We don't even talk about Fujinon binoculars much on Bird Forum, and we don't even have a sub-forum for them but On Cloudy Nights the Fujinon FMTR-SX is discussed a lot for astronomical use, and it is generally considered the best hand held astronomical binocular you can buy so when I thought about getting a good binocular for the night sky I thought I would try one. I have had the Fujinon FMT-SX 7x50, and I was very impressed with it but the small 52.5 degree AFOV never impressed me that much. With a 65 degree AFOV the 10x Fujinon is a different animal. I was shocked how good optically it is! It is truly a 50 mm alpha porro. It is one of the best binoculars I have looked through, and I can see why it is ranked 2nd place above the almost $3K Swarovski EL 10x50 on Albinos. That goes to show you when you compare the very best porro to the very best roof the porro will win. This is the big aperture Habicht you have been dreaming about. It is a big porro with huge prisms and over 95% transmission just like the Habicht except it has a much bigger sweet spot being sharp almost to the edge. It has the same sparkle and magic that the Habicht does because of its incredible transmission. The build quality is first class "alpha like" with an excellent rubber armoring and attached tethered objective covers. It has some shortcomings as a birding binocular weighing almost 50 oz. and having a 9 m close focus with IF focusing but if you can tolerate the weight man what a view! The IF focusing is not as bad as you think it might be because if you think about it how often do you really look at birds or anything at less than about 9 m and if you do can just dial the IF in a setting or two, and you are in focus. Of course for Pelagic Birding at a distance, astronomy or boating it is no problem because the focus just stays the same. In fact, I think an IF binocular is superior to a center focus binocular because it seems to be more accurate setting the focus of each eye and Holger Merlitz agrees. It certainly allows for a more waterproof design than a center focus binocular. For astronomical use I don't think the Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 can be beat because of it's sharp edges star fields are sharp out to the edge with no distortion. If you can tolerate the weight the Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 is an alpha porro that bests the Swarosvki EL 10x50 for 1/3 of the price.
Binoculars rankings - 10x50 - AllBinos.com
The best binocular tests on the net. The comprehensive database of binoculars with their parameters and users opinions. Interesting articles and comparisons.
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Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 - binoculars review - AllBinos.com
The best binocular tests on the net. The comprehensive database of binoculars with their parameters and users opinions. Interesting articles and comparisons.
www.allbinos.com
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