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EDIII 60 v. 82 (1 Viewer)

b-lilja

Well-known member
Hi all,

I am a long time original owner of a EDII Fieldscope. It has been a great companion over the years. It took a tough blow at the Pt. Reyes Lighthouse (knocked over by someone I was letting look through the scope) and the objective ring was badly bent. It needed internal cleaning anyway so I sent it to Nikon and they said it was unrepairable, and so they are offering me a coupon to buy whatever I want (which is great!) from the Sport Optics site.

I am not that interested in the new Monarch, and I absolutely loved my EDII. The EDIII seems like a great evolution. My question is, should I go for a 60mm, or jump up to the 82? Who here has used both, and if so, what are the reactions? I read somewhere the 82s are variable in quality, whereas the 60s are consistently great.

Also, there are lots of these available from Japan on ebay. Any reactions/experience in buying from there?
 
If I had a coupon usable on the Sports Optics site I'd have a look at the new Monarch HG scopes. It's not a certainty, but they look very much like a reworking of the old Fieldscopes with a wider angle and longer eye relief zoom eyepiece.

I've used both the old scopes. From my experience QC was pretty good for both, but like every other scope, not perfect. Could be that if problems were more frequently reported in the 82mm it was just because the magnification could be taken higher where the problems would become more visible.
 
I checked the Nikon Americas USA site and it shows $15 shipping with a promo code spot, I guess you could use a promo code there that they give you. I checked return policy and nothing came up on that link, you could call them about this. I have the Nikon 50ED and had both the models of the 60mm ED and non ED! I now have a used Nikon 82 ED angled and love it. This is the second time that I have heard that Nikon can not fix an older spotter and give a coupon. I would find out about the return policy. I hope this helps some and sorry about your scope problem.
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=201857
 
b-,
I feel your pain. I recently went through a very similar circumstance, having dropped my 82 EDIII Fieldscope, bent the external lens cover and Nikon sent me a coupon (which is only good at their sports optic store, not camera store).

I previously had a 60 EDIII and loved it but a torrential rain made me trade it in and I went for the 82. Both were angled scopes. I personally greatly prefer the 60 MM after having both for a good number of years. The reasons for this include - easier for me getting on a bird with the 60 - maybe because this was my first scope; less scope view vibration on windy days; smaller and lighter. The 82 was slightly better for digiscoping due to increased lighting but I have since gone to carrying a small bridge camera instead of a digiscope set up.

I recently bought the 50 MM scope to be sure I had something to bring with me on a trip to NZ and Australia. I'll say for travelling this is a great little scope and will probably go with me on future trips. Only on one occasion did I wish I had a larger scope.

The issues I had with Nikon was that they couldn't confirm when they would have availability on their current offerings and that the coupon, while generous, was only good at the Sports Optic Store, and the coupon had to be used for a single one time order exceeding the coupon amount. So although I hadn't found more than two on line reviews, I purchased their new 60 MM Monarch Scope. I also ordered several pairs of Monarch bins to finish spending the coupon. The real aggravation was then getting a delivery date as the web site said "back ordered". I finally got the scope after 2 months but haven't used it yet. The binoculars still haven't arrived 3 months after being ordered.
 
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What is the "value" of the Nikon coupon? I have an ED82A and a few other Nikon products that probably won't be repaired, if and when the need arises.
 
If I had a coupon usable on the Sports Optics site I'd have a look at the new Monarch HG scopes. It's not a certainty, but they look very much like a reworking of the old Fieldscopes with a wider angle and longer eye relief zoom eyepiece.

I've used both the old scopes. From my experience QC was pretty good for both, but like every other scope, not perfect. Could be that if problems were more frequently reported in the 82mm it was just because the magnification could be taken higher where the problems would become more visible.

Hi Henry, I get the feeling the build quality on the Monarchs isn't on par with the old skool Fieldscopes, which strike me more as classic field instruments?
 
