Steve, I verily love the handling of the 8x43 ED3. Nice wings! I always have eyecups screwed all the way in, and can nearly get the whole FOV with my glasses on.
That long, large diameter knurled metal focusing wheel is the duck's n*ts.
This focus wheel (and only the focus wheel) should be a compulsory template for all other bins, IMNTHO!
Perfect for placing both forefingers on in a push-pull arrangement. I place my middle fingers on the wide, fat bridge (another +), and brace the ring fingers up against that along with the pinkies around the barrels in the open bridge part. My thumbs rest under each opposing barrel in the indents.
I do have large hands (father always said I had hands like a sailor!
But I find that grip ultra stable, comfortable and well balanced.
The HT in comparison, lobs the focus wheel smack bang on my middle fingers (which I find initially disconcerting), when I just pick the bin up without too much thought, but a natural sense to seek out the instinctive balance point. My hands are also much further away from my shoulders (which thanks to a run in with gravity are not that crash hot - infact, there mostly just crash ..... damaged!). So that increased distance, also increases the moment of force. If I was to position my hands further forward, so that I could focus with the forefingers, it would be further, increased again ..... so quickly fatiguing for me, and not so stable.
I love the view, and could even think not too much about the soft edges, but I just don't naturally take to the feel of it - it's no lightweight either (it's actually on the wrong side of 29oz). :eek!:
Me too Mac. Though I'm a
. l-i-t-t-l-e
. d-i-f-f-e-r-e-n-t
. ----
"undoubtedly I could change how I feel about their handling characteristics given" ......
One !! 3
Chosun :gh: