Binos from Cabelas-Euro HD or Conquest HD (1 Viewer)

I am purchasing my first full-size serious binoculars. I own a Swarovski pocket 8X20B. Other than that, I have only used Bushnell and lower end Nikons.

I have a large number of Cabelas points saved so the binos MUST come from Cabelas.

What I want someday is a Swarovski Habicht porro 10X40. That is not financially in the cards right now and Cabelas does not carry them.

My budget is $1,000 plus tax. I can't stretch that. I am considering Cabelas Euro HD 10X and Zeiss Conquest HD 10X.

Primary use is birding at least weekly, mostly woodpecker watching and we watch hummingbirds up close almost daily. And deer hunting 6 to 8 times a year. The law specifies antler restrictions so I have to glass the antlers for legal size requirements. This is driving the 10X requirement. We also hog hunt at dark and early morning so low light performance is an important criteria.

I am not a subject matter expert on binoculars. This is one of those subjects that I don't even know what I don't know. Knowledgable advice would be greatly appreciated. Please remember that I can only afford this amount by using my Cabelas points, so "better deal" advice is not helpful.

You might want to take a look at the new Nikon 10 x 42 Monarch 7. (NOT the Pro Staff 7). The Monarch 7 is Nikons newest binocular. The 10 x 42 in this model has a very wide Field of View along with ED glass and bright dielectric prisms. Look over it's specs here:

http://shop.nikonusa.com/store/niko...parentCategoryID.43889100/categoryID.43889200

Some Cabelas stores have them in stock now and they are priced about 1/2 of what the Euro and Zeiss cost

Bob.

I have the Euro HD and I tried the Conquest HD.

Get the Euro HD if you want much better control of CA, and a bit sharper image.

Get the Zeiss if you want sharper edges of the FOV. The Zeiss also has slightly more eye relief.

ceasar said:

You might want to take a look at the new Nikon 10 x 42 Monarch 7. (NOT the Pro Staff 7). The Monarch 7 is Nikons newest binocular. The 10 x 42 in this model has a very wide Field of View along with ED glass and bright dielectric prisms. Look over it's specs here:

http://shop.nikonusa.com/store/niko...parentCategoryID.43889100/categoryID.43889200

Some Cabelas stores have them in stock now and they are priced about 1/2 of what the Euro and Zeiss cost

Bob.

Click to expand...

I recently compared the Euro HD to the Nikon Monarch 7 and felt that the latter offers excellent value for money, but for almost twice the price, the Euro HD is a lot brighter with much higher resolution - i.e. sharper.

I owned the Zeiss Conquest HD for a short while but unfortunately didn't have it on hand when I did these comparisons. WilsonsWarbler gives an accurate description of the strengths and weaknesses of both.

IMHO I believe that right now the Euro HD offers the best optical picture for the money by quite a large margin. It's only major weakness is slightly more pin cushion distortion than other binos in that price range. I find that weakness easier to live with than the Zeiss Conquest HD excessive CA.

The bottom line is to compare them yourself and see which you prefer.

I go right by Cabelas on the way to & from my shop, so I stopped by last night. The Euro HD is noticeably heavier than the Zeiss. Both impressed me. I have read about CA on this forum, but I suppose I am not sensitive to it as I don't notice. But now that I have read up on it some, I will need to go back and look through both Binos again. I will also check out the Nikons mentioned.

I am very appreciative of the informed advice. I realize that you may have already answered numerous similar questions before and I am thankful for all of your patience. I watched two roadrunners building a nest in the tree outside my dining room last Sunday and realized again how much I enjoy watching this sort of thing so I am ready to pull the trigger on some better binos.

I had a pair of the euro HD's, SLCneu, and SLC HD, all in 10x, side by side this past April on a big game hunt. I don't get near as picky as most here. I put the Euro HD slightly superior optically to my SLCneu I had at that time. The SLC HD is the best binocular made IMHO for my needs, but not nearly $700-$1000 better than the Euro HD, not by a long shot. The Euro HD comes very close to the performance I get in the SLC HD.