Avian Binoculars from Ace Optics (1 Viewer)

I use Swaro ELs. Happened to look thru a pair of 8x42s the other day and was THOROUGHLY impressed, especially with the eye relief (being a speccy four-eyes). Seriously considering them as a back-up pair. Does anyone know if the 10x42s and 10x50s have similarly fantastic eye relief? And what's the build quality like? Does the diopter ring stay in the same place? DO the eye-cups click into place? Does the focus ring have any play? Any hidden problems?

Thanks,

Sean

seanofford said:

I use Swaro ELs. Happened to look thru a pair of 8x42s the other day and was THOROUGHLY impressed, especially with the eye relief (being a speccy four-eyes). Seriously considering them as a back-up pair. Does anyone know if the 10x42s and 10x50s have similarly fantastic eye relief? And what's the build quality like? Does the diopter ring stay in the same place? DO the eye-cups click into place? Does the focus ring have any play? Any hidden problems?

Thanks,

Sean

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I had both the 10x50 and the 8x42, before upgrading to Swaro EL of 8x and 10x. I think the Avians are superb bins. The 10x50s were almost as bright as the swaro 10x42, a mate bought them off me and sometimes we switch when out in the field, I can´t believe how good they are. My only reservation is the narrow FOV, at 5 degrees for the 10x, and about 6 degrees for the 8x. The 8x42 pair I had had a very minimal yellow cast, nothing to cause any concern. The 10x had the older "twist-lock" eyecups, which were FAR better, they really did lock. The newer 8x had the pull-up eyecups, I wasn´t as pleased with them, they tended to slide in and out of their own accord. Still superb bins, though, great build, diopter fine, lovely focussing, and NO hidden problems that I could discern. I´m very happy with my upgrade to ELs, but sometimes I wonder if it was daft to spend that much money for only tiny marginal improvements in quality, mostly FOV. Have a look at Ace Cameras "used bins" section on their website, you might pick up a pair of the older "twist-lock" Avian 8x42s for a good price as people upgrade.