Binoculars

Hey all,
Just wondering what bino's everybodys using. What I'm looking for in particular is 8x42, mid size, long eye relief (eyeglasses), fully multicoated, and most importantly, good low light performance. My budget is low to moderate.
I hunt mostly farmland and open woods. All too often critters come out at last light and I need positive ID.

I'm looking at these, but need to get them in my hand before I make a decision.
http://www.nikonsportoptics.com/Nikon-Products/Binoculars/PROSTAFF-7S-8x42.html

thanks,
Jeff

Check out the Rogue Series from Leupold ..... specifically the 8 x 42 and 10 x 42 models. Very hard to beat for the money.


This place sells them at good prices:

http://www.adorama.com/LD842RBK.html
http://www.adorama.com/LD1042RBK.html

ETA: I overlooked your requirement for LER binocs .... these don't have that feature and don't be surprised to find very little to choose from for much less than $500.

archr,

ALPEN makes a quality line of optics for low to mod prices. I have kept a set of ALPEN binocs in each of my vehicles for years.

Doc

Check out the vortex diamondback lineup.

Thanks guys,
Doc, I'm interested in these.
http://alpenoptics.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Store_Code=alpen&Screen=PROD&Product_Code=386SR

What do ya think ?

Jeff

Buy the best you can afford. Binocs are very important to me. When they are to your eyes the majority of a day, the ok ones are quickly separated from the good ones. You'll have a nice headache if he glass isn't very good and causes eye strain. I have an older set of 10x42 Pentax SP that work great. For the money, they were and still are excellent glass. I primarily use a set of 10x42 Swaro EL HD now and they are incredible but cost a good but more than the Pentax did also. Get your hands on as many as you can before buying. What is good for my eyes doesn't necessarily work as well for yours. In the store, they all look good and you can barely tell any difference, get them in the field at dark or use for extended hours during a day and they will clearly separate themselves for you...

I know you are on a budget, but a Swarovski or Leica you won't need anymore

Get the very best you can afford.

For many years I used a set of cheap binos. They were worse than useless. I couldn't understand why so many people recommended using binos when they were that unhelpful.

A few years ago I upgraded to a set of 8x42 Leupolds. The difference was immense. I now realised how much benefit good binos could make to the hunt. Wouldn't be without a set anymore.

On my recent trip to Africa, my guide was using a set of Leica 10x42 with in built range finder. Good as I thought the Leupolds were, they weren't in the same class as the Leica. The guide was able to see and identify animals where I could only see bushes. That was for two reasons: The 10x made a quantum difference over 8x, and the Leica was optically much sharper than the Leupold. The rangefinder was a nice feature but not absolutely necessary. Clarity, however, is everything.

Many of my rifle shooting friends have a saying that you should spend at least as much on your scope as you do on your rifle. I think we handguners should do likewise with our binos. You can't hunt what you can't see.

I use an older pair of Zeiss that used to be state of the art and they still work great. Zeiss has since come out with "better" and for sure more expensive models. I paid around $800 about ten years ago.

Like some are saying, buy the best you can afford.

It hurt, but I went with Swarovski EL's and know I'll never have to do it again. I use mine almost daily though with my falconry.

If anyone makes better binos than Swarovski I don't know who. They are very expensive but like others have said, you'll likely only own one or maybe two sets in your life. I bought my first 10x42 SLCs 25+ years ago. At the time they sold for $999. A couple years ago I a lens went bad and I sent them back for repair. No questions and more than 2 pages of parts replaced. They did a total overhaul including a new body. I took that opportunity to sell them for what I paid for them and bought the EL Range model. The Meopta with HD glass are also quite good as are the Zeiss and believe or not the Cabela's Euro HD's. They aren't as good as the Swaro's but they aren't bad.

Nikon Monarch 3 8x42. Sharp, bright, rugged and nearly an inch of eye relief. All for $226.95, shipping included. Dollar-for-dollar, they're very very hard to beat.

I have a pair on Nikon Monarch ATB 10x42 I have been using since 1998. I have compared them side by side with a $1400 pair of Leica's and they are as clear and bright. Mine have been exposed through every type of weather you can imagine and I have never had an issue. I wear eyeglasses and these bino's work great.
My friend has the same pair and he left his on the tailgate of his truck and the binoculars hit the pavement at 50 mph. Nikon replaced them with a new pair, no questions asked.
If anything happened to mine, I would buy the same pair tomorrow.

spend the money for a good pair and never buy another....
Leica 10-42X.....

Archr did ask what we are using besides offering info on his choice, so a slight drift.

I like many here decided to bite the bullet and go expensive, after a ton of years of replacing lesser brands. But with a slight twist. I decided I wanted a full size option and small. Went with Zeiss 8x40's for the big set, which work well with a harness type system.

For the times I am carrying my handgun on my chest, I decided I wanted a "pocket" type. went with the Swarovski's 8x20's. I have actually found myself using the 8x20's much more, as the size is great, and by going with a great quality glass, they really perform well. And I wear glasses, but each work just fine.

The smaller high quality pair might actually work out better, as a bit more money gets you quality glass in a bino that might be better suited to a wider variety of hunting scenarios.

Craig

Buy once, cry once.

In my hunting and general field activities I purchased more pairs of binos over the years than I care to think about. Started off with el cheapo Bushnells and progressively bought more expensive ones each go round. If I would have just saved my pennies and bought the Zeiss binos I have now, I would have saved more than 2x the cost and been a whole lot happier.

In optics you get exactly what you pay for. There is no "awesome deal" where you get $500 bino clarity for $250 bino price. The cost of the glass and coatings is directly related to price.

Also, you can't compare binos by looking at them individually. You need to have both of them essentially sitting on top of one another and look back and forth between them. Anything else is a waste of your time. It also makes it easy to determine which one looks better.

When all was said and done I ended up with a pair of Zeiss Conquest ABK 10x40 binos for around $1000. Not once since I purchased them have I ever regretted doing that.

Incidentally, that pair of binos has now outlasted the total combined time of the previous 3 pairs I bought before that and unless I do something stupid, I expect them to last long enough to pass on to my kids.

I've got a Leupold. It was a gift, so I have no idea what model or price, but it works pretty well for what I use it for. Granted, I've never used any high quality binos to compare it to, but still. . .

For those single guys out there who want something for your bride-to-be to give you for a lifetime wedding gift? A nice set of bino's...10x42 Swaro SLC's here. Will have them forever.

I hate big glass so i got the leica compacts. Unreal, i could count points on elk at hundreds
Of yards away my friends couldnt with mich much more magnification. They are phenomenal