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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Another Classic Porro Bites the Dust (1 Viewer)

brocknroller

brocknroller

porromaniac
United States
Gone and I hardly knew yee... in fact, I never even tried one. Zeiss's premium 7x50 Porro ClassiC has been around for quite a while, and someone recently posted a photo of a pair on the dashboard of his car, but Zeiss finally pulled the plug.

Why did Zeiss decide to discontinue this classic? Think it could have been the $1,799 price tag? The price was a barrier for me. If it had cost $799 like the Nikon 7x50 Prostar, which is supposed to be as good if not better, I would have looked for a used one for $599. I guess for a Zeiss it was a "bargain" compared to the $2,600 SF.

Let's take a minute to mourn the loss of another premium Porro passing. :-C

zeiss-7x50-bgat-dialyt-classic-binocularsl

Brock
 
Brock:

You have a great point about some of the binoculars that are commonly used may reach
the end of the line. The Zeiss 7x50 BGAT Porro has been a common one used by the marine
industry for many years.

I have not looked through one, but my only experience is seeing one on the helm of a glacier
watching boat in Prince William Sound, last summer in Alaska.

I did feel comfort seeing this one there, as I did talk to the Captain for a while. When in a storm
you need an optic that can do the job.

I did some searching about this model, and I did find a post from an optics company and there was a post about "The Big Five of Marine Bincoculars", the author was William J Cook. I think he knows a thing or two about
binoculars.

This will not link, so for those interested, go ahead and do your own search.

Thanks Bill, WJC. :t:

For all of those that can appreciate the USA, tomorrow is July 4th, Independence Day, a special time, and why I appreciate all Veterans.

Jerry
 
Thanks for the kind words Jerry, but I have a caveat. I can't remember what magazine that appeared in, but, I saw the Captain's use of it.

It says I have worked on "tens of thousands of binoculars."I don't own THAT much Blarney. It should nhave said "over ten thousand binoculars."

One of the pieces I did for Deer and Deer Hunting, closes with "Bill Cook is an optical expert and a seasoned white tail hunter." I guess that sells magazines, but I've never drawn a bead on Bamby, in my life!

Bill
 
WJC said:
Thanks for the kind words Jerry, but I have a caveat. I can't remember what magazine that appeared in, but, I saw the Captain's use of it.

It says I have worked on "tens of thousands of binoculars."I don't own THAT much Blarney. It should nhave said "over ten thousand binoculars."

One of the pieces I did for Deer and Deer Hunting, closes with "Bill Cook is an optical expert and a seasoned white tail hunter." I guess that sells magazines, but I've never drawn a bead on Bamby, in my life!

Bill
Click to expand...

"tens of thousands of binoculars." Geesh, now that's what I call puffery! ;)

<B>
 
brocknroller said:
"tens of thousands of binoculars." Geesh, now that's what I call puffery! ;)

<B>
Click to expand...

Wish it were true; I would like to live THAT long.

". . . Reflects electro-magnetic waves back into the light beam." But, hey, it was in a magazine. It MUST be true!

Bill
 
Brock et al,

As a fully paid up member of the Porro fan club I find this to be rather depressing news. I've harboured the ambition of obtaining a Zeiss 7x50 for many years and although it's an ambition I would probably never have realised (I'm unable to justify the cost when compared to Fujinon's FMT-SX 7x50), it's nevertheless sad to see production ending.

A couple of years ago I was on the bridge of a huge cruise ship in the Mediterranean and all the officers on the bridge had this Zeiss.

I fondly, and as it turns out foolishly, imagined that marine demand around the globe was keeping the Zeiss in production despite their cost.

Graham
 
Hello all,

If I am not mistaken, Zeiss has discontinued this line before, but then revived it. Perhaps, it will be returned to production.

On that other forum, a poster complained that the this Zeiss, sometimes called the Nautic or the Mariner, was not waterproof, only splash proof, and suffered from outgassing of the lubricants. I suspect that the latter problem, if it existed, was corrected during its long production run. Certainly, Zeiss promoted it for marine use. Nevertheless, I would not mind having one and a yacht to go with it.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur Pinewood :hi:
 
last year I got a zeiss 8x56 dialyt
wonderful binocular, lot of fun,
glad I got it before it is gone also

there are many other that
I wish I had gotten when I could have

edj
 
Grimnir said:
Brock et al,

As a fully paid up member of the Porro fan club I find this to be rather depressing news. I've harboured the ambition of obtaining a Zeiss 7x50 for many years and although it's an ambition I would probably never have realised (I'm unable to justify the cost when compared to Fujinon's FMT-SX 7x50), it's nevertheless sad to see production ending.

A couple of years ago I was on the bridge of a huge cruise ship in the Mediterranean and all the officers on the bridge had this Zeiss.

