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Whether you’re headed out West on a big game dream hunt, scouting for giant whitetails back East, or spotting long-range hits on steel at the local gun range, a good spotting scope can save you tons of time and frustration.
However, there are hundreds of spotting scopes ranging from Walmart cheap to high-end chic. Knowing what options are worth a somewhat substantial investment can be tricky if you aren't super spotting scope savvy.
I’ve put in some of the hard work to make your life easier. I tested the new Maven S.3 spotting scope to see how it performs in the field.
In this review, I’ll outline the optic’s pros and cons, discuss what this scope does well, and help you evaluate if it’s the right spotting scope for you.
Alice is a lifelong hunter and experienced shooter who grew up flinging arrows and bullets at Virginia whitetails, turkeys, and game birds. Her hunting experience has grown to include other game, such as Elk, wild hog, and more.
She leverages this knowledge to bring her readers tips, tricks, and recommendations on what works (and doesn’t) in the field.
Maven S.3 20-40x67mm Pros & Cons
Pros
Extremely clear glass
Unconditional lifetime warranty
Rugged build quality
Cons
Not ideal for lightweight packouts
Cheaper than similar competitors but still expensive
The Bottom Line
The Maven S.3 offers extreme clarity, solid build quality, and an excellent warranty for less money than many other spotting scopes of the same glass quality.
Maven has only been around for a decade, so they are still relatively new in the optics arena. However, the company has really shaken things up in a short amount of time.
The name means “expert,” and the company definitely takes that to heart. Their top-notch yet surprisingly affordable binoculars, spotting scopes, rangefinders, and riflescopes easily compete with much more swanky optics from luxury brands like Zeiss, Leica, and Schmidt & Bender.
And unlike the German heavy-hitters in the optics game, Maven is an American-owned company.
It is headquartered in Lander, Wyoming, and while many of its optical components are made in Japan, all of its B-series binos and S-series spotting scopes are assembled in a MIL-SPEC facility in San Diego and then shipped to Wyoming for testing and inspection.
One way Maven keeps their optics affordable is by their modern approach to marketing. Instead of locking their optics in dusty glass display cases in sporting goods stores, the company sells directly to consumers.
They also do most of their marketing through social media, which is highly effective and super cost-efficient. By cutting out the middleman, Maven can offer top-notch optics at a fraction of the cost of those bougie scopes with ritzy brand names.
Who Is It For?
According to the Maven website, the S.3 is “for hunters, target and competitive shooters, birders, and wildlife observers who demand elite-level performance.” It’s definitely an optic that backcountry big game hunters will appreciate.
If you hunt the type of terrain where seeing long distances to check the stats on big bulls, rams, or bucks can save your boots miles of travel over thousands of feet of elevation, this spotter is for you.
It could also be a boon for whitetail hunters who need to stretch visibility across acres of open cropland to count tines on big bucks. Honestly, you could count the fleas on a buck’s backside with this one.
Fit & Feel
Maven’s S.3 spotting scope sits in the space between the company’s full-size S.1 25-50x80 spotter and its uber-popular ultra-compact S.2 12-27x56. It is available as a straight-line spotting scope and an angled model.
Unfortunately, I didn’t get my hands on the Maven S.3 until nearly the end of the North Carolina deer season, so I didn’t get the chance to run it through its paces out West.
But I did use it in an attempt to spot bucks across harvested bean fields after the season. When it comes to seeing detail at a distance, this spotting scope definitely does not disappoint.
Magnification
The Maven S.3 comes with 20-40x magnification, which is way better than the average pair of binos. And while it won’t reach the same distance as a massive 60x spotting scope, it is more than enough to count tines on a shooter bull several ridges away.
With a generous 67mm objective lens, the S.3 gathers a ton of light for top-notch brightness even in low-light conditions.
Fluorite Glass
The S.3’s lenses are made of high-quality fluorite.
