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Good dealers in UK (1 Viewer)

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gunvald

Active member
Hello!

I am in the process of buying a pair of good binoculars. I am leaning towards the Swarovski El 8.5x42. They are quite expensive in Sweden and I am therefore considering international mail order.

I would like to hear from you with experience with UK dealers if you can recommend any who might be willing to sell outside UK. I searched for prices on Swarovski EL binoculars from UK dealers and got a hit on Anglia Cameras (£800 for 8.5x42 EL), but unfortunately they do not deliver to adresses outside UK. A price level of around £800 is very favourable for me, it is about 35% lower than in Sweden.

Since Sweden, just like UK, is a (reluctant) member of the EU no additional costs other than shipment is included.

I have also investigated buying from Germany but have not found any real good prices.

All comments are very welcome.

Best regards
 
I have dealt with Ace Optics in Bath several times and don't think they can be beaten on price or service and they will take any old kit in part exchange - even when ordering on the net - they give you a quote for the value by email.
 
If you email In Focus their Titchwell branch manager is very helpful (as are their Rutland Water shop managers!).

Also I have heard that Cley Spy in Norfolk are very good to deal with.

I can recommend the Swarovski 8.5s - never let me down yet (except the front badge fell off once!).
 
Thank you for the warm welcome and your advices! I have sent email inquiries to the companies mentioned.

Meantime I have been looking around in this forum and have read some very interesting postings about choosing binoculars.

Depending on what binocular I decide to get, it might in some cases be better to order from USA. With the current exchange courses the Nikon DCF HG binos is more expensive in Europe than in USA, with the opposite situation for the Swarovski EL-s.
 
You won't be disappointed with the Nikons - they have received many highly favourable reviews, but if you don't mind the price I suspect the Swaros would capture your affections as they are the lightest around (excpet maybe the new Leica Ultravids - I don't know there weight).
 
8x42 Ultravids are c.790g, Swarovski 8.5s c820g. Not much in it. Compare focus before buying; Swarovski is slightly more precise than the Ultravids but much slower. Going from a close warbler to a soaring raptor with the Swavs demands a lot of fingerwork.
 
gunvald said:
Depending on what binocular I decide to get, it might in some cases be better to order from USA. With the current exchange courses the Nikon DCF HG binos is more expensive in Europe than in USA, with the opposite situation for the Swarovski EL-s.
Click to expand...

Hi gunvald,

I bought my Nikon 10x32HGs from USA for a very good price (an "authorized Nikon dealer"-eBay-store $600) with more expensive dollars than now. BUT, beware of the NY-based companies offering the very cheapest prices (www.aaacamera.com etc.) - they can be... difficult partners. In general it would save you a lot of worries if you could have someone do the purchase for you. But as you said US-dollars are very affordable now if you consider Nikons.

Good luck,

Ilkka
 
I have tried to get a look at (and through) the Nikon DCF HG, but they are very hard to find in Sweden. I have also looked at Zeiss and Leica Trinovids (but not the Ultravids).

I have however read through all relevant Internet reviews I have found on Nikon, Zeiss, Leica and Swarovski, on sites like epinions.com (thank you Leif!) BVD, birdwatching.com and kikkertspesialisten.no.

I wear glasses and even though e.g. Zeiss Victories are said to be good for eye glass wearers I think they are better suited for people who do not wear glasses.

It seems that the Nikon DCF HG might be the best buy for an eyeglass wearer. Nikon also seems to be sturdy and well-made in some exchange for its heavy weight.

When it comes to dealers in USA, based on own and other people's experiences from the photographical field, the only mail order dealer I would really trust is B&H in New York.
 
You will be more than happy with the Nikons. I have Swaros and cannot get a full field of view if I keep my specs on - I always prefer to view without specs, anyway. I think the same would apply to the Nikons - although a friend uses them wearing his specs.

The Nikon focus is very good but coarser than the Swaro. I find the Swaro spot-on but it takes a while to adjust to it. For me there is absolutely no problem to move from a songbird in a bush to a soaring raptor. Equally with the Nikons - when new the focus might seem a touch stiff but after a month it's silky smooth.

One of our leading local birders has recently changed from Leica bins to Nikon 8x42HGs (and the new Nikon ED82 scope) - but another swears by Swarovski claiming the Nikon rubber eyepiece shield is tough to remove. Such individual quirks show how good all these binos really are.
 
Last edited:
As heard on the Mark Radcliffe Radio 1 show today:-

"Why spend loads of money on expensive binoculars...........................simply move closer to the thing you wish to see"

I cannot argue with that logic!!!

LOL
Dave.
 
If you dont mind the weight of the nikons then B&H in America has a very good name for service,about $999 good value.
 
deboo said:
As heard on the Mark Radcliffe Radio 1 show today:-

"Why spend loads of money on expensive binoculars...........................simply move closer to the thing you wish to see"

I cannot argue with that logic!!!

LOL
Dave.
Click to expand...
So,Deboo Dave,how does that logic work when there is a vast expanse of sea between yourself and the bird;) .
Christine
 
Hi Gunvald, sorry about the lateness, but welcome to Bird Forum from all the Moderators and Admin. Staff (wrists slapped all round).
I hope you're finding your answers from our members helpful - they're not a bad bunch, really ;)
 
The extra few ounces of weight with the Nikon is odd - they are heavier than Swaros but when I was holding them the other day for an extended period, their well-designed shape fit my hands so well that it seemed to hide the extra weight when compared to my Swarovskis. I'm thinking they're a pretty darn good pair of bins indeed!
 
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