Please educate me: choosing binoculars (1 Viewer)

Thanks, yes it looks like a killer deal. As I said in an earlier reply,
I am surprised that everything has gone from poro to roof prism but clearly it has. I have something that I might win on Ebay but if not,
these look hard to beat at that price. I expect I will get used to the shape and design of the roof prisms although I've always felt the poro design is actually good to hold.

chill6x6 said:

Hi Jim...
So you have $100 budget.. I stumbled upon a very decent binocular for $120 right now at Eagle Optics. I think you will be pleased. They are the Eagle Optics Denali 8X42.

https://www.eagleoptics.com/collections/binoculars/products/eagle-optics-denali-8x42-binocular

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Thanks for the good advice WJC. How does one find the overstocked situations you mentioned?

Yes the good ones are pricey, too much for me right now.

WJC said:

I think you asked to be “educated.” Well:

1) Friends don’t let friends buy ZOOM binoculars ... ANY zoom binoculars.
2) Although I’ve been taken to task for the comment—by those who haven’t spent their careers in optics—$100 binocular is not going to be a value to you. ‘Better than nothing? Yes. ‘A value? No. Some of those enter the country for less than $5 a box. Think about the ramifications of that.

******

3) Check out OVERSTOCK situations on binoculars that already have a good track record.
4) I have found the best values in pawn shops. Most attendants are clueless about their used merchandise and sometimes let diamonds slip through.
5) The BEST will cost half the price of a used car ... and for good reason.
6) A value that will provide 95% of that performance and longevity can be had $300 or so ... with diligent and meticulous shopping.
7) Finally: “K-Mart” and “binoculars” don’t belong in the same sentence. :cat:

‘Best of luck,

Bill

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Thanks much, those look like excellent options.
I've saved links to them. I like the idea of poro prisms.

peatmoss said:

Welcome to the forum 2weels! Let's see... your current budget is $100, but maybe you could go higher in the spring. Could you swing $169 right now? Here are a couple of options...

https://www.mrstarguy.com/Vixen-Geoma-Ultima7x50ZCF-Binocular-Demo-Model-p/rc1530.htm

https://www.mrstarguy.com/Vixen-Foresta-7x50CF-Binocular-Demo-Unit-p/rc14504.htm

The Ultima is a demo, and the Foresta is a refurb. Both only have 90 day warranties (still plenty long enough to make sure there are no fatal flaws). But both punch way above their weight class when it comes to providing a quality view.

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Cool, Las Cruces is a great little town though it took me a while to appreciate it. I love the desert. I'll add these to my research list.

Highway Dog said:

I have a brother in Las Cruces. I have hiked one time on those Organ Mountains. Better bring heavy leather boots to protect yourself from the cactus!

I am convinced that 10x32 binoculars is a good fit for that environment. My brother has a Nikon E2 10x35.

Right now Cabelas is selling the Leupold BX-3 Mojave 10x32 for $170. I just bought them for $190, the best deal I found that day. They only have a 2 diopter adjustment from 0 in the plus and also again for the negative. So if you eyes are relatively the same strength, then they will work for you.

I was pleasantly rewarded by the advice given here in that these are very good and clear binoculars.
You should consider these.

Those were roof binoculars. If you start considering the Porro binoculars you will even find cheaper binoculars that have good construction.

Eagle Optics is shutting down their storefront. If you go to that website you will find many binoculars that were a hundred and a half that is selling now less than a hundred!

Rob.

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Thanks everyone for all the great recommendations; I've linked them all and will be doing some research. I've very surprised to see the move to roof prisms and away from poros. I always like the poro shape but didn't even know about roof prisms. In the great movie "Wind River" the protagonist is using roof prisms, and I wondered about them. I guess in the upper ranges they can have as good a view as the poros.

Thanks again, I really appreciate the responses!

Jim

hoses for courses I would say. if sea watching you could go to tenx 40 to fifty exit. I do most of my birding In woodland using a pair of Bausch & lomb 7x42s which I bought from the british bird fair fifteen yrs ago for 430 pounds.great depth of field and SO bright.i have a Swarovski scope for sea watching and long distance stuff. I would not go above 8.5 x or below 35 exit. buy the best you can afford.

2weels said:

Thanks for the good advice WJC. How does one find the overstocked situations you mentioned?

Yes the good ones are pricey, too much for me right now.

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171023

You need to keep your eyes peeled and ears to the tracks. Scan the sites of reputable vendors, personally go to as many pawn shops as you can find—make offers. I don’t know if Nikon still has a Refurb Program but that is (or was) a killer program. In one year, a few years ago, I sold 119 refurb products. They only had 90-day warranties. HOWEVER, NONE WERE REFURBISHED; THEY WERE ALL ... NEW! Besides a 90-day warranty on a binocular made to last a lifetime is a joke. I bought a ProStar and a Superior E that way.

