top 5 bins. every one please vote. (1 Viewer)

1. Swarovski 8x32EL.
2. Leitz Trinivid 8x40, The bins I've been using for 26 years.
3. Carl Ziess 8x30 Deltrintem, Probably the best value for money bins back when they used to make them.
4. Leica Ultravid compacts 10x25BR. Small & easily fits in your pocket & same optical quality as their big brothers.
5. Nikon 8x32 HGL, very good optically but a bit heavy.

Cheers, Neil.

Only counting what I've looked through [ie. pretty much everything except SEs and the new Kowas];

5. Ranger County Wide Angle 8x30 - for being utterly indestructible, the perfect kid's bins. Stand on them, drop them, toss them down mountainsides, wait 20 years and they're still perfectly collimated.
4. Bresser Dialyt 10x42 - [2nd hand] for being the best value for money I've ever met, and the lightest 40-class bins on Earth.
3. Leica Ultravid 7x42 - for being sheer joy. I looked through these while trying the Swarovisons, and I preferred the Leicas.
2. Zeiss Classic 8x56 - for also being a joy, and for the way that, though they weigh a kilo, when you raise them to your eyes the weight vanishes due to perfect balance. Art given form.
1. Leica Ultravid HD 10x42 - for beating all-comers. Other binoculars are cheaper, focus closer, have wider fields, weigh less, are built more strongly, have better ergonomics, have better after-sales care, are easier to look through...but none do as much as well.

As an appendix - the SV Swaros are technically the best binoculars I have ever looked through. The 10x42s, which can focus on your feet, are a marvel - almost unreal in their ability to effectively give you superpowered vision. But they are not in my favourite 5 bins of all time. The ones I've picked were all more than just instruments to bring things closer.

Nikon 8x32SE, Nikon 8x42HG, Nikon 10x35 EII, Zeiss 8x50BGA Octarem, Swift 8.5x44 804 Type 3(b) Audubon. Other favourites include Zeiss 10x25T* Victory, Zeiss 10x40BGAT*, Zeiss 8x30B Conquest, Nikon 7x35A, Swift 10x50 Kestrel. Looking at that list, it appears I have a predilection for Nikon, Zeiss and Swift... and porro's !

Ah me.

#1 used to be Zeiss Classic 7x42, but when they were stolen I replaced them with T*FL 7x42, which are noticeably better optically. And my wife's Swarovski SLC 7x42 are just as good as the new Zeiss--and were a lot cheaper. So should one of them they be #1?

Nope, #1 is a Swift 825R Eaglet 7x36 which beats them all for versatility, portability, close focus, ergonomics, and cost--second hand for around a hundred bucks.

Based on actual day-in/day-out use:

1. Swift 825R 7x36
2. Zeiss 7x42 Classic
3. Zeiss T*FL 7x42
4. Swaro SLC 7x42
5. Swift 825 Audubon 7x35

based on what I have and owned before.

1) 7x36 ZEN-RAY Zen ED2. large depth of field and wide FOV. crisp and bright
2) Swarovski EL 8.5x42. nice handling, excellent optics and exterior design
3) 8x43 Zen-Ray ZEN ED, very close to EL 8.5. needs some refinement (I think it was done on ED2). But for the money, it is a bargain.
4) Nikon SE 8x32. Almost bought this one from a friend. Superior optics (probably the best I have seen, a tad better than all the roofs I have). I wish it was waterproof. I still cannot get used to Porro. If you don't mind those two, this is it!