Opticron 7x36 BGA / Swift Eaglet Revisited (1 Viewer)

Opticron Classic 7x36 BGA / Swift Eaglet Revisited

I brought this topic up a few years back & got some good responses regarding how close these two binoculars were both optically/physically but I was left wanting to see for myself. Over 3 years went by & I still could not get that little voice in my head to pull the trigger & buy one till Optics Planet offered to sell me one dropped shipped from Opticron USA at a price I could not turn down. Now having this binocular in hand for about 2 weeks & having owned two 7x36 Swift Eaglets , I can now say the 7x36 BGA Classic may physically somewhat look like a Eaglet & even on paper have some of the same spec's but the Opticron in my opinion does not perform optically or handle physically like any of the 7x36(old or new)Eaglets I owned. Having said this, in my opinion the Opticron is a new generation of Swift 7x36 Eaglet's on steroids..... from the high end two layer classy looking box ,to the soft plush luggage like carry case. Optically it is brighter/sharper than the Eaglets I owned. The focuser is rock solid, with just the right tension with no play. The eyecup design I like much better on the Opticron & has a nice rock solid feel. The eye relief very comfortable with no blackouts with my glasses. When handling the 7x36 Classics one gets a sense of high quality/rock solid build. The strap handles the weight of these binoculars very well, wide but not to wide with a real good quality look. As for overall physical comparisons of any other binoculars I have owned over the many years : If I had picked these up first/sight unseen, unlabeled the first thing that would have come to mind regarding the quality/construction & handling would be when I handled my Leitz 7x35b Trinovid for the first time. My only regret is that I waited so long to purchase a pair. ...gwen

We're glad you finally took the plunge and bought a pair Gwen.

Welcome to the growing Stateside Opticron 'Family'

Chris Galvin
Opticron

Gwen, I`m really glad you like them, I`m still thinking of adding a pair simply because I like a 7x optic, and as you say these are really top quality build wise.


John.

Gwen,

I was always given to understand the Classic was very closely related to the Swift so I'm a little surprised by your comments, but not at all surprised you like them. I've had the Classic for almost 4 years now and think its a poorly appreciated gem. Not particularly sophisticated optically, but compact and light with an engaging view simplicity and a high quality build. I have other binoculars now that might beat them technically but I suspect I'll still have the Classic after the others are gone. Glad you appreciate them too. I did a write-up when I first got them.
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=224112

David

typo said:

Gwen,

I was always given to understand the Classic was very closely related to the Swift so I'm a little surprised by your comments, but not at all surprised you like them. I've had the Classic for almost 4 years now and think its a poorly appreciated gem. Not particularly sophisticated optically, but compact and light with an engaging view simplicity and a high quality build. I have other binoculars now that might beat them technically but I suspect I'll still have the Classic after the others are gone. Glad you appreciate them too. I did a write-up when I first got them.
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=224112

David

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Hi David .. I remember your comments regarding how close you said the two were to each other. Maybe its just the simple tweaking of the glass coatings by Opticron over the years combined with higher quality control regarding the inner workings, compared to when the Eaglets were sourced for Swift. I do not know if the two even came from the same in house manufacturer in Japan. If they did, could it be that's Opticron just uses a higher grade glass combined with a better way the glass coating are applied?. Who would even know that ? What I do know, when I pick them up I like the feel/look of the overall package & how my soon to be 65 year old eyes perceive the view. One last thing , I do enjoy using the Opticron 7x36 Classic more than the Zen Ray 7x36 ... gwen

Torview said:

Gwen, I`m really glad you like them, I`m still thinking of adding a pair simply because I like a 7x optic, and as you say these are really top quality build wise.


John.

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I agree & I think its their simple design combined with their modern glass/coating that make them such a joy to use. I wish Leitz/Leica had kept that in mind and just kept the 7x35 Trinovid original design like they were & just improved the glass/coating over the years.

gcole said:

Hi David .. I remember your comments regarding how close you said the two were to each other. Maybe its just the simple tweaking of the glass coatings by Opticron over the years combined with higher quality control regarding the inner workings, compared to when the Eaglets were sourced for Swift. I do not know if the two even came from the same in house manufacturer in Japan. If they did, could it be that's Opticron just uses a higher grade glass combined with a better way the glass coating are applied?. Who would even know that ? What I do know, when I pick them up I like the feel/look of the overall package & how my soon to be 65 year old eyes perceive the view. One last thing , I do enjoy using the Opticron 7x36 Classic more than the Zen Ray 7x36 ... gwen

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Gwen,

I was told they were both from the same company and the same optical design, but other specification details may well have diverged. I'm sure over the years there have been improvements in both prism in lens coatings. Mine had been in stock a long time when I bought it so unless yours is from a more recent production run the coating options etc. were probably similar to the later Swift batches. Intriguing!

I've sort of rulled out switches in manufacturer but it may be possible. I rather liked the little Bushnell Elite 7x26 which has been around even longer than these 7x36. I was surprised to learn that at least 4 companies made them at different times and there was even a change at the last model update. There is more going on than we know about.

David

I've owned both; still have the Opticron. Think I posted some time back that I thought the Opticron was a bit better optically, or maybe that was a PM to somebody? My Swift (later version) was acquired second hand so there was always the possibility it may not have been in prime shape, but it was a bit better than my Swift (earlier version) which was also purchased second hand... so who knows? Tried for a long time to acquire a new Swift but had no luck... and their headquarters, not so far away from me, was of no help - I let the Swifts go and went with the Opticron. Thought Chip was a first rate guy. Glad there is a company still offering the 7x36 roof in a decent package. Maybe someday... another company will catch on.

Enjoy...

CG

This is my all time favourite binocular. However, I have to say that it grew on me. I had a real problem with rolling bowl or ball, not sure which one. I found it really distracting. However, I think it was accentuated by my glasses lens. When I changed glasses the problem was almost alleviated.

I think it's a simply, old design. However, therein lies its charm and appeal. The view is very good, sharp to the edge close up with field curvature becoming more noticeable the further out you go. What is very appealing is the 3D effect, unusual for a roof. Contrast is very good with reds being particularly vibrant, which I like.

Its a shame that more manufactures do not offer a high end single hinge compact roof prism binocular in either a 6x or 7x power. One could only imagine what a new generation of Swarovski or Zeiss 6/7x glass would be like.

gcole said:

Its a shame that more manufactures do not offer a high end single hinge compact roof prism binocular in either a 6x or 7x power. One could only imagine what a new generation of Swarovski or Zeiss 6/7x glass would be like.

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I agree, I think there is a small market for 6 and 7x in the 32mm format. After I use 6 or 7 x power using a 8x power I definitely see more shaking of the image.