When Nikon wrapped up their showing at an auto race, birdathon, hunter’s gathering, or sporting event they just shoved them back in the box and sold them as refurbs—sometimes at pennies on the dollar. :cat:

Bill

2weels said:

Thanks everyone for all the great recommendations; I've linked them all and will be doing some research. I've very surprised to see the move to roof prisms and away from poros. I always like the poro shape but didn't even know about roof prisms. In the great movie "Wind River" the protagonist is using roof prisms, and I wondered about them. I guess in the upper ranges they can have as good a view as the poros.

Thanks again, I really appreciate the responses!

Jim

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Jim,

Eagle Optics is going out of business and selling some good binoculars for cheap prices. They are a very reputable dealer. You can also call them for advice ... they're very helpful.

2 decent Kowa binos they still have right now and at very low prices:

Kowa YF 8x30 (porro) ... very good and going now for under $100

Kowa SV 8x32 (roof) for $142 if you can stretch your budget a bit.


www.eagleoptics.com

Check out the other binoculars they have left and call them with any questions.

The key thing is that all Eagle Optics binoculars will be warrantied through their sister company Vortex!
They will still be supported.
Rob.

Highway Dog said:

The key thing is that all Eagle Optics binoculars will be warrantied through their sister company Vortex!
They will still be supported.
Rob.

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I just learned about the Vortex warranty when I was at Sportsman's Warehouse. Any binocular sent back replaced, no questions asked. I wonder if they will support the Eagle Optics the same way?

Jim,

Welcome to the madness. You gotten lots of good advice already, but I'd like to add a few comments. Until recently I had not purchased a binocular for about twenty years, because I was happy with my collection of binoculars, and I was mostly doing astronomy. I returned to find that things had changed significantly in terms of technology, manufacturing, and cost--and generally it is a big improvement. In the olden days, most roof prism binos except the very very expensive ones were all but unusable for astronomy. Since that time phase coatings, improved multi-coatings, and more exotic color correcting glasses have migrated down to mid-market binoculars so that roof-prism binos can really compete with Porro optically in the $200-$500 range. It also appears that roof-prism design in the mid price range are easier to ruggedize. At any rate I think these design and manufacturing trends are why you see fewer Porro's today on the shelves.

The 15x70 Oberwerk binocular is good tripod mounted day or night (assuming it is well collimated, a major assumption), so I would recommend getting 8x32mm or 8x42mm. I prefer 8x because I can old it steadier and it gives me a larger exit pupil for a given objective size. However most models are available in 8x and 10x these days. I like 8x32 because they are more compact and I have larger binoculars for demanding light conditions.

In the past couple years, I have spent more than I care to admit on new binoculars, but I have enjoyed almost every penny of it. There are better or worse values in various price ranges, but there are sweet spots for price, and I don't think $100 is one of them. Moving up to $175-$200 for an on sale 8x32 Leupold Mojave BX-3 or a Sightron II is well worth it. I think the next big step in quality is at around $500, and there is another step up at around $1,000. My experience was that the gap between the $100 binocular and the $200 binocular was much bigger than the difference between $200 and $500. I think that is why those in the $200 range generate so much discussion here.

I have both the Sightron 8x32 and a Cabela's clone of the Mojave BX-3 8x32, and I prefer the BX-3, both they are similar is quality and both are better than their price would indicate.

BTW, I do have binoculars in the $100, $500, and $1000 ranges as well, and the $100 binocular is the only one I would not replace.

Alan

WJC said:

..... I don’t know if Nikon still has a Refurb Program but that is (or was) a killer program. In one year, a few years ago, I sold 119 refurb products. They only had 90-day warranties. HOWEVER, NONE WERE REFURBISHED; THEY WERE ALL ... NEW! Besides a 90-day warranty on a binocular made to last a lifetime is a joke. I bought a ProStar and a Superior E that way.

When Nikon wrapped up their showing at an auto race, birdathon, hunter’s gathering, or sporting event they just shoved them back in the box and sold them as refurbs—sometimes at pennies on the dollar. :cat:

Bill

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Some sellers seem to have developed a new strategy. I recently bought a binocular from a respected brand on Amazon at a rebate price (it was not an alpha brand binocular, but a good quality Chinese brand, costing 500€). When receiving it, I noticed a lot of wear on the original packaging and when opening it, the binocular was dirty, one tube being grey/dusty and the other being full of glue marks. I was pretty annoyed by that.

Synaps said:

Some sellers seem to have developed a new strategy. I recently bought a binocular from a respected brand on Amazon at a rebate price (it was not an alpha brand binocular, but a good quality Chinese brand, costing 500€). When receiving it, I noticed a lot of wear on the original packaging and when opening it, the binocular was dirty, one tube being grey/dusty and the other being full of glue marks. I was pretty annoyed by that.

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Those I sold for Nikon were all pristine. BUT, "The times, they are a changin."

Bill

I don't doubt that in any way.

Still, I was disappointed by the "amazon experience", it did clearly say new item and it was not mentioned that the rebate was given due to poor (re)workmanship. Sent it back immedeatly...