10x42 roof binoculars first introduced in the mid-1990s Content and images originally posted by elkcub
Reviews
elkcub's review
The 10x42 SLC has been a classic in the Swarovski lineup since the mid-1990s. It received an outstanding review from BVD in 1994, and was rated the top 10x birding binocular for several years. Over time it has remained essentially the same, with modest design changes to the armoring profile (now called rubber vs. polyurethane) and upgraded to the most recent Swarobright coating. The excellent optics have remained unchanged including a 330 ft. FOV, 30.7 oz. weight, 14mm eye relief, and 4m (13 ft.) close focus. It continues to be notable for having excellent depth of focus, which contributes to a feeling of presence and excellent 3-D spatial field perception.
Defining qualities of the 10x42 SLC are its superb weight and balance, which takes advantage of well-place thumb groves and very comfortable grip with no hard points of contact. Altogether this makes for surprisingly vibration free views easily held for extended periods. (The new Leica Utravids and Nikons emulate these handling features with reasonable success.)
A notable aspect of the SLC series is its system design, which includes substantial rubber objective covers and an articulated rain guard. The latter, which is also used on the EL series, is made of hard a plastic and seems to have the potential for damaging the ocular glass coating. (A new all rubber rainguard is now sold #327-149 with a single strap attachment that eliminates this problem.) Accessories in the SLC system (the same as the EL series) include winged eyecups easily interchanged with the screw-down eyecups, and an excellent tripod adapter with quick release feature. The strap provided has excellent weight distribution capabilities, which the author has used many hours at a time with no neck strain. Finally, a 2x magnifier can be threaded onto one side making the binoculars into a handy 20x telescope for use in good lighting conditions.
In head-to-head comparison with the Swarovski 10x42 EL, this reviewer found the SLC to be equal or superior in all respects except for the short focus distance and a 3 oz. difference in gross weight. For the specimens tested the short focus difference was about 4 ft., but this was more than offset by the better feel and balance of the SLCs, as well as its superb focus control (about a full turn, near to far) with zero backlash. Major optical differences were not apparent, such as brightness, resolution, field curvature, depth of field, CA, and pincushion distortion. Other reviewers believe they see a slightly warmer color tone than the ELs, but I perceived slightly more natural color saturation and contrast to the SLCs. Switching attention to objects at different distances was felt to be somewhat easier with the SLC, perhaps because of a more well-engineered focus control mechanism. Eye-hand coordination was easily learned and quickly became second nature, which is the key to outstanding human engineering.
In conclusion, for those looking for a well-established, robust, 10x binocular that is up to virtually every birding task from hawk watching to deep woodland use, this is the ticket. Because the current street price ($1000-$1200) is hundreds less than the EL, it is a true bargain among world-class binoculars. Make sure to buy from a reputable dealer, however, since you may have these a long time and the SONA warranty does not apply to grey market items.
No binocular is perfect, of course, but if other top quality bins are worthy of a rating of 10, this one should certainly share the same level of esteem.
Pros
- Outstanding optics and handling performance
Cons
- Short focus somewhat limited (13 ft.)