Fluorite is famous for reducing color aberration, which means the glass delivers razor-sharp edge-to-edge clarity and vivid, distortion-free, brilliantly bright images.
You're missing out if you’ve never looked through a scope made with fluorite glass. It's like going from 1080p to 4k Ultra in video quality. It gives what you’re looking at an extra “pop” that makes it feel like you could reach out a hand and feel the hairs on a big ram’s flank.
Fluorite glass is also lighter than traditional optical glass, which allows Maven to keep the S.3’s weight at a relatively manageable 60 ounces.
Field of View (FOV)
The S.3 spotting scope has a pretty impressive 141- to 100-foot linear field of view, which means you can see 141 feet across at 1000 yards when the optic is dialed down to 20x.
And although the FOV narrows as you crank up the magnification, 100 feet at the top end is extremely generous. It’s also plenty wide enough to track moving game, especially with the optic’s sharp, edge-to-edge clarity.
Customization
While Maven’s stock optics are pretty freakin’ eye-catching, the company also has a Custom Optics Builder that lets you personalize practically every external detail on your spotting scope, including the ocular end, focus wheel, and the housing.
There are plenty of color and camo options to choose from. You can even engrave your scope for an extra $30, which is a wise investment if hunting buddies like to “borrow” your stuff.
Warranty
Maven products come with a badass, rock-solid, unconditional lifetime warranty.
They will replace or repair a damaged product without a squabble, whether it was your fault or not, no matter where or when you bought it. If it gets dropped off a mountain, run over by a Tacoma, or trampled by a herd of crazed buffalo, it doesn’t matter.
Since I am notoriously hard on my optics, and my previous spotting scope has taken several hard tumbles into the mud, I feel like this company totally gets me.
What Sets It Apart?
The Maven S.3 brings outstanding glass clarity that puts it on par with spotting scopes that cost twice as much. They keep the costs low by selling directly to consumers and use of savvy marketing tactics.
By The Numbers
Clarity: 5/5
Maven made me a fan with its fluorite glass and fully multi-coated lenses that honestly deliver some of the sharpest, high-contrast images I’ve ever viewed through an optic.
The sight picture through this scope is so crystal clear that it feels like you could reach out your hand and run your fingers over the bark of that pine tree sitting 500 yards on the other side of the field. It’s just that good.
I’ve said this before, and I still mean it, “If we were judging on clarity alone, Maven is way undercharging.”
Usability: 4/5
The Maven S.3 spotting scope is a hefty optic. When I’m heading into the backcountry, I want lightweight gear; in that regard, this one doesn’t qualify, especially when you tack on the extra pounds of the necessary tripod.
However, if you have the luxury of sitting in one place, leisurely setting up a tripod, and glassing the afternoon away while you snack on beef jerky and trail mix, this spotting scope is hard to beat.
Durability: 5/5
While I haven’t had the chance to roll the S.3 down any rough, rocky slopes, its build is definitely comparable to its smaller sibling, the Maven S.2 (Read my full review here), which I’ve used for several seasons and dropped from my truck into the mud on multiple occasions.
It is built like a tank, but if you manage to damage it somehow, Maven will repair or replace it thanks to their super-awesome lifetime warranty.
Value: 4/5
The S.3’s image quality is well above its price point, but it is still a pricy optic. However, if you're willing to forgo the newest and greatest smartphone or abstain from Starbucks for a few months, you can totally afford this spotting scope. You won’t regret it, either.
The Maven S.3 isn’t a cheap optic, either in terms of quality or price. However, the price doesn’t look so bad when you consider the expense of other high-end optics with comparable quality.
The Maven S.3 Spotting Scope offers jaw-dropping image clarity wrapped in a rugged and relatively affordable package.
Have you tried the Maven S.3 Spotting Scope? Let us know in the comments! If you’re looking for a spotter to use at the gun range or to tote into the backcountry, check out our list of the Best Spotting Scopes.
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