Hi all,

I am a long time original owner of a EDII Fieldscope. It has been a great companion over the years. It took a tough blow at the Pt. Reyes Lighthouse (knocked over by someone I was letting look through the scope) and the objective ring was badly bent. It needed internal cleaning anyway so I sent it to Nikon and they said it was unrepairable, and so they are offering me a coupon to buy whatever I want (which is great!) from the Sport Optics site.

I am not that interested in the new Monarch, and I absolutely loved my EDII. The EDIII seems like a great evolution. My question is, should I go for a 60mm, or jump up to the 82? Who here has used both, and if so, what are the reactions? I read somewhere the 82s are variable in quality, whereas the 60s are consistently great.

Also, there are lots of these available from Japan on ebay. Any reactions/experience in buying from there?

My sample of the 82 was superior to the 60 I had previously. If you can get a good one in my opinion the 82 is clearly preferable.
 
I get the feeling the build quality on the Monarchs isn't on par with the old skool Fieldscopes, which strike me more as classic field instruments?

The build quality of the Monarch scopes is similar to the older Fieldscopes, very good IMO. Though they are made in China these days. I had no issues with zoom-, focus wheel, lens shade etc. when testing a sample. The scope + EP is quite heavy though but feels very solid.

The current zooms for the Monarch have better eye relief and works better with glasses than older Fieldscope zooms. Would be a reason to get the Monarch.

Optical quality and sample variation is another question.
I would never buy any optics without having a return policy.
Probably even more important for made in China stuff.

I used the EDIII for many years with an 30x EP. The ED82 is quite a lot heavier and you may need a sturdier head and tripod for it. Both are excellent scopes but the issue for me was that the zooms were not working with my eye glasses. Switched to Swaro for that reason.
 
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I think the old fieldscope zoom is an issue to really consider,but if you were happy with the old edII ,i assume that you didnt find it restrictive or uncomfortable ..i love the optics of the fieldscope, and both the 60 and the 82 are very nice,..but lease tell us more about this coupon,..What is the value they offered?..I would be very intrigued to test the monarch series .I was very excited about the original Monarch concept,and was dissapointed when it was aborted,because pretty much was the perfect scope idea ..the original fieldscope prism,astronomy mount,modular objectives¡..wow...too good to be true...but if the zoom has been improved with a somehow larger FOV and better eye relief,and most the qualities of the original series are retained,then i think the fact that the scope is made in china is more of an aesthetic issue .The nikon ED50 is chinese and has passed the QC test with flyng colors(specially the pink version)
 
I have tried the Monarch zoom on a Monarch 82 scope, and it is significantly nicer to view with than the old 25-75x MC II zoom I had for many years. Especially for eyeglass users it would be much better. On the other hand, when I had the Fieldscope ED 82 A, I frequently utilized the high magnifications above 60x.

Of the scopes in general, if the OP has been happy with the ED II, the ED III is the same but better, with more brightness, contrast, and truer colors as well as improved resistance to flare. The ED 82 A is like a 1.35x bigger and better version of the ED III, with that much better resolving power when seeing is good and better performance in low light.

The Monarch, from the one sample I have seen, is optically almost identical to the ED 82 A. I would need side-by-side comparisons with equally good samples in order to assess whether light transmission, flare properties, color rendering, CA or contrast has changed between the two models. The Monarch is about the same size, but clearly heavier.

Anyways, all three are excellent choices, and a clear step up from an ED II 60.

Kimmo
 
...The nikon ED50 is chinese and has passed the QC test with flyng colors(specially the pink version)
For as much as I love the ED50, I wish that were true, but I don't think it is with respect to materials/durability. Original production had a defective tripod screw thread design that failed for a number of users, and I've seen a few units where the prism housing has split at the seam after a very modest impact. Examination of the broken scope reveals that the screws are anchored in surprisingly insubstantial extensions on the interior of the plastic housing. Perhaps these are only design, rather than QC flaws, but it is hard to say without testing the materials that failed. It does seem that the optical quality control of ED50 scopes is excellent.

--AP
 
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