I fondly, and as it turns out foolishly, imagined that marine demand around the globe was keeping the Zeiss in production despite their cost.

Graham
Click to expand...

Graham,

I had it on my Wish List, too, for years, no decades, starting when I had 6mm entrance pupils that could almost fill the exit pupils.

I owned a Zeiss Jena 8x50 Octarem for a few years, so I know how good Zeiss porros of that era were like, plus with the Classic you get thick, ribbed rubber armor and the latest T* coatings. It has narrow eyecups like the Octarem, which would also work well with my facial features vs. the Fuji's, which I found to be a tight fit. The Fujis are also heavier and longer, but they do have the advantage of taking threaded filters, which are useful for stargazing.

My chief use, however, would be for wildlife observation in thick brush and under forest canopy where big exit pupils and large aperture were a plus. I also planned to use the Classic for stargazing. A comparative review on Cloudy Nights gave the Fuji the nod for edge sharpness but the Zeiss for resolution:

Zeiss 7x50 vs. Fuji 7x50

Plus, they just look so darn good. The wide stance and ribbed armor is a porromaniac's dream. Of course, I would rather it had center focus, particularly as I got older and no longer had the focus accommodation I used to have, but for stargazing, that would be less of an issue than my Incredible Shrinking Exit Pupils.

Now that they are discontinued, they will be hard to find at a steep discount. Like the SEs, they might increase in value as they become more scarce.

Brock
 
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Brock,

Yeah, now I think about it, it's decades for me too - my entrance pupils are still about 6mm but no longer 7mm alas.

That link makes interesting reading for anyone considering a new 7x50. I hang out mainly on CN and I'm only moonlighting (sunlighting?) here so I'd already read it but I certainly recommend it for those interested in 7x50s.

Graham
 
Grimnir said:
Brock,

Yeah, now I think about it, it's decades for me too - my entrance pupils are still about 6mm but no longer 7mm alas.

That link makes interesting reading for anyone considering a new 7x50. I hang out mainly on CN and I'm only moonlighting (sunlighting?) here so I'd already read it but I certainly recommend it for those interested in 7x50s.

Graham
Click to expand...

CN? CN? Isn't that the forum that features Gordon R?

Bill
 
Bill

Yeah that's right - CN's the forum that features Gordon R. Of course, it once featured you and Gordon R but then ...

Graham
 
Mark9473 said:
Is this more than a retailer finding whatever excuse for no longer stocking it?
Click to expand...

Mark,

Sometimes stores do list bins as "discontinued" when the store stops stocking them, but if you go back to Optics Planet's listing, you will see it states: Product Discontinued by Manufacturer

Optics Planet was also the first store to announce the discontinuation of the SE series, which I posted on the Nikon forum, and it was correct about that. So the announcement seems credible despite the bin still being listed on Zeiss's German site.

Here's the SE announcement: Product Discontinued by Manufacturer

Brock
 
I have the glass

Hello all,

When I realized that I could not afford a yacht, I settled on having the binocular.
If I had dark skies, the binocular would get some real use, but I have used it to look at evening planets.


Happy bird watching,
Arthur Pinewood
 

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Pinewood said:
Hello all,

When I realized that I could not afford a yacht, I settled on having the binocular.
If I had dark skies, the binocular would get some real use, but I have used it to look at evening planets.


Happy bird watching,
Arthur Pinewood
Click to expand...

Arthur,

I didn't recognize you without the mustache and goatee. ;)

Same here, growing light pollution would make a 7x50 overkill even if my pupils opened to 7mm, but I'm sure the Classic would still be splendid for wildlife observation.

As bad as the light pollution is here at times (the dome grows in proportion to the moisture in the air), it's never as bad as NYC. When I lived on the Palisades Cliffs of NJ, the eastern half of the sky was blotted out by a glowing red haze. Planets were about all you could see.

When I used to visit my girlfriend on Long IslanT (north shore), looking out over Long Island Sound, the views were quite good. Now I'd be probably be using binoculars to look at shore birds if I went out there, though I doubt if anything aside from a big pile of cash could coax me into fighting all that traffic from NJ to NYC to LI. What a mess it was. Thank God I'm a County Boy!

The Vixen 7x50 Foresta showed surprisingly good contrast from my bright suburban skies. I partly attribute it to the modern coatings and partly to my INCREDIBLE SHRINKING EXIT PUPILS.

Brock
 
brocknroller said:
Arthur,

I didn't recognize you without the mustache and goatee. ;)

...
Brock
Click to expand...

Brock,

I don't think that I might have ever posted a self portrait with a goatee. In fact, I may have never worn a goatee! Maybe the Zeiss binocular had you thinking of a u-boat skipper. :eek!:

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:
 
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