804R Audubons - Newly Repaired (1 Viewer)

When we last left our hero, he sent his 1986 (purchased new, way back then) Swift Audubon 804R Mark II's to Nicolas Crista for evaluation and repair. The improvement is more than subtle: these are now amazingly sharp, the useable field (sweet spot) is larger, stars come to focus much better, and contrast seems like it may have improved, too. Nicolas said these 804R's looked as if they were "put together in a hurry." He disassembled them completely and adjusted everything including, he said, the spacing between objective lenses, as the particular series mine are in had a problem with unequal spacing between the left and the right.

Part of the adjustment was related to close-focusing. He brought them several feet closer, which, he added, optimizes the overall sharpness. Unfortunately, adjusting them to focus closer is at the expense of adequately overshooting for infinity focus, which could be a problem for a myoptic observing without contacts or eyeglasses. That is, I being nearsighted (-1.50 required), can barely bring the left eye to focus at infinity when I'm not wearing contacts or eyeglasses. I therefore may return them to be readjusted.

As a side note, there is no sense viewing close with wide-spaced porros unless your eyes really need the exercise pulling them together and you enjoy a full complement of eyestrain. So although these can now get down to around 10 feet, it's painful to view something that close!

It's amazing I "suffered" with these for so long, and even once considered selling them. They weren't bad, but they surely weren't as good as they are now. Thanks go to elkcub (and a few others here) for not only pointing me to Nicolas, but for letting me know what I really have. They'll be in my will, not in the For Sale ads.

Howard

This is good news, as my Model 750 6x30 pre-1960 Oceanics went off to Massachusetts a few days ago. I wonder how much of the improvement is due to simple cleaning--to letting the lenses do their work? Mine appeared clean, but Mr. Crista said they needed cleaning after fifty years.

Based on what he told me, I guess it depends on how well the lenses and prisms were originally installed. If he finds something "off," he may disassemble the binos and reassemble it properly. That's what happened with mine. They were definitely off.

I wouldn't have believed it, but the 6x30s came back OBSERVABLY clearer, with closer and silky focus. I've boxed up my next pair to send out already.

Why am I not surprised? Nicolas is a national treasure. :king:

Hello,

From the above, I gather that Binoculars
A. May have been assembled with poor quality control.
B. They accumulate dirt, internally as well as externally
C. Lubricants age and thicken
Unmentioned was that all binoculars, even roof prism glasses, drift out of collimation, with decades of use
Finally, I gather that good optical technicians can rejuvenate an old binocular.

I would also guess that Howard's refurbished 1986 Audubon is optically on a par or superior to the latest 820.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :brains:

RD, congratulations. You're now an official binocular-carrying member of the Nicolas Crista Fan Club.

Arthur, Nicolas told me mine looked as if they were "put together in a hurry." Even over the 23 or so years I've had them, I'd rarely taken them with me away from home, so I was pretty gentle on them. There were years they even rested comfortably in their hard case. My recollection is that, even using them in its early days, I didn't think they were all that great. Now they are. So I attribute its former view strictly to bad QC. I was out with them this afternoon on the back deck in the sunshine, looking at all the birds coming to the feeders, and the view is simply remarkable. No "crescents," either.

Now if only some manufacturer could make a *wide field* compact (8x25 or similar) for under $200 that comes somewhere close to this....

Howard

I would be interested to know how the binocular can become sharper by shifting focal length?

Simon S said:

I would be interested to know how the binocular can become sharper by shifting focal length?

Click to expand...

What is the basis of your question, Simon?

804R's live again!!

Hi,

I recently sent my 804R's to Nicolas Crista for repairs. After almost 25 years of use they were desperately in need of attention with a loose central hinge, sloppy focus and diopter, and dull image that was out of collimation. Additionally, they had small chips and nicks on the exposed metal parts and the rubber eye-cups were brittle and needed replacement. Despite assurances from Nicolas that he could fix them, I must admit I had my doubts.

Yesterday, I received my binoculars from Nicolas. Cosmetically, the binoculars look new. Gone are the paint chips, the eye cups have been replaced, the central hinge is now tight, the diopter works better than new with perfect resistance and the central focus is buttery smooth with absolutely no backlash. Once again, the view reminds me of just why I like these binoculars so much. Razor sharp, the picture window view is addicting and now perfectly collimated. Although I’m no optics expert, I can see Nicolas had completely disassembled the optical train and cleaned, tweaked and restored these glasses with great care. A genuine old school gentleman, Nicolas was a pleasure to talk and do business with. His commitment to service is a breath of fresh air in an increasingly disposable world. I highly recommend him to anyone needing service on their binoculars.

Ted Nordhagen
Westby MT

Hi Ted,

Nice hearing from you. I take it this is the "wide field" 804R shown on pg. 16 of our article. :t:

Ed

Ed,

That's the one, now looking as good as new! I have another that was bought new at the same time. Although it's not had as much use, I think it's headed to Massachusettes for a tune-up as well!

Ted