need some good binos...

S

SkaerE

New member
mostly for hunting season. anyhow heres what i need:

1.) good optics (clarity/no distortion etc)
2.) about 7-8 power, no more, no less
3.) around $300 or so.
4.) durable housing
5.) MAYBE some kinda ranging reticle
6.) about 40mm or so

im thinking about the IOR 7x40 military binos. dont really NEED a range finding reticle, but i was pretty good at using the Army binos as a Cav Scout, so it may come in handy...

anyone here ever use the Steiner predator glasses? supposed to make game stick out somehow...

anyhow, what do you all use?
 
Quick check.

Do you normally wear glasses?

If so, you'd best be served with a set of extended eye reliefs. Very handy not to have to swing the specs out of the way to view.

Just a thought.

I do wear specs & pleased with a set of Nikon's Attache series EER 8X40 (42, I disremember without going to the truck). No matter the brand, buy for what you normally look through.
 
nope, no glasses.

im also lookin at Nikon Monarch 8x40 All terrain binos.

now i know Nikon has very nice glass, how about durability?
 
If you're hunting where it's common to get up to overlook pretty large areas (a mile or more away), quality is a necessity. For one thing, you'll be spending a lot of time looking over the country, and quality binocs not only provide better clarity, they avoid giving eyestrain and headaches.

If you're mostly just "checkin' country" or counting points within 200 to 400 yards, most any old binocs will do.

Art
 
A couple of years ago I broke down and got a pair of Swarvarski 10X42 SLC's. I paid about $850.00 for them. real darn expensive but I've got to tell you they were probably the best hunting investment I've ever made!!

With glass that clear you'd be amazed at what you can pick out at distance that a guy with lesser glass won't see.

For the money however, Stiener Big horn 9X40's are real nice glass.
 
I have used my pair of Nicon Monarchs here in Prince William Sound Alaska for 4 years now. As nasty as it is here, I've found that they are VERY durable and have had no problems with them. They get soaked and take trips with me as I fall down hill-sides on a regular basis.

I also feel that the optics are good for the price because I cannot afford Zeiss or Swarovski bino's at this time.

I would also suggest getting a Crooked Horn Outfitter Slide and Flex bino-system. These things ROCK!! They hold the bino's close to your body and keep them from swinging side-to-side while you walk, or forward as you lean down.

http://www.crookedhorn.com/indexbino.htm
 
I use Fujinon CD 8x42's but they are closer to $600.00. I second the motion on the Crooked Horn Slide and Flex. They make great binos (read that relatively heavy) easy to carry.
 
I've seen jmbg29's Fujinon's and they are INSANE. I never knew binos could look that good.

- Gabe
 
The only way for you to get a high quality $300 waterproof bino is to buy a porro prism design. Roof prisms are cool and very fashionable but because of their more complex optics and body design they cost 2 -3 times more than optically equivalent porros. It's like a law of nature, there's no gettin' around it.

Look at it this way. I've got a ten year old pair of Nikon 7x50 Naturalist XL RC (camo rubber coated). They're clear as a bell and I love them dearly. Their depth of field is awesome, focus them once and forget it, they stay focused from 30 feet to infinity (I've never seen a roof at any price come close). It's a huge benefit when hunting. Great dawn/dusk glass, heck, you can even discern useful images at night in bright moonlit. They set me back around $280 IIRC. I've compared them side-by-side to high end roofs and optically they're equivalent to roof glass costing $500 to $750.

So what's the trade off? Porro prisms are bigger, bulkier, and (usually) heavier. That's the down side. I bought a good neck strap and moved on.

The Nikon Superior E 8x32, though not waterproof, is considered by many the most optically perfect binocular made. They're a porro prism design and cost around $600. It might be possible to make a roof prism to equal them but they'd be so friggin' expensive I don't think anyone's even tried.

Forget the Nikon Monarchs. Optically they're worse than many porro prism costing around a hundred bucks. Check them out side-by-side with a $110 pair of Nikon 7x40 Action porros and tell me which one is clearer. Dollar-for-dollar I think Nikon makes the best binos on the market, but IMO the entire Monarch line is just awful.

Getting back to your original question. Check out some of these sub $300 waterproof porros: Fujinon BFL 8x42, Nikon Sports/Marine 7x50, and the Bausch & Lomb Discoverer 8x42 Porro. For around $500 there's the Swarovski Classic 7x42 MGA. Optically it's probably the best glass Swaro makes. Any of these will easily out class roofs costing twice as much.

Pentax DCF WP 8x42 is definitely the cream of the crop of the sub $400 waterproof roofs. The Bausch & Lomb Discoverer 7x42 is another good roof bargain and closer to $300.

Here's a couple of more links to get you going.....

Better View Desired
Eagle Optics

Both sites are packed with a ton of bino info. -- Kernel
 
Forget the Nikon Monarchs. Optically they're worse than many porro prism costing around a hundred bucks. Check them out side-by-side with a $110 pair of Nikon 7x40 Action porros and tell me which one is clearer.

Wow! SkaerE, I would suggest doing that very thing. I did and I walked away with a pair of Nikon Monarchs. In the last few years, the advancements of coatings and other technologies have made the difference between $110 porros and $300 roof prism bino's purely objective.

Another critical factor in choosing a binocular is its construction. The security of the barrel alignment and proper internal mounting and alignment of the optics are crucial to producing a binocular that's mechanically reliable, smooth functioning and long-lasting.

I don't believe that a $100 pair of bino's would have the kind of construction I need compared to one that's been built to be more durable. Just go try out different kinds of bino's and find a pair that is built for your needs.
 
If it all possible, take a peek through some Pentax DCFs, the waterproof versions. Forget the online stores, On Ebay you can get the 8x42s for $300 delivered.

I don't have the kind of money it takes to buy these obscenely priced optics. $300 was about the lid of my budget when hunting for binocs a year or so ago. I'm real glad I stumbled across the Pentax, very nice. I was able to compare them side by side in a week's worth of hunting conditions to a pair of Kahles, IMO the Pentax are better.
 
Hi,

If you perform a search on altavista or any other popular search engine containing the terms binocular and bird watching or ornithology, then you'll find some good info about optics.

I'd give you some links...but I'm in a transitory status and on a borrowed 'comp'.

I've owned several binoculars for nature watching/hunting. So far, the best - yet very expensive - are Leica 10 x 42 BN. They are a bit heavy, but completely fogproof and waterproof. And, they are expensive. The eye-cups roll down for eyeglass wearers.

If you decide on the Leica brand...make sure that you purchase them from an 'authorized dealer' if shopping for good deals on the internet - or Leica will not honor the warranty. So far I've had mine for four years, and have used them without incident in caribbean rainforests.

Persons who look through them are always awed by the clarity and detail of my binoc's.

Anyways, my two cents...

beetle
 
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