[ChadHahn]

I picked up these binoculars today and can't figure out what they are. I would appreciate any help. I sort of think they are Simmons' but the logo isn't exactly right. The seem like nice binos though. Flat field, wide sweet spot, bright image. Everything you would want in a $25 pair.

They are Armored and 7x50. Made in Japan but other than that I really don't have any information. I can't find any JE marks on them. The marks might be under the armor.

Chad

[ChadHahn]

Wow, over sixty views and no one has any idea what these binoculars are?!

Chad

[Steve C]

Chad,

I'm one of the viewers. I do not have the first clue to what they are. My first impression or "gut feeling" is that they are some sort of knock off copy of something.

[chris lewis]

I have been collecting / researching Japanese binos for a decade +. I do not recognise them at all. If there is no JB/JE type marks it makes it difficult to find the source. I will continue to research them.

Chris

[ChadHahn]

Here are a few more pictures. I thought someone would recognize the logo on the hinge cover in the last picture of the first post. In the first new picture you can see a Bausch and Lomb strap that came with the binoculars but I don't think that means anything.

I sort of thought that they might be Simmons but not only is the logo wrong but the quality seems too good. There is no pincushioning or barrel distortion. The sweet spot seems to go almost to the edge. These are really very good binoculars.

I have looked all over the hinges but haven't seen any JE or JB codes. That has been my luck with my last three pairs of cheap binos though.

Chad

[etudiant]

Could you add a few more shots to allow a view of the entire glass?
Presumably there are no marks on the sides of the hinges.
If all else fails, try the bino fan himself, Fan Tao, ( http://fantao.home.att.net/index.htm ). He has a very extensive collection and wide experience with binoculars and their producers.

[ChadHahn]

Here are some more pictures. I should have cleaned them up before I took these pictures. Don't mind the dust.

Chad

[michael23]

a long shot really, either tasco or miranda come to mind...

[ChadHahn]

The S symbol in the circle on the dust cap looks like a logo of some sort so I would imagine that the company's name began with S.

Chad

[Steve C]

http://www.europa.com/~telscope/jbcode.txt

Maybes there is something here that will help.

[ChadHahn]

It might be an unidentifiable old binocular. Even if the S is a logo, the company may have changed their logo or gone out of business.

I sort of wonder if the logo could be from the manufacturer but a quick look through Google of the different companies who made binoculars which begin with S doesn't reveal any like suspects.

Chad

[Kevin Purcell]

They remind me of another classic porro in armor design but I'm not sure which one ... Swaro Habicht, perhaps?

Obviously not saying they are just that they copied a look.

[ChadHahn]

Originally Posted by Kevin Purcell

They remind me of another classic porro in armor design but I'm not sure which one ... Swaro Habicht, perhaps?

Obviously not saying they are just that they copied a look.

That's probably what the S stands for.

Chad

[etudiant]

They look like the rubber design was borrowed from the earlier Docter Nobilems.

[Steve C]

They also look a lot (except for the focus wheel) like the Swift Sea Hawk. S and Japanese made, maybe a pre production prototype that got sold?

[ChadHahn]

Originally Posted by Steve C

They also look a lot (except for the focus wheel) like the Swift Sea Hawk. S and Japanese made, maybe a pre production prototype that got sold?

I sort of thought Swift but the only logo I've seen for Swift is the crosshairs.

Chad

[Steve C]

Prototypes may not have the actual logo. Just a thought. I suspect the serial number may hold the answer. I have no idea how you would check either prototype development od track the serial number.

[Kevin Purcell]

One other note: the FOV scale is metric.

So I presume they were made for a non-US firm. Perhaps checking European bins (Opticron, Hawke and the like) might show a match.

[ChadHahn]

Originally Posted by Kevin Purcell

One other note: the FOV scale is metric.

So I presume they were made for a non-US firm. Perhaps checking European bins (Opticron, Hawke and the like) might show a match.

I didn't even think of that. I just assumed they were made back when the USA toyed with the metric system. Generally though we have both units of measurement.

Chad

[ChadHahn]

Originally Posted by Kevin Purcell

One other note: the FOV scale is metric.

So I presume they were made for a non-US firm. Perhaps checking European bins (Opticron, Hawke and the like) might show a match.

That's one of the things about living in Tucson. Not only is there an Air Force base here but people retire here from around the world. I was thinking about binoculars that were sold in America but they could have been sold anywhere in the world.

If they were Swift prototypes then a employee could have brought them to AZ with them when they retired.

Also, the university has a college of optical sciences. Who knows what kind of binoculars are floating around there?

To think that I thought that I would post a few pictures of the binocular and somebody would tell me what they were and that would be the end of it. I didn't realize that it would turn into a worldwide treasure hunt!

Chad

[Kevin Purcell]

Originally Posted by Kevin Purcell

They remind me of another classic porro in armor design but I'm not sure which one ... Swaro Habicht, perhaps?

Obviously not saying they are just that they copied a look.

Thinking harder. Not Swaro's but Zeiss or copies of Zeiss or other militarty porros (like the IOR).

e.g. see

http://holgermerlitz.de/six7x40.html

and other pages.

http://holgermerlitz.de/

[ChadHahn]

I did some looking last night and couldn't find anything definative but I found a couple of leads.

One was an ad for Sport Master binoculars that look very similar.
Sport Master

Another lead was for Soligor binoculars that had no markings except for ""Soligor, High Transmission" on one side and "7x50, Field 71*, Fully Coated" on the other." But this man said that his binoculars didn't have a serial number or anything else so they too aren't a perfect match.

It's confusing. I guess I should just be happy with the fact that I have a very good viewing binocular that didn't cost much money.

I still would like to know what they are though.

[Kevin Purcell]

I think Chadhanh may be onto swithing with Soligor. It's not a current model.

But see the photos in this blog entry ...

http://aperturefever.wordpress.com/2...on-mini-guide/

Spec (7 degree FOV for 7x50) and the ribbed armor and the metric field markings.

[ChadHahn]

Those don't look quite like mine but similar. The armor is different. They could be different years though.

Thanks for posting the link.

Chad