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Binocular advice - $1000 or so. Boat use... (1 Viewer)

rdpx

Well-known member
Friend of mine is soon to become captain of a boat and is thinking about buying himself a good pair of binoculars, and he asked me about it and I thought that the encyclopaedic knowledge of the forum might be of more help to him.

1. The boat has a couple of pairs of Steiner marines on board, but he wants something to own himself.

2. He is not sure if he needs a pair of "marine" binoculars or not. I think he likes idea of higher magnification than 7x. I have told him that "marine" ones would normally be 7x50 or thereabouts, but he seems pretty happy to consider 8x42 and also is pretty taken with the small size of my 8x32 Mojaves...

3. Budget is lets say upper limit $1000, but he is mainly interested in finding where the sweet spot is for price/performance. As he says "I just want them to be the bomb".

So - I am sorry it is extremely vague, but what is the best sub $1000 binocular out there, and is he unwise to be looking past a pair of standard "marine" binos?

Thanks in advance!!

Robert
 
A couple of questions. How big is the boat? Is the deck going to be pretty unstable and is it going to get wet frequently? If the answer to the last two is yes then a traditional marine from Steiner, Fujinon etc. is probably still the best bet. If no then there is plenty of choice. If it's mostly for viewing the deck or the mooring then perhaps an 8x32 might do the job, but otherwise the extra low light capability of a 8x42 or a 10x50 is probably worthwhile. Can you offer any more info about how it will be used?

David
 
I love almost all image stabilized binoculars, but I've found the Fujinon Techno-Stabi to be somewhat better than Canon when it comes to rolling deck type situations as opposed to twitching hands. WP and the 12x is available in US at just a hair over 1K, which New Canon 10x42 is not.

IS is the only feature that's going to make a $1K binocular "the bomb" as opposed to already existing Steiner, but as per the excellent advice of another poster, Fujinon and Steiner standard marine binoculars are terrific, I've particularly valued the Fujinon rubber coated versions for their flat field, bright views and tendency to stay in wet, cold hands.

Best,
Jerry
 
Better experts on this than me on here, but I think 7x50 is preferred for marine use for a reason, 10x I think would not be a good idea at all for hand held on a boat / ship? Far too much image shake unless they can used on a fixed mount. As mentioned above the 7x50 Fujinon/ Swift / Steiner marine binoculars are the favored tool for the job.
 
Thanks already.
The boat is a dry stable boat - think 45 metre long gin palace.

From what he is now saying I don't think he is that worried about them being marine types as if he needs that he can use the boat binoculars... Sounds like he just wants something personal that is high quality that he can use as general binoculars for checking stuff out. Sorry he is not being very helpful. I might suggest he just gets the best pair of 8x25s he can afford, as he keeps picking up my Mojave 8x32s and seems to love the fact that they are so small.

I know this sounds pretty useless, but reading the responses so far is helping him to clarify his thinking about what he might actually want and why, so please do continue with any suggestions of what you might buy if you had $1000 to spend!

Thanks

R
 
Not as pretty as the Swaro, and a bit over budget (~$1200 in the US) the big and heavy Kowa Genesis 8.5x44 takes some beating but the 8x33 ix more manageable or there is the fairly light Vortex Razor HD 8x42 which is excellent as well. Closer to home the Opticron S-Coat Mg 8x42 or their other 8x32s are definitely worth considering.

David
 
I love almost all image stabilized binoculars, but I've found the Fujinon Techno-Stabi to be somewhat better than Canon when it comes to rolling deck type situations as opposed to twitching hands. WP and the 12x is available in US at just a hair over 1K, which New Canon 10x42 is not.

IS is the only feature that's going to make a $1K binocular "the bomb" as opposed to already existing Steiner, but as per the excellent advice of another poster, Fujinon and Steiner standard marine binoculars are terrific, I've particularly valued the Fujinon rubber coated versions for their flat field, bright views and tendency to stay in wet, cold hands.

Best,
Jerry

Being such a Fujinon fan, I would normally agree--they SHOULD be better for sea duty.

