Swift 820 ED's, collimation, how rugged etc.?

[Marys1000]

In a post on "Other" bino's I asked for advice on whether I should buy a replacement pair of Swift 820 EDs for the car or go to a roof since I was told they are more rugged. I love my Swifts and I'm not sure if I would be having trouble with them riding around in the car for years if I hadn't dropped them off the car roof several years ago. I had them repaired initially, then again, but they just don't seem to stay quite right so I was going to make them a house/yard bird bino. However they seemed to ride in the car with no troubles till the accident. So they got really hot, really cold and spent most of the time on the passenger seat which is padded for 2-3 years before that. They were not tenderly taken care by a long shot.
What are your experiences? Any trouble with collimation or worse? Are these porro's more "fragile" than roof's? Anyone know how they anchor the optics?

I love my Swifts in part because they are porro's and I don't like roof's much. I really like and find very helpful the large FOV although because I wear thick glasses I'm told I don't get full advantage of it, so I'm reluctant to switch to a roof but haven't looked at what's out there for awhile and am trying to keep an open mind.
So far though the ruggedness and eye relief seem to be the only reason to consider switching from the Swift.

[Alexis Powell]

You could scroll down the Swift page and read the thread on durability issues. I'll try to paste a link here

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=76999

--AP

[Marys1000]

Thanks Alexis - I checked it out. Seems a lot more 804 experience than 820/820 ED. The 820 has to have been out for what 7? years. I was hoping for more owners with "yes problems" "no problems"

[mayoayo]

No collimation problems after 5 years....I drop them initially(my 8 month daughter did,4 years ago),and hit the diopter adjustable eyepiece, Swift fixed the stuck eyepiece and i have had no problems up to date.I have noticed a bit of waggling when the bridge comes up fast,but not sure if this is caused by the flexible design of the bridge(swift claimed that the flexible bridge is part of a "Self adjustable "design),or some damage to the center rod of the bridge happened at the time.The eyepieces stay reasonable within the same focus range ,most of the time....The Swifts are, on the other hand ,Such a resolution capable instrument,that despite the mentioned fact,and some glare/contrast problems in some lights(not the best performer against frontal low angle light) i was always sure that i was getting the max amount of detail that my eyes/brain can possibly make through a binocular...I am thinking now to buy a pair of the ED version ,hoping to get a bit better performance against glare/ internal reflection .Will see.

[Kevin Purcell]

Ah, now it can be told (after you sold the 820s) eh, mayoayo ;)

That's a useful report though.

The flexible bridge seems to be a disliked part of the design. Others have had that behavior without a drop. And the comment from Swift seem rather like spin to me.

AFAIK the 820ED just seems to be an 820 with an ED objective (rather than a comprehensive optics redesign to make best use of the ED) so I suspect it's glare/ internal reflection problems will be the same.

Unless someone knows different ...

[mayoayo]

He,he|:x|ssssht...No...i am sure the binoculars performed as they should..is when i asked swift about the unsteady bridge,that Nick told me about the "SELF ADJUSTING" design....I was bringing the issue of the binos being hit,as a point for their strong build,,The famous patent number in the binocular body ,is ,as a matter of fact a patent on the bronze clamps that hold the prisms in place( i think!),and doesnt have anything to do with the waterproofing...The waterprofing is another issue ..Nick also told me that the best way to keep them waterproof is to keep them dry!!!!!!!..so go figure..BUT..i have tried a couple of compact roofs in the last couple of weeks,AND ,about the flare issue..Well...the Audubons didnt ever annoyed me in the way other more expensive binos had ..i will be getting the 820 ED shortly,..I actually have heard that some differences are present in the design of the objective,so will see...i will report my impressions.....