John - one of the dirty little secrets about collecting optics is that the Japanese have been been making superior optics for a long, long time. Their naval binoculars were superior to any thing we had during WW2, save the lack of coatings, which as we all know was first perfected by the Germans shortly before the war.
Following the war folks like Dave Bushnell began importing binoculars of an increasing quality. Witness the Custom line. But in any commodity, quality comes and goes, which was true of the Japanese optics unfortunately, particularly in the Insta-Focus era. The glass was good but the construction really iffy. We can even look at the Germans with the superb chassis of the Leitz Trinovid line with absolutely marginal optics for our edification.
It should be no surprise that many of the older Japanese porros were very good glasses because they (1) had good optics, (2) hard coatings, and (3) and well constructed metal bodies. Also, they normally used the double eccentric rings on the objectives lens for collimating and followed both the B&L and Zeiss body patterns, which are very functional. I have found from experience that the internal precision of Zeiss porros, primarily in the prism seats, was surpassed by no other manufacturer of porros.
When Canon abandoned its porro line for the stabilized binoculars, it left behind some very fine porros, which could be purchased for a lot less money than the rubber covered pieces of plastic with so-so optics marketed by other makers. Dozens of Canon porros passed through my hands, and subjectively, I have reached the conclusion that the 7x35 is the pick of the lot, superior to the B&L except for weight.
I recommended a Canon 7x35 to a fellow on this website, and he found them inferior to the latest wizz bang creation he had. So be it. But every 7x35 Canon I have come across has been snapped up for friends and customers and kept.
The Canon construction has a feature that goes unrecognized for most users. When the eye cups are removed, there remains an ample flat surface for sticking the 3-M
sticky back rings on it, allowing the full FOV for eye glass wearers without mashing your spectacles against your face.
If you purchase a second hand Canon porro with the oculars virtually frozen, don't force the wheel or you may break the arm connecting to the central focusing system. The problem lies in the spiral screw where the wheel is located because the grease has deteriorated leaving a somewhat rigid residue clogging up the system. This is a common problem with older B&L Zephyr models, too. Fixing them is easy, if you know how to go about it. Enjoy your Canons
Yellowstone John
