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Better woods bino: viper HD 6x32 or swaro cl 8x30? (1 Viewer)

308CAL

Well-known member
I need a small woods bino for usage from 20-300 yards

Would yall take the Swaro CL or viper HD 6x32?

viper has bigger FOV
how does glass compare to swaro?

what are advantages of each??

thanks
 
Tricky one this. Unless cute is really important I'd suggest you give the CL a miss. To my eyes it really wasn't as sharp as a binocular in this price category should be. On a very limited try out the Viper HDs impressed me. (That is until I compared them to the Razor HDs.) However, I didn't think 6x was not quite enough for the woods I bird in. Though the old Viper was undoubtedly better in many ways than the old Furys, 6.5x appeared to make a huge difference and would have been my preference. I think the Meopro 6.5x32 is still available. I've settled on 7x as the right magnification for me.

David
 
LOVE my Viper HDs in 6x32... They are sitting beside me right now as I type... The clarity and wide field of view make them my "grab first" binocs for checking the hummers at the feeders and the birds at the close feeders. I would add though that I was watching rabbits the other night approximately 75 yards away and felt I needed more magnification...

Have not looked through CLs.

Vipers are good enough to give a "WOW" factor to me...

I have owned:
Swarovski 8x30s (early 1990s)
Nikon Monarch roofs
Nikon Porros

CURRENTLY own:
Leupold GR HD 10x42
Vortex Razor 8x42
Zeiss Diafun 8x30
Vortex Viper HD 6x32
 
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I can't speak to the long term durability of the 6.5X32 Fury, but optically they stand up incredibly well to anything out there unless you are into OCD type nitpicking. If you can find a pair for $200 or less, you just can't go wrong in my opinion. My cousin bought one of my two pair after looking through them for maybe 20 seconds. Now everyone he shows them to also try to buy them. That being said, I know there is better out there if you want to spend more.

I've also heard good things about these for the money.
http://www.eagleoptics.com/binoculars/eagle-optics/eagle-optics-ranger-srt-6x32-binocular

Bruce
 
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Viper 6x32 for $275 shipped from EO and a whole wad of extra unspent money in your pocket sounds great to me :)

Sharp, bright, light and compact, wide field, rugged with unconditional no fault lifetime warranty. Only flaw is mediocre CA control (fixed in the HD version) and some field curvature but shouldn't be a problem in the woods.

By all accounts th Swaro CL is overpriced for the optics, I don't see any reason to think its better optically than the Viper.
 
I had the Viper - not HD - had bad blackout with it, so I returned it. Else it was ok. The Swaro CL i looked at, not that great, it was just ok, it did not feel right, 30mm is not for me. If the Swaro was say 32mm and around $500 maybe. I think the older 30mm SLC was better.
I have the Meopta 6.5x32, I like it, is somewhat compact, but not as small as the Swaro. However it has great views.
 
I did`nt feel the CL was worth its asking price, loved the 6.5x fury, what about the 6x32 Opticron traveler ?
 
Ordered Viper 6X32 a couple of years ago and really wanted to like them, but too much eye relief for me. Exchanged them for Viper 8X32, same size and weight. Loved the 6X32 wide view though, and still wonder if I really gave them a chance. The EO price of $250 tempts me.
 
More than one has complained about the ER being too much for them in the Viper 6x32.

Go look through one first and make sure it's still in the hunt.
 
I need a small woods bino for usage from 20-300 yards
That seems to match quite well with probable intended use of those little Minox IF models : the 6.5x32 or the newer 7x28. Expect the Viper HD optics are better and of course they'd be more versatile; less cute though? ;)
 
For intended woods use- between the 2 you asked about- I would say the Viper if it was my decision. And I would make the same call if comparing the older non- HD Viper.

I have extensively used and compared the non HD 6x32 Viper to very nice glass and it performs very well. IMO the 6x32 Viper ( HD or non) is the best in its class right now. And 6x is great woods glass.

Now- it is a very small 6x class- but that little Viper is tops. And will probably stay that way unless the big boys start making 6x glass, and I unfortunate do not see that happening.

Can you imagine a 6x32 ( or even a 7x32 ) Swarovski SLC HD? That would awesome- and one I would order right now if I could put in a custom order. :t:
 
More than one has complained about the ER being too much for them in the Viper 6x32.

I am one of them -- the long eye relief (or more accurately, the too-short eyecups) caused me to experience blackouts. This is the only reason I returned them. As my comments here and elsewhere attest, optically they are phenomenal.

My brother has a pair now and has never complained of blackouts, and I bet if I had a pair again, with some practice I could find a comfortable eye position that would work for me without blackouts. My 6.5x Fury's have similar eye relief specs but give me no trouble in this regard, probably due to the big, soft eyecups that extend quite far.

Like poster caruh above, I also tried the 8x32 Viper HD's and found them to be phenomenal in every respect. No ER issues, higher mag, better optics with only slightly less FOV. Definitely the one bin I most regret selling.
 
... unless the big boys start making 6x glass, and I unfortunate do not see that happening ... a 6x32 ( or even a 7x32 ) Swarovski SLC HD ... would awesome ...

The Meopta 6.5x32 seems to be close, going by short reviews and comments on the internet. I think more on this model will be useful to many. Stated specs, also: FOV 440 ft or 8.4°, close focus 3 ft. Price in the USA $ 300.

Learnt of the joy of high-quality low-power optics - ease of placement, depth of field, brightness, etc. - only recently - with the 6x30 Kowa, astonshing at US$ 100 and 470 g. Still not sure, though, about using a 6x as the sole bin for woods.
 
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I am one of them -- the long eye relief (or more accurately, the too-short eyecups) caused me to experience blackouts. This is the only reason I returned them. As my comments here and elsewhere attest, optically they are phenomenal.

My brother has a pair now and has never complained of blackouts, and I bet if I had a pair again, with some practice I could find a comfortable eye position that would work for me without blackouts.

The Viper 6 x 32 HD does have too much eye relief for comfortable use without glasses but, with practice (held against the eyebrows seems best), it is possible to enjoy the remarkable optical performance. I suspect for most eyeglass (and sun glass) wearers, they would be ideal.
 
Swaro has better coatings resulting in more sparkling views, more natural and saturated colours, and, when exit pupil doesn't go beyond 3.75 mm, a brighter image because of higher light transmission.
 
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