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Almost every self-respecting optics manufacturer strives to include spotting scopes in their lineup. Most opt for two classes with objective lens diameters of 60-65 mm and 80-85 mm respectively, designed in both straight and angled versions. A few break from this pattern and go up in objective lens diameter, introducing 90-100 mm class models to their offerings.

However, in recent years, a trend has emerged to start offering scopes at the other end of the objective lens diameter spectrum, namely very compact 50-56 mm class models. The American company Vortex fits well into this trend, with its highest quality spotting scope series, the Razor HD, offering three classes of models with 56, 65, and 85 mm objective lenses, respectively.

As for the Razor HD series, I've only been able to speak in superlatives about it so far. This applies to both the binoculars and the 85 mm objective scope, which I've already had the opportunity to review. I was therefore keen to check out the capabilities of the smallest 56 mm objective model, which was provided to us for testing by the Polish distributor of Vortex, Kolba.pl.

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What immediately stands out is the large difference in size and weight compared to the 65 mm model. The angled 56 mm scope weighs 810 grams, while the 65 mm scope weighs almost twice as much at 1610 grams. That's a huge difference.

In terms of length, the gap isn't as vast, but the differences are still significant. The angled 56 mm scope, with its eyepiece, measures 26.4 cm, while the angled 65 mm scope is 37.6 cm. Over 11 cm of difference is quite a lot.

With increasing objective lens diameter, we get a completely different magnification range. For the smallest model, it's 13-39 times, meaning the exit pupil changes from 4.31 mm to 1.44 mm. The 65 mm model offers a magnification range of 22 to 48 times, so here the exit pupil decreases from 2.95 mm to 1.35 mm. The surface brightness of the image provided by the 65 mm scope will therefore be noticeably lower, especially at the lowest magnifications.

The Razor HD 85 mm, on the other hand, has a magnification range of 27-60 times, and here the exit pupil changes from 3.15 mm to 1.42 mm. So, in this case, the surface brightness will also be slightly lower than for the image from the 56 mm scope.

Besides magnifications and exit pupils, a very important parameter is the range of offered fields of view. For the Razor HD 13-39x56, it is 3.2-1.7 degrees, which means using an eyepiece with an apparent field of view ranging from 41.6 to 66.3 degrees. The first value here is very small and means we'll have the feeling of looking through a keyhole, while the second is excellent.

The 65 mm and 85 mm objective models have much wider-angle eyepieces, with apparent fields of view changing from 59.4 degrees at the lowest magnification to over 75 degrees at the highest magnification. These are sensational results, worthy of top-class equipment.

The smallest Razor HD compensates for the loss in field of view with its minimum focusing distance, which is only 2.8 meters. The 65 mm objective model performs very poorly in this category, with this value increasing to as much as 8 meters. The 85 mm, however, offers a slightly smaller distance of 5 meters.