Byfield Tracker 8x56 polarised binoculars

Ergonomic and technical specifications for the Byfield Tracker 8x56 are available here :

http://www.byfieldoptics.com/index.php/polarised-binoculars

Byfield Optics exhibit at marine, sports fishing, outdoors, hunting, and military expos all over Australia, the Middle and Far East, you can keep up on FB :

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Byfield-Optics/425144990856852?sk=timeline&ref=page_internal

Manufacturers and importers with sports and marine optics for review can contact me through the messaging function on this forum, many thanks.

Have you landed here looking for a specialist marine 7x50 ? Well, I guess the traditional Porro format could be said to be looking a little outdated. Virtually everyone does them, the market is totally saturated and trending downwards in quality and price. It is time for something new.

Marine 8x56 ? Well now you are talking, an extra wide objective, a sharp 7mm exit pupil, a cool, fashionable, modern roof body, and no appreciable difference in weight.

Here is a very smart new product the Byfield Tracker 8x56, a big view afloat binocular, and with a good field of view for an 8x56. It is a polarised binocular and if you enjoy a consistently high level of light intensity in your birding and sporting year then these are worth very serious consideration.

For controlling glare they will do the job for you in hearts, clubs, diamonds and spades.

I really enjoy using these, for sea birds and waterfowl, for horizon viewing and big sky sunsets they are just excellent, and rather than the usual point by point review reflecting my personal opinion Im offering a few direct quotes from other practical users. They speak for themselves :

Michelle, a competition sports shooter : The binos have good magnification that also allow me to recognise mirage easily. I often sit and assess wind and mirage prior to taking up my shooting position, the Byfield Binoculars allow me to do this with ease, rather than through my spotting scope and with less stress on my eyes prior to my shooting match. I would highly recommend these binoculars to any long range shooter, the polarisation reduces the stress on the eyes and makes scoring easy.

Missing aircraft MH370 search observer team leader : We received many positive comments from our volunteer Air Search Observers. I am not aware of any negative comments. The positive comments included: High quality product Light to handle Easy to use Quick to get onto a sighting and focussed Reduced / no glare was particularly useful at times in the conditions experienced during MH370 search operations.

Byfield Optics donated ten pairs of Byfield Tracker 8x56 polarised binoculars to the search team in the search for the missing airliner MH370.

Captain Luke Fallon, Kekoa Sports Fishing : Late season we are looking for the tuna aggregation as the water temperatures rise and the fish move offshore. One sure sign is bird activity and the binoculars not only help us to find the birds but to identify the tuna beneath them (yellowfin busting vs skipjacks). They have been a great tool and have helped to put us onto some great quality fish - marlin and yellowfin alike !

Another direct quote from Luke Fallon : "Yet another great tool to add to the fish finding tool box. The polarising works wonders reducing glare off the water over distances. We've used them to spot birds working, tuna feeding on the surface and even the odd tailing marlin. They are also great to help identify coral bombies behind the reef!"

These binoculars have been very well received in the sports fishing community to universally good reviews. Here is another :

Brownie, a sports fisher : A few months ago, I was given a pair of Byfield Optics Polarised Binoculars to test on Megumi, the 44ft custom built Assegai game fishing boat I run.

A good pair of binoculars is a very handy and necessary tool on a boat, particularly if you are running in areas where there are narrow channels and beacons. They are also very handy to scan for birds and bait beyond your normal field of vision.

I used the Polarised Byfields in navigating through Sandy Straits on our trip north to fish for blue marlin east of Sandy Cape and Indian Head on Fraser Island.

Although I have a GPS/Chart Plotter on the boat, I still like to have visual contact with beacons when navigating in such areas.

The Byfield Polarised Binoculars were really good, as there was greatly reduced glare without any loss of clarity and I was able to easily see the beacons and sandbanks I was looking for.

When you think about it, we all use polarised sun glasses to reduce glare so we can see better on the water, so to me it is a natural step to have polarised binoculars.

The Byfields were also very good in offshore situations and I was able spot birds from a long way away and ascertain whether they were working over bait, or just travelling.

Another great feature is their rubber skin, which makes them resistant to water damage and very easy to hold on to on a moving boat.

The carry case is made of the same material and the binoculars fit neatly into a shaped foam recess inside the case, so there is no chance of damage to the binoculars or your boat when travelling in rough conditions.

Overall, I was very impressed with them and they are now a permanent fixture on Megumi.

For anyone buying a good pair of binoculars for their boat, I believe Byfield Polarised Binoculars are the logical choice based on their ease of use, performance, sturdy weather proof construction and carry case.

Best of all, Byfield is a wholly owned Australian company and supporting local business is what we should all be about.

Finally a quote from a regular participant on this forum, OPTIC_NUT, There are ironies to consumer demand, from an opthalmic perspective ... Many would see the obsession with brightness as marketing. I think it's mostly a consumer pull, and a matter of "you asked for it, you got it". At the very least, those "UV" prefilters should make a comeback ... .

These polarised binoculars are unique, a genuine game changer. The alpha brand ber light transmitters have nothing on them, nothing on them at all.

As ever value is what you think it is. The price for these is currently around AUD$900.00 including GST., and for those that view in places of high environmental glare they are a very serious addition to the binocular rack. Its great to have a binocular to hand just for a specific job. With the sun in your face they would be hard to beat and you can never have too much practical kit.

Byfield polarised binoculars are designed and engineered in Australia and manufactured and distributed by Byfield Optics, Queensland. Two specifications are available ; the big view Byfield Tracker 8x56 overviewed here, and the essential and bestselling Byfield Recon 10x42.

My interest is purely as a practical user and once again I would like to give a sincere thank you to Ian Winkworth and his team at Byfield Optics for generously sending samples of their unique polarised binoculars from one side of the world to the other for review.