in the $500-$700 range depending on model. I noticed in a show I was watching about the Army sniper school, that the instructors were using Kowa TSN-600 series. Must be worth something.