BUT, and as they say it's a big BUTT, during the last few years at Captain's, I totally stopped selling the product, because sailors were returning with instruments with corroded battery compartments--too many seals were giving way. In some cases, terminals had corroded completely away.

And then, I was told I would have to send it in so they could have their "expert check it." (Yes, I'll freely admit that this got my ego in a twist! Charlie Nemoto had been in my shop many times and knew our capibilities.) This meant wasted time to the mariner (boats have schedules to keep) and wasted time and money to Captain's. I was very pleased with MOST Fujinon products. But, the Techno Staby had to go.

I didn't have such problems with the full-bore Stabiscope. But that cost much more. In my last few years at Captain's, the Canon products started to pass by the Techno Staby pretty handily.

I only had ONE of them come back for a leaked compartment. I theory, and track record, the Fujinon should have blown the Canon product away. In practice, it didn't.

'Just my 2 cents.

Bill
 
For a 45' gin palace and to impress others on the boat and a couple of Steiner marines there already, yes, the best choice would be the Canon 10x42 IS L suggested in the first reply. I assume the fellow doesn't own the boat, or he would not need to cap the cost at one grand, which the Canon exceeds. IS binoculars are the only option if one wishes to be able to see things such as boat names or sail numbers at distance, and not just see that there is a name but also read it. And there are other nice things to view at sea too, all benefiting from a more stable view.

For a non-stabilized binocular that would still be different enough and nicer enough than the Steiners, a Zeiss Conquest HD 8x42 would again fit the bill as well as the price limit.

Kimmo
 
nice boat

edj

Agreed! Upon seeing it, I checked Google to see the biggest "boat" I ever drove. The Grand Canyon was 492 feet. They also listed it as have a speed of 18 knots. I had to laugh. The Canyon wouldn't do 18 knots . . . DOWN HILL!

Bill ;)
 
Being such a Fujinon fan, I would normally agree--they SHOULD be better for sea duty.

BUT, and as they say it's a big BUTT, during the last few years at Captain's, I totally stopped selling the product, because sailors were returning with instruments with corroded battery compartments--too many seals were giving way. In some cases, terminals had corroded completely away.

And then, I was told I would have to send it in so they could have their "expert check it." (Yes, I'll freely admit that this got my ego in a twist! Charlie Nemoto had been in my shop many times and knew our capibilities.) This meant wasted time to the mariner (boats have schedules to keep) and wasted time and money to Captain's. I was very pleased with MOST Fujinon products. But, the Techno Staby had to go.

I didn't have such problems with the full-bore Stabiscope. But that cost much more. In my last few years at Captain's, the Canon products started to pass by the Techno Staby pretty handily.

I only had ONE of them come back for a leaked compartment. I theory, and track record, the Fujinon should have blown the Canon product away. In practice, it didn't.

'Just my 2 cents.

Bill
Interesting. Did there seem to be some problem with the battery compartment seal? Any DYI prophylactic measures? I ask because mine is fine so far but I'd like to avoid a problem if I can.

Best,
Jerry
 
Interesting. Did there seem to be some problem with the battery compartment seal? Any DYI prophylactic measures? I ask because mine is fine so far but I'd like to avoid a problem if I can.

Best,
Jerry

There had to be. Check your terminals REGULARLY and keep a very light coat of grease on the box ring--wiping off the excess. Be sure you can feel some back pressure when you snug the compartment lid back on.

Bill
 
Just wondered what a 45m gin palace looked like. Check out the virtual tour. :eek!:
http://www.sunriseyachts.com/yachts/sunrise-45m

David, that is rather uncanny: as the movie so nearly says "Of all the gin palaces in all the world, you had to post a link to that one..."


So... you just posted a link to the sister boat of the one my friend works on. They look damn near identical, only the one you posted is about two years old and this one left the yard about three weeks ago...

M/Y ATOMIC

He seems to be liking the Swarovski idea as giving good show-off points. I think he needs to find a shop to try some out...

R
 
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