I wonder who makes the magnesium frame for the Monarch HG?
http://cdn-4.nikon-cdn.com/e/Q5NM96...mfPP1z63kr3/Overview/monarch_hg_materials.jpg
Bob
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Kamakura USA Customers (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Troubador
- Start date
I wonder who makes the magnesium frame for the Monarch HG?
http://cdn-4.nikon-cdn.com/e/Q5NM96...mfPP1z63kr3/Overview/monarch_hg_materials.jpg
Bob
Lee,
I've heard that companies have taken designs to Kamakura and others to be manufactured, but I believe most will just dress up an OEM in-house design.
I spoke to one UK distributor that had asked the Chinese Embasy for information on optical companies and was a give a list 3000 strong! I did try to do a bit of digging myself, but gave up when I found over 20 in Kunming alone that listed binocular manufacture as a business activity. I suspect the lion share of the models we see come from the relatively small number of companies that attend the big European and US trade fairs. I've heard a couple of names mentioned, but can't remember them now.
David
I've heard that companies have taken designs to Kamakura and others to be manufactured, but I believe most will just dress up an OEM in-house design.
I spoke to one UK distributor that had asked the Chinese Embasy for information on optical companies and was a give a list 3000 strong! I did try to do a bit of digging myself, but gave up when I found over 20 in Kunming alone that listed binocular manufacture as a business activity. I suspect the lion share of the models we see come from the relatively small number of companies that attend the big European and US trade fairs. I've heard a couple of names mentioned, but can't remember them now.
David
I heard this from a large UK dealership in the UK so think it is the case.
Bob,
I believe the whole model is made by Kamakura Japan, but I don't know who came up with the design, Nikon or Kamakura.
I was told that the Nikon M7 x30, Kite Lynx, Maven B1 etc. was a Kamakura design with the M7 being built in their Chinese factory and the others in Japan. The M7 x42 was from another source in China apparently.
David
gunut
Registered Offender
purchase 500 of each and I'm sure it would happen....could even name them 'marinemaster' if ya like.....:smoke:
David,
I think I would like to see something more definite than this about who makes them. Certainly parts needed for their final construction may be and are contracted out.
The Monarch 7 30mm binoculars note on them that they are made in China. The Monarch HG is a different order of binocular.
Bob
There has been occasional speculation on the forum that contract manufacturers like Kamakura generate little or no original thinking.
Visit : http://patents.justia.com/assignee/kamakura-koki-co-ltd
Lee
Visit : http://patents.justia.com/assignee/kamakura-koki-co-ltd
Lee
Lee,
It reminds me of the loudspeaker vibration parts that were used for active optics before anybody knew such optics existed.
Maybe around 1970, but I wonder if earlier.
Later such devices were available for amateurs but I don't know if currently made.
Horace Dall made a variable prism extra for correcting atmospheric dispersion.
Similar devices are available commercially.
I am not sure if he patented any of his inventions.
P.S.
I don't think Dollond invented the Dollond achromatic objective. He was a better businessman.
The Crayford focuser was I think left unpatented, maybe by Wall?
Because something is patented, it doesn't mean they first thought of it.
A friend became wealthy by patenting justifyably an oil industry valve that was available in a completely different context earlier.
I think the world's first commercial autofocus camera from Minolta had problems, and they had to pay maybe Honeywell??
Although Minolta's vibration sensor image stabilizer might be original. Used by others now.
It reminds me of the loudspeaker vibration parts that were used for active optics before anybody knew such optics existed.
Maybe around 1970, but I wonder if earlier.
Later such devices were available for amateurs but I don't know if currently made.
Horace Dall made a variable prism extra for correcting atmospheric dispersion.
Similar devices are available commercially.
I am not sure if he patented any of his inventions.
P.S.
I don't think Dollond invented the Dollond achromatic objective. He was a better businessman.
The Crayford focuser was I think left unpatented, maybe by Wall?
Because something is patented, it doesn't mean they first thought of it.
A friend became wealthy by patenting justifyably an oil industry valve that was available in a completely different context earlier.
I think the world's first commercial autofocus camera from Minolta had problems, and they had to pay maybe Honeywell??
Although Minolta's vibration sensor image stabilizer might be original. Used by others now.
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Had a pal with an upto date auto-exposure Minolta in the early 1980's but she valued her manual SRT101 more highly.
Lee
I used the Minolta 101b, 303b for more than ten years, but switched to a Minolta X500 quite happily. The latter bought from a professional who used it for 2 rolls of film.
Also bought the Vivitar solid cat 600mm f/8 from him for a really silly price as he didn't need it. This was used by law enforcement etc. Invented by an Argentine optics designer. One of the best designers.
This lens separated both components of epsilon Lyrae at 180x with clear space in between. About 2.4 arcseconds. No change from 20C to 0C. using a 3x teleconverter on Slik 88 tripod.
The professional showed me 10x8 trannies of beautiful ladies that were unbelievably high quality photos. Actually reduced in size for magazines.
Also bought the Vivitar solid cat 600mm f/8 from him for a really silly price as he didn't need it. This was used by law enforcement etc. Invented by an Argentine optics designer. One of the best designers.
This lens separated both components of epsilon Lyrae at 180x with clear space in between. About 2.4 arcseconds. No change from 20C to 0C. using a 3x teleconverter on Slik 88 tripod.
The professional showed me 10x8 trannies of beautiful ladies that were unbelievably high quality photos. Actually reduced in size for magazines.
They were acquired by Sony and the factory switched over to making Sony optics which they do to this day.
Hi maico.
Do you know if the glass making facility still exists, and if so are Sony making their own glass?
The Vivitar solid Cat cost about £620 new in 1984. All spherical optics. Temperature compensated, but critical alignment needed. Probably only successfully serviced by Perkin Elmer or Vivitar.
The original aspheric version about ten times that price apparently.
Do you know if the glass making facility still exists, and if so are Sony making their own glass?
The Vivitar solid Cat cost about £620 new in 1984. All spherical optics. Temperature compensated, but critical alignment needed. Probably only successfully serviced by Perkin Elmer or Vivitar.
The original aspheric version about ten times that price apparently.
That's bound to have some around here scratching their heads......
No, sorry I don't know. Sony have a connection with Zeiss for their optic designs.
Sony have acquired the Toshiba and Renesas image sensor plants in Japan recently giving them market dominance in that field
http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/Press/201401/14-016E/
henry link
Well-known member
Thanks for posting that link, Lee.
I was especially interested to see the variable speed focusing mechanism patent, which you can find (including the illustrating figures) here:
http://www.google.com/patents/US7372637
This was used on some Brunton binoculars and scopes (I have one example, the ICON 80ED scope) and still survives in the new Zeiss Gavia, Nikon Monarch HG and Vortex Razor HD scopes, among others. Too bad it doesn't appear to be incorporated in the new Monarch HG binoculars.
Henry
Thanks Henry
I wonder if this has any similarities to the two speed focusing system on my ancient Diascope 65 with two separate focus wheels? Later models combined these two functions into one wheel.
This is one to interest Alexis!
Lee
gunut
Registered Offender
In fact the older Minolta lenses work on the Sony digital cameras....because Sony has its image stabilizer in the camera body ...not the lens...
some Sony camera owners actually prefer the Minolta lenses, because maybe not technically as good optically as a modern Sony lens the Minolta lenses are better constructed....
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